Am I crazy for wanting a natural child birth?

[Evianontoast]

Hi. I'm 31 weeks and starting to think about my birth plan with my
first baby. I've never really been one for taking any kind of drugs - I don't even take paracetamol (I also don't drink alcohol or caffeine, and haven't done for years, even before I was pregnant. Not really sure why, I just don't like the idea of it).

I really feel like I'd feel better going in to birth with a plan to not have any pain relief if I can help it. I understand that many people feel this way and end up with the pain relief in the end (thank goodness it's available if you need it). But whenever it comes up in conversation with anyone, I get the "just you wait!" attitude.

Am I being completely naive? I really think I can do it without it but maybe that's just first time mum naivety? Anyone else do it with no drugs? Do you regret it/ are you glad you did it?

Thanks in advance.

@BertieBotts

G&A is lovely!

Pethidine is like a friend that you are happy to see when they finally turn up then you chill.
Epidural is your soul mate that literally, physically just takes all of your pain away.

But gas& air...oh G&A is the best fun. It's your party animal bud, the one that makes you go dancing in the rain with traffic cones on your head🤣

This is a funny post to read 🤣🤣🤣 all I can say is your in for alot of disappointment and one hella shock

Epidural was a cheating lying rat fink to me :o:o

I think probably I didn't stay still enough but that feeling of calm knowing the pain would be gone soon and then waiting and waiting for it to kick in and then the panic, anger and fear when I realised it wasn't going to kick in ever was something else. That birth was the worst and it was because I had no coping mechanisms at all so when the epidural failed I was left with nothing. The other two were better, even when the pain level was higher than it was at the point the epidural failed, because I expected to have to manage it myself and I used every idea and resource I had to do that. There is nothing scarier than feeling out of control of the pain.

I'm a wimp with low pain threshold so no idea how I managed three no epidural births TBH. But I don't have any desire to do it again.

I was never offered a placenta jab. Had no idea one existed until this thread. Is it a new thing?

@PlanDeRaccordement

I was never offered a placenta jab. Had no idea one existed until this thread. Is it a new thing?

@PlantLadyMum

I had it with all of mine, oldest is 20.
It's been around for way longer than that

@PlanDeRaccordement

I was never offered a placenta jab. Had no idea one existed until this thread. Is it a new thing?

Did yours come very quickly? I guess they wouldn't bother if the placenta came immediately.

I had the jab both time and still had a retained placenta both times - I don't know if that means it didn't work for me or if it means my placentas would have been well and truly stuck without. I do remember the midwife with DS2 saying to me when it was finally delivered 'can I put this in the waste or do you want to eat it or anything weird like that?'!

I think this is something you can’t plan in advance because every mum, baby and labour are going to be different. You just don’t know what it’s going to be like for you. Learn what the different birth options are going to be so you and your birth partner are well informed for anything that may or may not happen, and then accept that this is the gamble we all make as people choosing to have babies. Don’t get too attached to any particular way of birthing, that way leads to disappointment when it’s just one day in your life.

I steeled myself for a labour where I could only have g&a plus an anti-emetic because my family has laboured at speed for many generations so I knew I probably wouldn’t be able to have anything more, and that was what happened (6 hours, which is slow apparently 😬). Not a brave or natural choice, just how my body worked the first time round and I hope will do again this time. I remember towards the end really wanting drugs but knowing it wasn’t an option.

Unless the OP has changed her username I don't think she's been back at all since first post?

Anyway, whether she's reading these or not. There are no prizes for doing it without pain relief. By all means have an idea of how you would like it to go in an ideal world but don't tie down a plan that may fly out the window when the time comes, and cause disappointment for failing to stick to it. It's impossible to predict what will happen and how you tolerate it.

I would say keep an open mind. I had dc1 using tens machine for early labour and then gas and air in the pool. I found being in the water really helped. There are so many factors though that are outside your control.

@Hardbackwriter
Did yours come very quickly? I guess they wouldn't bother if the placenta came immediately.

Yes, after each baby was born, there was a pause, they cut the cord, I had baby on my chest for a quick cuddle, then when they took baby, I’d stand up and the placenta always seemed to just drop out of me, then I’d lie down to get stitched up (tore on 3 out of 4 births). Mine were all homebirths.

