Am I crazy to be planning a natural birth for 1st baby? Reassurance needed please!

[missbumpy]

I've decided that I want to try to have a natural birth. I'm going to a birthing centre (in a large hospital so near to doctors/surgeons if things go wrong) and I'd really like to try to do it with just a birth pool and gas and air. I've been reading up on it as much as poss and I've been really encouraged by some of the books on the subject.

I'm not an idiot and I know that things can go wrong and I'm prepared that I might not be able to cope with the pain etc. However, I've had quite a few people telling me I'm mad for considering a natural birth and it's making me start to doubt myself.

Some of the comments are coming from people like my brother who doesn't have any kids so I take it with a pinch of salt. I've also had lots of disparaging comments from women who've had kids (and who chose to have an epidural) telling me that I'll be begging for all the drugs I can get once I go into labour.

Sorry this is turning into a bit of an essay. I suppose I'm just looking for a bit of reassurance from other MNers who've had natural births. I just need to know it can be done and that I'm not crazy for wanting to do it this way.

I wanted a natural birth, chose a midwife led ante natal care package and had a lovely natural birth in the birth centre, with no pian relief and using a shower head on v v hot to help with the pain.
was tremendous birth and I know I was lucky.
But I do believe I got it cos I wanted it.

I think you're probably right to believe that. My MW apparently let the second stage go on too long, but she did it because I had strongly expressed a preference for a natural birth without medical intervention. We were on the same wavelength and I eventually got what I had wanted, but only just. The consultants were hovering with the drip.

Definately agree, go in with a positive attitude and don't be scared to ask for what you want and to say 'no' if you feel things are going OK and lo is doing well.

I was able to spend 3 hours pushing with DC1 because I was able to and lo was OK. Had I gone with the hospital protocol it would have been forceps/tear/stitching after 2 hours. It would have been a very different birth and likely to have affected my subsequent ones.

no not atall crazy...you go girl x

Thanks for the encouragement. Good advice Twinklemegan re. the birth plan. I'm seeing my midwife on Monday to discuss my birth plan (which I have yet to write ) so I'll chat to her then about hospital policies and how I can ask for a natural birth without ruling out the possibility of pain relief if things all get too much for me.

It's so nice to hear so many positive, encouraging stories from women who've been there and done that.

I think you are utterly sensible . Lots of luck and love to you!

Haven't read the whole thread ... but my first birth was fine - had G&A but that was it.

good luck

it is not crazy at all!

i am a total wimp and i drew up a birth plan saying i wanted a waterbirth but also covering emergency c-section and that if i asked for an epidural, to please give me one and i was fine - both boys born in the pool.
ds1 9lb9.5 and ds2 10lb12.5.

I am hoping it will all the go the same way for the next one.

You can do it.
A lot of it is in your mind, wellit was for me. you have to keep focussed and dont doubt your body for one minute. although, saying that, during ds2's birth, i did tell the midwife i was going to die!

lol

MissBumpy, I had dd naturally with no drugs and it was FINE - go for it (I swear that 50 pelvic floor exercises a day when pg really helped with 2nd stage and not tearing)

Keep us posted and good luck!

Haven't read the thread but I imagine that plenty of people have posted to say that it's completely possible and you're not crazy at all. I did it (just gas and air and birth pool) and so did others I know and all was fine. Good luck with it.

I had a pain free 6 hour induced labour - did you hear me properly????

IT DIDN'T HURT AT ALL

I did yoga and hypnobirthing CD's and deep breathed like a marathon runner.

I would describe giving birth like the feeling you get you are being sick but without the sick, the sort of physical opening of a spincter muscle and a baby comes out instead. That doesn't make it sound nice but it was truly okay....oh everybody will think I am barking mad now...but I'm not!

I had ds (1st baby) at home with just tens and flower essences (rescue remedy type stuff). I coped with the pain through breathing and staying active. Having a positive attitude is a big help!

I am hoping I can have a natural birth too and it is also my first baby. I haven't had a chance to discuss it with the midwifes yet so I don't know how they will respond.

I checked the library for that Ina May book but they didn't have it. Is it worth buying do you think?

I had my first baby this June. Was hoping for a natural birth, planning on trying massage, birthing pool, tens machine for pain relief. Was prepared might need G&A but hoped to avoid epidural if possible.

On the day she came early, and quickly, and I delivered with only the help of paracetamol and a couple of (ineffectual) puffs of G&A. So it can be done.

I've not read whole thread but go for it! I gave birth naturally with my DS - not even gas and air. I did a yoga class the week before and they taught us breathing techniques which really helped. Relax and remember its what your body is designed to do.

Stefka, hopefully you willl be pleasantly surprised, as I was. As other people have pointed out, why expect interventions? Although they might be necessary surely a 'normal' birth is, by definition, what you would expect.
Good luck! When are you due?

Difers you are barking mad But am very [anvy]
Mine hurt like &%$%$$£ - but I do now know what people mean by it being a good pain. I didn't believe them before. I had an infected appendix recently and although the pain wasn't comparable to contractions I would rather go through labour any day, reasons being it's a sign of things being right rather than wrong! i felt a lot more in control (had a better idea of what was going to happen, and, by knowing how dilated i was whether it was going to get a lot worse or a little). I also knew that soonish it would be over and the pain would stop.

I had both my sons naturally without any sort of pain relief. I live in the Canary Islands, and they don't do pain relief!! I was extremely lucky though, after my first contraction I was 9 and a half cm dilated. Half hour later out popped a baby!!
I would highly recommend having a natural birth. I enjoyed the whole experience from start to finish.....just breathe and go with it. Advice from my Spanish midwife "Push like you're having a caca (poo)" If you go for an enema beforehand, follow this advice and you'll breeze thru it!! Best of luck.

No, it's perfectly possible and you're not crazy. I didn't have any pain relief with my first, and tbh I didn't find the contractions all that painful. The only excruciating bit was the first vaginal examination, which was hellish but over quickly. I daresay if I had found it awful I would have had something, but it actually wasn't that bad. What worked for me more than anything else was acupressure - dh pressed really hard on points either side of the base of my spine during each contraction, and it made the pain vanish. I have no idea why.

And yeah, stuff doesn't follow your plan. I planned a homebirth but ended up in hospital with a ventouse delivery after I suddenly started bleeding during the second stage. The thing in these kind of situations is to keep what bits of your plan you can and have more than one plan.