hi stac, you wouldnt believe this but my name is stacey too and i went into labour with my 1st DS at 34 weeks also... ;P

we had a natural birth and it was lovely! i had no drugs and was completely al there (although a little tired lol) when he was born and i was up walking round an hour later.
my labour went for about 5-6 hours and it was amazing to feel when he was ready to be born.

your body actually feels the pain for a reaason, so what you have to do it turn everything thts negative into a positive. i believe it is defiantely a mind over matter sort of thing...
so when you feel the pains he/she is letting you know where he/she is (as if you didnt know lol) i listened to calming music (the fisher price celtic lullabies was excellent..the best $14.95 i ever spent i reckokn lol) and i had lavender burning in my oil burner (which my hospital supplied) my in laws just laughed at me when id suggested that was what i was going to do and they blatantly scoffed at me and put me down for it..well, i sure showed them didnt i
i also had a bottle of peppermint oil beside the bed, it is fantastic for when you go through the 'sickness stage' i think its called the transitional stage or something...
my sickenss stayed abated once i sniffed a little peppermint oil in a tissue...

i had my midwife massage my back while i leant over the bed, sitting on a big excercise ball..i walked around for as long as i could manage and once i knew he was ready to come out (i ended up yelling at the nurses cos they didnt believe me that he was coming) after being told for the 5th time that i still had hours left befoire hed be here i demnded that they check how far dilated i was and they took their time let me tell you, anyway shed checked and yelled for the docs and nurses to come now becuase, funnily enough, i was 10cm dilated and she could feel his head!!! anyways, i gave birth (TMI i know lol) kneeling on my knees and leaning over the backboard of the bed holding DH hand..very tightly i might add...it works,,trust me..i didnt want to squeeze his hand and he made me,..poor guy probably wish he hadnt done that lol.
giving birth this way put less stress on your perenium and its natural, as its working with gravity (where lying on your back doesnt) i guess you just have to find what works for you the best.

i only ended up having 2 stiches and my DS scratched me as he came out because he had one hand up (flying out like superman we said lol)

once you've given birth you should have the first round of 'drugs/painkillers' that the docs offer you, its jsut sensbile it wont harm ur bubba and itll make u feel a lot better.

i think you have to relax and work with your body. if it says push then u need to lsiten to it (when people are in labour and have had heaps of drugs then they cant feel when their body is ready to push etc...)
that beign said, emergency c-sections etc are sometimes in order and theres no sense in arguing with the docs as its ur bubbas life at risk... at least you went in trying and thats what matters the most..

i dont know if this helped at all but if u wanna chat you can email me dis_is_stac@hotmail.com cheers and the best of luck!! hubby and i have been TTC baby #2 for over 12 months now... our thoughts are with you cheers X