What are the risk of natural birth with NO medicines at all, no epidrual, no pain meds, just like the old days

Question

I am would like a COMPLETELY natural birth, but I have heard bad storys...like the labor is longer and all of that kind of stuff. Can anyone with experience explain the process and everything to me??? PLEASE HELP!!!!!

Answer 1

It doesn't make labor longer, just more painful. If you need to be cut or tear it will hurt worse. However it's actually better for your baby to not have drugs during labor, they are typically more awake and alert when they are first born. Certain pain relievers can make them groggy or cause them to have trouble breathing.
I did it natural second time around and I felt more accomplished and proud of myself. There is something very primitive about doing it yourself. You feel very connected to the women spirit.

Answer 2

Before questioning the risks of natural birth don't forget that medically assisted and surgical births carry their own share of risks, too, and those are more serious. For instance, a caesarean is major surgery and you have to sign a waiver to get one. No one makes you sign anything when you have your baby as nature intended. And all the pain meds they offer also come with risks, and also inconveniences.

If you are a healthy woman with no risk factors your chances of achieving a natural vaginal delivery is EXCELLENT with health care so good these days.

Always remember that God designed the woman's body to give birth the natural way. It knows what to do and you just work with it. In the event that anything goes wrong, the medical community can step in to help but the majority of the time they are not needed.

This is why home births are coming back into vogue. Mothers are realizing that they can have the best of both worlds again - the "old fashioned" no-frills (and CHEAP) delivery at home with a midwife attending, but also quick access to medical care should an emergency arise.

To give you a quick answer to your question, there are actually MORE risks associated with being in a hospital and having medical interventions during birth than having a natural vaginal delivery if you have a low-risk pregnancy.

And yes it hurts! But it's pain with a purpose and MILLIONS of women before us have had the strength to go through it.

The pain of labor carries with it NO risks (i.e. the pain cannot harm you), but the medication they give you to take away the pain does. Yes, some women scream and lose it and cuss at their husbands and go after nurses but that's because they are in a lot of pain. What do you expect? Educating yourself beforehand and finding a GOOD labor couch (like a doula or midwife) to cheer you on and encourage you is crucial. There are ways of relieving and lessening the pain without using drugs.

Answer 3

My whole thought on this subject....why go through the pain of child birth when there are perfectly safe and effective ways to treat the pain??? An epidural can make labor last longer, but if you are not feeling anything, and the baby is doing fine, that won't really matter (your not leaving the hospital anyway until you and your baby get a clean bill of health. Whats a few more hours going to harm?) Getting an epidural isn't as bad as it may seem, and I am the biggest crier when it comes to needles and stuff. Once the pain is gone, you can sleep, talk, not hate your baby's father. The only downside is that you won't be able to get out of bed. Hope this helps, and good luck!!!

Answer 4

It can be done completely safely that way, as long as there are no complications. But if it's a breech birth or anything else out of the ordinary, you need that medical intervention. Take the Lamaze class, because whether or not you go natural, the breathing does help!

Do you know what would be best for a natural birth? Have the mother in a crouching position (like you're taking a pee in the woods). It's actually the way nature intended. Lying down on your back is actually one of the worst and most unnatural positions.

Anyway, don't totally rule out the pain meds. They do help, and you just might end up screaming out for them.

Answer 5

The labor usually is shorter, because the petosin they give you slows everything down.

The only thing you'll have to deal with is pain, nothing else is any different. Keep in mind you can't get an epidural DURING labor, but you can get a shot of some light pain meds to "take the edge off", but won't completely eliminate that pain altogether. So you can try an all natural childbirth, with the knowledge that you can get a little bit of relief if necessary. Good luck!

Answer 6

Actually if you mean a completely natural birth only in the no pain medication sense, it is untrue that labor lasts longer. If you are able to use gravity to your advantage and walk around during labor, and often delivery, your labor can often be speeded up by several hours. An epidural will not let you walk around during labor. Often, since gravity is not used in this case, a Pitocin (oxytocin) drip is administered to speed up labor, which can cause complications.

I would recommend checking out the following sites, as they provide excellent resources for statistics and information on natural birth.

http://pregnancy.about.com/cs/birthstories/l/blnaturalstory.htm
This site provides excellent stories that involve natural birth. It gives you a firsthand perspective.

http://www.gentlebirth.org/archives/nodrugs.html
This article is from a midwive's association detailing why they choose natural, unmedicated birth, and its beneficial effects on you and the baby.

http://www.lamaze.org
This is the site for Lamaze International. They encourage natural birth whenever possible, and I've found their website and pamphlets informative and reassuring.

http://www.bygpub.com/natural/natural-childbirth.htm
This site is fantastic and very informative.

If you can only look at one or two of the above sites, make them the last two. They are extremely professional and very useful. They'll go through the whole process of natural childbirth with you, and even bring up some options you might not know you had.

If you have any other questions, feel free to e-mail me. I'm 39 weeks pregnant and will be attempting natural childbirth with my son. I've done a lot of research on the subject, and talked to many women who have gone through it.

Congratulations and good luck!

Answer 7

Once the contractions start u may change your mind. My friend went 4 a natural birth and was in lots of pain by the time she got some drugs she was having the baby and felt everything. My other friend had an epidural and still felt everything. She pushed 4 3 hours straght. I had epidurals with both of my kids and dont regret it one bit. Why go through the pain if u dont have 2.

Answer 8

Child birthing is different for everyone. There is no guarantee that and epidural will work and the epidural is actually more likely to slow your labor than lack of one. Personally, I opted for pain meds. I have no idea if they helped at all. I think, but have nothing to compare it too, that it was just as painful after the meds as before them. I just slept between contractions after-wards. Of course I couldn't have an epidural, I got some other thing, though they did stick me in my spine with a needle to administer it.

Answer 9

as long as "just like the good old days" you don't mean no prenatal care. the delivery itself is done all the time by women who do not take any medicine. i did not set out to be one of those women but honestly my labor pains were not horrible until about 15-20 min. before baby was born. that's when the contractions went to my back. but it was still bearable. i pushed through 2 contractions (about a minute) and had a baby. as soon as the baby is out it is such a relief of pressure and everything that is is ok. i did rip and they stitched me. honestly, i took iburphofen for the pain of the stitches but nothing during childbirth.

do not feel guilty if you cannot go without meds. it's not the birthing experience that makes you a good mother.

good luck

Answer 10

It doesn't make it longer. In fact the epidural slows down labor. It may feel longer because you aredealing with the pain, but it's not actually longer. I went all natural with my first and I didn't freak out or anything. I think the risk is actually lower with going natural because there are always a risk of side effects with pain meds or epidurals.

Answer 11

It really depends on your body how long your labor is. With my frst I was only in labor for 8 hours. Which isn't bad. I didn't have any complications. But you could tear(down there) when the babies head comes out or if your doctor thinks the babys head is too large they will give you an episiotomy(spelled wrong) and stitch you up. The cord could also get wrapped around the babys neck while your pushing. Thats about all I know. Good Luck to you!