Is anyone considering natural childbirth?

TheLuckiest77777 · May 2012

I realize there's a separate board for that, but I don't like them as much as I like you all.

I NEVER thought I would even consider it. With DS I had a c/s due to high blood pressure, so I never felt a single contraction. (There was a LOT of drama going on in my life at that point, so I'm not entirely sure it was the pregnancy that caused the high bp. I think it was the combination of the McDonald's I lived on for 9 months and the fact that my first husband left 2 weeks prior to his birth!)

Now, I'm really interested in looking into doing a natural VBAC if at all possible. I never thought I could run a half marathon either, and I did that this year. So now I sort of feel like if I "train" for a natural birth, I might be able to pull if off and have a positive birthing experience.

Is anyone else going that direction? I realize it's early to be thinking about that stuff, but I'm sort of a planner. Has anyone actually had one already? Thoughts?

ChynaDholl · May 2012

I did my VBAC completely natural (no meds etc) in 2010 with my daughter. No form of pain prep classes either because I thought I was wonder woman and have such a high tolerance for pain usually lmbo. It was an amazing experience though and planning on doing a VB2AC with this baby as well. GL on your VBAC if you decide to do it and you can ask me anything you like here or PM

Pictures29 · May 2012

I'm considering it, I'm really interested in water birth/laboring in water and you can't have an epidural with that process. I'm glad I still have time to decide though because I'm really not sure & haven't looked into where it would be possible yet.

MrsRiceARoni · May 2012

It wont be a VBAC but I do hope to go natural this time. Last time I was in such a fog having found out my son had passed so I kind of went with the flow. They let me progress on my own until 7cm when my labor slowed a bit. I felt like I was pressured into the epi when they started me on pitocin, and honestly I didn't feel like I needed it yet at that point. I also had a very bad reaction to the epi (my bp went from really high to so low I almost passed out when the needle was inserted). I know that reaction was very rare but it has me thoroughly scared about getting another one. I also hated the trapped feeling of not being able to leave my bed. I know it'll be difficult but I'd really like to try for a natural birth, or as natural as you can have in a hospital with and OB delivering Stick out tongue

Manderlin923 · May 2012

Yep, I went med-free with my son and am hoping to do it again. It was hard work and painful, but still wonderful. Very excited for the experience again. I plan to use hypnobabies home study course to help me this time around. Last time I took a 7 week NB focused class which helped but wasn't great. I would recommend the NB board or VBAC board for more info for whoever is interested. Also Ina May's Guide to Childbirth (book) is really good- the whole first half is birth stories (some pretty wild) but the second half is very informative.

TheLuckiest77777 · May 2012

MrsRiceARoni:
It wont be a VBAC but I do hope to go natural this time. Last time I was in such a fog having found out my son had passed so I kind of went with the flow. They let me progress on my own until 7cm when my labor slowed a bit. I felt like I was pressured into the epi when they started me on pitocin, and honestly I didn't feel like I needed it yet at that point. I also had a very bad reaction to the epi (my bp went from really high to so low I almost passed out when the needle was inserted). I know that reaction was very rare but it has me thoroughly scared about getting another one. I also hated the trapped feeling of not being able to leave my bed. I know it'll be difficult but I'd really like to try for a natural birth, or as natural as you can have in a hospital with and OB delivering

I'm so sorry you had to go through this! I would imagine it would be impossible to not be in a fog with this experience. I hope you get a beautiful birth this time around and a precious take home baby! Thank you for sharing!

nycitygirl1 · May 2012

You could not pay me to even consider natural childbirth. Big Smile

jolynn326 · May 2012

DD had a med-free birth, and I treasure the experience. I will definitely be on the same track this time, too. For me, the things that helped the most were laboring at home as long as possible and then having pretty much free reign to labor how I needed to in the hospital, in and out of bed.

Chappy_jr · May 2012

I'm thinking about it but have by no means committed to one or the other. I feel like there so much more I need to learn about the labor/delivery process before I declare. I definitely like the idea of being able to get out of bed and walk, sway, squat, etc. and to let gravity help things out.

Tellyb0228 · May 2012

With DS I tried my hardest to go natural but I ended up with a epidural. I'm going to try again this time as well. No biggie if I can't make it though.

AllysonKG · May 2012

I went med free with my son and will definitely do it again this time around. I feel like my labor was fast because I was able to move around and feel what my body wanted me to do. Someone else suggested Ina May's book, and I would too. I thought the first half was a little strange at times with some of the birth stories, but I loved the second half so much that I read it twice.

runlong3 · May 2012

DH and I decided officially tonight that we're going to go the birthing center route -- which means an epi is not an option (unless I have to transfer). I'm a little nervous, but the whole "natural" birth concept just make sense to me.

