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Pregnancy

Talk about every stage of pregnancy, from early symptoms to preparing for birth.

Second time labours

13 replies

Ineedacoffee21 · 25/12/2021 21:31

Just looking for some comfort stories about second labours. Currently 35 weeks with baby no.2 and really struggling to feel excited as I’m just so anxious about the labour.
I had a particularly nice labour with my first DC, around 7 hours active labour but was pushing for over 2 hours, water birth, no complications etc. I don’t know if it’s because I know what’s coming I feel so much more anxious
I know there is t much I can do but I just wanted to hear some positive second labour stories!

OP posts:
Sleepyquest · 25/12/2021 21:39

Watching this as also nervous Grin

WhatsWrongWithMyUsername · 25/12/2021 21:43

First: 28 hours established labour
Second: 11 minutes.

Hope that helps!

Get to the hospital quickly is my advice.

My midwife told me the second labour is usually the easiest, no matter how many babies you go on to have.

DelurkingAJ · 25/12/2021 21:46

First labour back-to-back, short umbilical cord so they couldn’t turn him…arrived just over 24 hours after everything kicked off.

Second labour all done in four hours with only a midwife rather than the cast of hundreds we had for the first.

HyphenCobra · 26/12/2021 20:46

My second labour was lovely, had them at home!

Lot shorter too, was in denial i was near the end as first labour was so long. Pushed them out in 2 or 3 pushes. First was about an hour or so!

Best thing i did was read Ina May Gaskin birth book as has loads of positive stories in.

LilmissCa · 27/12/2021 00:10

Anxious about this too!!
My first was long & ended in theatre with episiotomy & forceps, which is playing in my head. Currently 37w4d.. which is actually the day I went into labour with my 1st!

FluffyPinkSocks · 27/12/2021 00:18

First was back to back labour for an hour, 2nd was just under an hour. 3rd was 45 mins. 4th was 1.5 hours. 5th was 2.5 hours. All different, all quick, last one was longer recovery.

Good luck with your new bundle!

faithfulbird20 · 27/12/2021 00:43

My second was last minute breech and 20 mins. If she wasn't breech I'm guessing she would have been out in 5 mins!

Mummapenguin20 · 27/12/2021 01:00

1st 4.5 hours 1 hr pushing
2nd 7 mins 3mins pushing
3rd 5hours 15 mins pushing

JingleRattles · 27/12/2021 13:22

My 2nd was the easiest of the lot... so much so, I actually felt really euphoric afterwards. Fingers crossed for you x

dream109 · 27/12/2021 14:12

Reading this has made me slightly anxious because we're half an hour drive from the hospital lol!

DramaAlpaca · 27/12/2021 14:36

I don't have quick labours, but my second was half the length of my first at 12 hours, I only needed gas and air, and the pushing stage was about 20 minutes.

BiBabbles · 27/12/2021 14:42

I hope it goes as well for you as possible. My 2nd was my best labour out of four, though also my weirdest, and the only pain relief I needed was heating pads (those things were labour magic for me).

In the first stage, my contractions never become consistent and were never closer together than 7 minutes (the hospital had a rule to call when they were consistently less than 5 minutes apart). I was able to manage most of the day fine and in the evening I went to lay down with heating pads on my pubic bone and lower back on the bed in the box room, wondering how long it would take to get 'established'.

I dozed on and off for a few hours and then, like a switch, I had the strong urge to get onto all fours, press the top of my head into the back of the nearby upholstered chair and push. I had to ask for my spouse to make the call now, about 10-15 minutes later my daughter's head was out which she turned while still inside me and spat amniotic fluid at her father. My spouse helped rearrange her arms (she was hugging herself with her elbows out, which may explain why my public bone ended up so bruised - it seemed those were bashing against it as she was facing that way - he moved them away from her neck), next contraction the rest of her slid out in the greatest sense of relief-euphoria into my hands, my spouse helped me to turn and sit down on the chair I had decided in labour-haze to kneel on - and that's when the paramedics knocked on the door and we found out my spouse hadn't actually hung up the phone, he'd just dropped it on the bed... he was so apologetic about that.

It is also the only labour I had without a retained placenta, it came out smoothly 5-10 minutes into a biohazard bag the paramedics had and done no issues, no idea why with her and none of the others.

The midwife came in shortly after asking me what blood type I was and was so relived I was a positive type so she didn't need to faff with things, we had a lovely chat, they helped me have a bath and checked me, no isses, and my newborn DD1 and I slept in the box room bed entirely oblivious to the mess that my spouse would clean the next day.

The chair she was born on is now in our living room and I'm in the process of getting some repair work done on it as it's now a priceless family treasure.

zafferana · 27/12/2021 14:55

My second labour was very quick! First labour was about 16 hours in total, second was under 3 hours and just SO much easier. Because it was so quick I felt great afterwards and was discharged home straight away. He was born at 8pm and we were home by midnight - it was great.

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