Labour- tips and tricks you wish you'd known

[user1484167681]

Hi everyone, just about to go into third trimester with first baby and starting to think about labour and childbirth itself.

Hoping to gather some collective wisdom here- what did you wish you'd known for your first labour? What tips and tricks did you learn (or get told!) that helped with the whole experience? :)

For example, yesterday I discovered that you should take lip balm because your lips can get very dry from the gas/air. Would never have thought of that myself!

[GerrytheBerry]

If the pain is manageable, then suddenly becomes unbearable, it is probably a sign baby is about to come, with my first I didn't get the urge to push I was just in unbearable pain and had to be told by the midwives, your babys head is right there you need to push! With my next two I knew that pain meant baby was coming.
With my first I wanted every pain relief going, with my next two I had nothing, only clary sage oil that I inhaled from a hanky the same way you'd use gas and air, the main reason for going without is gas and air made me go a bit loopy when I had my first!

[affectionincoldclimate]

Get another birth partner who is not your DP/DH. Ideally a woman who has given birth, who you both like and trust, sometime with a solid head on and communication skills.

My labour was 2.5 days. DP and my female friend (chosen on criteria listed above) were doing shifts so each could get some rest or nip to the shops while the other kept me company and brought me food and drink.

My friend was also great at dealing with stressful logistics and decision making. One she was less emotionally attached, two, she could see before I even said something that I I moved to another stage having experienced it herself. My DP was relying on what he learnt in classes which is why at one point he kept saying I couldn’t be in active labour as my contractions weren’t close enough as he sat there monitoring them on an app where I was already pushing. He thought he was being helpful with all the “knowledge” as there was no way for him to know the difference where my friend simply asked me to describe the feeling and she called the midwife straight away.

She also took pictures while DP was close to me in the moment of birth.

[StandardNameHere]

Plenty of hair ties!
Nothing worse than being hot and sweaty and your hair getting in the way

[Hotpinkangel19]

Be prepared for the after pains... it was like going in to labour all over again for me with baby no 3 😬

[makemyminduptime]

Not so much a tip for labour, but if you don't already do your grocery shopping online, get it set up now. An absolute godsend to be able to get your groceries delivered, including nappies and wipes etc in the early days when you're either too tired to make it round the supermarket or when feeding, changing, napping just takes over your life, and when baby is napping you'd rather just take the opportunity to put your feet up with a cuppa!

[CPtart]

Don't wear your own nightdress /shirt to give birth in. Mine was binned straight after. Forget the glamour and use a hospital gown or the like.

[mrsRosaPimento]

Get pads with a smooth top. The tiny holes in always ultra kept catching the ends of my stitches.

[mrsRosaPimento]

Take a bottle of water to the toilet to pour over your muff when you wee. I wish someone had told me how much it stings.

[mrsRosaPimento]

Energy drinks.

[babybat]

At one point I was transferred from the midwife led unit to the labour ward; I think my midwife was aware that I was likely to end up with an EMCS. I was nil by mouth from that point. I wish I'd known to ask DH to go and buy me a sandwich at that point, because by time I made it to recovery, the only food available was tea and toast, and I'd not eaten in 24 hours!

It's not true that you won't care about how you give birth so long as the baby gets out - your consent is still important. Make sure your birth partner understands and supports you.

For postnatal, take an eye mask and earplugs - the wards are often noisy. Get shower gel in a bottle with a hook - easier than bending to get them off the floor!

[FartnissEverbeans]

I wish I had had an elective c-section

Everything else is pissing in the wind really

[oigetoffmycheese]

Haven’t read whole thread but for what it’s worth. I’ve only delivered vaginally so have no experience of c-section.

Try to trust your body and the clinicians.

Don’t push too hard too early!

Sounds odd but try to relax and get as much sleep in early labour.

In the shower afterwards....remember that your genitals will feel different. It was a massive shock for me.

Have a zippy bag of cotton wool soaked in olive oil to wipe off that first pop from the baby.

Don’t set your expectations too high.

[Scoleah]

Take food & Extra food for your OH!
We both got a Cup of Tea & Toast (best piece of toast I’ve ever had: may I add!) straight after birth (just after midnight), my husband stayed the Night. I got fed breakfast, he didn’t. & as it was all so fast we didn’t take any change for machines /to buy breakfast either so we shared a bowl of rice crispies! so Definalty take spare change!

