Anyone NOT able to have an unmedicated birth?

[crunchy_mommy]

I hope this OK to post here...

I was wondering if anyone was NOT able to do natural childbirth (i.e. unmedicated)?

On another thread everyone was saying how unmedicated birth is not that difficult and that it's "totally possible" etc. and no one seemed to think it was difficult or NOT possible in some cases... I felt like a crazy person reading all those stories because my experience was so vastly different...

I had a long & complicated birth & my reasons for getting an epidural weren't just for pain relief but still, I cannot imagine dealing with the pain I was in for all that time unmedicated. I know there were a lot of factors that may have made it harder for me & I would definitely do things differently next time around but I'm just not convinced an unmedicated birth will ever be in the cards for me. And I should emphasize that I had NO intention of getting the epi, I didn't even bother learning anything about it & focused instead on natural pain-relief techniques but, yup, ended up getting meds. And yup, I hated it. And yup, I felt horrible shame/guilt over needing the epi & even 1.5 years later it still bothers me. And I wonder if DS's birth was just unusually hard on me (it took me longer to recover than it did my friends who had c/s!!) or what...

Am I the only one??? Am I just a weak wimp or something????

[shells_n_cheese]

You are absolutely NOT weak. Don't let anyone make you feel that way either.

I was induced with my first child, tried to go natural, but, yeah right. Those pitocin contractions hurt. I got the epi, and was in heaven. Afterwards felt like I "failed", especially since I endedup with a cesarean.

Second child, had a homebirth. OH MY GOD. I wanted to go to the hopsital for an epidural so bad. I wanted a cesarean. It hurt worse than anything I ever imagined. I remember being angry at anyone who ever told me birth didn't hurt or was "orgasmic". I wanted to know what they were sniffing.

I was screaming at one point when DD was crowning. I lost my voice for a few days. After the birth I was in shock from the pain. I never felt in control of the contractions, or "on top of them".

Next time, it will be back to the hospital, and BRING ON THAT EPIDURAL.

I think birth just hurts. Some deal with the pain better, some have easier labors, some harder. Some even lie about it. I think there is a lot of competition (both consciously and subconsciously) in the NCB crowd with who can go natural. I think it's sad too. Many women in other areas of the world who aren't too furtunate worry if they and/or their baby will live through the birth, but here in countries like the USA, we have the privledge of fretting over the "failure" of getting pain relief or not. It's a waste of time. Believe me.

So no, you aren't alone.

[kitkat5505]

My vbac was a completely unmedicated birth and although it was definitely do-able, it was still very difficult, I had back labor and I was making so much noise I was scaring a teen in labor down the hall. My last birth I was unmedicated until my emergency c/s and that labor was actually much easier than my previous one, but that I think had more to do with the birth tub which helped the pain tremendously and my ability to relax. Every birth experience is different. I've heard the stories of women who had almost no pain at all, or the orgasmic births, etc, but there's also the ones that were more painful and difficult and excruciating. Each one is different. This next one I may choose to get an epidural, and I'm ok with that. I've done it all natural and know I could do it again, but I don't know if I want to. I do sometimes feel guilt about that, especially on natural birth-y messageboards like this, but I try not to let it get to me. I know the options, risks, pros and cons, and if I choose to do it medicated it's because I feel that's the right choice for me at that time.

[dianakaye]

