I haven’t had a child yet, so I’d like some advice from those of you who are more experienced. 
I think I want to do a water birth. I would love to have my child naturally, but I’m not sure if I could handle all the pain, so maybe the water would help ease it slightly? I hope? Lol what method did you use? Any advice?
Honestly, the best advice I can give you is to not listen to anyone’s advice! Pick a plan that you think you might want to do and just know that your mind is stronger than you think and you can get through and do anything you set your mind to. That was the advice my Lamaze instructor gave to me and it worked! Labor is the most wonderfully scary thing you will ever go through so just keep your mind on your little peanut and have a great coach in the room! Good luck with your little miracle!
Hospital birth. Epidural.
I thought it was great. I gave birth this way 4 times.
Everyone is going to have different opinions regarding what kind of birth was/is best for them. The only advice I can give is to research all of your options, keep an open mind, and be flexible about your plans. You never know what complicating factors may come up during birth.
As the others have said, everyone has different opinions on this so everyone will have something different to say.
I’ve had two natural births using gas and air. I found the gas and air made me quite drowsy on my youngest, so I didn’t use it as much as I did with my eldest.
An epidural wasn’t an option for me as I have an irrational fear of paralysis, so I had no intention of using one of those for pain relief.
I avoided diamorphine because I wanted as natural a birth experience as possible, with as little medical intervention as possible. As others are bound to say, you won’t get a medal for going without meds. But did find it to be an empowering experience to give birth without them. The pain from the contractions gave me more motivation to push and because of this, I think I had a shorter labour experience.
No experience with water births but I did spend a lot of my early labour in the bath to ease the pain, and it certainly helped.
Good luck!
Thanks everyone! :] You’ve been lots of help!
[name]Do[/name] a lot of research and then decide what kind of birth you want. I had one drug free hospital birth and then 2 home births. If I have any more, they will be at home. Labor and birth are painful, but manageable. Keep in mind that interventions don’t come without risks. I didn’t have a water birth as it seems very messy to me but I know a lot of women who were happy with their water births. Birthing from Within is a great book to read and Mama Birth is a wonderful blog (especially the Obstetric Lies sections). Good luck!
6 hospital births with Epidural.
[name]One[/name] unplanned hospital birth with no pain meds… was not for me
Due in [name]May[/name] and planning on another Hospital birth with Epidural.
I love my children, but I do not like to be in excruciating pain. I totally respect those who can go the natural route, but it is just not for me, and I try to do all I can to avoid it. I do agree wwith others that being as informed as you can, and making the decision that is best for you is the right way to go 
I say don’t decide how you will manage pain until you actually feel it…but make sure that all of the options you want are available to you. I did a hospital birth with an epidural…no tubs in my hospital so I have no idea how much it helps.
Wow! I love the blog, thanks for sharing that poptart! I read a lot of the posts, and I’m feeling really empowered. They won’t get a C-section from me, that’s for sure, unless I think I need it.
I’m glad you like it - its one of my favorites and full of really great information.
[name]Every[/name] experience is different, and go into it with your eyes open. I am allergic to most pain medications, so my children were born “natural” with no pain meds. I was supposed to have the birthing room with my first child, but [name]August[/name] in NYC is the big birth month and I was lucky to get a labour/delivery room at all (there were forty babies born that day) so there are always things that are out of your control. My son’s delivery was very scary, he was five weeks early, and I was very grateful to have all the resources of the hospital available. I have no doubt that I would have lost him – as I lost my second child – if he had not been born in a city hospital with the neonate pediatrician standing by. The great lie of our modern times is that childbirth is simple and without the possibility of tragic outcomes. For that reason, I would counsel having an excellent ob/midwife combination and having a backup plan, should you decide on a nontraditional route, that takes into consideration the fact that sometimes things happen and when they do they happen with breathtaking speed.
So sorry to hear about your loss miloowen. No one should ever have to go through something like that. Well I hope to have the perfect circumstances of course, but everyone keeps telling me that whatever your birth plan is, it’s hardly ever going to go the way you want.
With my daughter I chose to have a homebirth. I figured, Im 20, I have a high tolerance for pain, and I have learned as much as possible about a home birth, so I went for it.
