Most painful part of birth?

[PSL1990]

What was the most painful part of labour and birth for you?

The 5 day failed induction which resulted in an EMCS but my god the first 💩 after that was horrendous!
Having an elective section this time and planning lots of laxitives after birth 😂

Crowning , it's the only pain I can still remember

Crowning, feels like your bits are on fire.

Delivering the placenta for me. I can cope with contractions and pushing as they are for something. Everything after when you're tired and just need it to be over, is hell.

First: not pushing for an hour, whilst on a drip, but not dilated “enough” (I so was, he was half way down my vagina by the time I was told I was “allowed” to push. The things I learned about trusting my instincts...).

Second, crowning probably.

Third was very quick, but transition was horrible.

All of it... the pain is transitory. It doesn’t last for ever. I can’t really imagine the pain any more. And I managed with a tens machine/water/limited gas and air. There are many more pain relief options which I was saving for when it got really bad...

Good luck!

I've had two home births so obviously I have a high pain threshold and a weirdly good body shape and lucky genes for birth....

But with my first the most painful bit was about half an hour before I gave birth, I thought I was going to do a poo and I was trying not to push which I thought was a good idea as I didn't want haemorrhoids, this was the worst bit. I was sitting in the toilet screaming then yelling to my husband DO NOT COME IN, I'M HAVING A SHIT
Turns out that was the baby!

My second baby was born at home but the placenta wouldn't deliver so I had to go in. This was the most painful bit, there was some scarring from previous MCs and a doctor had to rip it out of me. It was fucking gross and horrible. (first one just plopped out right into a bucket and we buried it under a tree in our garden)

Then I had to have a spinal anaesthetic which gave me these spinal headaches for 4 or 5 days which were worse than both births put together.

Good luck, I'm hoping you have a straightforward birth, they are really lovely - and possible!

The post birth stitches. Birth was fine but Jesus H Christ the stitches were something else.

The ring of fire.

Having a retained placenta and being rummaged around inside for an hour afterwards.

Stitches without a doubt. Was lucky to get through both labours with gas and air and straightforward deliveries however 2nd degree tears both times and it was torture being stitched.
Would happily do entire labour again tomorrow but not the stitches

The broken coccyx that took 4.5 months to heal 😭

The first 5 to 10 contractions after they manually broke my waters at 6 cm dilated. I then went from 6 to 9cm very quickly which was quite rough.

And then - like Megan2018 - having to have the cervix pushed back manually at 9 cm to enable DD to be born. That wasn't pleasant either.

The rest was really quite OK though.

I honestly don’t remember pain- I remember being terrified during transition, and also thinking that crowing was going to be agony and being pleasantly surprised that it wasn’t as bad as I was expecting- but I don’t remember the actual pain.

The worst bits for me were the placenta being stuck and needing manipulation, and breastfeeding, which was awful. They also missed a tear which I think caused me unnecessary pain in the aftermath. I then developed a uterine infection and UTI and was very poorly. Basically I’d do the birth again, but the postnatal period can do one!

The stitches , 2nd degree tear and grazing. Stitches came out after 3 days and I got an infection. Going for a wee was like pouring acid over my lady parts and branding myself with a hot rod. Eventually figured if I wedged a glass Pyrex jug “up there” to catch the wee it helped a lot. I’m due in September again and absolutely petrified after reading this thread. I’d forgotten a lot of it

Crowning. I can only liken it to doing a huge, painful poo. But once the head is out you feel an instant relief.

Cervical examination 😱

Oh dear god. I didn't think I wanted an epidural, after reading this I'll be demanding one. This thread would also make a great contraceptive.

After 44 hours labour, forceps delivery, episiotomy and eight hours sleep, getting into a salty bath was pure agony.

I don't remember much of labour. I was so tired by the time ds arrived, I didn't know what was happening.

Crowning!!!

I was induced without pain relief and had full on contractions from the start which felt like my insides were being ripped out! The actual pushing and crowning was easier than that - and that includes fracturing my coccyx in the last stage of pushing.

@MacavityTheDentistsCat I’m glad it wasn’t just me that hated that bit! I nearly kicked the registrar in the head

I too progressed quickly, 2-almost 6 in a bath, then to 9 too fast for epidural I kept telling everyone I was dying and they didn’t care!

But I was right as rain after, first wee and poo painless, sitting painless and didn’t even have a paracetamol after birth. So not all bad!

Didn't feel any of the examinations. I zoned out. I got to 9.5cm then needed an EMCS after 34 hours of labour as cervix just would not go.

The worst part for me was between 3-5cm. Baby was back to back, couldn't lay down. It was painful.

The annoying middle bit where it already hurts like buggery but your not far along enough for gas and air. Once the gas came out I coped fine.

Contractions

And then having to do a number 2..it felt like giving birth again

Transition for me but I was lucky enough not to need stitches.