I will fully admit that up until a few months ago, I thought NOT getting an epi was simply crazy and I was totally in the give me meds at a hospital camp. But then I kept thinking of all the things I hated about giong the hospital route like basically being confined to the bed (especially if you have an epi), how they kept my nephew in the nursery to "monitor" him, but wouldn't tell my sister what was going on, things like that.

I guess I finally realized that oh, birth doesn't have to be twenty million people in and out of your room you don't know, doctors pressuring you and hurrying along, and not getting any sleep at night simply because of the hospital hustle and bustle, not your kid.

However, if something does happen and we do have to be transferred, if it takes an epi or a c-section to get the baby out, then that's what needs to happen, and it's not that I've failed, it's just what's medically necessary.

Oof sorry, that got long.

txleia · May 2012

I went med-free with DS and loved it. Obviously it hurt like heck, and after 17 hours of less than 2 minute apart contractions I was so totally exhausted, but it was worth it. I did it at a hospital with an OB (the on-call OB, too - mine was on vacation!). I did have some hefty pressure from the nurse to take some pain meds, but I told her to shove it and she stopped pressuring me.

This time around I'll be going to a birth center with a midwife, and possibly having a water birth (or at least laboring in the water). I'm really excited!

rinascita · May 2012

Its way too early for me to know, but I had 3 mature follicles this cycle with the possiblility for multiples... so, I might change my tune if I find out I am having twins or triplets.

I have a lot of the Bradley method's books and researched natural birth back in 2010 when I first started TTC.

I'm pretty sure I want to go this route, but my husband wants us to be in a hospital 'just in case'. I found a CNM practice that is 'partnered' with a Perinatologist in a seperate practice that all support natural birth. Both practices are actually working to open my city's (which is actually a major city) first birthing center, so how more pro-NB could you be?

I plan to labor at home as long as possible and may even go the doula route so my husband doesn't freak out with laboring at home.

jjgal · May 2012

I delivered DD medfree in a birthing center with a midwife and a doula there to help me. It was an amazing and extremely difficult labor, but I did it. I loved the relaxed atmosphere. There was just DH, the midwife, the doula, and one nurse. Nobody else . I labored a lot at home, the. Once I got there I was in and out of the tub,on the ball and moving around. After DD was born everybody left except me and DH and DD and we all slept together that night without any interruptions. That was the best part! We went home 24 hours later and My recovery was very fast. I hope to go natural again with this birth!

laurapacheco · May 2012

I'm considering it, but haven't made a final decision yet... recently I watched the documentary "The Business of Being Born" (by Ricki Lake, it's available on Netflix if you want to check it out), and although the documentary is obviously biased towards natural childbirth there is still a lot of good information in there. If you're interested in natural childbirth it's definitely worth watching! Best of luck to you all. Smile

ungraceful13 · May 2012

It is my goal to do it natural but I'm open to the epidural if I can't handle the pain.

anitaflora · May 2012

I am hoping for a med free VBAC in a hospital by a midwife with a doula. That is my idea scenario. However there is only one midwife locally that is allowed to do deliveries in the hospital. If she is not 110% supportive of the option for me I am not sure what I'm going to do. Also have to consider what would happen if she's not available. The practice she's with is the one who delivered DS and from my follow up after him I don't think any of them are going to be supportive of my choice. Also don't think the nursing staff is supportive even though it's allowed at the hospital.

There is a midwifery clinic that will perform VBAC at the hospital right next door to them in Annapolis which is an hour and a half from me. I am considering that if I don't feel entirely supported here. It would be worse for me to attempt a VBAC and end up with a c section again anyway. So I have a lot to consider and a lot of questions. I hope to come away with a lot more info after my first appointment with her on 6/7.

Definitely will be interested in hearing more about your (and others) experience and choices as we progress! Good luck in your decisions!!

littlemaybaby · May 2012

Tellyb0228:
With DS I tried my hardest to go natural but I ended up with a epidural. I'm going to try again this time as well. No biggie if I can't make it though.

Same here.

bobbydsgirl · May 2012

I did natural childbirth with my DS. Being in the bath helped me and having a douladid too. I started out on pitocin and then was able to stop it after labor was established. I couldn't have continued med free with pitocin. That stuff is insane.

littlemaybaby · May 2012

bobbydsgirl:
I couldn't have continued med free with pitocin. That stuff is insane.

That's what KILLED my natural attempt. I did natural for 24 hours and got to 10cm . . . then my contractions stopped and after all of that they had to do Pitocin to try to get my contractions back for pushing to avoid a c-section. The Pit almost killed me and I literally cried like a baby for the epidural.

