Natural birth for first?

Question

Did anyone here not get an epidural with their first? I want to go for it, but I'm nervous I will chicken out (not that Epi is bad, I just want to go without for personal reasons) when the real contractions start. How did you do it?

Answer

The most important thing for me was a focal point to get me through the contractions, and remember if you aren't contracting you aren't in pain so it's not like you'll be in pain the entire time. Contractions on average only last 60 seconds so whenever I had one I would focus on my breathing and sometimes it would help for me to count, knowing that the pain had an ending and wasn't going to last forever helped me so much. And once my water broke my contractions were instantly 2 minutes apart so I really used that time to recover quickly and prepare myself for another. Pushing wasn't too bad because when I was pushing I didn't feel contractions but when she started coming out I just kept telling myself the pain that I'm feeling right now is nothing compared to what I'm going to feel when I see my baby for the first time. You just really have to stay positive as much as you can and constantly remind yourself that women do this every day, hell they used to do it in caves!

Answer

Natural for all of mine. Epidurals can have terrible repercussions, failures, and long term consequences as well as prolonging birth. All natural is quicker and you'll be up walking your precious bundle of joy in no time at all.

Answer

The only pain management I'm willing to try is laughing gas and even with that, I told my husband to try to deter me from it as much as possible.

No hate on anyone who uses any kind of pain management, but it is not for me. The strongest medication/drug I've used is Tylenol with codeine after a root canal and I became violently ill.

I 100% believe my experience will be better with nothing.

Answer

Lots of hot showers and warm baths! I drove home 2.5 hours because I wanted to be in my own shower (for some odd reason) when I had back pain and sure enough he was born about 6 hrs later. Water is key. It feels like hell, a large DRY brick coming out of your ass, but I'm doing it natural again because I was home with my baby 3 hours later! High on life! Lol if you're lucky to have a quick labor (mine was from 3am and he was born at 9am) it's worth it! It's true you have to open up and allow yourself to relax in each push, understanding every pain is helping your baby come closer. I kept thinking "I gotta help him! He can't do it alone" you're in it together and it's all about pishing in the water and staying mobile during contractions. Walking and swaying and staying upright on your feet help each contraction. The WORST I felt was when I tried to lay or sit down. Sitting on the toilet feels good too...that's where I was when my water broke! Good luck!!!

Answer

The epidural scared me worse than the pain. A needle in my back sounded horrible, BUT I did end up asking for one. It was too late by then so I didn't get it which I was thankful for in the long run, but my suggestion is labor as long as you can at home and then just try to hold out as long as possible once you are there. That worked for me at least. It's hard, but you can do it! After you've done it once you will know you can do it again (at least that's what I'm telling myself for #2 in June!)

Answer

I had a natural birth the first time, plan to again. Knowing this was something I hadn't been through before I wasn't willing to say I absolutely wouldn't allow intervention but I thought I would go for as long as possible without, and have the goal of a natural birth if possible. I learned about myself through the experience and was able to endure. I had a ten hour labor from the time I got to the hospital, pushed for 23 minutes. I did take 1 birthing class in preparation, but in real life the fast Lamaze breathing was not working for me. I tried to distance myself from the pain as much as possible, and would make myself count long 4 second breaths in and out during contractions. When it was time to push I would take a long deep breath in, then push as hard as I could, then wait and breathe, etc. I had a normal labor, no back labor, no complications. I'm getting ready for baby #2 and while I'm pretty confident in my ability to do it again, you never know what might be different with each labor, so I still won't say "never" to an epidural. At some point your body wears down.

Answer

Following. I'm also planning to go natural.

Answer

Following! And I have a doula to help my husband and I through natural birth.

Answer

I used a birthing tub with my labor and it was so helpful!!! I was about 7cm when I got into the tub and I was starting to wonder how I was gonna make it...once I got in the water I felt exponentially better. I also had a relaxing music station playing and my husband put counter pressure on my sacrum, which is where all my discomfort was. This time around I am also going to do a water birth and I also am doing a program called hypnobabies that basically teaches you to change your perception of "pain" and to relax so that you won't be as uncomfortable. I think just researching different strategies and thinking about what helps you feel better in normal situations can help you be prepared  since you don't really know what to expect the first time.

Answer

Following. . How will my condition be that time, will I be able to push.

Natural birth for first?

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