Anyone who had a natural childbieth, no drugs?

Question

how did you manage pain and what are some suggestions?

Answer 1

I had an epidural with my first baby and it was great. I even laughed while I was pushing him out. Felt nothing.
Now,
With my daughter, I wanted to try and tough it out for a while before I got the epidural.
I waited to long and had to go through the whole labor without any pain medication what so ever!
It hurt so bad, I thought I would never be able to push her out.

What helped me was the nurse.
I had my husband on one side and my mom on the other side and then the nurse was standing by my husband.
I had my eyes closed and she was yelling at me to open my eyes and look at her in the eyes. To keep my eyes on her. She helped me breath and to stay calm. It was a real help having her there.
You need to focus on someone and have them breath with you. Nice and slow breathing when your not pushing.

It hurt so bad. I had never felt such pain before. It was horrible.
But to tell you the truth. If I have another baby, I think I'll go the natural way. There is just something about it that makes it special.

Answer 2

I HIGHLY recommend The Bradley Method of Natural Childbirth. www.bradleybirth.com

Here are some basic tips:
- if you are going to a hospital stay home as long as possible.
- hire a doula (www.dona.com)
- refuse all interventions, IV, continuous monitoring
-move around and change positions
-relax
-prepare your husband
- get in the shower

Birth was painful for me, but it was only for a short time and as soon as I had the baby it was over. There were no lasting effects like some people have who get an epidural. My baby nursed well (in part to no drugs) and was very alert.

Edited to add: The pain isn't that bad. The endorphins you get after giving birth naturally totally make up for any pain. I felt like the strongest woman in the world after my natural births.

Answer 3

Its very difficult to know there are drugs available to ease your pain and not ask for them. I am not sure of the spelling but the name of a drug that you can ask for is Staydol. The amount they gave me my first go round was too much. I asked for half that dose the second time around and it was ok. The third time I had a child I got only a quarter of the dosage and it helped but didn't take away the experience. If you want to go without anything I suggest you let your doctor know ahead of time that even if you ask DO NOT GIVE IT TO YOU. Easiest way I know sweetie. I won't tell you it isn't terribly painful but women have been doing it for years without anything. Its forgot almost as soon as it is over.

Answer 4

I just had my son almost a year ago now and I endured 10 hours of labor (relatively short) without the help of pain meds. What worked for me were brething techniques that I learned in childbirth education classes, so I would check with your local hospital since most offer them for a small fee. Another thing that helped was sitting in the whirlpool tub at the hospital, it has been called natures epidural. One more thing that was helpful was the use of a doula. She is there to support not only you but your partner in this life changing event. I know mine was hesitant at first to use her because he thought he had it "under control" but afterwards he said he would never do it without her. She was awesome, who knew something as simple as fanning could keep me happy. Good luck

Answer 5

One thing that really helped me was determination--I knew that there were risks to both myself and the baby with drugs, so I was determined to avoid them. I had a doula who really helped me to focus on other things, and I knew that it was temporary. I did take childbirth classes, but just the generic ones offered by the hospital.

I was also a lot more afraid of a needle in my spine than I was of pain and hard work, which helped a lot ;)

I've heard of too many people who had the epidural not work, or who had more complications and pain from the epidural than they would have had without it, or infections!

Answer 6

No pain killers here. Like the first person said...you are too busy to feel any pain. I told the mother-to-be of our 1st grand baby, it's like the biggest bowel movement you've ever had and it's so worth the small amount of time you are there trying to push that "Buick" out!! Good luck and I would go the natural way again, if I had to do it again.

Answer 7

Both of my babies were natural, and it was not easy by any means. Be sure your partner knows what you expect, and have him/her help with breathing. My husband wasn't all that great, he was too nervous, but there was a wonderful nurse who helped me focus on the breathing and that really cut down of the pain. Also walk alot if you can and keep yourself distracted. Remember during contractions that soon it will be over and you will get a rest. Good luck.

Answer 8

My mom threatened me with disowning if I screamed! Lol I dare not. Seriously, she did say that but I was very fortunate to have short labors first was 5 hours long and my second was 3 hours never had time for medication but I knew from working in OB how to use Lamaze method. Main thing is to RELAX as difficult as that will be. The pain just gets worse if you tense up. Roll with it and get up on your hands and knees and rock back and forth gravity does great things.

Answer 9

Whoever says breathing helps is a liar. It didn't help with either of my deliveries. My first was with pain meds and my second was without. Not having pain meds speeds up the process but it hurts like crazy when they stick the needle in to give you an episiotimy. You kind of just deal with it. It is such a short amount of time when you think about it, and it doesn't really matter in the end.

Answer 10

I had 4 kids, one natural. I really actually enjoyed the natural birth the most.

You have to BREATHE! Now, I never took any classes on this, and it might have helped. I have no idea since i've never been to one. I closed my eyes, and I felt like I was in a different place. I just kept breathing, and I made it through!

Good Luck!