What music did you listen to during labour?

[megarobotdiscoparty]

If you used music, did you find it helped? I can really see how it might work as a distraction technique and hoping to use it, already have a lot of chilled stuff I've been using for hypnobirthing practice loaded onto the iPod ready to go.... wondering whether upbeat songs and old favourites might work too.

If you used music during labour, what did you listen to?

Hey :D I had a c-section 4 weeks ago so didn't technically use music to relax or anything but the surgeons had the radio on (which DID make me calm :D) and Shakespeare's Sisters 'Stay' was playing as my son was born :) My SIL used a mixed 80's cd to have her natural delivery and she said she would do it again. HTH. x

I had my whole Itunes playlist on random shuffle but to be honest I don't remember noticing it much once I was 'in the zone'!

for DD1 I remember we recorded a load of stuff. Couldn't get the CD to work so stuck the radio on instead. seriously, just as she wss crowning, Barry White came on singing, Can't Get Enough of Your Love Baaaayyyybbbbeeee. I did actually see the funny side of it, despite everything

DD2 didn't record anything. and her birth was way too fast to even geykt the radio on.

Geykt is a technical term, meaning something close to get.

I had a playlist made up on my iPhone but when it came to it I wanted the room to be quiet. I had a long labour and was knackered and any unnecessary noise just pissed me off.

DS1 was born to the soft relaxing melodies of Guns n'Roses and Faith No More. I needed 'angry' music to make me push! Weirdly I couldn't stand any music playing when I was in labour with the other two

I switched my music off 2 seconds after switching it on! I love music but definitely needed quiet then!

uakiti

With first birth I had a proper 'relaxing birth music' CD that came with a natal hypnotherapy kit. Had swooshy wave noises and some farking noisy sea-gulls that became rather annoying by about the fifth time round (it was a long labour).

Second time was shorter and had Play by Moby on a loop. I don't like complete silence (although didn't want talking) and the music gave me something to focus on.

I noticed while labouring at home that if a song I knew came on the radio I could mentally sing along and contractions hurt less, rather like i find working out easier if I'm enjoying the music. So to help him feel useful got DH to make a playlist & cd with some of my favourite chilled out tracks to take into hospital. We actually took a digital radio too and had 6music on most of the time till a Leonard Cohen concert came on and I don't like him at all. The Beta Band and Stone Roses are the cool things I remember. There were CDs in the hospital of the free-with-the-Daily-Mail variety so I suspect we graduated on to them later but I have blanked the memory along with the pain of crowning.

With DD1 the radio went off seconds after being turned on as, like others, I wanted silence instead

For DD2 we fiddled with the radio and could only get a local appalling commercial station and DH and I spent a lot of time moaning about the annoying adverts, DJ, music, more adverts. But we didn't think to turn it off. Apparently DH got the giggles as I reached the pushing stage, and got the death stare from the MW, as Salt 'n' Pepa 'Push it' came on! I was oblivious. Then about half an hour after DD2 was born and I had a few minutes in the delivery room on my own with her, and 'Sweet Child of Mine' came on. Whenever I hear it now (DD2 is 1) I have a little moment of remembering her birth.

On the advice of a friend I had an audiobook - a Bill Bryson one, as its something I'd listened to lots before, and often fell asleep to. Something I could zone in and out of, filled the quiet gap, and wouldn't irritate me (as sometimes music can if I'm in a funny mood). By the time it got to the hard bits, I wouldn't have noticed anything...

As a result, DS's (though was a surprise at that point) middle name changed to William a few hours before he was born ;)

DH played the 'easy listening' stuff on my iPod. So we heard Tracy Chapman and Seal. Then we had to turn it off as I needed the fan on and there was only one plug :-(
Music is really important to me and I thought I'd need it on, but I really wasn't bothered in the end.

I did take CDs to hospital for dds birth, but couldn't be bothered with them after the first one finished. It didn't help or relax me. I had 2 home births after that and he first one there wasn't time to urn the tv off. I was gutted after that the first sounds ds heard were some random, middle of the night tv programme. Next dd, the tv noise annoyed me so much I moved my self across the room while in considerable pain just to switch it off. I'd take it with you if you think it might help, it's to late to decide you want it once your there.

In the early stages of labour at home me and DH:

• put up our Christmas tree (it was Dec 7th)
• drank a small bottle of dessert wine it was medicinal and relaxing, ok??!
• watched 4 out of 6 episodes of Nathan Barley cos our Hypno Birth teacher said comedy was a good idea - something familiar that makes you laugh will help you stay relaxed

This lasted us from 3pm when contractions started until midnight when they were so strong that I couldnt be bothered with Barley anymore! After that, I listened to our hypnobirthing affirmations and MP3s until 4am when we got to the MLU. I was 7cm on arrival, felt calm, and DS was born at 0856! Music/comedy/your favourite TV show - and even a nice glass of wine! - can all help you stay calm and relaxed in early labour!

We had a chill out CD one of the midwives had made, that was quite nice early on. I then needed something livelier so Thrice, then some Bowie. The actual pushing bit was one of those all-hands-on-deck scenarios, so no music but by the second Bowie song I wasn't really registering it. Afterwards the three of us had a cuddle and we listened to Black Sabbath and the Pixies.