Natural birth?

bableash · August 2014

Hello this is my fourth and I was wondering about natural birth, have any of you ladies had a natural birth and what should I expect?

Unknown · August 2014

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cinderella105 · August 2014

I tried having my daughter unmedicated and went 33 hours with no progress. Once they gave me the epidural my body relaxed and she and in 4 hours. My son on the other hand was a success. Whether I wanted to or not, he was coming with no medication! Total labor time start to finish: an hour and a half.... It was nothing short of intense. They couldn't get the anesthesiologist even if I wanted it and my doctor barely got there. Here's how it was for me:

Breathing and letting out any vocal noise that came with the intensity of the contractions REALLY helped. Seriously, screw anyone who says "stay quiet and channel that energy into concentration...." Yeah no. You gotta do what you gotta do lol. I made noises I never made before but hey it got me through the pain.

The nurses will be all over you taking bp, putting iv in, monitoring baby, etc. That was not fun especially when a major contraction was in progress, but just try to shut them out. (Easier said than done.)

When you're at a 10 and "the urge to push" comes on, it's like nothing I've ever felt before. With the epi having my daughter, I never felt that, just pressure. With my son, it was so uncontrollable it was worse than the most terrifying time you can think of where you really thought you were gonna shit your pants and had to hold it until you were in a bathroom. (I know we've all been there at some point...) But I shit you not (no pun intended), when you can finally push, it's the biggest relief ever! I was shocked by that... Until the "ring of fire" hits and the head is almost out. That hurt so bad I tore my SO's skin and was screaming with no control.

Once the head is out the rest came out pretty quick and it was SUCH a relief. Then once it hits you that you've just had a baby with no medication you get the most empowering feeling ever! And no joke, recovery was a breeze! Much faster than with my daughter!

I hope that helped and I didn't freak you out. It was the most terrifying, yet rewarding experience ever and I can't wait to do it again with this one!

jacqueleen1 · August 2014

Good luck with that. Your a better woman than me. I will be asking for drugs. Lots and lots of drugs. If one actually had the option to be knocked our for the birth i would have chosen that lol

MissyCee · August 2014

JacqueleenF said:

Good luck with that. Your a better woman than me. I will be asking for drugs. Lots and lots of drugs. If one actually had the option to be knocked our for the birth i would have chosen that lol

I really hope you're kidding. You'd rather be unconcious when your child is brought into the world? That's just messed up. Does anyone enjoy the pain? No I don't think so. But it's part of the process of giving birth and it's all worth it when you see their face and hear their first cry.

I had a natural birth and had an epidural. Yes it was painful. And yes, it was the most amazing experience of my life.

crunchymamaof2 · August 2014

I had an epidural with my first, which I regret, and no medication with our second. First labor was 8 hours and my water broke first which made the contractions feel like hell on earth. Second was 4 hours and delivered 10 minutes after getting to the hospital. It was intense and painful but the recovery was a million times better. Honestly, if they had something between narcotics and an epidural I'd probably try it. Like nitrous.

My advice? Go into it with a plan but be open minded. You know how they say god laughs when you make plans? Birth does the same. Ultimately a healthy baby is the goal, but you also have to be at peace with your experience. If the pain is too much don't try to be a hero.

ngolimento · August 2014

I'm going to try for an unmedicated birth since a needle in the spine is the stuff of my worst nightmares.

We'll see how that goes :P

marg81 · August 2014

I had my son unmedicated at a birthing center with midwives. I was in labor for 42 hours total. I spent the majority of the time in a tub or walking around. It was long and painful, however after it's over you remember nothing. I personally cannot lay in a bed when in pain. The baby and I went home 4 hours after the baby was born. I plan on having this baby at the same place. Labor is something our bodies are made to do. The pain will not kill you.

gatoraviator · August 2014

@Cinderella021714‌ - Okay the idea of being too rushed for an epidural really freaks me out. Did you live far from the hospital or get there late in the labor? I have a hospital 5 minutes from my house, but the one 30 minutes away is a lot nicer and better equipped for emergencies

cygnet15 · August 2014

Peledreamsofrain said:

I'm going to try for an unmedicated birth since a needle in the spine is the stuff of my worst nightmares.

