1.) for those that have done it..can I have your story? Ive had 2 of my 7 drug free, 1 was totally drug free in that i didnt even have the injection to release the placenta faster, the other was drug free for the birth but i had the injection after. Both were very fast, 1hr 4 mins and 42mins. The 1hr 4 min one wasnt planned to be drug free, the drugs just didnt get to me in time, the 42min one was planned to be drug free and with delayed cord clamping (DCC) which i highly recommend.

2.) Was there a point that you wanted to turn back and what made you change your mind? There was no point with either where i wished i had drugs, not even the one where the epidural was on the way, it was mainly going to be administered to help keep my BP down. I can honestly say that i didnt really feel "pain" with either, it just got intense at times, particularly towards the moving down the birth canal bit.

3.) Any good books you recommend? I read Ina May Gaskin's Guide to Childbirth book with the 42min one and it was awesome. A bit hippy like but the confidence it instilled into me that i could do it was priceless. Birth is a natural process, it angers me that so many women (and babies) are put on "schedules", leave them be and let the labour progress as it should, only step in if absolutely necessary. Same with DCC too, why is there a rush to cut the cord? Let the baby receive all the blood its entitled to. The presentation of my baby that had DCC compared to my others was phenomenal, he was pink straight away and super alert and he actually had less jaundice than all my others.

4.) Is the pushing stage so horrible or do you have adrenaline to push past it? Pushing is not horrible, it feels good, its a relief to the contractions. If you take it easy and ease your way through the pushing you tend not to tear much. I tore with my first because i went at pushing hammer and tongs with no guidance from my mw, the other 6 i had guidance and i never tore with any of them because i eased through the pushing. Obviously this is just my experience though, i cant speak for others.


5.) In your opinion, which is worse? Transition or pushing? Transition is pretty feral, its when i feel most out of control. And surprisingly, after 7 babies, when im in transition i still dont recognise im in transition till later on in hindsight. But this is the point where i start saying silly things like ive had enough, lets do this tomorrow. Its like i suddenly hit a point of exhaustion but i come out of it pretty quickly. I think transition is worse than pushing though.

Have faith in yourself and your body. It was made to do this. It really is a natural thing. I think we are scared into thinking its going to hurt so we go in with the mindset of having drugs before even allowing ourselves to experience our labour. I know this has been the case for me 5 out of 7 times. That said though, im high risk and it was necessary for me to have epidurals for bp issues BUT i wish i had of had the confidence to ask for alternatives or a trial without drugs first. Knowing what i know now after having #7 im annoyed that i let them control my experiences.