OliveBeckett · May 2012

littlemaybaby:
Tellyb0228:
With DS I tried my hardest to go natural but I ended up with a epidural. I'm going to try again this time as well. No biggie if I can't make it though.
Same here.

Me three. EDIT: Well not the part about having tried before

But no biggie if I cant make it...

kenna_4 · May 2012

I am, so I got a midwife this time because I think I'll have a better chance with her over an OB.

irishmum09 · May 2012

littlemaybaby:
Tellyb0228:
With DS I tried my hardest to go natural but I ended up with a epidural. I'm going to try again this time as well. No biggie if I can't make it though.
Same here.

Me too!

JennV514 · May 2012

No. Way.

Mrs.Appling · May 2012

With this LO I do plan to go natural. DS was my first and was so nervous and had no idea of what to expect and how much pain it was so I got an epi. With my last it was a m/c at 16 weeks 90% of the labor with this baby was done at home. when I finally got to the hospital the baby's head was on its way out so there was no time for meds. Honestly for me it hurt of course but the pain wasnt that bad, thats why I want to go natural with this baby.

tsweet16 · May 2012

I always thought I'd be a "give me the drugs" kind of girl too but once we got serious about getting pregnant and it actually happening my tune has totally changed. I've attended multiple births (siblings, cousins, friends) and all were in the hospital. The experiences that I witnessed are not something that I want to be a part of our birth. I met with a birthing center last week and LOVED it, we're going in for our first appointment at 12 weeks. DH is still a little concerned (for our safety), but I recently watched the Business of Being Born, and I'm going to have him watch it as well. Like the pp said, it's definitely one sided towards natural birth but you can't dispute facts.

amh04 · May 2012

I feel like it's too early for me to decide. There are definitely certain things I want to occur during/post birth - but medication is one I'm not set on. Being a FTM I don't really know what to expect. FX both twins make it past the 20 week mark then I'm pretty sure my options become more limited. I really feel like I rather just go with the flow on it - than make up my mind and get upset if it doesn't go my way.

MKE6115 · May 2012

I had a c section with my first, but VBAC with my second. I had such bad back labor with both I welcomed the epidural.

I had a great experience with my VBAC and epidural and would do it all over again. I always go into my labors with the mind set that I will see how it goes but I am not against an epidural. Especially with my second I would of rather have the epidural than need to go for an emergency c section and be put under general because that is what would of happened with my first if I didn't have it.

Ellis31 · May 2012

I'm almost positive that I'll get the epidural.

Reyka9 · May 2012

I gave birth to DS naturally in 2010 (only intervention was having my water broken at 9.5cm) and fully intend to do it again this time. I may even consider a home birth this time, as it may be easier than finding someone to watch DS and our dog when the time comes.

jasherlove · May 2012

Since we started TTC I've been really interested in trying to go natural. My mom tried to with me through 46 hours of labor but had to have a csection. I'm not gonna rule out having an epidural because i know that the pain and delivery is different for everyone, but I definitely want to give it a go.

Plus, my DH doesn't think I could do it. So I kinda wanna stick it to him. :P

akating · May 2012

I caved and got an epi with my first and Hated it. sure the fact that my contractions were virtually gone (feeling) was nice. But I hated the feeling of my back being numb when they put the needle in. I hated the tapping/ scraping feeling on my numb vertebrae. I was so mad to fing out i was complete 15 minutes after i got my epidural and that i couldn't push had had to wait over 2 hours for it to ware off enough to push. This time i am having a midwife and a waterbirth (if things go as planned) and i am glad i have my experiences to guide me through it.

lolabeans1 · May 2012

I had my son naturally. It was the best decision I ever made. My husband was a wonderful coach and helped me through it all. In the end, I couldnt have been prouder of myself. It was a beautiful moment. Good luck!

pghctwife · May 2012

I wanted a natural birth wtih DS but after hours of broken-water-back labor and very little progress I got the epidural so I could rest a little (and after that I actually progressed!). With this one I will go into it hoping for med-free but it will depend on how labor goes.

Im much more concerned with avoiding pitocin and cutting of various forms!

sbevmc09 · May 2012

I'm hoping to have a med-free birth this time.

I had a terrible birth experience last time. In summary: 24 hours of hard labor, multiple epidurals, none of them took, baby didn't tolerate labor well, several times his heart rate dropped dangerously low, they had to stop labor at one point to bring it back up, and after all that I ended up with a C/S for "failure to progress" when I stalled out at 8cm and my temperature started going up, but honestly, baby obviously wasn't handling all the interventions well so I have no idea how he could have possibly tolerated the pushing stage had I made it to that point.

