Anterior Placenta and back pain/labor?

smallfry5909 · August 2011

Hi ladies...

Hope it's okay if I post here.... I have a little while before I get to *please God* join you for good.

I've been having some killer sciatic pain lately, and I've heard that it can be caused by my anterior placenta. Was this anyone else's experience, or am I just being a sissy?

Also, Dr. Google says that having an anterior placenta might cause back labor... holy sh** that freaks me out. I will do whatever it takes to bring this LO home safely, but I would love to not have back labor if I had the choice. Ha!

Thanks for your insight!

ihearteddieboo · August 2011

I don't know about the sciatic pain but I can tell you that I had an anterior placenta and did NOT have back labor. It took me much longer to feel DS move because of the placement of the placenta but it did not cause back labor.

My labor was very fast (only 8.5 hours from water breaking to DS being born) and the only major pains I had were very much like strong menstrual cramps. Once I got the epi, I was fine.

lraymeremtp · August 2011

I had an anterior placenta with my first, and the only "problem" I ever expereinced was that I felt her kicks later and not as frequent. I didn't experience sciatic pain, (though I believe that's more due to baby's position and not neccesarily the anterior placenta), and I didn't experience back labor. (again that's usually due to baby's position!) I hope things go smoother for you here on out! GL!

ashleyrsotomayor · August 2011

I had an anterior placenta, and I didn't know about any association with back labor or sciatic pain. I did have both, but I assumed it was because of his position and the fact that I carried him really, really low the whole time. As for the back labor, it did make me demand the epidural much quicker than I anticipated, but once I had meds I was golden:)

smallfry5909 · August 2011

Thank you ladies!! I'm glad it's not a guarantee to have back labor just because the placenta is in the front. I am carrying her really low too, so maybe that's where the occasional sciatic pain is coming from... I didn't think of that.

I do plan on getting the epidural, so it's good to know that if back labor does happen, I'll be fine once the epi kicks in

kathymarie · August 2011

I had an anterior placenta & pushed 4 times before my baby came out. No back labor!

smallfry5909 · August 2011

kathymarie:
I had an anterior placenta & pushed 4 times before my baby came out. No back labor!

I wish there was a way you could tell me how to do that Big Smile

kathymarie · August 2011

smallfry5909:
kathymarie:
I had an anterior placenta & pushed 4 times before my baby came out. No back labor!
I wish there was a way you could tell me how to do that

I had a lot of pain due to being given Cervadil to open my cervix. I took any and all drugs they offered (even though I had planned on going natural). The Dr. had to wake me up to tell me the head was coming out and it was time to push. I didn't feel a thing.

kilissa · August 2011

I had an anterior placenta but I didn't have any problems with sciatica. However, I hate to say this because I don't want to scare you, I did have terrible back labor. Once my real contractions started it was bad, but, on the plus side, it was nothing that an epidural couldn't fix. Hope you get some relief for your back pain. It's certainly no fun.

cour10e · August 2011

Hi there. I did have an anterior placenta and sciatica, but I had no idea the two were related. Seeing a chiropractor relieved that pain for me though, so you may want to look into that.

And....I also did have terrible back labor. But, DS was also posterior (sunnyside up), which is what I attribute all the back pain to. I have heard that babies like to face their placentas, which is why he may have been facing that way--IDK. I had a natural labor plan but ended up getting an epi about 30 hours into my 42+ hour pitocin induced labor.

I guess my story may not be what you want to hear, but I'm telling you that I survived and so will you---and I'm kind of a wuss. :P My advice is not to worry yourself too much over all those variables and just trust that your body knows how to birth that baby and that you CAN do it--no matter what gets thrown your way. LMK if you have any questions.

jeffrae · August 2011

I had anterior placenta and did NOT have back labor. I did however have sciatica though.

nicobean1 · August 2011

I've never heard of the two being related. I had an anterior placenta. I also had back pain. I went to a chirorpactor starting around 14 weeks and saw her throughout my pregnancy. It helped a ton!

I had a scheduled induction b/c I was on blood thinners. DS was on his side, so the nurses came in once an hour and rocked me back and forth to get him to turn. And that worked. I had an amazing epi, and ultimately I pushed for 34 minutes and he was out.

Karen1998 · August 2011

I had an anterior placenta and back labor but no sciatica. I did have pain in one hip and my lowest vertebrae during pregnancy, but my hip was also twisted forward. Chiro care and massage helped with that. I've never heard of the anterior placenta being connected to these, just baby position.

My labor was long, mostly because he did not fully engage until after I was complete. I carried him high the entire time and he never actually dropped. He was also sunny side up until he flipped at the end of labor. My case was also complicated by my pelvis not opening, so that most likely greatly lengthened my labor.

I, too, got an epidural, though it was only in the last bit of labor. Since he didn't engage, I didn't dilate, despite regular and intense back contractions. I also had very few and quite mild contractions up front. It was weird. However, they did an epidural and a nerve block which allowed me to still feel the contraction (the tightening part) but not the pain. I was pro-natural all the way going in, but am so glad I got the epidural. Back labor sucks! BTW, if you can get up and move during back labor, it's so much better and easier to handle than if you're stuck laying down.

salsa_wifey · August 2011

I had an anterior placenta with DS. Did your Dr. tell you that you have an anterior placenta or are you assuming that because of the sciatic pain and what Google says?

I did have sciatic pain. It was bad but I would not attribute it to my anterior placenta. If that's true, it makes no sense to me how the two could be related. Anyway, I highly recomment acupuncture. Mine was so bad and I was going to the chiropractor but it wasn't helping. 1 needle for a few mins and it was gone for good!

I also did not have back labor. I read that if you have a bad back that your chances of back labor are higher. I have a bad back and did not have back labor.

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