I'm currently pregnant with my second and reflecting on my last birth. I was in labor for 24 hours before I decided to get the epidural. That was the only time I cried my whole labor because I felt like a failure. My mom had 6 unmediated births, my MIL had 6 (3 at home) and my SILs had had 3 at home by then. I felt like the only one who couldn't hack it. One SIL implied that I should have done it at home so it wouldn't have been an option to get an epidural. But it wasn't covered by insurance and it wasn't a financial option at that point. I sometimes wonder if I should have labored at home longer, or accepted pitocin earlier (he was sunny side up and his head wasn't dilating my cervix effectively- either that or just being in a hospital freaked me out). I just have to believe I made the best decisions I knew how at the time and not beat myself up. I "caved" when they put me on pitocin. I didn't want to know what pitocin contractions felt like. I wonder if I could have handled them. The one nice thing was I was able to rest. I feel like if I hadn't been able to rest, I wouldn't have had the energy to push and would have ended up with forceps or vacuum or c/s. I learned so much about myself through that experience that I think I'll know how to better prepare. I know this time that I'd rather labor alone for a long time rather than having a million people around me. I felt like I was a pot of water and everyone was waiting for me to boil. You know what they say about a watched pot! I'm 6 weeks along and I've already read 6 or so books about childbirth preparation- hopefully I can afford a hypnobabies class too. This time I'll know how to cope better, hopefully I'll be at home, and hopefully I'll have better support (I expected my husband to be more "coachy" and he's not the coachy type). Whatever the case, don't beat yourself up, it's not worth it!

[lookatreestar]

i think it is all about pain tolerance. kind of like some folks say a tat can feel like a pinch or just an annoying vibrating sensation and others can't handle it/it hurts etc. then you have the people who enjoy the sensation of getting a tat. kwim?

[loveneverfails]

Sometimes strength involves tapping into your inner reserves of courage, and enduring difficulties and pain. And sometimes strength involves having the humility to know that you *can't* do what is in front of you without help. Both are strength.

Needing an epidural isn't a moral failing, or a character flaw. All it means is that in that particular birth, your body needed pain relief out of compassion and respect for your limits. Can you go on and have a subsequent unmedicated birth? Probably, but so much depends on the situation that you find yourself in and what the prudential call is in that moment.

Don't be hard on yourself! You're not a wimp.

[Starflower]

I tried to do hypno-birthing with DH as my coach. He was so stressed out and my labor was long, water had broken before any pains, etc. DH was not able to be my coach for the hypno techniques and I didn't feel like I could do it on my own. I ended up with an epi and then was induced.

Right after the epi, DD went into distress. Whether this was caused by the epi, I don't know. I ended up with an amnio infusion because she was resting on her cord. If I hadn't been connected to the monitor they may not have found it.

I used to feel a little bad about it, especially because DD was born hypoglycemic and was in the ICU for two days. But she was OK and I don't worry much about it now.

I don't plan to have more children, but if I did, I would try hypno again but use a friend for my coach so DH didn't have to deal with it. (He almost passed out during the epi.) And I would hire a birth doula to help out as well.

But as it was, I just didn't have the support I thought I would so we decided to do the epi. The most annoying part was that it had worn off by the time I needed to push (2-1/2 hours of pushing). They kept telling me when to push even though I told them I could feel the contractions. I felt everything, including the tear. They didn't believe me until the doctor went to sew up the tear and I screamed. Well, duh! So in a way, I guess I had both natural (for the pain at least) and medicated (with the complications).

In any case, I still have an amazing DD.

[VillageMom6]

A very crunchy friend of mine had a homebirth fourteen years ago. She was highly educated and prepared for the experience.

It was so painful for her that I think she ended up suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome. Yes, she "did it"... she had an unmedicated birth. But she's never had another child like she had said she wanted to. I've always wondered if her intense suffering during labor had anything to do with that.

Sometimes we do everything "right" and that helps us through long, challenging labors but then we reach a point where our efforts just wear out. I believe that in those cases having some medication can be a humane response to suffering.

I wish my friend had had an epidural to help her through her first labor. Maybe if she birthed her baby with less suffering she would have known that not every labor has to be an ordeal. Maybe then she would have gone on to have more children... unmedicated, even. Those first births can be amongst the toughest.

