Is it possible to have an unmedicated hospital birth w/ no tub? - Page 3

[boysmom2]

I've had all 3 of my babies on hospitals with no tub/shower. You can do it! We had great CNMs and took a Bradley class before #1. I read the Birthing from Within book before #3.

[Kirsten]

13 yo dd1 was born in a hospital with a midwife. No birthing tub though there was a regular tub/shower - which I only used to take a shower the next day.

I had dd2 at a freestanding birth center that DID have a birthing tub - which I never used. I had dd3 at home where we have a large soaking tub with jets - which I never used.

So no, it isn't at all necessary. In the OP's case, I'd stay home to labor as long as possible (for me with dd1, that was 14 hours) THEN go to the hospital when it is actually getting close to time to HAVE the baby.

[Theoretica]

I did, both times

[lunita1]

My three were all unmedicated, pretty much intervention free hospital births (no IV's, intermittent monitoring mostly with doppler, delayed cord clamping, yadda yadda.) I only used the tub with the second, and not for very long with her (my body temperature was rising uncomfortably with the warm water so I ended up getting out). With my first there was no tub available (I HAd her at a university teaching hospital with a family practice doctor), but I spent a lot of time in the shower with hot water spraying on my back. With my third I was only at the hospital long enough to stand next to the bed and push her out (I barely got my underwear off!), so there was no time for the tub.

[MammaG]

I will assume you are speaking of specifically pain medications. My first was a hospital birth, pitocin-induced, and I had no pain medication. I was pretty confined to bed, so I didn't have a shower or tub....only really got up to use the bathroom. 6 hours of labour, 2.5 hours of pushing. Totally do-able.

My second was a homebirth. No tub (it was too fast!). Again totally do-able.

Just put your mind in the right place and you can do anything!

[purplepaperclip]

Yup! I did it and it was g-r-r-reat! (imagine Tony the Tiger voice)

[cappuccinosmom]

I've had two! (My very first birth I was medicated with Stadol. yech. But the other two were non-medicated completely)

One of them was intense but not severely painful. THe other hurt like the dickens (seriously, ouch!), but I got through it.

For both, I think the key was being able to move around into positions that allowed me to cope with the contractions. The really painful labor, the *only* way I could get through a contraction was if I was bent forward at the waist, or on my hands and knees. If I wasn't in that position and felt a contraction coming on, I started having panicky feelings. The midwives were great and encouraged me to use the positions that worked.

Watching shows like A Baby Story, I always cringe when I see those women suffering in bed for hours and hours. I'd have wanted an epidural too if the only positions I was "allowed" were on my back or on my side. Totally would not have worked for me.

[finn'smama]

Yup! I had an unmedicated hospital birth with #2 and there was no tub. I did a lot of labouring in the shower. Honestly, my hospital birth (midwife attended) wasn't any different than my homebirth, except for the location.

[Nettie]

Oh yes, yes, definitely! I did it twice!
Well, for my first birth, I did use the tub but only for about an hour at around 5-6 cm. I hated it, didn't get any relief at all in the tub, so I got out after an hour and did standing/rocking. That birth was completely natural, med-free, and went perfectly. 10-hr labor, 49 mins pushing, 9-lb baby. Never even had an iv port inserted, it was as natural as can be (for being in the hospital).
For my 2nd birth, I didn't use the tub at all. I presented to the hospital with PROM at 37 weeks; I'd given it 36 hrs after my PROM for labor to start, but I wasn't having contractions. My midwife was livid that I waited that long, and I was given the choice of being admitted and given pitocin, or waiting and being forced to do c-section (b/c they were all up in arms about possible infection). So I gave in to the pitocin, but I still did the entire labor/delivery completely natural other than the pit. No pain meds, none needed. No tub allowed due to my PROM (which I wasn't disappointed about due to my prior crappy experience in the tub). Once the pit kicked in, it was a fast, intense labor. 3.5 hrs long, 3 pushes, 7.5 lb baby.
So yes, you can certainly do it without a tub, especially with all the other helps you have there. You didn't mention a doula in your OP, so I'd recommend that, but you can do it with or without the tub or the doula (the doula just helps a lot!).