We'll see how that goes :P

^This.

I already admitted to my ob that my current #1 fear about labor and delivery is the iv. I'm being facetious, of course, but this is actually disturbingly close to the truth.

052806 · August 2014

I experienced 2 hours of very unpleasant unmediated birth upon trying (and failing) to push out #2. It was def not for me, but hat's off to anyone who does it!

cinderella105 · August 2014

gatoraviator said:
@Cinderella021714‌ - Okay the idea of being too rushed for an epidural really freaks me out. Did you live far from the hospital or get there late in the labor? I have a hospital 5 minutes from my house, but the one 30 minutes away is a lot nicer and better equipped for emergencies

I started labor around 12:45am and the hospital was 5 minutes away which we left the house immediately. There just wasn't an anesthesiologist there and ready on time. It's probably not like that everywhere, plus I didn't elect for an epi when I registered before my due date. If you check that you want an epidural they should be more prepared, but you can still tell them the day of that you wanna try with no medication.

ngolimento · August 2014

cygnet15 said:

Peledreamsofrain said:

I'm going to try for an unmedicated birth since a needle in the spine is the stuff of my worst nightmares.

We'll see how that goes :P

^This.

I already admitted to my ob that my current #1 fear about labor and delivery is the iv. I'm being facetious, of course, but this is actually disturbingly close to the truth.

Haha, I'm going to make it clear to my nurses that if they wave the epi needle at me, be prepared to make a police report about a wildly swinging pregnant lady who ran out into the street while screaming incoherant obscenities.

littlepawsbigears · August 2014

I had my first appt today with a midwife and im hopping for a natural birth. I really don't want unnatural surgery or having my water unnaturally broken early or being given any medications to unnaturally speed up the process. I'm nervous about pain, but I'm determined to try it natural. Good luck to you.

4RingCircus · August 2014

I was deathly afraid of the epi needle too, but after 30 hours of back labor, the pain overtook everything & the epi was my saving grace. I think having a plan is great, but you may need to be flexible with it depending on how your body is doing.

herbavein · August 2014

I had an un-pain-medicated-birth with L (I had pitocin, then terbutaline, then more pit, so it certainly wasn't unmedicated!). There are certainly good ways to mentally prepare (I found an ice cube exercise from "Birthing From Within" that was great), and good ways to put a structure in place that supports it - going to classes, having your partner on board, getting a doula, making sure you have a L&D nurse who is supportive - but I think it's important to have a flexible mindset, too. I am also terrified of needles, and have weird reactions to anesthesia, so that was one motivation for not getting an epidural, but I also had manageable contractions, a 24-hour labor, and only had to push three times. Which I think was more to do with what my body was doing on its own than anything that I did to it or for it.

Good luck!

Unknown · August 2014

This content has been removed.

littlepawsbigears · August 2014

ToasterCat said:

littlepawsbigears said:

I had my first appt today with a midwife and im hopping for a natural birth. I really don't want unnatural surgery or having my water unnaturally broken early or being given any medications to unnaturally speed up the process. I'm nervous about pain, but I'm determined to try it natural. Good luck to you.

I think maybe you could fit the word unnatural in your post a few more times...

I tried, but I couldn't find another way.

chaysefaith · August 2014

littlepawsbigears said:

ToasterCat said:

littlepawsbigears said:

I had my first appt today with a midwife and im hopping for a natural birth. I really don't want unnatural surgery or having my water unnaturally broken early or being given any medications to unnaturally speed up the process. I'm nervous about pain, but I'm determined to try it natural. Good luck to you.

I think maybe you could fit the word unnatural in your post a few more times...

I tried, but I couldn't find another way.

Lmfao. This made me giggle.

JennyP0222 · August 2014

ToasterCat said:

littlepawsbigears said:

I had my first appt today with a midwife and im hopping for a natural birth. I really don't want unnatural surgery or having my water unnaturally broken early or being given any medications to unnaturally speed up the process. I'm nervous about pain, but I'm determined to try it natural. Good luck to you.

