Birth anxiety

[sh13]

33 weeks pregnant , starting to get scared about giving birth but I’m also hugely excited to meet my baby ! Id love a natural birth but what terrifies me is I don’t know how much the contractions are going to hurt or what they feel like, I also worry about things going wrong and losing him. I know this is all normal to be scared but does anyone have any tips ? Is labour really that bad ?

Sorry you are feeling stressed but I think that is only natural. I’m due with my second and feeling a bit nervous. Remember there are pain relief options of it gets too much so just make sure you say if you need something. I found it tough but hey I’m doing it again so can’t have been that bad!

Nobody else can tell you what your labour will feel like, OP, they can only tell you about their own.
Every labour is different and every mother’s pain threshold is different.
Also, nobody has a crystal ball - they can’t predict all possible complications.
That’s why you have obstetricians, anaesthetists, operating theatres, paediatricians - so that if you run into an unexpected problem, the appropriate professionals are all on hand to sort it out.
Trust them to look after you properly, and try to relax knowing that all the back up is there for you if needed, from effective pain relief to surgery. If you don’t need it, that’s fine!

Thank you both that’s helpful , the unknown just seems so scary but I know I’ve got to do it to meet my baby, just hope it goes smoothly x

No, it isn’t, I’ve had 5 & am a bit of a wimp if that helps. I’ve not had epidurals because I really really dislike my back being touched (). Go with the flow, have a rough idea of what you’d like but be open to changes.

My main tip would be please try not to worry! Easier said than done I know. Every labour is different and people cope with it differently I managed to get through mine without any pain relief (this was my ideal birth plan) I found the contractions just bearable but the actual pushing and giving birth totally surprised me it wasn't as painful as I imagined and as much as I could feel every god damn thing I felt in control and that was important to me!

I'm not saying this works for everyone and there are absolutely definitely no awards for getting through without pain relief you do what you need to do to get through it!

Good luck mamma!

Try the positive birth company digital pack, good luck.

Ime no, it isn't that bad. But everyone is different and each labour is different. Depends on so many factors, but try watching skme positive birth stories on YouTube, Google positive birth photography and stop anyone who tries to give you horror stories.... I don't know why other women want to tell pregnant women these awful stories 🙄 I had to tell people to shut up in my last pregnancy.
Try and remember that your body was made to do this, and regardless of what happens, you'll deal with it.

Hi I was the same. I was terrified of giving birth I honestly didn’t actually believe a baby was going to come out of me & towards the end secretly wanted a c section 😆 had my baby over a week ago. It did hurt but I found it manageable until I got to 6-7cm. Contractions do hurt but they only last 60 odd seconds so it’s not a constant pain. Don’t be afraid to take all pain relief offered if you do need it OP 😊 x

Yes it really is that bad, and I had relatively easy births and have quite a high pain threshold. After it though, you won't care. It's a pain you deal with because you know what's coming at the end. Only tip to give is try not to panic about it.
Hey millions of women do it every day and sometimes (a lot of the time) do it all over again, sometimes more than once 🤷

I had a baby five weeks ago and my #1 tip would be to eat as soon as you start contracting. You need reserves to draw on in labour and you won't want to eat then. I wish someone had told me this!
It feels different for everyone but if it helps, to me it felt like really bad period pain. Good luck!

I had my second 3 weeks ago and did the positive birth company online package. Honestly made my experience so so much better. I was in labour from 9am until 9pm and only felt really bad pain for the last hour. In fact I nearly had the baby at home as I didn't believe I was that far gone! Had my baby less than an hour after arriving at mlu. It basically takes the fear element out of labour. Not saying it automatically means you'll have an easy labour but it definitely gets you in the right mindset before. Good luck!

I was the exact same as you I had the worst anxiety about the whole birth process. I had an epidural as soon as I got to the delivery suite after after having I tuning six hours of contractions. The epidural was great and took everything away and made me feel a lot more relaxed. I would recommend if you have a low pain threshold which I do!