Natural Birth Mamas: How Bad Was The Burn? - Page 2

[MCatLvrMom2A&X]

I put different with each. With my dd i had a episiotomy (that the dr did without my permission) : so no burn at all.

With my ds the burn really took my breath away. I kept saying over and over it burns, it burns. It took me about 3 pushes with his head crowing to get past the pain of the burn. It was a real shock to feel it I would rate it as totally intense.

[Juliacat]

I didn't feel a burn during the birth--it just felt like pressure releasing.

Five months later the tear still isn't completely healed, though!

[DreamsInDigital]

I didn't feel a thing with Gabriel because I had an episiotomy that the doctor numbed. I felt a bit of a burn with Kolaiah but it wasn't that bad. I felt almost no burn at all with baby Winter, I was more focused on getting him past my pubic bone, which was the sensation I found to be almost unbearable.

[theelfqueen]

With my second it was intense, With my third I never felt it -- maybe the waterbirth "put it out"

[~Nikki~]

I had pressure and pain, but no real burning feeling. I could tell that the baby was crowning, and it HURT, but everything hurt at that point.

[eleven]

Originally Posted by grace's voice

With dd it felt like someone had poured gas on my crotch and lit it on fire!

Maybe I outta forget this whole VBAC idea...

[mollybet]

I didn't really experience any "burn." The pressure was very intense but the sensation felt like it was more in my rectal area.

[nichole]

Originally Posted by pease

Maybe I outta forget this whole VBAC idea...

i know it is scary sounding. and you are probably half joking. but i saw a lady on The Baby Story on tv today who had a csection and could feel everything. several people on mothering have had that happen to them as well for me it only hurt bad for a few minutes. good luck on your decision.

[AutumnMama]

Well, with DD her head had been in the birth canal for so long (about 2 1/2 hours) that everything down there was numb.
I felt myself tear quite alot, but it didn't hurt at all (now recovery was another story!).

With DS, his labor was MUCH quicker (3 1/2 hours, with only about 20 minutes of pushing), so I didn't get the nerve block effect like with DD.
I definitely felt ALOT of stretching/burning; in fact I was screaming as he started crowning , but then my Midwife asked me to blow and let myself stretch a bit to avoid tearing and that helped.

So yeah, it hurt, but it was over so quickly that it really wasn't that big of a deal. I'm not worried about it this time

[Bartock]

Originally Posted by mamanurse

At what felt like the most intense moment of my life, I was thankful for experiencing the ring of fire. When two more pushes there was a squirming babe in my arms, the pain was quickly forgotten.

Ya that

[emdeecee_sierra]

at both my natural births, the burn I expected, but, especially the first time, made me say, "It burns!" just because yes, it burns, but wowee, it'll make you sit up and take notice lol! But I found it completely tolerable. It is such a welcome milestone in labor- BABY'S ALMOST HERE!!! I can't/didn't seem to be able to tell how much progress I was making with pushing, so I was just pushing along, listening to my body, resting and chatting between pushes, then when that burn starts, I know where baby is and that I'm just about to be holding my baby!!

Happy birthing!!!

[mcsarahb]

DD was born in the water, and like other posters, I didn't really feel a burn. Pressure, yes, pain, yes, but not really a burn. The pushing ctx themselves were what I was focused on.

[grace's voice]

Originally Posted by pease

Maybe I outta forget this whole VBAC idea...

Oh no! That wasn't my intention! Think of it this way, with vag birth, even if you do get a bad burn it only last for a few seconds... with c/s its a long painful recovery.