[lookatreestar]

Originally Posted by dianakaye

I'm currently pregnant with my second and reflecting on my last birth. I was in labor for 24 hours before I decided to get the epidural. That was the only time I cried my whole labor because I felt like a failure. My mom had 6 unmediated births, my MIL had 6 (3 at home) and my SILs had had 3 at home by then. I felt like the only one who couldn't hack it. One SIL implied that I should have done it at home so it wouldn't have been an option to get an epidural. But it wasn't covered by insurance and it wasn't a financial option at that point. I sometimes wonder if I should have labored at home longer, or accepted pitocin earlier (he was sunny side up and his head wasn't dilating my cervix effectively- either that or just being in a hospital freaked me out). I just have to believe I made the best decisions I knew how at the time and not beat myself up. I "caved" when they put me on pitocin. I didn't want to know what pitocin contractions felt like. I wonder if I could have handled them. The one nice thing was I was able to rest. I feel like if I hadn't been able to rest, I wouldn't have had the energy to push and would have ended up with forceps or vacuum or c/s. I learned so much about myself through that experience that I think I'll know how to better prepare. I know this time that I'd rather labor alone for a long time rather than having a million people around me. I felt like I was a pot of water and everyone was waiting for me to boil. You know what they say about a watched pot! I'm 6 weeks along and I've already read 6 or so books about childbirth preparation- hopefully I can afford a hypnobabies class too. This time I'll know how to cope better, hopefully I'll be at home, and hopefully I'll have better support (I expected my husband to be more "coachy" and he's not the coachy type). Whatever the case, don't beat yourself up, it's not worth it!

it sounds like did the best you could mama!! dont be so hard on yourself! i had 2 home births and both times i was asking for an epi! and yes being watched for sure can change things

http://naturalchildbirth.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=61

[ledzepplon]

Birth experiences are so individual! No one pregnancy or labor is the same. I hate that some moms spend years "beating themselves up" because they opted to have pain relief medication during what is widely acknowledged as potentially very painful and physically challenging event.

Of course most women at MDC are aware that epidurals increase the chance of other intervention, and there are side effects to every medication. But I think there is a huge difference between making an informed choice when you're to the point of exhaustion, overwhelmed by anxiety or pain, or have other circumstances that lead you to opt for medication, and just automatically reaching for the drugs.

I will go as far as to say that I think it's unfair to exclusively call unmedicated vaginal birth "natural"--as if having pain relief makes your experience somehow alien or "unnatural." There's nothing neutral about those terms, and they definitely make moms who have chosen pharmaceutical pain relief or truly needed a c-section feel like less than. I much prefer the terms medicated and unmedicated, vaginal or c-section, since they convey the information more accurately and without judgment.

[zoebird]

there are layers upon layers to this that some gals already touched on, but i want to give my take.

1. you have your own, unique neurology--how your nervous system and whole body reacts to stimuli is unique. pain stimuli is one kind of stimuli--and for some people, their bodies have very strong reactions to it. as in, even the tiniest amount of pain (needle prick, for example) can be excruciating whereas with someone else, it would not have any pain response at all. *your neurology is unique.*

of course, one can get tested to see where they fall on the bell curve here, but it's really only necessary for people on the extreme ends so that they can get proper treatment. you are likely on the bell, but may be closer to the extreme pain (as opposed to extreme no-pain) side of things.

some people will call this a threshold-of-pain tolerance.

2. hormonal stress response to neurological process--

we hve stress hormones. stress hormones are amazing! *amazing* and also, to me at least, mysterious. this is where we head between the organic/body state and the mind state (though admittedly, the 'energy' of the nervous system is also in that in between space).

so, we have a stimuli, the nervous system picks it up. then there is a hormonal response. amazing! adrenaline, cortisol--the primary stress hormones. some of us will have a normal neurological response, but an unusually high or low hormonal response.

which means, then, that the pin prick response is normal in the nervous system, but that the adrenal glands go "oh, yeah, THIS much cortisol is necessary!" and so then there is this whole-body experience of "HOLY CRAP STRESS!!!!!" which is in it's way, rather inexplicable. it just happens.

