Labor horror stories

MarSamWhitney

When you know someone who is pregnant, do you tell them the awful things, or remain positive?

I ask because a friend of mine has been in labor for 26 hours now, at a 5. She probably is thinking I am a major liar right about now. lol. In my defense, W was born after a half hour of pushing, so it was very fast. Of course I had tearing and that whole left over placenta nasty recovery. So..there were some bad things, but I generally chose to be positive about it. That was some of the best stuff my sister told me "Labor wasn't so bad" So, going in, I wasnt that afraid.

What do you say to pregnant people when they ask you how labor was?

Valleybugt

I tell em "nobody has ever failed labor, one way or another there's always a baby."

SweetHurricane

No one's ever asked me, but I'd tell them the truth. It was nothing like I was told it would be though. My water never broke. I never had BH contrax. When I did have contractions, they came on fast and strong. There was no "labor at home as long as possible". They were 3 mins apart pretty much right away. Oh, and I could talk through them. Everyone said they're not real if you can talk - BS!

mikah.george

I usually tell people it's not that hard. You usually forget it all anyway. 

My labor was SUPER easy with both my girls so I was lucky. And by easy, I mean easy. I live minutes from the hospital & barely made it with both my kids. As soon as I had my IV in I had to start pushing. I didn't have time for meds or anything. 30 minutes for the 1st & 15 for the 2nd. Ridiculous I know. It;s like they just jumped out. 

But yeah, I stay positive about labor. It's no big deal. Like ValleyBug said, nobody ever fails at it. You always get a baby at the end.

Fergie+1

I think I'd ask them what they're looking for- reassurance that it isn't as horrible as some women paint it out to be or the truth. Granted, I had a pretty ideal [/short] labor and only 20 minutes of pushing, so I'm not sure my story is the best to share... I know many FTM's have loooooong labors.

I was given my share of horrible birth stories before having Lucian- unfortunately, the worst was from my grandma with "Oh, it was awful. They cut me, y'know, from one hole to the other. And they drugged me. It was awful." (Yes, my grandma said that, ver batem.) Sooo... I'm not inclined to share bad information unless someone's curious about my experience.

MissK22

I tell them the truth about my labor. That it was a piece of cake for the first 12 hours but the last hour was a nightmare. But even though it was hard, it was all worth it when I saw my son's face.

mikah.george

MissK22:

I tell them the truth about my labor. That it was a piece of cake for the first 12 hours but the last hour was a nightmare. But even though it was hard, it was all worth it when I saw my son's face.

And a very cute face it is!! 

mishu917

If they ask then I tell them. Basically there is a "rule" to go to the hospital when the contractions are within a certain time.... but I say to stay at home as long as possible until your water breaks. My theory is the shorter your stay at the hospital is before the baby, the easier your labor is. I try to tell them to think of it as something that is temporary during labor itself and do not get freaked out about it, really, that could slow things down I guess. I also think walking a lot or being active during the pregnancy helps with delivery from what I have seen. Not anything scientific though but it could be that your body is prepared? I wouldn't tell them any horror stories if I know of any (unless said person is set on a c/s even repeat c/s because people think c/s are normal procedures these days) because that only scares them and for me, made me think that I would not make it without a c/s (like I prepared/expected the worst). It's all about encouragement even if you have had a bad experience, it took my mom 3 days before having my sister (they had a 72 hour c/s rule in the motherland) and I literally dropped out of my mom as she opened the hospital door.... so even if you have had a bad experience, it does not mean anything.

mistyflame

My BFF told me not to tell her anything until after she has her baby. Haha, but then again she knew when I left for the hospital, and then after DS was here and it took awhile.  I figure her and I can talk about it after her LO arrives.

Anyone else, I just try to be vague.  I didn't have a good experience, but I don't think I should scare them either since their experience could be totally different. 

Doodle2011

I tell them to trust their instincts.  My water broke, I went to the OB's office, they told me I peed my pants.    A few hours later when hard contractions kicked in, we went to the hopsital, and good thing too, because indeed that HAD been my water.  I feel very lucky my body moved along on its own, because I very well could have walked around at risk of infection.  I also tell them not everyone poops on the table (I didn't) but if they do, it's not a big deal to anyone, and they may not even know they did it.

MissK22

mikah.george:

MissK22:

I tell them the truth about my labor. That it was a piece of cake for the first 12 hours but the last hour was a nightmare. But even though it was hard, it was all worth it when I saw my son's face.

And a very cute face it is!! 

Thanks!! Your girls are beautiful! 

broccolitree

My labor story was so freaking insane and yet, not.  The actual brass tacks on my end were cake... I had contractions for like 2 hours, then went under general and had a C, with a really easy recovery.  Depending on whether they really want to know and the situation, I usually stop there.

ffejsGirl

I can be honest because I had two very standard 8 hour induction deliveries at 40 weeks. There were some hiccups with my Epi but everything turned out fine. I think if I had some horror story it'd be different. I answer what's asked and try to stay positive. I can only give my version though. There are so many different ways to labor and birth.

KateLouise

I had a really enjoyable birth experience so it's easy for me to positive.

I'm not saying it wasn't painful or hardwork, but it was all completely manageable and my recovery was super easy.

So I tell them all my positive experiences. I'm also honest about some of the things I found hard/particularly painful/frightening. So if my experience had been less enjoyable I guess I'd still be honest.

If I had a true "horror" story I think I'd glass some details, focus on the positive and point out that most births are completely straight forward.