Did your pregnancy go as planned? And was child birth what you expected it to be?

Question

I developed Toxemia and delivered my now two month old baby girl four days early. And the birth part wasn't THAT bad..it was the contraction I thought were going to kill me!

Answer 1

Not at all!I had very low blood pressure and kept passing out and vomiting months after my morning sickness passed.At 6 weeks I started to bleed very badly so I thought I was having a miscarraige but to my surprise when I had an internal ultra sound at the hospital it turned out I was pregnant with twins(i didn't know) and one of the babys had died,very sad but I know it happened for a reason as you will understand when you have read this whole post.I could sleep laying down the last 2 months because I couldnt breath so I had to use pillows to prop me up or sleep in the recliner.Dont get me wrong,it was tough but I LOVED being pregnant!I will cherish that for the rest of my life!I was 2 weeks over due and was then induced 3 day in row before I went into labour!It was very fast once I had the gel on the 3rd day and extreme pain right away.I got my epidural at 7 cm,pushed for over an hour and my sons heart rate kept dropping everytime I pushed and he was coming out transverse so I had a c-cection.I saw my son for about half an hour(2 hours after I had him),I nursed him and they took him to the nursery to be watched because he had a fever.I was woken up a few hours after that to be told my son had a heart murmer,very low oxygen and he was being taken by life flight to Vancouver Childrens Hospital asap!So I woke in the morning in maternity with all the moms and their beautiful babies and I was there,alone,my husband was with our son an hour away and neither of us knowing what his future held.

Well,he has had 3 heart surgerys by 9 months and now at almost 16 months he is a very normal ,active healthy baby with 100% oxyegen thanks to an amazing team of cardiologists,surgeons,and nurses!This is what makes me think that the twin that I lost must have been much worse off so I believe that happened for a reason.He will need more surgery for the rest of his life but he will be just fine and he is a blessing and an amazing child as I believe all children are a gift and so very precious!

Congrats on your baby girl,and yes those contractions where horrible!!I was not going to be a hero,I was begging for that epidural!!

Answer 2

My pregnancy went pretty good. I was sick the first 4 1/2 months, but that's normal. The rest of the pregnancy went good, except for the aches and pains, which is also normal. I still loved the experience, especially feeling my baby part. My labor was 5 hours, it really wasn't as bad as I though it would be. And than I pushed for 45 mins. I went all natural, which wasn't my plan, but by the time I said I was ready for an epidurral, I was already almost 9cm and it was too late. I'm really glad that it was natural though, because that was always my dream I was just too scared. The pushing wasn't too painful, I just felt like I had to take a huge dump and than when he came out it was all relieved and than forgotten. Now I have a beautiful 2 1/2 m/o baby boy and I love him very much and I love being a mommy. Even though it's a little frustrating at times. I expected the labor and delievery to be much more painful than it was. Or maybe it was really painful but I was just so exhausted that I didn't even realize how much it hurt.

Answer 3

I have 3 kids and all of the pregnancies went rather well. However with my first, my legs started to swell at about my 7th month, but nothing too terrible resulted from that, we just had to watch it.

But then there was labor & child birth. I was in labor for over 40 hours, no pain killers or drugs seemed to help ease the contractions or the pain. I had many hours of active labor(pushing) of which nothing happened, he wouldn't come down into the birth canal completely. So when it reached the point that I could no longer do this out of shear exhaustion, they had to take him by c-section.

Now I was so completely out of it that I did not see my son entirely when they tried to show him to me, but my mother was in the room with me as well and she said it was a good thing I didn't see. My son's head had a 45* angle where it was smashed in from being stuck on my pelvic bone. That's why I he couldn't come any further, my pelvic bone doesn't move like it's suppose to.

I also did not see him or even get to hold him for another almost 30 hours because I had a fever resulting from labor and delivery. When I finally demanded that they bring him in I found out that the only reason he was to stay in the nursery was because if he came in with me, and I had a fever, he could not go back to the nursery at all. (So what, right?)

With all the labor I went through and then the c-section, it was probably a good 2 weeks before I could even stand up straight. It hurt terribly. I vowed to never have kids again. And well now there are 3.

The other 2 were scheduled c-sections, no labor and relatively quick recovery. I had certain restrictions as to what I could & could not do, like vacuum. But other than that it went 100 times better then my first.

Congratulations on your baby girl!

Answer 4

Wow. I realize just how lucky I was to have such a breezy labor after reading some of these stories. I'm 19 weeks pregnant with 3nd baby. Totally different to my 2st. I had SEVERE morning sickness up untill 13 weeks. Now I get it on and off. I bled at 4-5 weeks and again at 9 weeks. Was sure I was having a miscarriage(My 1st ever pregnancy ended in miscarriage at 6-8 weeks). My pelvis is already falling apart, have to wear this silly brace that I can't breath in. But like I said I'm only 19 weeks so don't know what I'm in for, for the rest of the pregnancy or labor.

