Describing the pain during childbirth

[aussiebebe]

I've never had babies and definitely want to be a mother. I always ask women if they can describe the pain of childbirth by using language that someone who has never gone through it can understand. For example, my mum always says that the pain we feel under our stomach when on period is intensified during childbirth. That's the sort of language I can relate to because I've felt period pain before.
Thanks ladies 💕

Six children. Never any pain in stomach, all back and pulling downwards sensation. Waves of Indescribable pain tbh, so bad I wasn’t able to form coherent words, so bad that my mind left my body below. A redness of pain. A hellscape.

But…the second they come out, indescribable joy.

I was lucky to have two home births.
Both I managed primarily with Tens, which was more strong than my contractions - Tens went up to 10 and I didn't need more than 6 otherwise it was more painful than the actual contractions.
The first I noticed pain around 5pm, had two paracetamol at 8 pm, called midwife who didn't believe I was having baby and called her twice more before I said at around 11.30ish that I can feel the head. She arrived about 10 mains later and 4 mins after that DD was born, didn't get my waterbirth or gas and air...

The second I knew what to expect, spent the first two hours of contractions at a playground as my oldest was having a playdate and I knew it wouldn't happen for a while.
I think this one hurt more actually. It went on for a bit longer. Gave birth at 4am after starting contractions at around 3pm?

Both births were not as painful as when I had an abscess and needed a root canal, the pain from the abscess (not the root canal!) was much much worse.
I also had to have my second baby's placenta sort of pulled out of me, and this was worse than both births.

As PP have said, (complications aside) it isn't pain like bad injury/wound pain, it's more like when your muscles are exhausted and tired and you're being made to keep running even when you have cramp or stitches and you keep going, like a good exhausted pain.

That said, crowning stings like a bitch, for about two minutes, then baby is out and your hormones kick in. It's absolutely manageable (complications aside!), and totally worth it.

Like a giant hand made of knives is rhythmically squeezing your abdomen. I got an epidural after that and ended up with a c section as baby was back to ba k and face presentation.

One or my friends said she enjoyed that part and it felt nice 😂.

I had an epidural so also curious about what it feels like but seems to be very variable. She didn't tear at all though.

People have different experiences of labour.

Mine were not painful. I had niggling cramps on my first but nothing I would even want a paracetamol for.

I was waiting for the pain to start and intended asking for drugs then. I was very surprised to be told I was fully dilated.

I did find it tiring though.

i think the worst pain was on my fourth when I started to push and felt a burning pain. He was large compared to be others and apps he has a particularly large head.

i have had much worse pain with ear and throat infections.

BURNY BURN BURN!!
ouchy ouchy

feels like you need to take a massive poo! All whilst this childs head forces themself out of your fanjo!

id recommend not using pain relief because that makes the experience so much more amazing!

im so proud that i felt the physical pain second time, an epidural literally took all feeling away it was like id cheated! Its not for everyone but i highly recommend all natural!😀

A PP mentioned the urge to push but I didn't get that with either of my children. A lot of people say that their body just did it for them but that didn't happen either.

I was just told it was time to start pushing so I did.
With my second, I then got told off by my midwife as I wasn't pushing properly. She asked me why and I told her I didn't want to shit myself 🤣 she said (very sternly) "that is the LAST thing you should be worrying about right now" 😂
(I didn't shit myself though) 🥳

Everyone describing it as intense labour pain makes me giggle, why? Because that is what I had been told it feels like an was the signs i waited for. So when i started getting twinges in my back I had no Idea I was in labour the pain came in waves and I actually cant describe it other awfully painful shoting pains right across the bottom of my back, both my labours all the contractions where in my back thankfully with my 2nd I knew exactly what it was.

I'm surprised at some of the mild responses, I do believe people have ok birth pain but I think people forget. I've forgotten the pain but I know it was bad. It was like period pain x1000000, intense cramping, wet, warm, feeling like you've wet yourself, warm liquid squeezing out with every contraction. For me it was like getting to your maximum pain threshold and then the pain not giving a fuck and carrying on into outer space so it is unbearable and unbelievable. It was like birthing the Titanic on steroids or like yawning and stretching your own mouth back over your head. Please nobody tell me it is not that bad because it was for me, I was 22 and 26 at the time, weighed 7 stone pre pregnancy and only had gas and air and the ventouse with one baby who was also back to back and had stitches with both births. I begged for epidurals but it was too late, my births were 9 and 11 hours and people would think that's good and quick but there's no rest inbetween it was just pure pain and contractions on after another for the whole time. I would never want to be pregnant again for fear of birth although I do love pregnancy well aside from being sick etc. The pain was traumatizing and I'm sorry to scare anyone.

Feels like the worst period cramps combined with the biggest poo you've ever had all at once, then when the pushing begins it's an uncontrollable urge, similar to when you have really bad diarrhea and your body needs to expel the poo. The cramps start off mild like period cramps and build with each contraction. When the head crowns it's like your vagina is on fire as the burning is so intense, followed by immense relief once the head pops out. Following the birth you feel like you've been kicked between the legs with a bruised feeling mixed in with soreness, especially if you had an episiotomy or tore.

It was nothing like period pain for me. I would agree with the burning sensation. Like your whole undercarriage on fire and the sensation of it ripping open. Truly the most awful pain I’ve ever experienced. Definitely agree with the poster who said it’s very primal. I remember just constantly trying to crawl away and hide like an animal would.

One word- hypnobirthing.

Highly recommended, if you can steer your mind away from the pain, it helps immensely.

