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Natural Birth
Bambina54
member
Question for those who had med-free birth
Bambina54
member
I know every pregnancy is different, but I'm curious about which part of labor is the best/worst. I've heard people say that getting to the pushing stage is the best, and just getting up to 10 cm is the worst part. Others have said that the burning sensation with crowning is awful. I had an emergency CS and plan on a med-free VBAC this time, so I didn't get to experience much of labor last time.
What was the worst/best part for you?
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Re: Question for those who had med-free birth
Trying for #2 since July 2010
BFP 8/1/10, missed m/c, D&C 9/15/10.
BFP 1/8/11, chemical pregnancy.
BFP 3/4/11, measured behind all along, no more HB 4/18/11. D&C 4/29/11. HCG didn't drop, Repeat D&C 6/17/11; confirmed molar pregnancy 6/23/11.
Forced break, including two Hysteroscopies in October to remove retained tissue.
BFP 12/29/11! Betas @ 10 dpo = 85, 14 dpo= 498, 22 dpo = 7242
Heard HB 1/24/12. 144 bpm!
Luca Rose born 9/9/12! More than worth the wait!
This...although I made a lot more noise when I was pushing, I knew I was almost there! Transition made me question what the heck I was doing without drugs! Over quick though, I've heard right around the time you think you truly can't do it you're right around the corner and for me, it's true.
Haha, my username should read "3Girlsand1BoyMama"...with #5 on the way! (and then we're done.)
Me, 33, DH, 32 DDs 9, 7, 4 and DS 2. EDD #5 4-29-15
The very worst part was the 30 seconds I had to lay on my back for the only cervical check that I had. It was excruciating but the rest of labor was very manageable. Because my water breaking was what kicked off my labor there was no increase in intensity so transition was the same as all the rest of labor.
ETA: the best part was after I felt the urge to push and had that complete lull in labor when contractions completely stopped and the urge to push left me. It didn't last more than 30 seconds but it was the perfect breather to get ready to push out my daughter.
I think the best was that you forget easily - your hormones just bounce off the wall once you're done and it's all roses and sweet candy in retrospect. At least for me.
The worst - I really can't remember, but probably pushing b/c it feels better/more productive, but is so tiring. Ring of fire/episiotomy was non-memorable for me.
...baby #3 is here...
Worst part was transition, waiting for the last lip of cervix to be out of the way. The nurse had me changing positions to help and it was painful trying to move with the baby so low. Crowning was no big deal to me - I did tear, but not badly, and I have absolutely no memory of the ring of fire or anything. It did happen very quickly, though, so that might be why.
Best was after pushing DS out. The relief of it all being over was so incredible. All of the pain was instantly gone. Delivery of the placenta had the same effect for me. I felt light as a feather and like I could climb a mountain when all was said and done.
Everything else was challenging, but manageable.
The 'ring of fire' and when DD's shoulder got stuck was the absolute worst for me. But it was over very quickly, plus you can take comfort in the fact that you know you are at the finish line!
The best part? I would say any time I was in the bath and pushing because while it was hard work I couldn't feel the contractions while I was pushing.
Worst: Transition... I think I did most of it in the car on the way to the hospital. That 15 minutes between leaving home and being in L&D suuuuucked.
Best: Early labour, where I could walk and talk and eat and didn't really think it was labour. That was a good 6 hours. Pushing was okay, but I pushed for 2 hours which was a long time.
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My labor was 29 hours from first contraction to delivery. Worst part was probably hours 24-27 (going from 2cm to 5cm). Part of the reason was that I'd been sent home from the hospital as I hadn't progressed in 8 hours and I no longer trusted my instincts so I wasn't doing my pain management as well as I had been. Once I got to the hospital, the last 2 hours were better. Partly because being in the hospital calmed me and being calmer meant I was able to do pain management again.
Ring of Fire hurt but since I knew it was coming, it sorta didn't hurt. It was expected pain so I was able to work through it.
Best: the final pushes as I got LO out. That release as his body exited just felt really good.
ETA: The best part for me (besides holding my baby, of course) was the very moment after he came out; I've never felt such wonderful relief in my whole life!
