1st time mom, scared about labor! help!?

Question

im 20 and this is my first baby im due any day now and am so terrified about going into labor is there anything i can do to help the situation while in the delivery room?

Answer 1

First, congrats! I had my first baby when I was 19 (he's now 7) but I sure remember being a nervous wreck! My best piece of advice to you is not to have anyone in the room with you who annoys you. Oh, and if you want the whole family in there, call them...if not, have someone call and tell them you're in labor, but you'll call when you want visitors. It was my experience that annoying people only get more so when you are in labor. My mom helped me out tremendously by kinda regulating my visitors, as I asked her to. My Dad, my mom and my husband were there the whole time, but my dad of course went to visitor room when I was actually having the baby. I tried demerol first, but after 12 hours, I wanted the epidural. I was in labor 18 hours plus...so it helped a lot! Just remember everyone and every labor is different. It does hurt, but you will not even care about the pain when you see your baby!

Answer 2

I've had three kids and each time I was scared out of my mind. There are different pain medications that your doctor can give you. Doing your breathing exercises really help. Try to relax and let your body do what it was built to do. Have someone in the room with you that you feel comfortable with. The most painful part to me about labor was the contractions. The pushing wasn't so bad. Now let me tell ya, after you have the baby most of the pain will go away. I was up walking around and ready to go home a couple hours later. Just relax and remember to breath and I'm sure you'll be fine.

Answer 3

Congrats! I too was terrrified to have my first baby. Everytime I thought about labor I would get sick. I can tell you it was sooo much easier than expected. I had really light contractions twenty minutes apart for 6 hours, then they started coming about two minutes apart. The contractions start off really easy, and intensify as they go along. I had an epidural when I got to the hospital (7 cm) like I had planned, but I really didn't feel like I needed one at that point. After the epidural, I didn't even feel the contractions. One thing that really helped me was my husband using a back massager on my lower back. It helped me to focus on that instead of the contractions. Also, try to use a really low breathing sound when the contractions get tough, and think of relaxing your uterus the best you can during the contractions. I also tried to stay at home for as long as I could because it was a lot more relaxing than the hospital. Try a hot shower too! For me anyway, the recovery was worse than the labor. I wish you luck! I hope you'll be pleasantly surprised!

Answer 4

Bring alot of your favorite magazines to read during the early stages of labor (This part is fairly bearable)

Create a birth plan so doctors know what you want ahead of time (IV or epidural-episitomy or not-walk around or stay in bed etc...) Dont wait til you get there because some of your wishes may not be met. I didnt have an epidural so I will say it can be done without it, but don't be afraid to ASK

Brings lots of your favorite music. Lots of soothing music that can put you in a good place

Bring a comfortable pillow from home and some of your own slippers (Slipper socks are great, I liked having something that didnt scream "hospital) Your own pillow will be much more comfortable

Hand held games

Someone with you that can be understanding, massage you if needed and offer you plenty of encouragement. Having my boyfriend (now husband) tell me how proud he was, made things worth it

Answer 5

Labor will come on slowly. You'll start to feel cramping like you would when you are on your period. They will start to get stronger over time and you'll be able to time them. They only last approx 60 seconds and then you'll just wait for the next one. It is painful but there is always the break which makes it tolerable. When you start getting into the later stages of labor your contractions will be closer and you won't have as much of a break from the pain. But don't worry! You'll be just fine. If you get anxious while you are in labor it will only prolong your labor. Try to stay as calm as you possibly can. It really will help the labor process. You'll know when it's time to push. Your body tells you. And don't be afraid... it feels WONDERFUL to push. I had trouble pushing with my first daughter. I tried to push with the top of my stomach in fear that I would make a mess. After having my second and third daughter I strongly suggest that you push like you are having a bowel movement. It is the correct way to push and no one told me that. So... thought I'd pass that on. :) Also, right as your child comes out you will have the most unbelievable feeling. It's so wonderful I have nothing to compare it to. It makes the whole process worth it and then you'll have your little sweet pea to hold and love. You're going to do great and you'll survive. I did. And I did it natural with all three. Good luck, God bless and Congratulations!

Answer 6

To be honest, I was not nervous going into labor my first time around. I had a great circle of supportive women, headed by my mom, who all told me that giving birth was the easy part - so I went in with the attitude that it wasn't going to hurt at all. I ended up going thru 2 all natural births, and although it was uncomfortable at times, there were no unbearable pains I couldn't handle. Now, 10 years later, I am pregnant with #3 and have the same attitude. I think with all the horror stories out there, I was very lucky to have the support system I had.

Answer 7

have you taken prenatal classes? that should help a lot, have a birth plan, know what you want and don't want to happen, try to catch some episodes of "birth stories" on TLC, they show women giving birth, and it can really ease your mind - also, don't forget the epidural, the greatest invention ever! Remember that the contractions start off slow, mild, and far apart, giving you time to ease into the process, too. It's not easy, or fun, and can be obviously painful before the epidural, but it is the greatest, most exciting and empowering thing you will ever do!
Good luck!

Answer 8

I was 19 when I had my first baby and I was scared to death about the labor part and everyone kept telling me all these horror stories about how bad it was but when I got there it was not as bad as I thought and I found that just relaxing and keeping calm made it so much easier

Answer 9

I was scared for my first child too and no matter what people tell you, you won't fully be prepared, until you go throught it yourself, cause everyone handles things differently. For me, I made out to be worse than what I thought. I was so scared and then after my daughter was born, it wasn't as bad as what I thought it was going to be. The really only thing that helped me was not having a lot of people there, so I could have some peace and quiet. It was just me and my husband and the calmness of the room, made me calm throught it. Hope this helps and congrats.

Answer 10

I would strongly suggest talking to your doctor about pain relief. It's normal to be scared.

I'm terrified, and I'm about to have my second baby. I just remember that women have been doing this since the beginning of time, and we're lucky to have the epidural available!

Relax. Focus on the new baby, and postpartum, just take one day at a time. You're going to do fine.