I'd describe my contractions as strong wave-like sensations that required all my focus and deep breathing during them (not painful to me), and then I mooed the house down during the birthing stage; that pushing bit was like the force of being sick but in the other direction - completely powerful and uncontrollable, I didn't much like that bit because I hate adrenaline

As long as you don't get induced which is different pain so look that up.. For me I wouldn't describe it as period pain. I have really bad period pain and this was more intense but more physical rather than an ache which was good because I can handle physical pain but not aches. It is intermittent as well. So even when it gets really intense, it stops completely for a few minutes / seconds.

THEN, and I am always surprised people don't mention this but as much.. you feel the most pressure you've ever felt in your life like a massive massive shit needs to come out (of your vagina). Then when the head is crowning that is the most painful bit. People describe it as burning but to me it felt more like tearing like I was tearing in two (I didn't actually tear). This bit needs to be done slowly or you will tear so it will last a few contractions but then you are done!

The pain signals in childbirth follow the same pain signals when you are exercising so they cause your brain to release oxytocin to cope. That is different to pain that's going to kill you like being burned alive or whatever, so tell yourself that it's the good kind of pain to help you get through.

If you get induced that won't happen though. No oxytocin from your brain. It's proper pain.

Period pain waves for me too, getting more and more intense as labour progressed. I’ve done it twice, both times with gas and air and counting/hypnobirthing. I found the pain to be manageable with that, although totally get that I am lucky and it’s not like that was everyone. Don’t get me wrong, it is painful and hard work but it wasn’t the worst thing in the world and did come to an end in the most amazing way! I found once baby was in the birth canal the pain lessened and it felt more like a pressure/need to poo and the pushing part wasn’t as painful and didn’t last long.

I would describe it as tightenings, with lots of pressure. I've had 5 babies, all quick and had gas and air with 4 of them, nothing with one of them. My last was induced, and it took 30 minutes from the drip being inserted to her birth, and I would agree that the contraction were more intense than my others, but in no way unbearable. I had an ear infection and mastitis after my first, and that was FAR worse than any of my labours and births.

I'm having our 6th now, so it can't be that bad!

I also remember trying to run (well, crawl, more realistically) away! No one tells you before that you may vomit. Actual labour felt like being forcibly stretched open.
I was shaking with shock afterwards-total jelly legs. Alongside the inevitable pain from stitches, it felt like I’d been kicked inside out from the waist down.
The midwife said how bravely I handled being stitched and I was like, ‘this is nothing, you saw what just happened here surely?!”

It was like bad period pain for me. I felt it in my back, which is also where I feel period pain. There were a couple of hours that were worse than any period I've had, until I had pain relief (pethidine) at the hospital. I actually don't remember the pain after that point, just the effort.

I'm usually not good with pain, was terrified of labour pain and had planned from the beginning to have an epidural, but in the end it wasn't as bad as I thought and I stuck with gas&air instead (it wasn't easy, but it wasn't the unimaginable agony I had expected). I feel lucky that I had such a good experience.

Depends how it goes for you I suppose. Yes it’s like a very intense period pain. For me it was so intense that it literally paralysed me and I felt like I was dying. I collapsed to the floor and couldn’t get up. I didn’t have relief in between. Everything just locked up in one big contraction that wouldn’t end for hours. It did come in worse waves, and it got slightly milder between waves but it didn’t stop. I could barely breathe and I was hallucinating with the pain.

It’s made me afraid because prior to that I didn’t know how much pain the human body was capable of. I would have died if they hadn’t given me an emergency section. Perhaps my pain was different to other women because I was dying.

For me it started as similar to intense period pain but built over many (many) hours to extreme pain that frankly I can’t believe the human body can withstand. I would liken it to what I imagine it feels like to be tasered (nb I have never been tasered).

Someone upthread has said “one word: hypnobirthing’. My words would be you can stick your hypnobirthing and I have three other words: epidural, epidural, epidural. Not bitter at all that hypnobirthing does seem to work for some women.

I thought it felt like a tractor was driving over my stomach so so slowly and crushing me.

For me it is basically really strong period pain. I had stomach pain at 29w and just put up with it was quite sore and then eventually went to the hospital and they said it was contractions (and luckily stopped them). When I did go into labour 2 months later, I sent my husband to work because I wasn't sure if I was actually in labour. And my second labour I'd obviously forgotten a bit because at one point I said, "It's so sore!"

But it's still bearable. I did both labours with just water for relief.

For me it was the exact same pain as period cramps but just ramped up x100. It would reach a peak and when I'd just think I couldn't cope anymore it would die off till the next contraction.

It honestly wasn't as bad as I expected though but they do say mother nature makes us forget the pain but if I were to do it again I'd be a lot less worried.

This was the exact same situation for me and also felt like I was dying (and being repeatedly hit in the back with a sledgehammer 🤦🏻‍♀️😅 )

Agree with lots of the above. I (due to circumstances; not some mad act of defiance) had no pain relief aside from a Tens machine and paracetamol, and while I remember a lot of 'I CAN'T DO THIS' being wailed at the end, I recall that being because I felt I couldn't physically push hard enough, not because of the pain.

By far the worst bit for me was when the contractions ramped up to the point I couldn't tell them apart, and the subsequent journey into hospital. Once I was there they seemed to level out a little in spacing and having a midwife coach me through each one helped.

I'd forgotten aching for a few days afterwards until I read this thread.

Another vote for hypnobirthing. I didn't have time for the soft touch massage and soft lighting in the end, but the breathing and really understanding what was happening helped immensely.