I had a birthing tub for a water birth, but when I got in, I felt very cramped and claustrophobic, so I got out. I actually found more relief in the shower, plus the standing helps the baby down. My midwife was AMAZING! She really helped me through everything. I am so happy that she is still practicing and that I can have her for this birth.
Labour is probably the most painful, exhausting, panic inducing, patience requiring, elating, joyful experience you can ever go through. Seeing your child makes it all worth it.
I’ve had two med-free hospital births. With my first I chose med-free because I HATE needles and didn’t like the thought of getting one stuck in my spine for the epi. During labor I found that I had to manage the pain by being upright and walking around or bouncing on a birth ball. [name]Every[/name] hour the nurse would make me lie down for 10 minutes of fetal monitoring, and those were the worst contractions for me because the pain was so much worse when I was lying down. Knowing that I hated being in bed during labor made it easy to choose med-free again with my second. I need to be on my feet during labor. I think you should have an idea of how you want to approach labor but keep an open mind when the contractions start. There’s nothing wrong with changing your mind and trying something different for pain management.
I started off wanting an unmedicated vaginal birth. Ideally, I would have liked to be in the water while I labored, but I developed a heart condition that made the hospital want me on heart monitoring (which I don’t think that I needed, but for liability reasons, no one was going to let me go without… bummer), so I couldn’t be in the water. I kept crying at the hospital because all I wanted was to be in water. It was a little pathetic on my part. Anyway, my labor stalled at 9 cm for hours, so I ended up getting an epidural to relax me enough to restart my labor. That worked. And it was a great epidural, avoiding all of the things that I was concerned about. I could move my legs, feel the pressure but not the actual pain. I pushed for three hours, but the baby’s head was stuck on my pelvis. They reached in to turn her head, and the umbilical cord came out. Then it was emergency c-section time. It wasn’t as bad as I would have thought it might be, but in the future if I had additional children, I would try for a VBAC, and I would do anything possible to make sure that I could labor in water.
I’ve had five unmedicated births, the last three were water births, and now I wouldn’t have it any other way. Of course things can come up in your pregnancy etc, that may make it impossible for you to go that route, but if your pregnancy is straightforward, and you have confidence in your midwife/OB, absolutely give it a go. I would just say, don’t think you can go into a drugless labour winging it. Take some classes that give you some things to do and try to help with coping with pain along the way, and do practice before hand. It will help. Research everything though, every mode of delivery, thoroughly, just so no matter what you decide, and no matter what happens, you are prepared. I wish I could have had all of them in water, it was incredibly calming for me, and felt like some of the pressure was relieved. My last one last [name]June[/name] I almost didn’t make it in the water because things happened so fast, and I was panicking, telling my midwife I couldn’t have a baby out of the water! Thank goodness for a freakishly powerful faucet. Bottom line, if it’s important to you to experience everything and go the medication free route, you absolutely positively CAN do it. You’ll find you’re a lot stronger than you ever realized. Best of luck to you, whatever you decide.
This is something I’ve researched a LOT because I find it really interesting.
When the time comes, I plan on not having any drugs, but having an open mind, so that if I find I can’t cope with the pain I won’t beat myself up for not going natural. I think that’s the most important thing.
A water birth would be of interest me, but I wouldn’t be confidant enough to have a home birth. The thought of a section scares me so I’d like to avoid one of those unless absolutely medically necessary
I’m pregnant with my first baby, due in [name]September[/name] so this is a very interesting thread for me too. I’m definitely going to check out the blog that poptart suggested too. I’ve found that reading positive and informed material and hearing friends and relatives birthing stories has been really helpful in preparing myself mentally for the task ahead.
I’m planning to give birth at the birthing center that is 5 minutes away, with a midwife. The Birthing Center has an agreement with 2 nearby hospitals -before 36 weeks, I can change my mind and have the midwife deliver baby at the hospital #1 instead of at the birthing center. If I continue as planned, at the birthing center, the 2nd hospital is 5 minutes away and I would be transferred there for any medical interventions necessary. They also have an agreement with the Children’s hospital that if there’s an emergency with the baby, they will send a team to the birthing center to intervene. Plus, the midwives on site are medically trained for dealing with emergencies.