I think maybe you could fit the word unnatural in your post a few more times...

Dammit woman beat me to the punch. Was getting my typing fingers allllll ready to say this.

JCWhitey · August 2014

I had a natural (med-free, intervention-free, vaginal birth) with DS. My suggestion to you is to take a natural birthing course, either a home study or in person course. Hypnobirthing and Bradley are two very popular ones. I did a Hypnobirthing home study course (called Gentle Birth) and I loved it. I really do believe it helped me with my birth. I actually ended up having a fast labor that was really intense but a wonderful experience. Pushing was hands down the best part of the whole thing! I really do credit this course (and my crazy dedication to it) to the whole experience.

The moment my son was born I looked over at my DH and asked him if I could do that again someday. Everyone laughed. The nurse said she'd never had anyone say that before, usually people are swearing they will never have another again.

Another big key is to find the right caregiver and the right hospital for you. I had the choice of 3 hospitals and I ended up picking the one that was the furthest away because it was the most NB friendly, it was pending certification for Baby Friendly, the doctors were all NB friendly so even if I didn't get mine for the labor, I'd have one that was supportive, and the rooms were HUGE and state of the art. I felt comfortable in that hospital during the tour and didn't feel comfortable in the other two. That's a huge factor because if you aren't feeling comfortable and safe that can really affect labor. Laboring in the car sucked, but it was worth it to drive a little further.

ngolimento · August 2014

etoille said:

Until they invent a Star Trek machine to beam the kid out of your uterus and into the scale, all birth is natural.

Do it however you want as long as you are reasonably mitigating risks to you and baby.

Squeee, you reminded me of a onesie pattern I want to sew!

LovinLife412 · August 2014

I had an unmediated birth with no interventions. I never read up on it or went to any classes, but I think I pretty much did hypno-birthing on my own. I went into my zone, and I needed to stay in that zone. Whenever anybody told me anything with a frame I said ok, but I wasn't listening. I was too afraid to depend on any time frames or come out of my zone to think.

My tips: relax and know that what that your body is doing is natural. If you can relax through the contractions you can make progress, if you tense up it hinders progress. Also, there are breaks in between the contractions. I remember they would get intense and I would think, "maybe I may want to ask about that epidural" but then I wasn't about to get out of my zone to ask for it. Then when the contractions wore off, I wasn't in pain so I wasn't going to ask. It's like running a marathon in so many ways. So, if you're a long distance runner at all, that can help. It's nothing I wanted to do again soon after, but it's definitely in the plans for this one. As crazy as it was, it's an incredible experience.

jjgrl55 · August 2014

There is also a natural birth board which will probably have more birth stories for you to look at and women who have done LOTS of research.

Natural Birth

I'm hiring a doula, and planning on refusing any drugs, but I'm leaving room for unexpected circumstances as well.

kschref · August 2014

I had a med-free birth until I had to push out the after birth then I needed pitocin because I could not get my body to push any more. I do not think it would have been remotely possible without our doula. She met us at our home and I labored in the tub until we decided to go to the hospital. Once we got there, she kept me focused. I kept getting anxious, or letting the pain take over and she brought me back to "center" with each push. It was the most painful thing I've ever experienced and I thought getting my entire back tattooed was painful. Hahahahaha, not even close. That being said, it was an amazing experience but I've yet to decide if it is one I care to repeat in the same fashion if I am lucky to have as much control over my labor and birth experience this time as I did last time. If I had to choose right this second, I would probably ask for the epi. If you do want to pursue a med-free experience, I second others that it would probably be a good idea to take a natural birth class (I hate the term "natural" too but unfortunately that's what the classes are called) or hire a doula or both. And if you get to go time and decide you want an epidural, don't beat yourself up about it, just do what you need to do!

JCWhitey · August 2014

Yes, second a doula! I had one but she actually didn't make it to the birth since she was on vacation and probably wouldn't have made it anyway. But my mom made it and did a lot of what a doula would do and it was fantastic! Ask about the hip squeeze. Pure Heaven.