@BertieBotts I am so glad it was not just me who was hugely sensitive (and an enormous wimp) about being touched after the birth. I was hysterical having my tear examined and had to get high on gas and air again to be stitched. I was definitely not an easy patient

What annoyed me the most was I didn't think it was especially urgent. I was also positive I had not torn because I would have felt it. It's just the stitching from the first one left me a bit ragged so they looked at that both times and wondered if it was a new tear.

I remember feeling grateful/happy that the hospital staff were in general really good at checking I was OK with something before they did it, but I quickly realised that if I was not, that didn't mean they wouldn't do it, it just meant they would wait and then ask again until I agreed. And if I didn't agree fast enough they would get visibly uncomfortable/impatient as though it wasn't something they were used to.

Had planned to do that with the first and honestly ended up having an epidural before I was 2cm because of a very intense induction ending in spinal block and forceps but I think the pain of over come me so

Second baby I said i was open to anything and I did a hypno birthing course with my partner so he could help me through when the going got tough! Highly recommend it, was able to go to 7cm without anything and then had a very mild epidural I could move and feel still. Delivered with no help and no tearing at all. Left the hospital 8 hours later. Honestly if you want to go with no pain relief do hypno birthing to manage your pain! I freaked out from
The pain the first time even though my pain threshold is very high good luck with it! X

@ZingDramaQueenOfSheeba pethidine was not my friend!! Within seconds of it being injected, I felt like my drink had been spiked. I was so out of it… talked total nonsense, passed out for an hour, woke up and vomited everywhere and then felt drunk again!!!

You can totally do it without pain relief but it’s whether you want to at the time! I think it depends also on if you have a straightforward birth or a very long labour or back to back labour etc.

For my first birth I planned a natural birth..I then asked for an epidural as things ramped up very very quickly for me and I think took me by surprise! They didn’t have time so I got what I had initially wanted I guess! I was glad in hindsight as it meant a really quick recovery and home a few hours later so I would recommend it if you can...however do have a plan b ready and read up on other pain options so that you’re prepared.

[quote SillyBry]@ZingDramaQueenOfSheeba pethidine was not my friend!! Within seconds of it being injected, I felt like my drink had been spiked. I was so out of it… talked total nonsense, passed out for an hour, woke up and vomited everywhere and then felt drunk again!!![/quote]
Agreed, I hated pethidine. For some reason they gave me some near the end of labour. I’d have about ten seconds between contractions on which I’d fall asleep involuntarily and wake up screaming with the pain of the next one. It didn’t touch the pain either.

I had a natural birth with my first and I'm going for a natural home birth with my second now.

Something that midwives and obgyns don't mention is that pain relief drugs like epidural carry certain risks of injury, affecting the baby,... And leaves you unable to move, so you're forced to lie on your back, which partially blocks your pelvis and makes labor more painful and longer, with greater risks for a c-sec. Most people are fine but the risks are there.

I personally had gas&air and a water birth. The contractions were painful, but the water and the gas made it feel like very uncomfortable period cramps. Once the pushing stage began I felt no pain, just pressure. You can definitely do it without, your body is designed for it :)

If you're not having a home birth you can always ask for drugs if you feel it's too much, but in my experience it's not that bad

I wish you luck xx

You may want to read this from the American Society of Anaesthesiologists which debunks some epidural myths, including that they can hurt the baby or “slow things down”: www.asahq.org/about-asa/newsroom/news-releases/2014/06/epidural-myth
My experience certainly was consistent with what the article says, in that the epidural significantly sped up stage 1. There are even walking epidurals now, which mean you don’t have to be confined to the bed if you don’t want to be.
As for the pain being no worse than period pain: maybe, for some people. But for some people I assure you it’s not like that at all. I get pretty bad period pains and this pain was like nothing I’ve ever felt before or since. It was both completely different and horrifically, unimaginably worse. A bit like every cell in my body being ripped to shreds, or like being crushed to pieces. You don’t know what it’s going to be like for you until you go through it, hence why so many are saying you shouldn’t rule anything out. It depends on your pelvis and the position of the baby, neither of which you can influence. So luck of the draw, really.

It was both completely different and horrifically, unimaginably worse. A bit like every cell in my body being ripped to shreds, or like being crushed to pieces
While this may be your experience it certainly wasn't mine, it only really hurt for about 2 hours before the baby arrived and it's not constant pain. Broken shoulder hurt far more.

I don’t doubt it. My point is that my experience could be anyone’s experience, so you shouldn’t rule anything out until you know what it feels like for you.