Anyone with a short labour on their first child? If you had another child what was the labour like?

[suiledonn]

Not due til November but just wondering about this. I had my dd 3 days before her due date. When midwife first examined me she told me I was barely 2cm dilated and to expect a long wait. DD was born 2 hours later with less than a half hour pushing. I had no drugs that could have moved things on so quickly. The midwife didn't even believe me when I said I had a strong urge to push and only examined me when I persisted. I wonder if anyone had a similar experience first time round and what was subsequent labour like.

I had a 6 hour labour with DS1 from first twinge to 1st cuddle. I was in labour proper for about 3 hours.

DS2 was 90 minutes start to finish. I booked a home birth because I thought it would probably be quick. Thank god. There was no way I could have got DS1's childcare sorted out and to hospital in the available time. I didn't even get the TENS machine properly strapped on!

Mine was even quicker - less than 5 hours from first pain to birth. So much easier than anything I had imagined. I actually said to dh about 30 mins before dd was born 'If it is going to go on like this til tomorrow I might have to consider pain relief'. Little did I realise I was in the final stages.
Our closest hospital is nearly an hour away so wonder about my chances of getting there this time round.

dd1 2hrs 20 mins

dd2 1hr 40 mins

ds1 1 hr 11 mins

ds2 22mins

Lucky ladies! That sounds great - hope you weren't too shaky afterwards.

My mum had my sisters, 12 hours, 2 hours, and I was 6 hours, she had to lie down with me though as she had problems with the retina in her eye, so I could have been quicker if she had been more upright for the duration.

dd1-4 hours 30

dd2-55 minutes

My mother-in-law has 5 kids - total labour of 8 hours combined!!!

dd1 6 hrs. dd2 3 hrs. dd3 ? Will find out in a few weeks. MW told me they are often roughly half the time of the first, though 3rd labours tend to be unpredicatable.
lou33 - how ever did you manage 22 min? Sounds very difficult!

lou33, my goodness...22min? is that from start to finish? Was it more painful because it was so short? It's mindblowing to think that in the time it would take to, say, watch an episode of the simpsons you went from nothing at all to holding your baby.

yes it was

yes it is more painful i would think, but i am not sure i could do a 12 hour labour thing, it seems so long

Mine was 11 hours- I can't imagine a 22 minute labour, all that pain condensed, good god! You're a brave lady, that's all I can say.

ds1 was 2 hours
ds2 was about 15 mins

Absolutely none of my business and feel free to not answer this, but I wonder if any of you very speedy ladies tore because it was all so quick? I did, the labour was long(er than you guys) but he shot out.

with dd1i had an episiotomy and get a 3rd degree tear, she was born at home and came out brow first with the cord round her neck (her heart had actually stopped , so they had to cut me to get her out)

with dd2 i had a small but deep tear

ds1 slight tear no stitches tho

ds2 no tear at all

maybe i was just getting looser in that department

Good grief @ your first birth. That must have been traumatic. You definitely are a brave lady! They're always worth it though. Still can't get over 22 minutes though lol

ChasingSquirrels, your personal best was 15 minutes? that's even worse!

Neither of you was that woman who gave birth in wilkos, were you? (terrible grammar, how on earth should that sentence have gone???)

i didnt know any difference really, she was my first

i was not aware it was going faster than it should, i just remember thinking omg i cannot do this for another 11 hours, and the midwives were very calm about it all, tho they stressed the importance of getting her out immediately, to me

she wasnt planned to be born at home, it's just by the time the ambulance arrive i was crowning, and the flying squad came in and said i had to deliver on my bed

DS was a little over 3 hours. I woke up in full-on labor, made it to the hospital in 5 minutes, and was fully dilated upon arrival. He had a giant head, and most of the time was spent pushing.

DD was a little under 2. Woke up in full-on labor again, hospital 5 min. Only 6 cm, though. This time it was all dilating, and she was out in 5 pushes.

3 hours
6 hours
3 hours
1.5 hours
6 hours

ds1 I didn't tear at all, pushing stage was 1hr of the 2hr's and in hospital, so I guess slightly managed

ds2 I had a couple of grazes - but it wasn't a managed birth in any way - I had 2/3 contractions, stood up to let dh put some plastic sheeting on the bed, thought I better just check everything was ok, reached down and delivered his head into my hand (in retrospect my body obviously knew the baby was coming and reached down to catch).

There is nothing brave about it at all - you don't have a choice do you. Going through a long drawn out labour takes a lot more stamina etc than a 15 min 4/5 contraction birth. Honestly, in the pic we took of me just after he was born I look about 50 times better than the ones we took the next morning! Have just added them to my profile.

about an hour with ds (first baby)
1.5 days with dd1
about 9 hours ish with dd2

oh and dd1 was the smallest...

ds1 was 5 hours
ds2 1hr 15mins according to my notes

First born was 7lb 15 oz DD. Total labour from feeling like I had bad indigestion to birth 2 1/2 hours.

Second labour DS 9lb 1 oz 6 hours.

First Labour : We got to hospital with 20 minutes to spare as I would not leave the toilet at home because of constant urge to go. I didn't really understand what was happening as it all happened so quickly and pain went from very mild to full on quite quickly. In hospital I was screaming for an epidural as I was thinking there was no way I could endure hours of that level of pain. The midwife kept saying get onto the bed but I wouldn't stay there such was the level of the pain. Finally I did, I was examined and she said here is the babies head. 2 shudders later (i Didn't even conciously push) and DD born. Amazing.

Second labour was homebirth as I was petrified baby would be born in car during 45 minute labour (I did my research into fastest deliveries possible) outside king's Cross on way to UCL hospital. It was still very straightforward but I was much more aware of how it was all going, more relaxed and definitely had too put in effort and wait while his body rotated.

Found out yesterday am pregnant again.

Induced with all three of mine but
DS 9lb1 15 days late labour=90mins
DD1 6lb14 39+3wks = 8hrs
DD2 6lb 14 38+5 = 60mins

Dd-5 hrs

Ds-3.5hrs

And yes I did tear with ds (had episiotomy with dd-much worse) I was only pushing for 10 mins with him and he did fly out, but then he was 10lbs4oz so i'd be slightly worried if i hadn't had any damage at all

Thanks for all the great responses. Reading these is making me think that maybe my less than 5 hour labour first time round wasn't really that quick!
I didn't tear at all but then dd was a teeny tiny 6lb baby. The only problem I had was that the placenta would not deliver and I had to go to theatre under a general anaesthetic to have it removed.