So... based on that experience (and the darn epi not effing working anyway) I'm really, really hoping for as few interventions as possible this time. I truly feel that if I had been able to move around during labor I would have been able to deliver vaginally. DS was sunny-side up and I'm guessing he wasn't able to maneuver past my pelvic bone properly because I was only allowed to labor in one position (they wouldn't let me roll over or move to a different position because it caused DS's heart rate to drop. Yeah, it was terrible.). I mean, obviously I don't KNOW what would have happened, but I have an inkling anyway and I want a different outcome this time.

With that said, I did a lot of independent research on med-free labor techniques and theories last time. I felt prepared, but I wasn't. For me, it's going to be important to actually take a class and spend a lot of my pregnancy preparing for the labor. Maybe not everyone is like this, but my advice for anyone who would like a med-free labor and delivery would be to do all the reading and such, but also take a class (or some sort of comprehensive home-study). IME it would be better to be over-prepared for this than under-prepared.

landosmommy · May 2012

jolynn326:
DD had a med-free birth, and I treasure the experience. I will definitely be on the same track this time, too. For me, the things that helped the most were laboring at home as long as possible and then having pretty much free reign to labor how I needed to in the hospital, in and out of bed.

See, I wish I was able to labor at home as long as I wanted, but my water broke. and 3 weeks early at that. So I had to go in ASAP. I was put on pitocin and went without an EPI for 5 hours. Then my doctor did my exam & stretched things out (major OUCH!) and I needed the EPI after that. And I LOVED it. DS came 3 hours later.

This time though, I am hoping to have contractions before my water breaks & labor at home as long as possible, then hopefully go without pain meds. DH doesn't like my plan AT ALL. He says he hates seeing me in pain & not be able to help me in any way. :P so we'll see what happens. Im not against anything. :P

sbevmc09 · May 2012

landosmommy:
He says he hates seeing me in pain & not be able to help me in any way. :P so we'll see what happens. Im not against anything. :P

I'm sure it's hard for our SOs to be the ones watching this all happen. I know it was hard for MH last time when I struggled so much.

Would your H feel better at all, or maybe more helpful, if he learned some ways to help support you during labor? Bradley is all about including the SOs in the process.

landosmommy · May 2012

akating:
I caved and got an epi with my first and Hated it. sure the fact that my contractions were virtually gone (feeling) was nice. But I hated the feeling of my back being numb when they put the needle in. I hated the tapping/ scraping feeling on my numb vertebrae. I was so mad to fing out i was complete 15 minutes after i got my epidural and that i couldn't push had had to wait over 2 hours for it to ware off enough to push. This time i am having a midwife and a waterbirth (if things go as planned) and i am glad i have my experiences to guide me through it.

Really!? I didn't know that you couldn't push for 2 hours after getting an EPI. I feel like I was fully dilated right after getting my EPI too, but the doctors/nurses never checked me until DS' heart rate kept going extremely low, then the nurse decided to put her hand down there & immediately said "Call the doctor!". Freaked me out, but then she said, "I can't move my hand or else your baby will come out." can you believe that!? Well, the cord was wrapped around his neck twice & with each contraction it was pulling tighter around his neck causing his heart rate to go down. I had NO idea that he was right there. Everyone always tells you that you'll feel it, but I didn't feel anything at all.

This time, if I get an EPI again, I am going to request that the nurses at least check me every 30 min or so. I think my epi worked a little too well. LOL.

landosmommy · May 2012

sbevmc09:
landosmommy:
He says he hates seeing me in pain & not be able to help me in any way. :P so we'll see what happens. Im not against anything. :P
I'm sure it's hard for our SOs to be the ones watching this all happen. I know it was hard for MH last time when I struggled so much.
Would your H feel better at all, or maybe more helpful, if he learned some ways to help support you during labor? Bradley is all about including the SOs in the process.

Thats a great suggestion. We didn't take any birthing classes last time, that's probably where we went wrong. :P thank you! We will definitely be taking them this time.

pghctwife · May 2012

landosmommy:

See, I wish I was able to labor at home as long as I wanted, but my water broke. and 3 weeks early at that. So I had to go in ASAP. I was put on pitocin and went without an EPI for 5 hours. Then my doctor did my exam & stretched things out (major OUCH!) and I needed the EPI after that. And I LOVED it. DS came 3 hours later.

This time though, I am hoping to have contractions before my water breaks & labor at home as long as possible, then hopefully go without pain meds. DH doesn't like my plan AT ALL. He says he hates seeing me in pain & not be able to help me in any way. :P so we'll see what happens. Im not against anything. :P

How come they had you go in immediately? My understanding is that assuming the water is clear, there isnt necessarily a rush to go to the hospital immediately. I checked in about 5 hrs after my water broke, and I would have waited longer but my contrax were 1+min and 4 min apart. If I could have slept a little first I would have

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