what is labour like?

[amb885]

hi ladies i know labour is very painful, but i was wondering what your personal experiences were like. i'm only about 4 months along but worrying a bit thanks everyone x

This thread really makes me happy with my decision to have an epidural and reminds me to totally do that again next time lol

I had epidural and it was bliss honestly no pain at all.. I’d do it all again with epidural.. sat and watched tv at 1cm by time chase had finished I was 10 cm 3 pushes and out... EPIDURALS ARE THE WAY FORWARD X

I suffer from endometriosis so bad period pains are the norm for me. Labour was on another level altogether, but my daughter was just over 9lb with a 98 percentile head circumference. I had a PROM 36 hours before DD was born with contractions starting, lasting overnight and then stopping, so by the time I gave birth I had been awake for 48 hours, and I was contracting hard every 2 to 3 minutes for about a minute and a half from 8 hours before I gave birth. I couldn't go in the pool due to the PROM but think I would have probably drowned in it anyway because I was so tired!!

I never knew what my mum meant when she said this, but it is a pain you forget!
I woke up at 4am with niggly type pains I’d been having for the past week or so but a bit stronger.. i was over my due date so I did think is this it. I Sat up in bed and breathed through them. Woke DH up about 6am and said this could be it so he ran me a bath. I pretty much spent all day in and out of the bath until I went to hospital about 6pm as we lived about 20 miles away and it was a snowy January night! To be contractions sort of eased up to a peak, then eased off. Like a wave. I actually enjoyed labour in a strange way, I’d do it again! Just not sure about having another crazy child at the end of it haha. To me only the last couple of hours were back to back contractions by which point you’re nearly at the pushing stage and then they ease off!

I only had gas and air and pethadine, and to be honest I didn’t want the pethadine but they talked me into it I think so they could have a break in the hope I’d sleep! I have IBS and get severe pains with that so maybe it helped me a bit being used to them.

I feel sad that you already "know labour is very painful"

I found it exhilarating, I'd love to do it again.

My son was 8 lb 4 Oz so not small and it wasn’t a walk in the park. I had pethedine turns out I’m allergic to it, and like other posters have said I didn’t have an urge to push. The doctor told me it’s time to push and I pushed. However I have had dental abscesses that were 20 times worse than labour pains so to me it was bearable and completely manageable.

@tbtf I agree! Both of my labours were wonderful experiences.

Everyone is different.

I had a back to back labour so all the pain was in my back. I didn't have a single period like pain. It was painful but easily bearable in the early stages. I remember floating around in the pool quite happily with the gas and air and DP feeding me peanuts. The water really does help! However I failed to progress so had to be taken out of the pool and put on the drip. That's when I needed stronger pain relief. I had diamorphine (brilliant) and pethidine (horrible. All it did was make me really sleepy but didn't do anything for the pain). Towards the end I asked for an epidural but because they were considering doing a section within the hour I couldn't have one because I might have needed a spinal block instead. He came out naturally in the end. All in all, a bit of an ordeal but totally worth it!

Keep an open mind when it comes to pain relief, that's my advice.

Actual labour pains were like period pains but the birth part is different. It felt like my baby was actually grinding against my bones, (he was big and I was tiny back then) but the pain was not horrendous ever. You feel like you have had a poo and do need to push as if you were pooing rather than push your stomach which does nothing. My midwives held the baby back during a contraction which was weird and uncomfortable but not painful, but it prevented me from tearing so I am grateful. From what I have read tearing/cutting and stitching is the worst part of all.

Honestly, the pain wasn't as bad as I expected. I had all back labour though so no contractions (or at least it felt like that) in my stomach, no period pain feeling just immense back pain. Honestly breathing through helped. What was difficult was the longevity of it and the relentlessness. I used gas and air for about 5 hours whilst I was at 3cm. It did nothing for the pain but was great for concentrating on breathing. Then my body started pushing itself. I did nothing. Was examined and told to push. Tried to push for a while and nothing happened. Ended up in theatre with forceps but Inswear to god that bit was fine and the easiest part of it all. Once the spinal block was in it was pleasant actually. Had a nice chat with everyone, and the spinal block didn't hurt either. I really really thought I had a low pain threshold and was a wimp so maybe I'm stronger than I thought, or I built labour up to be so so bad that the reality was just about able to cope.

I did the positive birth company programme which I think kept me calm, in control and focused that each contraction brought me closer to baby. Cheesy but it worked: I'd reccomend PBC - look them up on Instagram and read some of their stories. Good luck x

It's fine. You're the star of the show. I loved it. I get actually jealous when friends go in to have their babies. I know I'm really lucky and you may be too - my labours and births were quick and easy - possibly because my waters didn't break so I had a cushion right until they were popped by the midwife minutes before they were born.

Everyone's labour and pains is so different I would absolutely not scare or worry yourself with other people's wondering what it feels like as I think it's so different. Every woman wears labour like a battle scar. Some will love to scare you with harrowing stories.

Some people escape with not much pain others will describe is as horrific!

I gave birth three weeks ago the only thing you need to know is every second was worth it and I would totally do it again! The minute you have baby you forget it all. I know it sounds like a cliche but I promise it's true !

Do yoga and HypnoBirthing from now onwards. Get yourself in the best physical shape possible!
Read up on childbirth. Ina May is great.
The one book I recommend to everyone is Birth Skills by JuJu Sudin. Amazing book!
Spend time practicing the exercises you choose to use. Do the melon in the sick one plus the tissue paper one. They ease your mind.
It's not stick pain, it's healthy pain. You can deal with it if you're in the right mindset. Like the best sex, it's all between your ears, get your mind in the right side and you're in with your best fighting change!!
Things can, same night go wing, so you just focus on giving yourself the best chance for it to go well!!!
I did it at home. Very relaxing. I know that's not an option for everyone. Meant I ensured I was able to use a water pool.
I've done two at home in the pool, no gas or air. Not an option for everyone but it is doable if everything aligns for you.
I used Gentle Birthing book visualisations. I voice memo recorded them into my phone. Very helpful to me.
Best of luck!!

I would really encourage you to try hypnobirthing. I was absolutely terrified of childbirth and doing the positive birth company course left me excited to give birth and with absolutely no fear.

I was very unlikely and had a long labour with epidural, episiotomy and forceps. But thanks to hypnobirthing I wasn't scared.

And just to give you some more reassurance, if you're in a lot of pain you can just have an epidural! It doesn't hurt at all.

Remember childbirth is natural and people do it several times so it can't be anywhere as awful as we're led to believe from movies/TV.

Best of luck! You will be fine however the birth goes