advice for labour thread

I don't know if this exists somewhere, but I thought it might be nice if those of us who've had babies posted some advice for those about to go through labour! There are things I wish i'd known before going into it and I thought I'd share them with all of you.

- I wish I had known about the options available to me (homebirthing, etc)

- I wish I had known not to be afraid of the pain (i was in a lot pain at 1cm dilated and it scared the crap out of me).

- I wish I had just let labour progress naturally without asking to be checked for dilation, it made everything worse.

- I wish I had asked more of my partner while I was in labour rather than doing it alone and feeling alone

Sorry if that's a bit depressing! Labour is really a wonderful experience, as long as you're supported and in control of what's happening.

Best of luck to you all!

I think this is a great idea Baby_Socks

I wished i had read more and known more about how my body works. I read alot of pregnancy books but people really need to read more about how their bodies work during childbirth and how to work with their bodies.

things ive learnt.

- You have every right to ask questions and press a buzzer if there is no one there and you are wondering something. Dont feel midwives and drs are too busy to be disturbed and asked questions. To them this is an every day occurance but what they need to remember is that this may be your first time.

- Dont accept that it has to be this way - read up - ask questions - As Baby_Socks mentioned Try and find out about all your options.

- For first timers take learning about positions in your anti natal classes seriously. In my classes with my first our entire class spent the whole time laughing about how funny the positions were instead of really learning the importance of them and how much they can help in Birth.

- After the birth If you have a question again or are having difficulty Breastfeeding than buzz, even if you still dont get it after them coming in time and time again, Keep asking questions and keep buzzing.

Will have to come back, theres so much i have in my head but cant think at the moment. lol.

Cant wait to read everyones posts

I think the big one for me to be proactive and not just assume that the hospital will take care of everything and you just have to go in and pop out a baby.
Too many women aren't told what they need to know before they have their babies and because for most of us, the first experience we have of birth is our own, we end up learning the hard way.
So many mums I talk to now are on their second or third baby and just hell bent on avoiding the traumatic time they had with their first bubs....but it doesn't have to happen like that!

So yeah my first bit of advice is choose your care providers carefully! I honestly think this one decision is the biggest influence on the birth you end up having. Understand the differences between midwifery and obstetric care, and GET OVER the idea that because private care = better care for medical conditions, that the same applies to normal uncomplicated pregnancy. It doesn't!

As far as the rest goes I could write a book here lol but the main things are to be an active participant in your care - ask questions, do your own research, actively investigate your options. And know that you always have options - always!

Oh and final thing is take responsibility for your own antenatal education. Don't rely on hospital birth classes which for the most part tell you nothing about giving birth. Do courses that tell you what you need to know - how to manage the pain using your own resources, ideas for positioning and breathing, ideas for your support people to assist you etc.....hospital classes tell you none of these things on the whole.

Ooh! I recommend reading this thread by yogababy https://www.bellybelly.com.au/forums...ad.php?t=45345 . It really helped educate me about how my body works and ways to deal with pain. It gave me the confidence that I needed after a pretty horrible first labour. Every mum-to-be should read it! :)

I loved my second labour so much I would and will, happily birth drug free again with no interventions (unless emergency). It's such a contrast from my first experience.

The reason the second time was so different was because I got educated! Sure I re-read the pregnancy fluff again but I also sought out and was introduced to more thorough literature. I gained a better understanding of my body and explored meditation, relaxation and hypnobirthing as well as birthing positions that speed labour and open the pelvis.

I also really took on board the fact that tension causes pain and used that information to create the optimum birthing environment (for me, a homebirth), focused on my breathing and rode those waves!

I surrounded myself with support and really educated my DH about what I needed from him this time. Even with him beside me the first time, I felt completely alone. He did a wonderful job because he knew what I needed as I vocalised this better.

Best of all, I just let go emotionally and trusted my body to do the job.

Like everybody else has said - learn as much as you can about all of the options available (including the ones that you think you won't need), so that you can be prepared for anything.

I found that I had worked towards a certain kind of birth, but due to the circumstances, I had a very different birth than planned. Because I had great support (from partner and from the hospital staff) and had learned as much as possible beforehand about all of the options, I found it much easier to cope when things didn't go the way I hoped. I had what a lot of people would call a 'traumatic' birth (long posterior labour followed by emergency c/s after failure to progress due to previously undiagnosed narrow pelvis), but because of my preparation I was able to keep calm and focused, and still found it was a great experience, not disappointing at all!

Preparation helped me trust in myself and know that the decisions I made on the day were the right ones for me and my baby.

my biggest piece of advice would be dont read "up the duff" or "what to expect when expecting" because they are pretty usless books!

do real research

know you can say no to anything and everything!

and that most doctors dont look after your best interest! they just want to pump along on the baby machine

my biggest piece of advice would be dont read "up the duff" or "what to expect when expecting" because they are pretty usless books!

do real research

know you can say no to anything and everything!

and that most doctors dont look after your best interest! they just want to pump along on the baby machine

i always think back to when i was in labour, i wish i had paid more attention to all the breathing techniques etc that we were taught in the antenatal classes.. i spent a lot of time trying to re focus, which did help, but i dont really remember how we were taught to do it properly.. i just kept staring at the empty crib, thinking 'krystal will be in there soon, krystal will be in there soon' and i found that helped!

Ask Questions during labour! Demand ot know WHY things are going the way they are.

Like Suse, I found that the birth I so desperately wanted and planned for just didnt happen and although I knew about what was going to happen in the emergency c/s, the time it took to be "in labour on a CTG" to "in delivery suite having membranes ruptured" to "emergency c/s NOW!" was a heartbeat.
All of a sudden there were midwives everywhere and dr's everywhere and nobody told me WHY i was having a C/S in the first place - freaked me right out and took a lot of energy and time and help from my wonderful DF to bring me out of hysteria.

So ASK why things are happening the way they are - you may not be able to do anything about them, but knowledge is power!

Dont keep looking at the clock (i did, i keep apoligising to people for holding them up :))
Try all the different positions in birthing class - the ones i thought would be the best, and practised, i hated at the time.
Be open to suggestions and positions.

And above all - trust your body. You can do this, its what you are designed to do.