I actually wouldn't describe labor to be "painful". It was different than pain. It's hard to explain. Intense is the word I use. Definitely not comfortable but oddly enjoyable once I started pushing. Maybe that makes me a masochist? Oh! Which reminds me, speak the fuck up for yourself in labor! When I started pushing and everyone started counting and screaming in my ear the first thing I did was tell them that I was in labor, not stupid, I didn't need them to count for me. Everyone shut up and it was very enjoyable to just go inside my head and focus and listen to my body and not my beloved family members screaming at me.

jjgrl55 · August 2014

JCWhitey said:

When I started pushing and everyone started counting and screaming in my ear the first thing I did was tell them that I was in labor, not stupid, I didn't need them to count for me. Everyone shut up and it was very enjoyable to just go inside my head and focus and listen to my body and not my beloved family members screaming at me.

Dude, my instincts tell me that I will not tolerate a lot of "Push! Push! One! Two! Three!" crap. Every time I see it in shows it pisses me off for some reason- good to hear of an experienced mom who also thinks it's stupid.

JCWhitey · August 2014

jjgrl55 said:

JCWhitey said:

When I started pushing and everyone started counting and screaming in my ear the first thing I did was tell them that I was in labor, not stupid, I didn't need them to count for me. Everyone shut up and it was very enjoyable to just go inside my head and focus and listen to my body and not my beloved family members screaming at me.

Dude, my instincts tell me that I will not tolerate a lot of "Push! Push! One! Two! Three!" crap. Every time I see it in shows it pisses me off for some reason- good to hear of an experienced mom who also thinks it's stupid.

Yeah it's really strange. The nurse told me that pushing is most effective when you push for at least 10 seconds, so I told her I'd do my best but can definitely count on my own. Just having people yelling at you... it's bizarre. Maybe a light whisper or something, but tons of noise at that point was just annoying. I was very happy when everyone was quiet. We'd chat between pushes, but when they started it was like an instant silent fell over the room.

cfattig · August 2014

Most of these ladies have covered it, but I wanted to chime in.

I had an unmediated, no-intervention birth with my first. I asked to only have a lock instead of an iv, and that way I could move and spend time in the tub. I didn't take any birthing classes, but I did do prenatal yoga, and I really think the breathing techniques helped. I also had a doula and my labor nurse happened to also be a midwife.

I did quite a bit of research, and though unmedicated was my ultimate goal, I did go in with an open mind. I'm going to do the same thing this time. I was lucky to have a fairly smooth process. Be flexible. Stuff can happen. I had a good friend who trained for an unmedicated birth like it was a marathon...she was so ready. She labored for 40 hours (pushed for 10) and just had no energy left, so they did an emergency c section. She almost immediately went into a pretty severe PPD. I remember being pretty concerned about her before she even left the hospital. She was just so disappointed in her experience, like she had failed or something. She was much more open minded for her second child, and though she tried for a VBAC, she had another emergency section, and her attitude going into it made all the difference. She was much better.

So do research, and make your choices based on that. But birth is unpredictable, so expect the unexpected. Create a birth plan and share it with your OB early. And advocate for yourself, or make sure your partner can do it for you.

antsangel1118 · August 2014

I had an epi free birth. I did have some pain meds through an IV just to take the edge off, but I went in telling them I'd love to try not to have an epidural, but I wasn't against it if I got to the point of needing it. (even though the thought of that needle terrifies me)! My labor was 10 hours long, and I spent most of it in the bath tub, sleeping through a lot of it. Well, between contractions, anyway. Then I pushed for 17 minutes till she was out. It was such a great experience, and I really hope it goes similarly for this baby and any subsequent babies! Recovery was very easy. At the hospital, the worst part was having the nurses push on my belly to check that my uterus was going back down. That was worse than delivery. And figuring out how to angle my body when I was peeing so it wouldn't burn. Other than that, I had zero issues. A couple of the nurses were really surprised to look at my chart and see that I hadn't had any pain meds after delivery.

lalaroller08 · August 2014

gatoraviator said:

@Cinderella021714‌ - Okay the idea of being too rushed for an epidural really freaks me out. Did you live far from the hospital or get there late in the labor? I have a hospital 5 minutes from my house, but the one 30 minutes away is a lot nicer and better equipped for emergencies

I am so worried about that for this baby! Labor was SO FAST with my DD but they got the epi for me just in time. Even though it ended up slowing down the pushing part, I honestly couldn't handle the pain and I felt so amazing with it. For those worried about feeling the needle in the back, I didn't even notice it, that's how bad my contractions were.