3. there is the aspect of mind---

now, i would say this is where a person has the most "control" over the situation--although there is evidence to suggest that this can also have a strong impact on the hormonal state too--to an extent.

anyhoot, this is where most pain management techniques come into play--interpreting what you are feeling in ways that are less painful, or more managable or what have you.

this is that "mind over matter" space, but the truth is, it really depends upon the matter a fair bit, doesn't it?

i mean, we can learn to feel when our cortisol levels are high and we generally "feel stress" but choose to act on that physical feeling or not. but, it's a long road to that. i mean, some tibetan masters can't even do it, and, seriously, they practice every day for hours on end. most of us have to work, take care of kids, cook, clean, etc etc etc, and might have 10 minutes to consider the idea. LOL!

so, i mean, the practice itself is hard to get to, and hard to achieve, so the fact that we would spend any time on it--using hypnobabies or meditation or any number of awesome techniques to help us--is a big deal. i mean, it's an accomplishment.

but it doens't guarantee anything at all.

this is also, btw, where the idea of a threshold of pain tolerance comes in. sometimes people use it in this space of "mind over matter' moreso than meaning something organic, of the body.

4. this part is also of the mind, and i think it has to do with our personalities, experiences, body-mind patterning, and so on. this is also an area where we hvae more "control" but it also has it's limits based on about 10,000,000 factors such as time, access to resources, ability to implement changes in an effective manner, blah blah blah.

essentially, how we incorporate all of the different things that we experience physically, emotionally, relationally, through every aspect of our being and senses (physical and otherwise) falls within certain parameters of our personality type, our psychological processes (which we both inherit and create), and so on.

so, that pin prick causes a neurological reaction, a hormonal reaction, a mental/emotional reaction, and then a broader 'psychological' or 'coping' mechanism that stems out of how our personality, with it's unique coping mechanisms (both positive and negative behavioral patterns), reacts to that particular stimuli.

*it is all so much broader than just whether someone is weak/strong.* it is a unique experience to that individual, in that moment, and with all of these factors swirling around. that is why it is *unpredictable*.

now, cultural stuff. i agree, there are people who might lie about their experience out right. and there are people who see it as a badge of honor to have had this birth or that birth.

but it's all just birth. nothing to be ashamed of--it happens as it happens, and being a conscientious person, you give it your best for yourself and your kiddo. no worries on that one.

[scottishmommy]

I feel like we do each other a disservice when we assume that unmedicated births are automatically better because women should be tough and strong etc, etc. What is important is whether or not pain relief is [I]mother[ directed as opposed to hospital imposed. Personally, I see no problem with getting an epidural. They are a great form of pain relief during labor. What I have a problem with are the interventions that may force a woman into getting an epidural, such as routine pitocin, internal fetal monitoring, etc. If a well informed, well supported mama feels like she needs relief, she should get it and not feel in the least bit guilty.

[JTA Mom]

Well, seeing as in past times women used opium, marijuana, really anything and everything to 'take the edge off' I wouldn't feel so bad. I've had both a 'natural' birth (at 16wks) and a fully medicalized one (at 37 wks).

I've learned from BOTH labors and births. With the first, I found that I could get through a ton of pain and still live. And yes, I felt MUCH better physically after that birth than after my subsequent birth. Mental is a different story tho.

With the second birth, I learned that getting an epi is not the end of the world. Mind you, it barely took the edge off for me, but that edge was heaven. I still felt all my contractions and my cervix dilating AND felt ds turn into a bad position. It really only completely numbed my left leg.

BUT, having had one with full strength pain relief and one natural, I will have no hesitation to get a light epi if, during this birth, the pain becomes too much. Sometimes getting the pain scaled back a bit is all it takes. It's similar to when I get migraines. Sometimes taking pain meds just lowers the amount of pain, but if the choice is between dizzy, fuzzy throwing up blinding pain and major throbbing but not throwing up pain, I'll choose the lesser one.

And yes, I ended up with a c/s the other time. That, I believe, is more a part of 1) having labor stopping drugs administered at the same time and 2) being forced to lie down the entire time. The only 2 times I was allowed to sit up I dilated fast and wonderfully. Even with my 16 wk birth, I didn't birth him until I fully sat up. My body just needs gravity, or something.

