How painful is childbirth on a scale of 1-10?

[Blackitty]

1 being a breeze
and ...
10 being the absolute worst pain imaginable?

I am due in March. First baby and would like to know what I’m in for...

I was induced so the pain was bad for me! But when I got the epidural I felt nothing and it was great! This was with a forceps delivery and a lot of stitches, no pain at all! Before the epidural though was dreadful as gas and air didn’t really touch it. But if I had the epidural earlier as I was meant to, it would have been a total breeze as I was even able to nap once i got it!!

It varies. I've given birth 3 times. One birth was enjoyable and not painful at all so a 0, one was torturous, terrifying and nearly killed us both so a 10 and the other was a little sore so a 2. I didn't find the act of childbirth that site. Only when things went wrong did pain really come into it. You could always use pain relief if you are worried.

Don't spend too much time worrying about it, you will get through it and you will forget what it felt like. I think the part I found hardest from my first was not knowing when it would end, but I had a very long labour. Try to move around same as you would if you were constipated is my advice. You can do it we all did!

It’s a 10. A human is coming out of you.

You manage it though.

I'd say 3 or 4 after epidura. It was a traumatic delivery but not painful.
Breastfeeding was another story though. It felt a lot more painful.

More than 10, until the epidural!

Back to back baby, long labour and emergency c section. Exhausting as much as painful. I'd put it at about a 7. Gall stones pain, however, was a 10.

Eleventy hundred. There are no heroes in childbirth i.e.: take all the pain relief you are offered and then some

It was like period pain, but more than that it was just a really intense experience. It wasn't like pain, more like overwhelming sensation of cramping, moving, pushing. I had fast labours and it wasn't unbearably painful, just really intense.
Sciatica was far far worse for me. I'd give birth again over sciatica.

The thing to remember is that when people talk about 'pain thresholds' it's utter rubbish. It's not that some women are just stronger and have a 'higher pain threshold' it's that some births just give more pain. And two seemingly identical births can have wildly different pain. While breathing techniques can help they aren't enough to get through some births.

DS1 manageable pain about a 7ish (until he needed forceps to help then about 20 out of 10 lol)

DS2 was back to back, well and truly stuck - 10/10 all the was from first pushing until they took me to theatre, gave me a spinal and then all was amazing even during their several attempts with vonrousse and forceps - until it wore off and I was bruised and battered.

However my friend has had three... All manageable with gas and air - it depends on the individual, pain threshold, position of baby etc etc

10. Awful.

I didn’t have pain relief except gas and air and wouldn’t consider another birth without everything on offer.

You'll be fine Op
Yes its painful at times (not all the time) but, you will get through it and afterwards the pain will be gone.
And afterwards you'll be far too engrossed with your little one to care.

Kidney stones were worse.

Thing with childbirth is, if we felt the pain was unbearable, we wouldn't have more than one. I honestly can't remember the actual pain levels now, time really does dull them.

First baby a 7 and I felt aware and okay. It was manageable but my second baby I felt I was falling through a dark hole being battered and stretched in every direction.. Definitely a 10. I think the pain will depend on the baby's position, breath work can help loads and I wish I had learned about that before both births.

10 with first, 5 with second - mainly as there was no stitching, I actually found the stitching up afterwards far far worse than the giving birth

Thing with childbirth is, if we felt the pain was unbearable, we wouldn't have more than one. I honestly can't remember the actual pain levels now, time really does dull them.

That's a trick of biology- it actually messes with your memory so you'll forget and do it again.

I gave birth pretty much alone in silence on a ward so it can’t have been that bad... i was just anticipating it getting worse. I had no feeling whatsoever when pushing just a sense of getting it done. No tearing. No “ring of fire”.

Breastfeeding was the hard bit.

I had an epidural and spinal with dc1, spinal and ELCS with dc2. I didn't feel all that much pain, but had stop start labour for a long while with dc1...it was annoying more than anything, as I couldn't sleep.

Everyone’s experience of labour is different. Some will say it’s a 10 (or higher), others will say no worse than a 5. None of this is helpful to @Blackitty, I think it just creates more stress and anxiety which definitely won’t help.

@Blackitty I don’t know if you’ve even broken a bone, hurts like hell and carries on hurting like hell for a long time after, you need keep taking the painkillers. For me, labour was different, I’m. It going to lie and say it doesn’t hurt, but the pain stops pretty. I have straight away after the baby was born.

I hope that helps a little, try not to focus too much on the delivery and imagine meeting your baby. There are drugs you can take that can help take the edge off. Look into a TENS machine for when you labour at home. Also look into breathing techniques.

You will be fine ❤️

I have had two children with nothing stronger than gas and air. Not going to suggest it was pain free, but it was easily bearable. Think I was lucky though.

It didn't come close to the worst pain I have ever had. That was from a dental abscess and the root canal treatment that followed (anaesthetic didn't work, so could feel every excruciating second of it).

I felt like it maybe made it to an 8 for part of the time while I was dilating (but we're talking about no more than an hour, tops.) Pushing was actually not that big a deal. Like a 4, maybe? If that. I'd anticipated it being something that would get progressively worse and worse, with the actual having the baby bit being worst of all, and it turned out not to be like that at all.

If you start with a negative mindset it won’t make it easier. It’s a natural process and your body is designed to do it. Concentrate on breathing and relaxing and it will be more manageable. I have done one with no drugs and one with gas and air. Gas and air worked really well for me and I actually loved it! I would do it again in a flash on gas and air!

Back to back delivery. 2 hours of pushing including needing a forceps delivery.

Before epidural it was off the scale, but I also gynae issues and scaring which may well have made things worse.

After epidural, hunky dory.

The infection post birth, that wiped me for 6 weeks on top a newborn alone with tongue tie trying to bf!

I had an epidural when they broke my waters so a zero!
I enjoyed every single second of giving birth and because I was calm and relaxed I was able to really concentrate on pushing and enjoy the moment.
I'm due at the end of next month and will be hoping for a repeat performance.