How painful is labour?

[MayimBialik]

I'm sure the answer will be very/extremely/agonisingly! But what is the most painful part? Is it the contractions? What do they feel like? Bad period pains but they go on for so long it gets exhausting? Or worse? Or is the most painful part the pushing? How long does that last for?

Just starting to wonder more and more about the whole thing. I'm hopefully having a waterbirth and am really looking forward to it. Im being a bit naive at the moment thinking I have a high pain threshold and always suffered from horrendous period pains so it can't be that bad....feel free to bring me back to reality!

Labour - bearable 'pain'.

Delivery - unbelievable pressure which overtook any 'pain' of the perfectly manageable contractions (but my almost 10lb baby only engaged an hour before she was born).

I would do it all again 100 times! It was quite exciting!

I was less ""AWWWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAARRRRRGGGGHHHMNNNNNNNNNNNNNNAAAAAAAAAAAAH" and more "OhgodhereitcomesagainshootmenowpleasejustshootmeIcan'tstanditmakeitstop" and then subsiding into semi-comatoseness in between. DH was watching the Usual Suspects or something like that on tv and I just had a death grip on his hand whenever the contractions started up again.
Talking normally just wasn't an option for me in between.

I also remember I'd been trying to sell this fucking spirit level on eBay for ages. When I was in the delivery room, about four hours in, I heard the eBay 'item sold' alert go off on my phone while I was coming up to a contraction. I shouted 'woooooooo ooooooo ooooooh that bastard spirit level has just sold oooooooooaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrghhhhh'.

"Labour - bearable 'pain'."

Yes for many! But not for me. That was unbelievable pain like I've never imagined. (Tried to have an epidural 5 times but it didn't work. It was me who posted this upthread also btw - this is rare!).

But have just found out I'm pregnant again and I'm not scared by the pain.

Now i know the challenge that's ahead of me and I'm going to prepare for it by learning hypnobirthing (left it too late last time), doing pelvic floor exercises, making sure I'm as fit as I can reasonably be.

Good for you for having such a positive attitude aufaniae - hope you'll find that no two labours are ever the same, and that it will be much better for you this time. My second labour was very quick - DS born within half hour of reaching hospital

Am surprised though by any posters like NorthWhittering who say they wouldn't describe their experience as painful. I'm sure approaching it as hard exercise or work is commendable and I can see how it could be helpful, but nevertheless I'm surprised by anyone who can get through labour and birth without experiencing it as painful at some point. Just shows again that every woman's experience is different because I do believe you - that for you that is an honest way to tell the story of your birth experience.
For myself I'd say bearable - even without additional pain relief - but painful at some moments.

Don't really get how my sister said ' it wasn't really that painful' after 48 hours - but maybe delirious by then!

Never actually had what I can claim is period pain but suffered a grumbling appendix every few months for 2 years (was a weird virus that attacked to gland around it and acted like an appendicitus) at age 13 my mum thought I was making it up so I learnt to cope with it for the few days it would last ( at home bent double - I think she thought wind!)

Anyone able to compare the two beyond a different area and purpose?!!

I had no intention of being in pain if I could help it and had epidurals with both DDs. With DD1 I got it reasonably early and was glad of it. Contractions were certainly painful. After the epidural I felt nothing else for the rest of labour, delivery and stitches afterwards. Managed to sleep for a few hours during my labour too.

With DD2 I got to the hospital later (arranging babysitter for DD1!) and so was already 8cm. I had been lying on the floor at home, doubled up in pain, before we left for the hospital and once we got in, DH's only task was to ensure I got my epidural. Because I didn't have it for as long I felt some of the pain of pushing, which was a bit frightening, having had such a pain-free birth for DD1. I had a retained placenta for DD2 though, which was less than pleasant to deal with, but not something everyone has to go through.

I am glad I got the pain relief I wanted. I'm not a grin and bear it type and saw no need to be in pain or even discomfort if I could do something about it. That being said, If I had no alternative, and had to do it without pain relief then I would. DDs are sooooo worth it!

Very very Bloody painful!!!!!!

Not had time to read the whole thread, sorry. I think it really depends on the kind of labour you end up with. If you go into labour with your preferred options and an open mind, you will more likely come away thinking it was a positive experience.

Most of my labour wasn't any worse than period pain, plus it was only short bursts. I ended up with one shot of diamorphine as I got to the stage where I thought I couldn't cope. My exact words were,'if its this sore now at 4cm I won't cope until 10cm'. Turned out I had went from 2cm to 10cm in two hours and didn't need it...hindsight! I actually had my tens on a ridiculously low setting as I was 'saving' it for the later stages . I was the only one in my nct group to think labour wasn't really bad.

However, I had a friend with a back to back labour who was stuck at 2cm for a very long time and in agony. Think she would have benefited from quicker pain relief options.

I also read one of the Ina May books in the couple of days before hand. Despite not being my usual mindset, I found it really helpful to read lots of positive birth stories in the lead up.

I'm pregnant with my first and nervous. My mother had an agonizing time giving birth to me. She tells me every birthday how painful, awful, agonizing and ghastly my birth was. She definitely isn't over it yet. I was face pubis.

I have experienced worse pain.
At least with labournyounknow it will end and that there will be a baby at the end of it!

Pet theory alert again - I took every pain relief option available to me, short of an epidural. Seriously. I sat in a warm bath for hours at home in the early stages and took paracetamol. Once I got too wrinkly, I got out and strapped on a TENS machine and whacked it right up as soon as I felt the need to. I was in a labour room by the time I was 3cm dilated, and on pipelined G&A straight away. The MW said I couldn't possibly use too much, but I gave it a really good go anyway . I still had the TENS machine going. I had two doses of pethidine, the second only twenty minutes before the birth. MW had previously said I could have another one if necessary a bit later.

So... when I, personally, say that it was hard work but not unbearably painful, I think what I'm really saying is that I felt pain, but the pain relief was working well enough to keep me psychologically removed from it. The pain was happening, but it wasn't frightening or distressing, just something which was happening. What was left was the hard work, and that's fine - I can deal with hard work.

I went back to my NCT tutor's class, with the other mums from my cohort, at about 7 weeks, to talk to the next class coming up to their births. I think the still-pregnant class may have been slightly about my attitude to pain relief as the consensus in that particular group appeared to be a lot more woo than I will personally go for they also looked startled when they learned that I had not even considered using cloth nappies. However, I was also able to tell them, honestly, that I would do it all again tomorrow without fear.

Horses for courses, and all that.

Oh, and all that was with DS spine to spine BTW, which was why I had contractions for over 30 hours, but established labour for only about 6, with all the serious action in the final half hour. I have no idea whether I had an additional local for the episiotomy and ventouse delivery, and I never thought to ask.

In truth, the stitches hurt more in a way which bothered me - the needle felt sharp! Dr apologised and upped the local before continuing.

I never went through the ring of fire though, as had a local then because of the ventouse, but like I said for me, I wouldn't describe the feeling of contractions as pain, it was a different feeling for me from pain like when I broke my toe or my arm for example, or sinusitits as I said above.

Clearly from reading the thread, it varies so much from labour to labour (not even woman to woman) that you don't know how it will be for you.

I think it really depends on the kind of labour you end up with. If you go into labour with your preferred options and an open mind, you will more likely come away thinking it was a positive experience.

I came away with not at all the kind of labour I wanted, I was continually monitored, stuck on my side so no active labour - certainly not the waterbirth I wanted. I also ended up with what seemed like all the maternity staff in the hospital in my room as we didn't know what kind of state the baby would be in when born. I still see it as a positive experience.