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Parenting after 35
Sunsh1ne
member
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Natural childbirth success without classes?
Sunsh1ne
member
Visiting from the pg over 35 board - 34 weeks and counting down 
I'm wondering whether anyone had success with natural (unmedicated, as my ob corrects me - "natural" is in a field, she says!) childbirth without going through classes? My ob recommended reading about hypnobirthing and having checked out a few library books on different methods, it seems like this one would "speak" to me more so than some of the others.
It's really too late to do a class. And I don't think we'll hire a doula.
Just wondering if anyone has mentally prepared for a natural childbirth sans formal classes and had success. Am I kidding myself?
I'm a runner with 14 marathons under my belt and have continued to run through my pg, so I'm in good shape. My ob tells me that athletes generally do well in labor. (Little does she know I'm just a weekend warrior who runs mostly to chit chat with my gal pals and drink coffee after my runs... ha ha.) I am good with mental preparation, but childbirth is a whole different beast.
So, has anyone had a successful natural childbirth without formal classes/coaching? Do tell!
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Re: Natural childbirth success without classes?
I did! My philosophy on childbirth really took a 180 towards the end of my pregnancy (same as you). I think I just wasn't that educated about it at first, but once I started doing research, I realized it was the only way to go for me.
I read Ina May's Guide to Childbirth and Bradley's Husband Coached Childbirth (DH read it too). We hired a doula, which was very helpful, but I went through most of my labor just me and my DH at home. When I told my Dr I wanted to have an unmedicated birth he was very supportive, and told me to hire a doula if I could afford it, and to stay away from the hospital as long as possible (which we did, when I got there I was fully dilated) to avoid any unnecessary hospital intervention. Being at home for so long was amazing b/c I was able to rest in my own home in a quiet bedroom just me and my DH. It really helped me to relax in between contrax.
I did do prenatal yoga at a center that was very supportive of natural childbirth. But no other classes. I am so happy it all worked out and you can absolutely do it!! I'm a runner as well and I think that certainly helps. The biggest thing for me was knowing my body was meant to do this, taking one contraction at a time, and having all of the positive birth stories in the back of my mind (there are tons in Ina May's book).
Thanks so much for sharing! I have Ina May's book coming from the library as well as the Bradley book. How much does a doula cost?
I did!
I got books on various methods, but wasn't really impressed or sold on any of 'em. Bradley was about as close as I got to helpful, though the whole "Bradley birth" concept made me cringe.
Prenatal yoga helped a LOT. It's not to late to start that.
For me, I needed to remind myself that this was normal, that the pain had an end point, and also give myself permission to get medication if I felt like I really needed it. That was crucial, because then it became a choice rather than something I *had* to do. I find I relax more when I don't pressure myself.
Of course, as it turned out, my labor was only 2.5 to 3 hours. My water broke, we went in, I was only 1cm, they gave me a hep lock instead of an iv. They thought it would be a long haul, so they set us up in the labor/birthing room and let us be. Two hours later I was screaming, and I am really not a screamer. I admit I asked for meds at that point, but when they checked me again they told me I had transitioned and was fully dilated.
Well, everyone was rushing around like crazy, because they weren't ready for the delivery yet, so I had to try to not push. THAT hurt. That really really hurt. I think it hurt more because my way of getting through the pain was completely relaxing, and if you are trying not to push you are sure not relaxed. The doctor barely made it in to catch her when she arrived, and then my placenta was retained so he had to cram his hand in there and clean it out. Dude. That also hurt, like way hurt.
So, yeah, I almost got medication, but ordinarily it wouldn't hurt that much that early.The digging around after the placenta would have been nicer with medication. I think that's about it.
I didn't do Bradley method or hyponobirthing formally. I read a bit but not much. We did a basic childbirth class. I'm located in a part of the country where support for unmedicated birth is plentiful. There was a midwife present the entire time I labored in the hospital. She and the nurse assigned to me were incredibly helpful.
For me the biggest part of the mental preparation was just wanting to do it without meds. I look at it this way: a contraction lasts a minute, minute and a half? You can do anything for a minute and a half!! Besides, it's not like you are in pain and don't know why and don't know when it will be over. I saw pain management as a tiered process: I used nitrous, which isn't available everywhere. When labor ended up lasting a long time (36 hours, 4 of that pushing) I also got a couple hits of fentanyl. I avoided the epidural though, which was really my main goal. The benefit of it that I see in hindsight was that I could have slept for a bit before pushing.
I didn't do hypnobirth, but I did read up on Bradley techniques, and I went without an epidural until they took me into a CS. The contractions were intense, but I was determined not to get an epidural, and I think if it's important to you to go without medication, you can do it.
But, as Moiselle said, keep an open mind about everything.
Our doula cost $1700 . . . not sure where you are located, we were in Manhattan, so that is probably as pricey as you can get. I heard you can get them around here for around $1000 (w/less experience). It was helpful for me to have someone who had been through it before, a calming influence, and a good teacher in terms of how to breathe through the contractions. My DH was super supportive, but he didn't fully know what I was feeling like she did.
I agree with the ops about the contractions too. Mine never got closer than 4 minutes apart, even when i was pushing, and they lasted about a minute each time. Obviously that was after several hours of labor. So technically even though my whole labor (from water breaking to baby out) was 18 hours, it wasn't like 18 hours of continuous work. There are breaks, you learn to know what the peak of each contraction feels like and it feels like a constructive pain (if that makes sense), rather than one where you don't know why its happening or you are injured.
Thanks so much for the feedback! I guess it's not so much the meds I am worried about avoiding, but a c-section - which I have no control over. I am really hoping not to have to go through a c-section recovery.
It helps to read about everyone's experiences, so thanks for sharing!
I'm sure you know this, but avoid being induced if at all possible. I was lucky enough to have a doctor who was very much against inducement unless absolutely necessary and said he would let me go to 42 weeks as long as the baby was healthy and my fluids were high. Average gestational period is really 41 wks 1 day, but most doctors start talking about inducement shortly after 40 wks. Getting induced obviously increases risk of C section . . .
If you go naturally into labor and have to get a C, then you've done everything you could and it was just meant to be that way.
That's very helpful. I didn't realize that avg. gest. period is 41w 1d. I'll have to ask my ob how long she'll let me go. I really don't want to be induced because I do know it increases the risk of c-section.
There are some midwives in my practice, so maybe I'll start scheduling some of my next appointments with them. I have no idea if they are more open to the idea of unmedicated childbirth than the doctors (I do love my doc) and whether they would be more supportive to seek out when I deliver.
I'm a runner too (6 marathons) and ran up until the day before my water broke. We were late to sign up for classes and only ended up going to one class at the hospital I delivered at. My water broke at 330am. I had to get pitocin at 7pm and didn't have my baby until 430am (25 hrs later) and I was able to do it without pain medication. I think marathoning really helped. I was totally focused during the contractions just like during the pain of a marathon. I also think it helped that I labored on a birthing ball leaning over the edge of the bed almost the whole time. Believe me right before I was ready to push I was seriously contemplating an epidural but just kept telling myself it could prolonge labor. Good luck to you! I bet you will do great.