With my Daughter whos 22 months old I didn't have any morning sickness. I did bleed at 5,7,9,11 and 12 weeks though which was very stressful. Had siatica and heartburn. That's all, nothing else to complain about. I was so comfortable that even when I was 7 days over I couldn't care less if she stayed in there a little longer. In the end she decided to make her entrance 9 days over due. She had pooed and had an infection. Was in hospital for 9 days on a drip with antibiotics. Had the cord wrapped TIGHTLY around her neck. Had the dent still 2 weeks later.

The actual birth and labor wasn't;t NEARLY as bad as I expected it to be. It hurt like hell yeah, but not what I though it was going to. The worst part would have to be when the head was crowning. BURNING BURNING BURNING !!!!!! I can see why I tore as bad as I did. And very proud to say I did it wth out any drugs. Can't say it will be the same this time around,lol.

To tell you the truth the placenta being PULLED out of me was more horrific and painful than giving birth to my baby. It was total aggony!!! Have no idea to this day why they didn't wait for it to separate completely 1st and for me to push it out!!!!!

Going to do it all over again in about 29 weeks and CAN'T WAIT!!!! I LOVED the birth experience.

Answer 5

This is my first baby so I couldn't really "plan" my pregnancy -I had no idea what should or shouldn't be happening. Which would explain the long late-nite hours spent in emergancy for a spot of blood, or morning sickness so bad I couldn't eat for 3 days, lol. I was convinced that I wouldn't get an epidural, but boy, I tell ya, that first contraction hit and I was hollering for it as soon as I caught my breath! I didn't feel a thing and they gave me nausea medicine so I was pretty loopy when I started pushing. I totally thought I would think the baby would come out looking adorable, like in the movies. They told me to open my eyes and meet my son and I screamed and tried to push myself away -he looked like some kind of alien. Wasn't expecting that! The thing that caught me the most off guard was how sweet and quiet my son is. I thought babies were supposed to cry a lot and be loud, and he just sits there and smiles all the time without a peep!

Answer 6

Wow.. everyone has such difficult stories that I'll put mine on here as a contrast. I did have morning sickness throughout the pregnancy but that was controlled with Zofran. I went into early labor 2 weeks before due date but they decided to induce me because my blood pressure would jump everytime I got out of bed. So they put the Cervidil in and everything was fine.. just really mild cramps. Then they took out the Cervidil and things got much harder. My contractions were right on top of each other (maybe about 15 mins of being really really uncomfortable.. not really pain). So they gave me an epidural which I didn't feel at all. I fell asleep and woke up the next morning at 5 because the blood pressure monitor was going off. They came in and checked me and the baby was right there!. 45 mins of painless pushing, my little one was born completely healthy and wonderful. I had no pain and I was up and walking around within 10 mins. I really lucked out! So any pregnant moms, don't be scared because it'll go how it will go and there is the chance it will not be horrible! :)

Answer 7

My pregnancy was a dream, but the birth didn't go quite as planned.

We'd organised a homebirth, but my midwife requires her clients to have a hospital induction if over 42 weeks gestation. 42 weeks came & went, so I had to give up my homebirth plans and be induced.

The induction overstimulated my uterus & so my contractions were very, very strong & really irregular. But I'm proud to say that I still managed to have a natural birth. The hospital staff were desperate to give me pain meds right from the start, so I'm glad my midwife was there to speak for me!

I tore very badly, (due to my complete refusal to get out of a sitting position as my son's head was being born. And the fact that he had his fist clenched up next to his head. Ow!) I'm still healing from that almost 6 months on.

So, like I said, the birth absolutely wasn't as planned, but my main objective was to have a medication-free natural birth, and (other than the initial induction) I managed that.

Answer 8

I'm 20 weeks with #2. My 1st pregnancy was great with no complications. I was poked 9 times with the epidural needle due to the spacing in my spine. I had back labor and agree that the contractions were worse than the actual birth (thanks to the epidural). I had 4th degree tears besides being cut twice but I healed fine. My daughter also came 4 days early. My doctor and I are trying to prepare for #2 by trying to find ways to not tear this time (early induction or massaging techniques). Congrats!

Answer 9

Just Relax. Fears of labor are natural as u r near the delivery dates. I have two boys already and everytime near the delivery dates, i also have worries. But later on, u will find the worries unfounded. Usually labor pains will take a few hours, for 1st child will be longer, maybe as long as 12 hrs. So such thing as not able to make it to hospital is quite unlikely. Signs of labor will include water bag leaking or "show" (bleed). Just contact your doctor when the time comes and everything will be alright. Childbirth is not easy but it is not that hard either. Just think of seeing your baby very soon will pull you through the pain. In any case it u r unable to endure the pain, there are various pain relief options available. Wish u smooth delivery!!

Answer 10

I read all that I could read so I knew what to expect with my first. Although nothing can prepare you for the pain of contractions. With my second I was put on bed rest for 10 weeks, which was unexpected and very difficult. The birth was not that bad being on bed rest for so long made him come fast. But they are more beautiful than I ever expected and I love them more than I ever thought I could love someone.