What was the most painful part of labour?

[ALS17081982]

I had an EMCS 7 weeks ago after 38 hours of labour. I had an epidural at 7cm dilated which dulled the contractions and then a spinal block before failed ventouse and then c section.

I found the contractions painful enough to ask for an epidural but I wasn't at any point screaming in pain. I used a TENS machine and later gas and air. Before the epidural the contractions were so painful I was being sick a lot and could no where near talk through a contraction. I want to know how much painful it would have got so I can be prepared if I try for a VBAC next time.

Which part of the whole labour did you find most painful? We're contractions at 7cm dilated easier than at the pushing stage? Was crowning the worst bit?

Thanks!

All of it from when the nurse broke my waters when I was only 2cm, the pain started within seconds to when the epidural went in 4 hours later, I taught my mum some swear words she didn't think she knew & nearly initiated divorce proceedings at the same time. I've had broken bones & horrendous Gallstones that didn't hurt as much.

About 8/9cm waters broke and it became super intense. Was better when I started to push.

Oh dear god the bit just before you need to push. And the burning ring of fire. I could feel myself tearing apart.
Then there's a sort of sloppy, popping, slurping sound and you can feel the torso and legs come out (those noises were probably all in my head but I felt like I could hear all of them coming out of me)

DC3.

I remember being in the pool. DH on is knees holding my hands and the midwife asked if he wanted a cushion to kneel on. I shouted during a contraction "HE'S FINE!"

I was also very high on gas and air and " it's all right for you lot drinking your tea and reading your magazines"
No one had tea or a magazine!

Does breastfeeding count? Because that was more painful that all of the labour parts for me!

When I had a placental abruption at 6cm dilated with DC2. In the ten minutes or so between the abruption and them knocking me out for an EMCS it was just one awful never ending contraction

Both my labours were on gas and air only. For the second I decided I was going to take it easy and asked for morphine when there was even the slightest ouch. But then it all went too fast.

There was a woman standing there with a loaded morphine syringe looking very apologetic when it was too late.

Anyway. After all that I went into adrenaline shock and was shaking too much to hold baby. Then I had to go to theatre for 3rd degree tears when I shook the entire time thanks to both shock and the epidural.

I still got home the same day though and heeled absolutely fine.

I don’t want to give birth again but the fact is that we manage. It’s scary and it does hurt but it is extraordinary what your body can do. And if it needs help, we are lucky to have the NHS.

It sounds like absolute garbage but as soon as your baby is in your arms you start to heal

Crowning. I felt like my body was going to split apart. But weirdly I felt I could control it, unlike transition which for half an hour made me feel like I couldn't cope.

And after pains with second birth. Oh god they were exactly the same intensity as my contractions, literally took my breath away. Midwife was great and straight away gave me some really strong painkillers.

Definitely transition for me! I was induced, via drip, and was coping OK (God bless my TENS machine!!) but it suddenly got unbearable and I said I wanted an epidural. However next minute I said I wanted to push! I was examined and 9cm dilated, so pretty much ready to go. I can only assume the wobble was transition, and DH remembers me wailing that I couldn't do it, etc. which is classic transition behaviour. I had an episiotomy, which I didn't feel at all.

The worst bit about the whole thing was being stitched afterwards. Not as intense as labour, but it bloody hurt!!

I'm actually more scared of the crowning bit than anything this time, as with episiotomy obviously I didn't have to go through that. Eeek!

Stitches!!!

Labour for me didn't have a worst moment. It was very manageable (gas and air and a tens machine).
The stitches afterwards were really unpleasant. I could feel the thread dragging through. And the first wee. Oh God. That made me cry. Had a few attempts but couldn't with the stingy pain. Eventually convinced the midwife to give me water in a jug so I could pour as I peed. They needed to make sure I peed a certain amount so were reluctant. I was can we not just subtract 200 ml (amount in the jug) from the amount I wee? That's my top tip

Transition was scary, I felt panicky and not in control. Contractions hurt like a bastard, specially first time round but I found breathing through them really enabled me to feel I could cope, along with gas and air. Suddenly the deep breathing didn’t cut it any more, transition moves you into a new zone.

I also found pushing really tough. The worst bit in terms of intensity of pain was crowning without a doubt. The ring of fire! But then I tore quite badly and also didn’t have any pain relief at that point- it was taken off me to help me push - so I felt it all. Brings tears to my eyes thinking about it!

DS2 was back to back and the contractions were horrendous. Crowning was also agony, but the worst was agreeing to have sterile water injections - the tens machine was touching the sides by about 8cm. Midwife said it would be like a bee sting, she was dead wrong. It was like having my skin ripped off and I screamed the birth centre down. Never again!

Why don’t they routinely give local anaesthetic for crowning? I had an episiotomy so couldn’t feel a thing.

I think it's because if you have no sensation then your out of control a bit and might increase the risk of badly tearing

Dryheave - I’ve wondered the same thing, but I believe as jazzy says, a local anaesthetic might mean you’re less in control and more susceptible to birth injury.

My childbearing days are over now but I do wish they could invent some kind of temporary local anaesthetic which didn’t increase the risk of injury, just for the crowning part. After my dc1, the crowning was the only part I really feared. I knew that although contractions are very painful, I’d coped first time and was confident I would again, but the horrible pain of tearing was by far the worst bit. I didn’t want to have an epidural purely for the sake of being numbed up for the very short time that crowning takes - it would have seemed like a sledgehammer to crack a nut iyswim. I guess there are good reasons but it would have been soooo good to not feel that ring of fire!

I don't remember transition but I didn't know what that was at the time. I don't remember any pain from crowning either, or from my episiotomy. I assume that was the pethidine, which otherwise made absolutely no fucking difference to the constant, screaming, retching agony I was experiencing.

The whole thing was horrendous to be honest. Pushing was pretty bad. DS got stuck and refused to move so my pushing wasn't productive and I remember feeling absolute terror and despair. Eventually I had no space between contractions at all - presumably my body was desperately trying to get him out. It was awful. My overwhelming memories are of claustrophobia.

Transition most definitely. I had DD on Friday and she is my second, I didn't realise that the second time around I needed to be more forceful with the pushing (that was for me personally) however I didn't require stitches this time so I think I had more control.

I just had gas and air and had to give up because it was making me space out and not manage the pushing enough.

I'd also second after crowning and waiting for the contraction to get her body out, I think I had the midwife holding her head and I felt like she was spinning and writhing around it totally freaked me out! One more push and she was here and all pain instantly forgotten x

My DD is 6 months old and I can still very much remember the pain

My DD is 6 months old and I can still very much remember the pain

My DD is 6 months old and I can still very much remember the pain

I had quick easy labours, but I remember both times actually laughing incredulously at the crowning moment because the pain was so intense and it just seemed completely impossible that the baby could possibly get out. My dp thought I was hysterical but I wasn't- I was just convinced the next but was impossible and laughter was the only thing I could do.

Ds2 was 10lb and i had no pain relief (homebirth). I remember thinking i was splitting in half and was going to die. Terrifying.

Funnily enough in hindsight i remember that birth as really empowering compared to my others as my dp was so supportive and so was my midwife. I wanted to roar like a lioness afterwards, but I dont think ive ever been so scared in my life. You really can come very close to the edge

My contractions were just disgusting. I couldn’t do anything apart from walk constantly, I hadn’t slept for 24 hours by this point and was desperate to kneel/sit on a birthing ball but my body wouldn’t let me. If someone had offered to shoot me I would have gladly accepted. Luckily they gave me an epidural instead and the rest was lovely!