Man, if water "puts out" the burn I'd hate to see what it would have felt like if I'd have been on dry land! This was a water birth I'm referring to. Though I am gathering some ideas here as to what could have made it worse.
1) dd descended really fast and the last few pushes were violent ones, my body took over and there was no "easing her out" I learned the true meaning of "bearing down." I also screamed like I'd never screamed before with the last 2 pushes.
2) I wasn't in the best position, hence, the small tear. I was between being on all fours and squatting, with my arms clung around my exs neck. I kept drowning him.
3) My fear of pushing, I'm sure my muscles down there were all tensed up trying to keep the baby in.
4) No one directed me at all on how to push. My doula told me afterward that she thought I wouldn't have torn if my mw had helped me with proper positioning. My mw this time said that I don't have to push if I don't want to and they will help me with blowing so that the baby can come more slowly, giving my body more time to accomodate the stretch.

This was really my only complaint about labor though. I mean, the contractions HURT and transision sucked. But really, I could have labored longer, it was just the pushing that was hard. Amazing how were all so different!

[Belle]

My burning was tolerable. I know it did burn some, but I can barely remember it. I was too busy pushing to worry about any burning. Then, next thing I know she's been born.

I think the worst part was not the burning of crowing, but transition.

[NinaBruja]

wow, it kind of took me back that i can actually post on this thread...
:

Originally Posted by LoveChild421

I never really felt the "ring of fire" sensation everyone talks about. I didn't really feel any pain other than the INTENSE rectal pressure. sorry if TMI.

yes, i really wish there were a more ladylike way to describe the feeling but when i had my baby it felt like someone was violently inserting a pee catheter and shoving thier thumb in my butt. i totally thought thats what the OB on call was doing and yelled at her
maybe next time ill find out what all the fuss is about...

Originally Posted by Juliacat

Five months later the tear still isn't completely healed, though!

omg no! that happens!? is there a reason? im all freaked out because im 3 weeks postpartum and this little annoying tear doesnt feel like its healing at all...im sure it will heal, im sure its healing...ah!
*yells at perenium* HEAL DARN YOU!!!
:

[Boobiemama]

I dont remember any ring of fire. This last baby, I had horrible, intense butt pressure! lol that was the worst part.

[natashaccat]

With my first I had a serious ring of fire, pushed for two hours until my OB did an episotomy. The epidural didn't even touch labor pain after I reached transition. That whole birth was a medical intervention soap opera.

With my second I went NCB all the way and my labor hurt like crazy but the pushing phase was fast and easy, no worse than a really big BM. (This was a 9 1/2 lb baby too)

FWIW I think it helped that I took lots of cervix ripening agents prior to labor, vaginal EPO and a suppliment called 5W. It also helped that I was in a really comphy position, kneeling on one knee holding on to the side of the birthing tub. I expressed a lot of fear about pushing once I started to feel the urge to do so. So my MW had me get out of the tub and she reched under my bent leg and supported my perinium while I pushed.

[eleven]

Originally Posted by nichole

i know it is scary sounding. and you are probably half joking. but i saw a lady on The Baby Story on tv today who had a csection and could feel everything. several people on mothering have had that happen to them as well for me it only hurt bad for a few minutes. good luck on your decision.

I was totally joking. We're planning a homebirth.


Now why do I have a Johnny Cash song stuck in my head?

[hellyaellen]

i don't remember a burning feeling exactly. it hurt but it was totally tolerable. like some pps i pushed for a little while before crowning and by the time ds crowned i was so tired that i just didn't feel the pain as any specific sensation althought during crowning it did seem to be localized in the clitoral area. (weird, eh?) i voted for other.

[dace101]

My burning was totally tolerable. Sure, it stung, but after the first few seconds it was just another background sensation of labour. It was a constant burn, so after the initial surprise (no-one had told me it would burn, it wasn't something I gave too much thought about really) I said "wow, it burns" and just went back to focusing on pushing and the burn wasn't a problem.
Actually, it feels like when you stretch your mouth open with your fingers as wide as it can possibly go. At first it stings, then the skin tightens and becomes semi-numb as it gets used to the over-stretching, so even though it still hurts it's not really painful.
I loved my birth (well, I loved ME during birth and was proud of the way my dp supported me - didn't love the hospital staff or OB so we will be homebirthing in the future but that's for another thread), I could go on about it for days and recall every single detail with a smile on my face, hehe!