This time I worry I will have zero time at all to get an epi. I know people say it's the most amazing feeling afterwards when you go unmedicated, but I liked having the meds and want the same labor as last time.

stepherly · August 2014

Peledreamsofrain said:

etoille said:

Until they invent a Star Trek machine to beam the kid out of your uterus and into the scale, all birth is natural.

Do it however you want as long as you are reasonably mitigating risks to you and baby.

Squeee, you reminded me of a onesie pattern I want to sew!

LOVE them!

crunchymamaof2 · August 2014

TikTak said:

Out bodies weren't created to give birth, they evolved to allow most of us to give birth without dying. The pain won't kill you, but a myriad of other factors can. There are a lot of things that need to happen to allow a woman to give birth without medication, and as much as people don't want to admit it, a lot of it is a matter of luck. If you're lucky enough to have a smooth labor with few or no serious complications, good for you. It also helps to be lucky enough to have a good support system and good caregivers (bc they're not all good). But human women have more difficult and dangerous labors and births than any other mammals, thanks to our bipedal nature and big brains. Fortunately, those big brains also evolved to the point where they could invent pain medication and medical procedures to mitigate the risks of birth. If you're going to be stuck giving birth to one of these giant brains, you might as well have the option of enjoying the benefits. Those brains are NATURAL. ;-)

I wish those big brains realized that giving birth while flat on your back is the worst position for those big heads we have.

crunchymamaof2 · August 2014

TikTak said:

TikTak said:

Out bodies weren't created to give birth, they evolved to allow most of us to give birth without dying. The pain won't kill you, but a myriad of other factors can. There are a lot of things that need to happen to allow a woman to give birth without medication, and as much as people don't want to admit it, a lot of it is a matter of luck. If you're lucky enough to have a smooth labor with few or no serious complications, good for you. It also helps to be lucky enough to have a good support system and good caregivers (bc they're not all good). But human women have more difficult and dangerous labors and births than any other mammals, thanks to our bipedal nature and big brains. Fortunately, those big brains also evolved to the point where they could invent pain medication and medical procedures to mitigate the risks of birth. If you're going to be stuck giving birth to one of these giant brains, you might as well have the option of enjoying the benefits. Those brains are NATURAL. ;-)

I wish those big brains realized that giving birth while flat on your back is the worst position for those big heads we have.
Many do realize that!

Hopefully the rest catch up to speed then

slovenka10 · August 2014

It's not bad with epidural. I was so afraid that I will not be able to handle the pain but it was just pressure, the delivery was easy. The contractions leading up to it were a bit uncomfortable but you get a break to pull yourself together in between! I almost didn't have enought time to get the epi, I wasn't so brave to go unmediated ...

gdamore11 · August 2014

This whole thread completely terrifies me! I guess I only have a few more months to get my head in the game when it comes to labor. I'm just so terrified no matter the choice!!!

JCWhitey · August 2014

gdamore11 said:

This whole thread completely terrifies me! I guess I only have a few more months to get my head in the game when it comes to labor. I'm just so terrified no matter the choice!!!

I think this is part of the reason why birth is so horrible in our culture.

crunchymamaof2 · August 2014

gdamore11 said:

This whole thread completely terrifies me! I guess I only have a few more months to get my head in the game when it comes to labor. I'm just so terrified no matter the choice!!!

Don't be terrified. The best part about the birthing process (besides the baby!) is that it's temporary. The pain does stop, it doesn't last forever. And if the pain does get to be too much you can choose to get pain relief, or you'll be so close to delivering it'll be over in a flash.

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