Pain-Med Free Birth Tips

shines721 · February 2017

I looked back because I thought there was a thread but couldn't find it. Also don't know what the politically correct term is.. respecting each woman for her choice in labor over here

but wondering if anyone has any tips for pain-med free/intervention free births?

With my son, I was able to deliver in the alternative birthing center at our hospital and labored in the tub forever but the biggest tip was to be in control of your breath. In our childbirth class, the instructor said that if you were losing control to breathe through your mouth like you are sipping out of a straw. Game changer for me during labor.

Any other tips out there that may be helpful?

marshmallowfarts · February 2017

I had an epidural and it didn't work. The nurse was using counter pressure to help with pain and that seemed to make me not want to scream as much. Back labor is a horrible horrible thing. Also being forced to lay in a bed with thin padding also doesn't help - so avoid the bed if at all possible for pain relief. I was stuck in bed because baby was in distress and I was a high seizure risk - but when I would be up to go to the bathroom siting on the toilet provided some pain relief.

The labor bed is more like a torture device than anything after two deliveries.

vino831 · February 2017

Oh I like this I'll add more later but in addition to breathing in shines721 mentioned when you breath out open your mouth WIDE!

korpisar · February 2017

One thing I wish I had done this time around was research and learn breathing techniques. Even with a scheduled c section. Because I went into labor and dilated so fast it was difficult for me to manage the pain I was in being dilated to a 9 with no drugs. The nurses were trying to coach my breathing while I was waiting for them to either deliver breech or bring me in for the section. I never would have thought I would need the pain management techniques but I wish I had done my research and had that knowledge.
In the OR While I was waiting for my spinal the dr had me sit up with my legs crossed Indian style on the bed and hunched slightly forward. I know it was for the purpose of getting the spinal but For some reason that helped minimize the pain at the time.

kjd291 · February 2017

biggest thing for me--positive thoughts and reminders. Med free labor for me was mostly a mind game: I got in my head and kept trying to psych myself out. It's like running a race, and your brain keeps telling you you should stop running, that you can't keep going: but you can! You just need to shut your head off.
This time I'm hoping to be reminding myself and have asked my husband to say lots of things like:
- this is going to last for 30seconds. You can do anything for 30 seconds.
- that contraction is gone. Done. In the past. Let it go. One more that brought closer to the end.
- when you feel like you can't do it a second longer without meds, that's exactly when you are almost done... if you feel like you can't last another minute: you are so so close to pushing.

-be honest and open with your partner and medical staff about any fears/thoughts that pop into your head. If you hold on to the tension, not just physically but also mentally it will slow things down. Feel terrified of___? Say it-express it-own in! Don't hold it in. Nothing to be ashamed of!

Also, LOVED laboring in the water last go around. Definitely reccomend it to anyone if you can't get comfortable in any other way.

shines721 · February 2017

Oh.. remembering for Ina May's "Birth Partner" that you should have a code word for an epidural.. so you can talk freely about it when you feel like it's too much, but your partner knows that until you use that code word, you still believe you can handle the pain.

@kjd291 ... I kept telling myself "It's only 24 hours of my life.. you know the benefits.. you can do this." Thanks for reminding me!

wintersong · February 2017

Back labor was a B for me, too. All the things I thought I'd do dudnt work or I couldn't physically do it. The BEST thing I did was sit backwards on the toilet and lean forward against the tank. ❤

motherofdragons-2 · February 2017

For me, I breathed and walked, walked, walked, took warm showers, and desperately tried to find a position that helped during early labor and just kind of retreated into myself when it got really bad. I get really nauseated and pukey during transition which sends me into panic mode but really speeds up dilation, and that's the hardest part! Mostly repeated the mantra of "just survive for the next 40 seconds" and "this is temporary." its definitely an intense experience, but totally doable if you remember to breathe, don't panic, and have someone to hold your hand.

vprod · February 2017

5 days ago I gave birth to an asynclitic breech baby without any meds

I had a doula, but I never took any sort of hyponobabies or whatever classes. but very specific things really helped me through it:

- take sloooow deep breaths through your nose and blow out the pressure / pain through your mouth.
- don't scrunch your forehead / tense up when you're having the worst of the contraction—as soon as she would say "relax your face" the tension lost it's grip on me and the pain lessened dramatically
- walk around! it maybe isn't going to fix things, but it's distracting enough to make your body chill out a bit.
- sitting on the toilet was literally my favorite way to get through the contractions, and it actually started me into active labor. at the time no one knew I was breech so they advised me to get back to the bed so I didn't have a toilet baby, but I actually think I might've been better off staying put. The angle and upwards pressure on my upper thighs helped immensely in relaxing the pain.

Note: I was med free only because I could totally handle the contraction phase, but when I found out baby was breech I DEMANDED a meds because.... pain is real. (but it was too late for any medicine!)

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