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Childbirth

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

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Original poster

Do you think there is a link between painful periods and extreme pain in labour?

36 replies

bottleblonde · 14/04/2007 20:06

Following a comment in another thread I would like to hear peoples opinions and experiences. Could it be a case of different pain thresholds? I had v v painful periods and a difficult labour (epidural and 2 top ups and I was still in agony). Could there be a link?

OP posts:

lulumama · 14/04/2007 20:08

i think a lot of it comes down to perception of pain, pain threshold, and how you deal with the pain , also preconceptions about how painful it will be and how you will cope /not cope

am loathe to say yes or no, labour is so individual, and would be awful for women to think that if they had terrible periods, they will have terrible labours !

NomDePlume · 14/04/2007 20:10

I get painful periods, the first two days (and the day before) are agony, but my labour was 3 hours from start to finish, very intense but manageable. I had no pain relief at all.

zippitippitoes · 14/04/2007 20:10

not in my experience...they are different things so like lulu says I wouldn't try and find a connection

NomDePlume · 14/04/2007 20:10

should say that DD was born perfectly healthy at 37.5wks and 7lb 1oz

HonorMatopoeia · 14/04/2007 20:11

Very painful periods here and a bad labour too, but,ironically, my periods have been more painful since I went through labour.

Tinker · 14/04/2007 20:13

My first midwife did say that women with painful periods do tend to have fast but intense labours. But that was in response to me naively asking if labour "wouldn't be so bad would it if I have painful periods"

However, she was right. Painful periods = 2 very fast but intensely painful labours for me.

Tommy · 14/04/2007 20:17

I've always had very painful periods and I managed 2 labours just with TENS (I am also a complete wuss when it comes to pain so not me being "brave" or anything!)

KnayedFrot · 14/04/2007 20:29

I don't think so from my personal experience.

I have endometriosis and atm my periods are not painful but a few years ago I was virtually bedridden for 2-3 days each time I had a period (only had one every 4-5 months, thankfully).

I have only one DS, i had mild contractions for 24 hours & didn;t even need to turn on my tens, I then had very erratic and quite intensely painful contractions for about 3 hours without pain relief. When I was examined on reaching hsopital I was already fully dilated and managed the rest with g&a. Had some difficulty pushing DS out as he was bungying with the cord over his shoulder, otehrwise I think he would have been out pretty quickly.

Labour for me was f*ing painful but manageable with g&a, the pain i get from endo is difficult to manage - it's different sort of pain and otc stuff doesn;t touch it.

MissGolightly · 14/04/2007 20:35

I have painful periods (well, had, they have still not come back yet following DS' birth a year ago) but managed an induced labour with only gas and air. So no, I don't think there is a link.

On the plus side my mother had v painful periods as a young woman and said that after childbirth she stopped getting period pains at all! As I say, I can't comment as I am still bfing and have not yet had one, but I have my fingers crossed...

chocolateface · 14/04/2007 20:41

It's an interesting question. When I was young I had VERY painfull periods, couldn't walk, would throw up have diarhea etc. They weren't too bad by the time I conceived, thoug. My first labour was hell, but I was very tense. 2nd was better, and 3rd I had no pain at all. I don't think it's a pain thresh-hold thing.

kama · 14/04/2007 20:50

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Original poster

bottleblonde · 14/04/2007 21:08

Interesting, thanks for comments.
On the upside I now get no period pain at all. My experience of childbirth wasn't great but I still feel that it was a process that my body needed to go through.

OP posts:

Lact8 · 14/04/2007 21:11

I've always had really painful periods, upset stomach, aching for days before and for the first 4 days, I'm on atm and I currently feel like I have been kicked in the fanjo

BUT I found my 3 births surprisngly painfree. Gas and air did the trick. I was in labour for between 12 and 24 hours.

I've always thought that because I have such painful periods I have quite a high pain threshold

Original poster

bottleblonde · 14/04/2007 21:22

Regarding Kama's comment, my contractions 'measured' 170 on the machine. I know this because my husband was fascinated by the machines and took photos of them. Anyone know what the machines actually measure?

OP posts:

lisad123 · 14/04/2007 21:27

hope not, or they will have to knock me out
hehe

hunkermunker · 14/04/2007 21:30

Have had two 8lb+ babies without any pain relief and periods that made me pass out, shaking, sobbing and retching.

TheArmadillo · 14/04/2007 21:35

I never had anything in the way of period pain pre-ds (since then is another story ).

Had a long (22 hrs from getting into delivery room) and very painful labour (contractions off the scale on the tummy strap thingy - see I know all the technical jargon ).

However I also have a very low pain threshold. I'm a big wuss. I once passed out from the pain of a twisted ankle - though I was naked, wet and cold at the time in my defence.

hunkermunker · 14/04/2007 21:36

Belt monitor was registering massively high contractions with DS1 - don't know with DS2 though. DS1 was back to back, so not sure if that made a difference. DH took great delight in saying "that was a pissy one!" and "ooh, bet that smarts" when it went over what the midwife said was the upper limit

zippitippitoes · 14/04/2007 21:47

i assumed everyone had painful periods

charlottegeorgiaolivermums · 14/04/2007 22:05

Always had painful periods until I was 20yrs but 3 x labours no worries. I'd rather have my labours than the period pains I used to have.

kama · 14/04/2007 23:55

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kama · 14/04/2007 23:58

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Twinklemegan · 15/04/2007 00:30

Gosh, I wish I knew what my contractions were on this contraction scale. Especially in the beginning when they sent me off for an f*ing walk when I was agony.

VeniVidiVickiQV · 15/04/2007 01:00

I dont think it is to do with pain thresholds AT ALL!

I used to get (although they are creeping back now) VERY VERY painful periods. There would be occasions where I thought I must be dying and was contemplating calling an ambulance because it was so painful.

According to my GP (although I must look it up properly really), it is to do with an excess of a type of chemical present during your period that causes the pain, hence Mefanemic Acid being used to prevent it. And it DOES work.

My labour pains were awful from the get go, although I have since discovered that I have a malformed sacro-iliac joint (it is split into three pieces), so the feeling that my back was breaking was essentially, not so far from the truth.

hope that clears it up

VeniVidiVickiQV · 15/04/2007 01:02

Oh and I really understand that "kicked in the fanjo" feeling Lact8.

My episiotomy scar becomes sensitive when i am on too.

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