How far dilated did you get with just a TENS?

[BoysBoysBoysAndMe]

Got one for ds3.

Not used one before.

Just curious how effective women have found them?

How dilated were you on getting to hospital when you've used one at home?

About 2cm. I had a looooooong latent phase of labour and had to spend a whole night on my own in the antenatal ward having contractions (which I still maintain were painful even if they werent doing anything!) and I found the TENS machine did give me something to focus on.

However, when things started to get very painful (and I still wasnt really dialating, I ended up having to have an induction drip due to lack of progress after 36 hours) the TENS was pretty pointless - as evidenced by the fact that after about 2 hours of DH doing the button pressing, I realised that he was turning the boost button 'on' between contractions, and off when I was having a contraction! However, I think by this point I was quite disheartened and pissed off by the whole labour thing anyway!

But I would say go for one, as they can really help. Just go with it and see how you feel about it. It is quite a strange sensation to start with, but by the time the contractions are really kicking in it is more of a distraction than anything.

I am in awe of all the women on here who give birth with no pain relief, I had everything!

I used one with dd2, right up until my waters broke and I got into a pool. It was only a 5h labour - and I used gas and air for the last hour or so. No idea about dilation as I wasn't examined! Dd2 came out before they got the chance :)

For me it felt like my back was being pummeled, which was exactly what I needed.

Good luck!

Make sure you test it... I hired one and the first one didn't work!

I used one two weeks ago for the birth of DS.... Used it for 10 hours alongside paracetamol and was delighted to find I was 7cm when I rocked up at the birthing unit... It was a godsend and I'll definitely be using it again next time!!

I'd second the testing it first - take spare batteries and supposedly it's helpful to use it in advance of labour...

Ime I wouldn't bother with tens, waste of money.

I put it on as soon as contractions started which was just after my waters broke. The pads didn't last long as I was so sweaty they kept coming off (i had spare pads too and they didn't last long either, im not a very sweaty person usually either) and I got very agitated by it tbh. I ended up nearly dropping it in the toilet too which would have been very expensive as I hired it.

My contractions were pretty intense from the beginning though 3-4 mins apart from the first one and ds was born in less than 5 hours. Maybe make a decision based on your previous births?

Gas and air is all I would personally recommend to pregnant women, i had stuff like stress balls, aromatherapy, music, hypnotherapy etc and I didn't have time to even think about using any of it.

It did nothing for me. Not sure if I put it on too late, I didn't realise the cramping I was having was labour until I was examined at my routine appointment that just happened to be that day, and told I was 4cm dilated, and then forgot about it while we went to hospital.

I put it on once I actually started feeling contractions, but took it off after about 30 mins because it was just annoying me. Got in the bath instead, then got out when I wanted to push, so other than 30mins of failed TENS usage I had no pain relief.

3 out of 5 of my labours where totally on tens. The 5th was combined with hypnobirthing I love my little box and the distraction of here it comes push the button. The one labour tens failed me on was my induction which was a 5 day hideous affair that can still bring me out in cold sweats.

I've bought one as i had amazon vouchers so was essentially 'free', and everything I've heard on this thread sounds mostly worth a try.. Do you need to practice with it first?

Love, love, love mine. Done all 3 labours with it and g+a. Get it on early so the endorphins have time to build. Don't let anybody else have the controls and remember to turn it off boost when the contraction dies.

Mine got me through a back-to-back labour with DC2, midwives could not believe I wasn't have back pain and I honestly wasn't. Also my quickest labour oddly...

mine only worked when the contractions were little more than period pains

once the contractions got intense the TENS added to the discomfort, I wasn't much dialated when I took it off, it was well before I was 3 cm

Used mine for DD, second baby. Only pain relief I had.... Gave birth in hospital car park, so watch out, could be too effective!!!! Tbh not sure it did a lot but it was something to do... Prob best in early/ mid labour, think I vamped it up to full power pretty quick...

I didn't find it helpful at all to be honest, more of a distraction than a pain reliever but then perhaps that's the point? I didn't keep it on past 4cms but that did take me 12 hours to achieve!

I had the best intentions but didn't get it out of the box ... once I was in the zone I didn't want to have anything except for rescue remedy

I didn't find it helpful and wish I hadn't bothered to hire it. The whole idea grossed me out!

Yes test it first. In the booklet that came with mine I was recommended to try it at 38 weeks +, just once.

I remember lying on my bed, completely relaxed and happy and the feeling lasted for ages. Gave me something to hold on to during labour a few weeks later!

Also if you can get some medical tape, the stuff they use to hold down the edges of big dressings (Boots sell it in the First Aid aisle) then you can use it to stick the pads down if you get sweaty and they begin to peel off. Don't forget spare batteries!

Make sure you read the manual carefully and know how to work it too. I had a few practices and also practiced grabbing it in the dark and pressing the boost button, which came in very handy as I refused to have lights on during DS's birth and built myself a little cushion nest to labour in.

Only used it for about ten minutes with DS2 , homebirth , moved onto G&A quite quickly , think i was about 8cms when i tried the tens , moving around alot and swearing had worked up until that point ! Personally didn't like it , perhaps if i had tried it earlier it might of been more useful . DS was back to back , not sure if that would make any difference though.

8 with first then G&A when arrived at hospital. Prob sane with dd2 but didn't have an internal - took it off on arrival at hospital to get in pool, dd born within 45 mins or so.

With my first I kept it on until I was about 5cm in the hope that It might actually start working at some point, with my second, and I admit, heavily influenced by my first labour, I ripped it off and threw it after about an hour of painful contractions, as it just annoyed the hell out of me.
I tried it again six months later for hip and back pain, and it had no bloody effect on me then either. Looks like I'm just the awkward bugger with strange nerve endings (actually that's probably not far from the truth, apparently people with hypermobility are resistant to certain types of pain relief, and I'm definately an awkward bugger)
Still, for the majority of people it seems to work, so ignore me please and buzz away.

All the way with dc2 :) Don't know how much it helped or not but was a good distraction.

2cm - then I arrived at the hospital and got in the pool.

Don't know if it really helped or not. I found it quite hard to control while having such painful contractions I couldn't stand up.

Thanks everyone for your replies. Have me hope that there was some use in the TENS.

I used it, alongside gas and air and got to 10cm!! Got to 4cm, just with tens.

Hideous back to back labour. Much worse than ds2 who was also back to back.

Was begging for more pain relief but I was being transferred to a different hospital so they wouldn't give me any!

Anyway, all over now. And I would try tens again so it was worth it and I did find it beneficial.

Thanks for the advice.

Well done!!

Congratulations! It sounds like you did an amazing job! Full details please - name, weight, gender etc...