August 2011 Moms
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Has anyone delivered naturally with no drugs or classes?
It seems like there is a lot of talk about all of our upcoming birth's.
I'm just curious to see if anyone has given birth naturally with no epidural or any type of drug or classes.
My best friend gave birth naturally with no drugs or classes and I that is my goal. I haven't taken any classes, and the epidural not only scares me but may not be an option for me as I've had back surgery.
Thoughts?
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Re: Has anyone delivered naturally with no drugs or classes?
Both my SIL and my neighbor have given birth to 3 kids apiece without drugs and without classes.
It can be done. I will not take classes, but I am reading natural childbirth classes.
::raises hand::
I did. But to be honest, I was very lucky because I had such an amazing nurse who coached me through the worst of it. And the no-drug was not a choice: the anesthesiologist was just too busy that day and I wasn't very high on the priority list. I am hoping I can get an epi this time. But at least if I don't, I know it won't be the end of the world (well, it will be, but only for a few hours
)
My sister has done it twice. The first time she wanted the epidural but baby came faster than the doc could get there. The 2nd time she knew she could do it and he was born less than 6 hours after her first mild contractions.
I won't be taking any classes but I have hired a doula to help me with labor and plan to go med-free. It can be done!
The classes we took were pretty much the same as the ones on childbirth that we had in high school, so nothing new there. Then they were mostly about caring for the baby. They were free, so we didn't pass them up.
Our hospital also doesn't offer the full epidural, only the intrathecal and ONLY if we are not progressing fast enough. We can get pain med in the IV, but again, my Dr. doesn't like to do anything extra because it apparently can slow down labor (and personally, I want labor to get over with as fast as possible).
I already know I will be having antibiotics in the IV, but hoping that I won't need any pain meds and can go as natural as possible.
I did--the only "class" I took was the 2 hour childbirth class at the hospital which was DEFINITELY pro-epidural, and was mainly to let you know how things ran at the L&D unit. I read Natural Childbirth the Bradley Way (by Susan McCutcheon) and that was the extent of my "natural childbirth education". I've been re-reading it for this time around.
Homediva is right...not taking classes is one thing, but you can easily find a dozen books at your library or on amazon that go over different stages of labor, knowing your emotional signposts, breathing techniques (PLEASE don't do lamaze...it's a step away from causing you to hyperventilate!), etc. It's obviously too late for Bradley classes (most last 6-8 wks) but you can easily learn about natural childbirth in a book. I'd also suggest that you have your SO read up on it with you, so he knows what to expect.
My mom did it 10 times.
With that said, she has very easy births (you tend to if you are willing to do it that many times.)
Honestly I am on the fence, I have done the reading on natural birth and watched videos about it. I have mild fibromyalgia and have luckily not had a major pain attack during the pregnancy. But honestly, I don't know what will happen once I go into labor.
I am going to have a natural childbirth if I can get my breech baby to flip! I have only taken the one class at the hospital, and they did cover some relaxation techniques, but they were mostly to tide you over until you can get the epi!
I am learning some self-hypnosis/deep relaxation techniques through a spoken word album I bought on Itunes for 10 bucks!