Take Chrgers, take mini fan, Maternity pads and don’t wear light pjs afterwards! ( I naively packed white pjs after dd) big mistake! & comfy clothes for coming home in. Why I thought taking pre pregnancy jeans in with me to drag on whilst wearing a giant maternity Pad , I have no idea!
Good luck with everything

[rachrach2]

I did pregnancy yoga instead of hypnobirthing and I found those breathing techniques helped a lot (as I imagine hypnobirthing would too, but I couldn’t get past some of the terminology so wasn’t for me). I had one (days long) labour with an epidural once I was allowed due to exhaustion, it was great. I had a lovely water birth with my second which was an amazing experience but I made the right decision for the circumstances both times.

If you like photos, ask your husband to take some, I have photos all through labours (including the actual births) and I love them. They are private ones obviously but i enjoy looking at them! Wish I had a video now!

I always use tampons for periods but liked maternity pads after my first and it was good padding for stitches! If you have stitches, holding a pad firmly over them when trying to poo was really helpful. Breastfeeding lying down was more comfy too than putting pressure on my stitches and I actually loved feeding lying down generally after that in the evening/night time.

Lansinoh ointment for nipples before and after every feed to start and make an real effort to get latch right even if means removing baby a few times and trying again. Anusol at the first sign of any piles!

[marvinsandwich]

And don't spend a fortune on a special birthing nightie. Ridiculous. You'll spend most of the time wearing just a t shirt or totally naked. And you won't care.

[marvinsandwich]

And - it's really hot on maternity wards. (For the babies) so take t shirts and thin nighties etc. Or you'll swelter.

[marvinsandwich]

Also - buy some cheap primark pants a couple of sizes too big for you to wear afterwards with maternity pads. Much better than the awful paper knickers.

[marvinsandwich]

Hypnobirthing classes/cd before hand to prepare you, help relax you and help prevent you get nervous/worried.
When it starts, if it's very painful before you get to hospital, jump in the bath. Helped me a lot.
Big breaths through contractions. Don't get hung up on doing a specific Hypnobirthing breath technique.
Get your partner to massage your back in the early stages. This really helps.
Gas and air
I found staring at a specific point (in my case my partner's face!) and concentrating on my breath through the contractions helped when they got closer together.
An epidural if you need it. (I did. It was wonderful!).

Also:
Pack your birth bag with your partner so he knows where everything is. I was a bit out of it after my first birth and he couldn't find anything! So my baby was given a scratchy hospital issue hat. I was a bit upset by this!
And pack chocolate bars and energy bars and sarnies for him. That way he can stay with you rather than having to go hunting for vending machines round the hospital when he's not eaten in 10 hours!

[Fadingmemory]

Breathing exercises helped enormously in dealing with pain during contractions. I had practised during the latter part of my pregnancies.

[FirsttimemumJan18]

I've also made a note on some of these very useful tips...so thank you ladies! 13 weeks to go!!!👶

[annawilson12]

Hypnobirthing was such an amazing tool to allow me to cope with everything, I had an (unplanned) unassisted home birth and it kept me so calm and able to deal with the labour. I think it would have also helped had I been in hospital or had to be induced etc. Try really hard to relax between contractions. And learn some breathing techniques. I was lucky in that my labour was straightforward, 7hrs from water breaking to baby appearing, and managed to breath through it all with no pain relief-it can happen. Everyone's experience is so different so be prepared to go with whatever's you feel you should do at the time.

[ememem84]

Totally agree with point 6 above. When ds popped out I was so overwhelmed with relief I burst into tears. Dh thinks I was overwhelmed with love. Nope. Relief.

I am totally in love with ds now though.

[MytToeHurtsBetty]

Take lactose. No one needs to strain after that. Natural OR c section.

[Mycarsmellsoflavender]

Start drinking raspberry leaf tea now. I drank it every day in the third trimester and had 4 quick labours ( 1st was 4.5 hours, others were 2 hours or less). I attribute it to the raspberry leaf tea as this is what it's supposed to do.

[crazycatbaby]

Don’t be scared of epidurals, they are amazing (and I’m terrified of needles). Maternity pads are surprisingly comfy. And if you get cajoled into eating a mouthful of toast or some sweets in labour and then have to have a section and a GA, the lovely anaesthetist will have to hold her hand over your throat like she’s strangling you as you get put under Wish I’d have stuck to lucozade then, lol