best mate been in labour for well over 30 hours, help!

[beka277]

Hi my best friend has been in labour for well over 30 hours, the baby's belly is on her side so midwife says the position of baby is making labour longer...i am so worried about her, she is confused, in pain and doesnt know or understand whts goin on and why. she is at her friends house because its close to the hospital and midwives keep telling her to go bak there becoz she will b more comfortable there. it isnt suppose to be like this...anyone been thru the same thing and hav some advice on pain relief. she says the midwives dont belive she is in as much pain as she is, but she says it fuc*ing hurts and she didnt have any sleep last night and now it is now 11pm the next night!! (we r in australia) HELP !i just want to take all her pain away, this isnt fair.

My first one was 35 hours long ... it sucked, but your friend will get through it. Hopefully she will be able to stay as calm as possible

Good luck to your friends

Haven't read the whole post but she could try other positions that might help move the baby into a more favourable position on the cervix, something like on all fours with bum in the air and forearms on the floor or take a look at using the rebozo, like they do in Mexico see here

I had a long labour with my DS - by the second night I was losing it. I went in to hospital, and they gave me pethidine, which helped me to sleep between the contractions. I wouldn't necessarily recommend that, but I really wasn't coping well, so it worked for me.

It is really important that she keeps eating though. I didn't - I didn't want food, and nobody said I should, and after 36 hours or so I was going into ketosis, which slowed the labour right down.

Hope your friend is doing OK, it is scary with your first, especially when it isn't all going to plan like on the TV (y'know, your waters go, you get to hospital and after 3 pushes and some panting you get a baby) I was very shaken by it all, I had 48 hours of no sleep and then a crying newborn, which was definitely the best bit!
You are being a good friend to be so worried for her.
My second son was a much quicker labour, 17 hours, I was snowed in so had to walk up a big hill to get to the hospital and am positive that that helped speed things up, keep her moving if she can!

I was in pre-labour for over 48 hours with DS - contractions every five to ten minutes lasting up to a minute for that amount of time wears you down beyond belief. As does being told that you're not actually in labour yet. I can remember clearly thinking how the f*ck am I going to have the energy to push him out when I haven't slept for two nights.

So I really feel for your friend, I know exactly what she's going through. But unfortunately it is apparantly quite 'normal'. It may reassure her to know that other people have been through it too and lived to tell the tale.