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Childbirth

Share experiences and get support around labour, birth and recovery.

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Original poster

Is it true 1st babe longest 2nd babde shortest 3rd babe hardest?

31 replies

horseshoe · 31/07/2006 12:35

I'm only at No2 and both true so far. My sis expecting her 3rd and thinking of homebirth but worried as everyone says 3rd birth hardest.

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dinosaur · 31/07/2006 12:37

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Clary · 31/07/2006 12:37

oh crikey.
How can this be true for everyone?
FWIW my third birth was the quickest and easiest - partly because I knew better what I was doing, but also maybe, well, just because!
1st was the longest. 2nd and 3rd about the same length of labour. I wouldn't let a story like this (which BTW I've never heard before) put yr sis off a home birth.

Sallie · 31/07/2006 13:39

No - mine have steadily got half a pound lighter each time and the labours have been shorter and easier. I don't think you can make any generalisations though as everyone's experience of childbirth and labour is soooo different.

tenalady · 31/07/2006 13:42

only have one, how does 3 days labour grab yer for hard work?

crazydazy · 31/07/2006 13:42

Nope - DD born first took 1 hour from my first labour pain. Only had gas and air and I felt great after I had given birth.

DS - 8 hours in total, was induced and given epidural so didn't have one labour pain, when I gave birth straight after was violently sick and felt really terrible due to the epidural.

If I'd had DS first with his birth then I would never have had a second child.

gigglinggoblin · 31/07/2006 13:52

def not true! i was induced with 1 & 2, 1 took 3 days, 2 took 2 days, loads of stitches with both. no 3 came naturally, no stitches, 4 hrs start to finish, fabulous water birth - was a wonderful experience!

monkey · 31/07/2006 13:56

wow, actually sorrily enough, spot on for me.

ds1 emerg c-section after 12 hours or so labour.
ds2 less than an hour from start to finish. very painful as 1st vb.
ds3 quite a few hours and an ever-growing number of docs & staff as baby stuck & distressed etc. all came out in the end, babe included.

never heard that saying before, but yup,, for me it's right. what do they say about number four then???

Enid · 31/07/2006 13:57

my 3rd wasn't as quick as my 2nd but was the best experience of all of them

fennel · 31/07/2006 14:09

3rd by far the easiest.quickest, no intervention, home birth, no tearing. still not a walk in the park but better than the other two.

notagrannyyet · 31/07/2006 14:24

That's just how it was with my first 3!

First 7.5 hours.....Not long at all really but it was my longest!

No.2 1 hour labour, 2 pushes and there she was.

No.3 4 hours total, but was pushing for nearly 2 hours before he was pulled out with forceps.

Nos.4,5,6. All between 2-3 hours.

zubb · 31/07/2006 14:31

3rd was quickest for me. Got quicker with each one.

tortoiseshell · 31/07/2006 14:39

I think that's pretty accurate for me. 1st was definitely longest, 2nd was short and fast, 3rd was long (though shorter than 1st),and most painful. But 2 and 3 were at home.

I've heard as a general rule that 3rd babies tend to take longer to get going, but are often faster once they really get going - this was true for me - I spent about 9-10 hours getting to 7cm, (having had a 3 hour labour start to finish with dd), then 15 mins or so after that till birth.

Lems · 31/07/2006 15:38

everyone different but 1st 4 days slow 14hrs labour, 2nd water went then 2hrs later contraction 4hrs later born, 3rd 12hrs. I think with 3rd I was the lazy one!!!

Miaou · 31/07/2006 15:41

Nope, my labours were 1. 16hrs, 2. 8 hrs and 3. 4 hrs, with the third one being the easiest by far (and the one without pain relief!)

My midwife did tell me (antenatally) that IHE 3rd ones can often be "awkward buggers" though

DumbledoresGirl · 31/07/2006 15:43

Not in my case.

First was hardest by a long shot (posterior, induced after waters broke, forceps delivery, etc), second was easier, third was a piece of p* but she was also my lightest baby and popped out as easy as anything, fourth was then posterior again so took a bit longer than expected but was still relatively easy.

Hope that reassures your sister.

PsychoFlame · 31/07/2006 15:45

nope. For me, 2nd longest, both the same hard/easy birthwise.

Psycho saying 4th was hardest (but she had broken ribs, so does she count???) (he was also the earliest too if that has any bearing). 2nd fastest, but tore worst. And... 5th took longer than planned because I was 4cms for aaaaaaaaaaaaages (4cms between 1 and 4.40....), and then suddenly went to 10 and out at 4.49am.

Miaou · 31/07/2006 15:50

Going through labour with broken ribs? What happened???

PsychoFlame · 31/07/2006 16:00

car accident at 28weeks. I got hit from behind at a red traffic light (so not my fault in other words!), and my bump hit the steering wheel, causing ribs to break.

broken ribs and prem labour that had to be stopped.

labour eventually induced at 36wks as ribs weren't able to heal because of baby growing beneath them!

baby came out with locked neck and fused bits in his spine and screamed blue bloody murder for weeks until fixed by a chiropractor!!

he is now 6 tho......and a pain in the arse like all other 6yr old boys!

juuule · 31/07/2006 16:37

Of my 1st 3. 1st was longest and hardest. 2nd shorter and the lightest baby. 3rd was easiest, and quickest and heaviest of the 3.
However, did spend the whole of the day before thinking that I was in labour only to be told I wasn't. Very painful but not labour, no contractions and no dilation - hospital guessed it was baby turning to get into position and pressing on a nerve.

Gingeme · 14/08/2006 16:39

my first labour was very very long and was horrible. Baby was 8lb10oz. Had loads of stitches.
2nd labour was much easier though still quite long. About 9 hours in all and baby was 7lb11oz.
3rd labour was easy peasy. Had a water birth and labour was about 6 hours long. Bbaby was 7lb6oz. Had 3 stitches.
Heres hoping labour no4 will be even shorter and baby will be a bit smaller.

waterfalls · 14/08/2006 16:52

For me its true

1st baby -17 hour labour

dt1 - 12 hour labour, normal delivery.

dt2 12 hour loabour, emergency C section, had to be put to sleep halfway through as epidural stopped working and could feel the surgeons hands in my stomach................OUCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

amateurmum · 14/08/2006 17:01

True for me too (surely coincidence though as this must be old wives tale?). Had to have an emergency section with my third - nothing in previous births to suggest this would happen. I would never have a homebirth as baby 3 nearly died - we needed the emergency care only hospital could provide. Have to say I have 2 friends who both had homebirths for 3rd babies and were fine though.

lemonaid · 14/08/2006 17:11

Only have one. Seriously hope that will be the longest (40 hours and then emergency c/s)...

My mother had 1st longest and hardest, 2nd (induction) shorter and easier, 3rd shortest and easiest (was born within 30 minutes of getting to hospital and virtually shot out), 4th back to longer and harder again (not as much as 1st, but longer and harder than #2 or #3).

NAB3 · 14/08/2006 17:13

1st was emergency section

2nd was 23 hours 55 minutes from first proper contraction to being born but 3hrs 20 mins from waters breaking and 20 mins of pushing.

3rd was 12 hours 45 mins from start to finish, 15 mins from waters going and 10 mins pushing. Both times I went from 1cm to 10 instantly. Not great for the babies. Total labour was noted as 3 hours 17 mins.

LadyTophamHatt · 14/08/2006 17:16

1st-longest and hardest
2nd-fast and easy compared to 1st
3rd-even faster and even easier.

so No it's not true for me.

4th WILL BE easier still in january

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