Ami

[NewDirections]

I wanted to go natural. I was induced and the pain was too intense. I had an epi and fentenyl. They were heavenly :celebrate I do not regret that decision for a second. When I have my next child I'll probably have another epi. I really loved that epi

I was driving the other day and I saw my anestiologist that gave me the epi walking down the street. I pulled over and gave him a huge hug. He was a little taken aback I told him he gave me an epi and it was wonderful. He laughed

[littlest birds]

FWIW I don't think that vocal advocates of homebirth and drug-free birth are out to make anyone feel guilty for not living up to a standard.

At least for me the point is to alter the modern birth environment by telling our stories--even bragging a little--so that it will seem just a little bit more normal to go the most natural route. The current reality is very hostile to natural birthing, and we're kind of fighting that.

I hate that a shame falls on the birthing mother. I think our birth experience is a product of our community and environment along with everything that makes each one of us unique. What kind of support will you have the fortune or luck to receive, will you have good options for comfort during labor, will you have strategies for accepting exquisite pain, will things come together just so? This is not a success/failure situation. It is the product of everything and everyone that contributes to our experience. I have learned a certain connection with my body that allows me to "walk through pain" and I am very fortunate to have been able to learn that connection in my life. It's not like I just willed that upon myself and it happened--I was fortunate to be ready in certain ways at certain times and to be in the right situations to learn that.

FWIW I have always had clear, definite, overwhelming pain during late labor that I completely accepted and allowed to carry me through. AND it was an orgasmic experience. It was exhilarating to come through that door.

I do not understand going into birth planning meds unless you have an usual circumstance, but later on after a rough road I can understand. I guess I feel like the idea that meds are the norm has to go. That induction is at all acceptable as a norm has to go. The shame is in the support system AFAIC because that is what the hospitals are, and where the norms are being shaped, etc. But it's also important to realize that a lot of us are advocating for change in the system and we need to be able to celebrate natural births as victories because almost no one thinks this kind of birth is normal or has value outside of certain minority groups. (Like MDC moms)

[carriebft]

I had two medicated births, one unmedicated at home and planning another unmedicated at home. I think they were all great experiences. I don't think I was a wimp for getting an epi with my frist, and i don't feel like I was being competitive or anything of the sort with my third or this one. Just doing what is right for us at the time. Try and get yourself in that frame of mind: I am doing what is right for myself family right now.

[Galatea]

It doesn't matter what everyone else thinks. You do what you need to do. Everyone is unique and their experience of labor is unique. I have had one epidural birth and two natural births, and much preferred the natural births. The epidural just made it take a long time and I felt really shaky and weak afterward. The natural births were quick and I felt great afterward. So for me, I prefer to birth without drugs. But my experience doesn't mean anything about who you are as a person. IME, you have to become comfortable with your decision, and then it won't matter what other people think.

[Youngfrankenstein]

I didn't have time to read the other replies, I just wanted to chime in to say that my last babe was an un-medicated homebirth but if I were in a hospital I am 99% sure I would have had an epidural...Just my $.02.

[rainbowmoon]

there is definitely alot of shaming surrounding pain meds in the natural birth community. it makes me cringe almost for those mamas who do choose pain meds. you are the one giving birth. it's YOUR birth! if you want pain meds (And didn't think you would) it's ok. I don't put people down for that. it's like if you broke your arm. some would need pain meds and some wouldn't. big freaking deal. I personally don't get all the self righteousness surrounding it myself.

I had pain meds with my first (c/s) and none with my second. both births were very empowering and I don't regret either. for someone else to judge it is just wrong.

[homemademom]

I had 2 wonderful, painful-but-manageable homebirths and one from hell. I've also had a pit induced hospital birth in which I got an epi that was heavenly. My terrible hb really left me scarred and anxious, but I was fine with it because that babe was my last and I was never.doing.that.again. Well, suddenly after finding myself unexpectedly pg, I've seriously considered going back to the hospital and getting an epi. Knowing what I know from my prior very different experiences and knowing what I know about myself, I feel like I can have the birth I want, for the reasons I want (which are no one else's) and I don't feel bad about it at all.