What did contractions feel like to you? TW BIRTH TRAUMA

[Maybemaybenot76]

I gave birth to my second child yesterday. My first was born with an epidural and this one was born with no pain relief. I eventually did want an epidural, but it happened too fast.

It was hands down the most insane and painful experience of my life and I was not at all prepared for that level of pain! The midwife asked me a few times where I felt the pain as I kept saying it felt like my uterus was going to explode (and I really did!) The pain was only low in my front, nothing anywhere else. Is this typical!? The midwife said it must have been babies positioning.

I genuinely thought I was going to rupture and I could do nothing but rip at the seams of anything I could dig my nails in to, scream, and beg for help during every contraction. I can’t believe I am that person! I am normally ok with pain, but this was next level.

I still can't believe there's this expectation that it's going to hurt which it does but we just have to suck it up and reading peeps stories I'm so sorry it can be so bloody traumatic.

I've a happier story. For me It was a low grumbling ache like you get when you've got an upset stomach. The ache got more intense with fewer gaps and the pushing stage was like nothing id ever experienced. Someone said it was like vomiting just below - that feeling where your body takes over and says "nope. That's coming out NOW." I mooed like a cow with the force of those final pushes it was like I was being squeezed in the middle moo coming out the top baby out the bottom 🤣 I say pushing but my body was just sort of ejecting the baby anyway. I did tear but didn't notice until afterwards and the midwives were amazing at giving me both injections and numbing cream I think plus gas and air for the stitches so didn't feel a thing. I hate to be that annoying person but I was pretty bloody lucky with both labours and dare I say it quite enjoyed them. Yes I'm the weirdo but hopefully comforting to hear of you haven't had your baby yet!

@supercalifragilistic123 yes, same here. I would walk in circles until contraction then found myself instinctively climbing the bed and staying on my knees with hands clinging to the top of it! Gave birth in this position. Standing up was impossible.

@Maybemaybenot76, I had a water birth at home for DC2 but I wouldn’t say it was all totally peaceful! It was quite fast and was manageable for the most part. The last half hour was intense and there was definitely some bellowing then- but I still wasn’t scared. I definitely wouldn’t have coped at home with DC1 but it was different with DC2- I knew it was going to hurt but I also knew I would get through it.

@ActDottie- if it helps at all, I didn’t feel the crowning at all. Some do and some don’t, I think. For me, the contractions were the very painful bit (especially as I got to the transition). I did have some minor tears and ‘labial grazes’ (hadn’t even heard of such a thing beforehand!) but didn’t feel any of it. Was a bit sore and bruised afterwards but lavender oil in the bath helped with healing. I also practised perineal massage during pregnancy which may or may not have helped- hard to know as nothing to compare!

Like that sudden stab of agonising pain you get if you put your back out then move suddenly, but across my entire abdomen and for longer, every 30 bloody seconds.

Most of it was like bad period pain but manageable enough. From transition onwards I would gladly have been shot with a canon to make it stop.

Oh yeah. Mine was utterly and completely horrendous too. But it wasn't quick. It was 20hours of f*** agony, followed by two attempts at c-section and then ended up with episiotomy and a very violent forceps delivery. Oh and a haemorrhage after all of that. No pain relief whatsoever.

So yeah. It was pretty traumatic.

@HowNice23 Not weird at all! After my son was born I said 'Eh, I'd do that again.' 😂 I remember the mooing as well!

Absolutely no guarantees that my second birth will be anything like the first of course.

My poor SIL had a back-to-back birth and really suffered :(

I also said ‘I want to do it again’ about ten mins after DC2 was born. It was exhilarating and empowering and just brilliant! (Apart from the bit where I shouted ‘get this beast out of me!’)

@Waitingfordoggo Firstly, amazing username. Secondly 😂

Thank you! I still feel bad about referring to my lovely little baby as a beast. 😂 To be fair, he was quite a big lad (and still is) and he roared very loudly straight after birth, but immediately shut up as soon as he was on the boob. He is still very calm and placid aged 15- as long as there is always food available- and definitely not a beast!

For me labour was more of a mental battle rather than pain.

My contractions were 3 in 10 minutes lasting almost a minute from the start. If I sat or lay down they were awful. If I stood up leaning against the doorframe rocking from side to side they were tolerable. I had 2 cocodamol when I got checked at half 7 and was 2cm. An hour after getting home they were unbearable when stood up. I phoned back and begged to be allowed back in. The midwife who examined was now on shift in the mlu and had a room for me even if was still 2 cm. It was the most agonising journey to the hospital and I'm glad I insisted as I was fully dilated. The pain hadn't changed but it felt much easy knowing I was 10cm and the end was in need rather than 2 cm with hours or days to go. I had an induction booked in for 10pm due to my waters breaking prior to labour so I had that at the back of mind too.
I got into the birthing pool and realised that the urge to pop that I had had for the last hours was the urge to push.
They got me some gas and air but the first one was empty. It felt like trying to move a car that's stuck in mud and I could only get her so far out. She got her shoulder stuck and just as the midwife pressed the button for help she came out to quite an audience as assistance arrived at the same time.
I had a minor tear that I couldn't feel. I didn't need any pain relief.

I really believe I had a good experience because when I turned up I was 10cm. If the dice had rolled a different way and I had still been 2/3/4cm mentally it would have been more of a challenge and more painful. I would have got exhausted pretty quickly as my waters broke at midnight just having got in bed so by the time my labour started at 4 am I had already been up for 20h and had I 1-3days labour on top of that I would have been on my arse. I have heavily sedating medication that it wouldn't have been safe to take so if I ended up with that induction at 10pm I would have done so as I went into medication withdrawal. It only takes one of two things to fall favourably or disfavourably and your experience is quite different

It was the worst pain imaginable. I was expecting something like bad period pain, but it was far far more painful. DS was back-to-back which I believe was part of the problem.

When people describe it as bad period pain I get what they mean but it's like so so much worse lol

First baby and I accidentally had her at home. I was checked at the MLU and was 2cm at 7pm so was sent home to progress. I gaslight myself that 'I'm only 2cm so the pain can't be that bad!' (for me it was intense pain very low in my stomach/in my vagina) so ended up giving birth in the bath at 11pm.