It’s also been very interesting to me to talk to different friends in the medical profession -who know about the different hospitals in the area. Some have a much higher rate of intervention than others. The local hospital nearest to where I live (hosp #1) has a very high intervention rate, apparently, and uses a very strong type of epidural that completely numbs you so you can’t feel what’s happening at all. So, since I’m hoping for an as natural as possible birth, it probably wouldn’t have been possible there. Other hospitals in the area use a “walking epidural” so that the pain is dulled but you can still feel what’s going on -but they don’t allow you to walk around for liability reasons. At least in that situation, you can use different positions and don’t have to lie down all the time.
To get ready, I’m reading [name]Ina[/name] [name]May[/name] Gaskin’s book called “[name]Ina[/name] [name]May[/name]'s Guide to Childbirth”. I’m only about half way through but it’s inspiring so far. It’s good to read about what’s normal and what we as women are capable of doing, especially when we have good, loving support surrounding us.
I’m also hiring a doula -a birthing coach (you can google “doula” to find out more info or if there is a group of doulas in your area) -to help me and DH prepare and to go through it with us. I think having someone I’ve met before to walk me through it and just be there will be invaluable. Plus, the doula will stay with us through the entire time, whereas the midwives come and go from the room since they need to rest, eat, sleep -whatever they need to do so they can be awake and alert when things start happening faster.
In my area, women are not given a visit with the ob/gyn until week 12 of their pregnancy. At first I was being followed by an ob -so I met her at week 12 and then once after that. Those two visits were uninspiring to say the least. The doctor spoke so fast that I had a hard time grasping everything she said. She wasn’t mean, just extremely efficient. It was as if she was really bored. My 2nd visit was 5 minutes long and she answered my questions with nouns and verbs only -she didn’t even use full sentences or ask me more info to know why I was asking these questions. So impersonal! Either she is super super busy or I was boring her to tears. At 21 weeks I was able to switch to a midwife. I’ve only had 1 visit with her so far, but it lasted one and a half hours. I was able to ask all the questions I wanted and she took her time to answer each one of them and to ask me more questions to know what I was thinking and why I was asking the questions I asked. The midwife also did all the tests that the ob did -urine sample, weight gain check, baby’s heartbeat, etc. They can’t do bloodwork or ultrasounds at the birthing center, but they’d send me to the hospital for those if I hadn’t had them done at the ob’s office already (the ob had to send me to the hosp for blood work too).
Anyways, that’s my story so far… probably in way more detail than you wanted. sorry abou that! Enjoy your research -there’s so much to know!
I’m due in [name]January[/name] and I would just say research research research! That’s the only way to find out what works for you. For me personally, I am planning a home water birth. There are no birthing centers in my state (lame!) so the only options are home or hospital. I’ve done clinical rotations in hospitals and the maternity ward, so I know what it’s all about, and I just feel like they would put themselves first -time, convenience and liability-wise, before they would put my wants or needs, so I feel like I would not have any control over what they were doing to me, that’s just my feelings. Having worked in the medical field I’ve been a part of routine unnecessary, overcautious interventions just because that was protocol, so I feel like I know how it all works and it’s just not for me at the hospital. Of course, if it’s not a low-risk pregnancy, it’s a whole 'nother ball game.
Everyone’s experience is different – and you may have a very different experience than you planned for. I wanted a water birth too, but wasn’t able to have one. Disappointing, but not nearly as big a deal as having baby arrive healthy and happy.
However, one thing I learned when I was pregnant – it is possible to find out the rate of C-sections at a particular hospital. If the hospital has a policy that, say, it won’t let women labor more than 12 hours (and this policy may not be something it tells patients necessarily), then you’ll see a high rate of C-sections. Ask around; ask nurses, or women who delivered there. I found out that at my local hospital, more than 30% of the women delivering had C-sections. There is no way that is medically necessary.
I found a less-near-by hospital with a C-section rate about half of that, and then found a doctor with privileges there who firmly believed in natural childbirth. I labored more than 40 hours, and because I had a very patient, supportive doctor, I did NOT have a C section, for which I am very grateful. I can’t imagine the craziness of having a newborn and trying to heal from major surgery at the same time.