Pain management for natural birth?

This question is directed toward women that have at least attempted natural birth and hopefully succeeded . I am getting close to my due date and I plan on at least attempting to give birth naturally. I have already talked with my doctor about using the birthing tub at my hospital as a way to manage pain but I would like to know if anyone else has advice that I might find helpful. Are there any special techniques that you learned and have tried that really work to at least lessen the pain? Thank you.

I have taken all the classes available to me at my local hospital. Why does everyone keep acting like I should get pain medicine just because it is available and I no that there is no medal to the mom that can tough it out, there is a mental reward for me though. Childbirth was meant to be painful so why don't more women try to tough it out?

I have done it 4 times. My advice is stay focused and see your baby as the finish line or your goal. It is painful but to me manageable. Put it in your mind that the pain is temporary and well worth going through it. Breathing through the pain and squeezing my husbands hand were my saviors.

Uh i'm not sure but well you can always just accept it happens to every woman that goes through labor you should just accept, if that doesn't work well try to see a doctor again to perscribe somthing for you.

Labor isn't equal in all women so you can't predict your pain level. Some women don't even know they're in labor, others dilate so fast there's hardly time to realize they're having pain, and others labor for hours. Some women have totally different labors with each pregnancy, others have the same, very predictable labors every time.

You could try to relax by way of self hypnosis.

The only advantage of no pain meds is that the baby will likely come quicker.

There is no medical reason to avoid pain control. A hundred and fifty years ago people had amputations, operations, joint reductions , babies without pain control only because pain control wasn't available.

Why childbirth with pain still exists (other than in the third world) is a mystery.

Can you imagine someone suffering the pain of metastatic cancer without pain control - they used to have to - now days it is unheard of.

Good luck.

I admire any woman who can get through childbirth without medication. My first was natural but my next two were c-section. If you get really bad back labor, that is what is the worst. Maybe being in a birthing tub will help with that, I don't know. The contractions were what was so bad. I ripped from end to end and felt the whole thing, but that was not near as bad as the contractions. Every birth is different though. Depending on how big the baby is, how he/she is turned will determine how painful it is and how long it takes. Get someone to rub your lower back during contractions. Also, this is kinda graphic, but it helps if the Dr. stretches you out a little with oil during labor to kinda help loosen you and lubricate. I really wish they had done that with me, I think it would have helped a lot. Good luck and congratulations.

Well, I think I can help. I had four children, and never had anything except iv analgesics. I had the last one completely un-medicated, not necessarily by choice, but because it just worked out that way. All births are natural births, dear. Some ladies just need help to manage to maintain focus during the process. The first thing I recommend is a coach you trust, and who is able to refocus you. Lamaze training to help with the breathing is great, but honestly you will reach a point where it just won't matter anymore. I did the tub bit with child number two, and although floating did alleviate the back labor a lot, overall it was not a miracle. And I felt pretty ucky afterwards, which they don't mention. But lets face it, you give birth in the bathwater, and you don't leave the tub sparkling clean. But I did not ever have an epidural, no. You need to talk to your doctor about all the options you will have for pain control. Don't discount any of it, because a lot will depend on how long the labor takes, and how it all progresses. First babies take a while as a rule, and you can find yourself getting to the point where you just want to call it all off. What helps most is staying on your feet for as long as you can, to put gravity to work for you. It pulls the baby's head down into the pelvis and helps dialate the cervix, which in turn shortens labor and therefore your labor pains. It also helps you avoid some of the back labor. Squatting also helps, as does walking and simply sitting up when you can't walk anymore. A nice warn out tennis ball will fit nicely into the small of your back, rolled around by your coach it helps. But above all, don't discount any of the analgesics they can offer you. What will count in the end is a healthy, well born baby, and a healthy mother. There are no medals given out for those who tough it out with an "all natural" birth, and they don't assess points for those who go with the epidural. At about 7 cm dialation, when the contractions are coming every 5 minutes or less, you will reach a point where it all sort of fades out into another reality. I would get to where I didn't even feel the contractions, right before the baby was born. I could see them on the monitor, but I didn't feel them. I was too focused on the new arrival coming. I do recommend you don't waste a lot of energy yelling and screaming, as it really doesn't help matters any, but it will get you nice and uptight. You will be a mix of excited and scared when labor first starts, no matter what. Just remind yourself, or tell the coach to- that this is a normal process, that it will all end in a real good way. And in the end, it won't really matter how baby arrives. You love them all the same. Good luck, and have a healthy baby. And don't discount the analgesics if they make the difference in a mom in control and a mom in agony. Might as well make it a memory worth having, minus the pain. And yes, you do remember the pain. It just doesn't matter.