The worst part for me was pushing! Everyone says it feels like you have to take a big bowel movement so I thought it would be no big deal. However, the pressure I felt when the baby was in the birth canal was INTENSE! It felt like I was being ripped open from the inside. I freaked out and pushed my baby out in only a few contractions. I felt my LO crown and I felt my second degree tear but I did not care, I just wanted that pressure to be gone! If I had been calm and gradually eased my LO out I probably would not have torn!
The best part was the rest of my labor! For me contractions were NBD. They hurt alot but I was mentally prepared for them. My doula and DH made sure to say positive things during first stage so I was really happy and enjoyed my labor. I also loved holding my LO right away! As soon as she was out they put her on my chest. She was beautiful (I know every mom says that). I did not notice her cone head or that she was covered in goo and blood!
My labor started with my water breaking and by the time we got to the hospital (about an hour later) I was already at 5-6 cm, so I guess I missed out on early labor. I didn't notice a difference in intensity to tell me when transition was, but there was a point pretty close to when I started pushing when I wasn't sure if/how I could keep going. I guess that was the worst for me.
Pushing was sort of a relief since I was working toward something, but I had no idea how tiring it would be. I pushed for a little over 2 hours and it was exhausting. Toward the end of that I knew that I had to get her out soon or I wouldn't have any energy left. The ring of fire hurt, but I knew that meant she was almost here and it didn't last long so that part wasn't bad for me.
I would agree with some of the other posters that the baby being born was the best part. It was such a huge relief to know I was done! And after baby was on my chest I forgot about the exhaustion and the pain.
DS2 - Oct 2010 (my VBAC baby!)
NorCalMOMS bio* NorCalBOTB* babywearingBIO
Harmony Doula
I remember thinking during (presumably) transition that I was in an unreasonable amount of pain, but I can't really conjure what that pain was like right now. I do remember having a real sense of fear during the crowning/ring of fire stage the first time (I remember saying to my GP that I was feeling very scared to push at that point), and the second time when that sensation hit knowing that I just had to (literally) push through it.
If I had to pick one, it would be the contractions just before the pushing begins. Trying to remember it now it is more like a noise that was going through my entire body: like a big bass speaker that vibrates with the beat of the music, except each beat lasts 90 seconds or so. I know that makes no sense.
The final pushing part is for sure the best for me. The feeling when babe is born is exhilirating, like pure joy and relief and POWER all wrapped up into one. I felt like I could have walked home carrying babe in my arms through the snow and ice and -30 degree weather with no problem at all.
Thank you all for sharing your experiences! So it seems like the only common factor is the exhilarating end. I've watched a few birth videos and I get goose bumps every time the mom gets to hold the baby the first time and is just in elated shock that she actually did it and has a baby! I really hope to experience that!
9 angels in heaven-3 in my arms and 1 in the NICU
Mono/di twin girls: Josephine born to heaven and Evangeline born Earthside at 25w
Everything up to the last 2 hours was great. I was really excited and happy and the pain was very manageable. Transition was rough but I think it would have been a lot better if they had let me out of bed. Pushing didn't really hurt at all and the ring of fire (which is what I worried about the most beforehand) was just a relief because I knew the baby was coming out! I was just really, really exhausted during the pushing stage, which I didn't anticipate.
Like you said, everyone is different. For me, transition was the worst. I didn't feel the "ring of fire" at all. Pushing was nice, in the sense that I felt I was doing something, not because it hurt any less.
There is no best part, until the baby is out
For me the worst was getting to 10 cm. Contractions were pretty strong for me when we went to the hospital and I was at 4 cm. Getting from 4-10 took about 13 hours. I guess the transition part was worse than the parts before but just because the contractions were closer together and I was so dang tired.
Pushing worked really well for me and DS came out in about 20 min. I am so thankful I did not get the epi because without it I was able to push squatting on the floor and then on hands and knees, which I fully attribute to it not taking a long time and not having more than a very minor tear. The one push I did on my back was completely non-productive. Had I had to stay on my back, it would have taken forever.
DS, May 2011
pushing, it took 3 hours so it was incredibly tiring.
The worst "pain" was during the transition phase, I just felt really out of control as the pain was so bad I felt I couldn't deal with it properly, I was just sort of a crazy person for a while.
