Labour Pains

[DazedEmma]

when talking to mw and drs, they never tell you the truth, so ladies, I want you to tell me the truth:

1. how much does it really hurt?
2. how long was your first labour?
3. how quickly after giving birth do you 'forget' the pain?

Also, how do I know when i'm in labour, what are the signs cos so many women at the class said with their first they didn't know they were in labour until they felt ready to push!!

1. Alot, really alot. But at least you know it is short term and for a good cause.
2. Induced so in total 36 hours but only intense for 16 hours.
3. Very quickly. I never really thought about it again until recently which i realised I am about to do it all over again.

for my baby (1st)

1. awful, but i didn't ask for any more pain relief than gas and air
2. 11 hours beginning to end
3. Not yet, its only been 3 days tho!

1. Beyond hideous, makes me feel sick even thinking about it, so I tend not to (and I ended up with a section so never even made it to the pushing stage).
2. 34 hrs
3. You don't exactly forget, but I don't think you can remember the actuality of the pain. From the minute it stops you just cease to care. As soon as my epidural was in (after about 26 hrs) I was happy as anything.

1. Not that bad, as long as I was relaxed and confident (very slow labour at home). On the odd occasions something happened that stressed me out, the pain suddenly got unbearable. But while I was in the pool breathing gas and air and doing deep breathing and consciously relaxing my shoulders, really not too bad at all. I also had an episieotomy which didn't I didn't notice at all at the time, but was horribly sore afterwards.
2. Can't remember, but more than 24 hours of 'active labour' and 3 hours pushing.
3. I can't remember!

1. it does hurt but there are opitons to help!
2. 7 1/2 hrs start to finish.
3. pretty much straight after your too wrapped up in your baby to care anymore!

I am now 39 wks with my second and can't wait to get it over and done with!!! It is hard but that's why women do the job and not men if it was left to them human race would have died out moons ago lol!!

1/ Not much at first, found that staying at home as long as possible helped with baths, walking, hypnobirthing breathing etc. Hurt lots on arrival at hospital (found out I was 8 cm dilated at that point so no wonder it hurt!)
2/ 12 hours - got to 8cm in 4 hours, midwife said the baby would be here in another 2 hours but baby had other ideas!
3/ Immediately

1. The pain was bearable - had gas and air but didn't really help - birthing pool was lovely tho.
2. From first painful contraction to fully dilated was 3 and a half hours but then pushed for 4 hours. I think they started me pushing early as I'd decided I wanted more pain relief and they were trying to hold me off an epidural. I think I was in the transitional phase when I wanted more pain relief - once I got to pushing stage I didn't bother with any pain relief.
3. Forgot the labour pain straight away but the pain of my stitches was far worse than labour!!!!

It hurts like hell. Esp if its a big one [9LBS 9OZ] OUCH.

I was in labour for 10 hours and it was my first and its so o o true when people say you forget about the pain as soon as your baby is put in your arms.

Only 3 days since doing it...
18 hours of labour - breathing slowly helped, not as bad as bad period pains. Once I got gas+air and a pool/beanbag, it was almost enjoyable.

Can't comment on 2nd stage as had to have an epidural for SPD pain, but afterwards it's hurt way less than I expected.

I have had 4 babies - 1st labour 24 hours, 2nd 7 hours, 3rd 6 hours and 4th 8 hours. all at home - all very manageable.

I learnt natal hypnotherapy for the first birth and it has made a huge difference for all of them. By focusing or counting on my breathing, staying floppy, focusing on something in my mind, accepting that the feelings were just that - no one was harming me - I was just feeling my body opening, knowing that I was just a few hours out of my whole life, that soon I would be holding my baby - all those things help put the feelings in perspective..
The only time it really hurt was when I was disturbed eg made to stand up out of the water to listen to the heart beat - the next contraction would be painful, but then I got back into the rhythm and it was fine.

What is amazing though is that all the contractions and tightenings just stop the minute youtr baby leaves your body.

With all of mine we have talked about "next time we will do this and this" within an hour of the birth!

Trust and accept what is happening and go with it.

I agree with Maggie. The big thing no-one tells you is that even tho YOU haven't been through it before and you don't know what to do, amazingly, you're body does. An when the contractions start, it all starts to make sense and you just go with it. You also are usually pretty desparate to get the bloody thing out by then! (} And I think this is nature's way of preparing you to deal with labour.

The thing is, apart from anything else, pain is all relative and everyone has different thresholds - pain, if you think about it is one of the hardest things to describe as no one can feel what you are experiencing. I would say this, you usually (not always, but usually) get some sort of build up and a chance to adjust to the pain of the contractions, what I think gets a lot of women more than the pain is the tiredness - that makes it more difficult to deal with the contractions. Both my labours were very long - 48hrs and 36hrs - back to back labours, constant contractions etc etc, but when I found out I was pregnant a few months ago (my youngest was only 9months when I found this out ) I was more concerned about the crap pregnancies I have, and not about the labour. I went through a lot with both my labours which I won't go into, but I am not concerned in the slightest about going through it again as it is a finite period and you have THE most amazing gift at the end of it and the joy a baby brings is undescribable. You'll be fine. It's the best thing ever.

1- contractions were quite painful for several hours, then really painful, them OMG unbelievable for about 2 hours...then I got to 2nd stage that was different...painful but much better than contractions.

2- 1st stage 10.5 hours - 2nd stage 49 minutes - but time doesn't pass at a normal rate!

3- I gave birth on saturday, so I couldn't tell ya

In my case contractions started out of nowhere. Water didn't break until I pushed him out and I got the show when I was well into labour.

Oh yeah and I had a 3rd degree tear when his shoulders came out - which I honestly didn't notice - and weeing and pooing is fine! That was what I was most afraid of when I realised I was having stitches!!

1)Uncomfortable for about 6 hours. Building to 'ouch this is hurting' (about another 6 hours). Then rapidly became 'Oh my god this is awful, I really can't do it' (few more hours, felt like a lifetime) then 'Fuck fuck fuck this fucking hurts'. Crowning ... oh my god, imagine shitting a football while someone aims a blowtorch at your fanjo. I actually remember wondering how it was possible to remain alive and conscious (and wishing I wasn't!).
2) About 15 hours first labour
3) instantaneous. Put it this way, I was being stitched up after dd1 and I forgot to suck on the gas and air for one stitch so felt the entire thing AND I DIDN'T CARE!! If someone had said to me before giving birth that you could stick a needle in my fanjo without pain relief and I'd just smile and laugh it off while cuddling my baby I'd have told them to fuck right off!But that's a good measure of how much giving birth hurts and how quickly it stops hurting. And there is nothing like it on earth for making you feel empowered. After giving birth on just gas and air I felt i could rule the world!

As long as I got to do what I wanted, completely bearable. They tried to make me sit down/lie down whereupon I said "but it really fucking hurts if I sit down".

But then labour 1 was 3 hours, officially.

Like horribly period pains, but they stop.

Forgot it immediately.

2nd labour much sorer but much quicker.

1. nowhere near as much as i thought. 7 out of 10 and i expected a 13
2. 37 hours from start to finish.
3. can still 'remember 'it but it isn't relevant and a walk in the park for what i got out of it

i second find the river..the absolutely most empowering thing i have ever done.
birthing pool ...AMAZING. halved the pain...at least

good luck...don't panic the pain will get worse.
two things i would not do next time is lie on my back and shout...for me the pain intesnsified everytime i screamed so i kinda hummed and aahhed ..