During pushing, it hurt a ton still but I felt more like myself if that makes sense. I felt more rational. If the pushing lasted only 20 minutes I'd probably say transition was the hardest. However because the pushing stage was SO freakin long and exhausting, I was so hungry and delirious from it all, I would say that was the hardest.
The best part was the end when she slipped out! They said the pain would go away immediately and it was true, it did! It is the most amazing feeling in the world to have your baby slip out of you finally and to feel this strange emptiness and NO PAIN! and then they hand you a BABY! It's just a wonderful and surreal moment.
good luck!
I labored and went through transition in a tub. But the hospital wouldn't let me deliver in a tub. For me the hardest part was when I felt the urge to push and they made me move from the tub to the bed, where they needed to check to make sure I was fully dilated. Moving was awful, and it took like two to four contractions for me to move and then for them to check me and it was excruciating to feel the "overwhelming urge to push" but to be told very firmly that I was not allowed to push. The check was really painful too.
Laboring for me was bearable only because I labored in the shower at home and then in a tub in the hospital. Also, pushing was hard, and I think I felt the "ring of fire" but I didn't find it that bad. The contractions seemed less painful. That said, I was lucky and only pushed for 20 minutes.
Honestly, I think the contractions were the worst part for me. They hurt sooooo bad. Pushing at least I felt some sort of relief. The "ring of fire" when her head started coming out was intense, but the contractions were definitely the worst part for me. I kept saying I WANT TO GO HOOOOOOOOOME. lol
Dh said I made noises he had never heard before. Funny how moaning and screaming really do help. :P
It is a tie between transition and C getting stuck on my pelvic bone! Before transition I was doing a puzzle and all the nurses were coming in to chat. I hit transition and I told my husband "I screwed myself. It's too late for drugs now."
While I was pushing she got a little stuck. It felt like she was kicking my hip out of place so I didn't want to push. I asked him to just pull her out (not that I actually wanted him to, it just seemed like a good idea at the time). He told me that I didn't really want him to do that and to take a break for as long as I needed so maybe she would turn. That was probably the best 10 minutes. It was so much relief. She must have turned because she was born on the next push.
Not trying to be a smartass but the worst is recovery and I had a pretty good one. I say that because I remember thinking afterwards that maybe I shouldhave gotten the drugs and then I would remind myself that I would be feeling the same way even if I had drugs.
Transition was intense and pushing was not a relief for me but I am looking forward to doing it again.
I was lucky and didn't experience transition. I was too tired to stay awake/conscious between contractions at that point.
Really, the worst for me was when I was between tired and passing out. When I was tired I felt helpless but then I went into exhausted and passing out and that was great because I was only alert for the strongest part of the contraction and then went back to sleep.
DS Born: 6/02/2012
Tied the Knot: 11/14/2015
Trying for Number Two since 9/1/15
BFP!!! Baby 2 Due: 12/6/21
Transition was the worst. It broke me psychologically, seriously. I don't remember much of it, but I remember flashes and I told the story enough times when I did remember that I at least have the narrative of what it was like, including me yelling at them to "just cut the baby out now!"
Which of course they did not do.
Pushing was such a relief after transition ended, seriously. As for the stretching, I remember saying after the second or third push "Oh, that's the Ring of Fire my friend told me about. It's not that bad!" Because, honestly, it wasn't. But I only had a 1st degree tear (one stitch) so apparently I stretched well. Your mileage may vary.
Worst: You almost certainly won't have to experience this, but I'd had pre-cancerous cells removed from my cervix many years ago, and the surgery had caused scar tissue, which was keeping me from dilating after many hours of labor. My midwife explained this and said she'd have to rip out the scar tissue and then just did it like 5 seconds later. Worst pain I have ever experienced, but it's probably good she didn't give me much warning or I would have tensed up and it would have been worse. I went from 3cm to 6cm pretty much instantaneously. Other than that, I'd say that the worst part was about 3-4 hours in when I was just tired and in pain and getting panicky that I would never get through it. Just not knowing how long it was going to last made me panicky, and you can't manage contractions when you're that tense. Transition was no walk in the park, but at least I felt in control.
Best: I had about 5 hours of just total zen. I've never experienced anything like that before. It was like I was in a trance and it was incredible. Getting in the water about an hour into transition was pretty great, too! I went from breathing like a dying cow and shouting orders to everyone to laughing and making jokes.