Most horrible, excruciating pain ever...

[micah_mae_]

Hello everyone...I had an experience last week that has left me rather shaken. I'm hoping y'all can help shed some light on it...

On Sunday night, at 9:30 pm, I started having this back pain. It was in the middle of my back on the right side and it wrapped around to the upper right quadrant of my abdomen and up to my right shoulder blade. I was able to deal with it until about 4:00 am when I woke up DH and told him we had to go to the ER.
When we finally got there, I would say that the pain was like an 8 on my pain scale. Pretty bad. It was sharp, constant pain. They gave me vicoden, which took the edge off. They did an ultrasound of my gallbladder/pancreas/liver area and didn't find anything. So they gave me a prescription for percocet and told me to come back if it gets worse. So I go home, take my medicine and try to sleep.
By 4:30 pm on Tuesday it was worse. Way worse. DH took me back to the hospital and they sent me straight to L&D (33 weeks pregnant) thinking I was in labor, had a kidney stone or had appendicitis. I was in so much pain...it was like a 15 on my pain scale. Demerol didn't do anything at all to help. Stadol helped for about 20 minutes. Even when they gave me a shot in the leg and in the IV it only helped for about 30 minutes. The only thing that worked was morphine.
When I say I was in pain...I mean I was on my knees beside the bed, draped over it, just about screaming. I got to a point where it hurt to breathe so I started hyperventilating. I couldn't even cry.
They still have no idea what happened to me. I just started getting better after a few days so they let me go home.
My problem is...labor and birth are supposed to be the worst pain I will ever go through, right? I can not go through pain like that again, let alone worse pain. If labor is anything like that, I can't do it!
So I guess I'm just having trouble getting ready for the birth of my son now, with that pain in the back of my mind...I don't even have a question really, I guess this is just a rant. If you made it this far, thank you!

[peainthepod]

That sounds an awful lot like a kidney stone to me. And for what it's worth, my friend who has had both a natural, vaginal birth and passed several stones, said that her 32-hour back labor birth was a walk in the park by comparison.

I'm sorry you had to go through that.

[Novella]

Poor you!

I have no comments about what your pain episodes might have been related to, only about your fears of "Well if L&D are THE WORST, then how will I ever. . .?!"

When you hear people saying that childbirth was the worst pain they ever experienced, there could be a couple of options:

• That individual has never experienced any sort of physical pain before (aside from stubbing a toe, etc)
• Childbirth pain actually WAS worse for that individual than other things that have happened to her

There is such a ENORMOUS range of "normal" physical responses to childbirth, it would be really hard to categorize it as "the worst pain ever" for every woman.

I dislocated my knee late in my second pregnancy. That was far, FAR more painful than anything at any of my childbirths. Contributing to that pain, surely, was the understanding that the pain was unnecessary/accidental, couldn't be resolved in a timely fashion, was a "problem" rather than part of a process, etc.

The part of your body that requires the most preparation for birthing is you brain!

[Mosaic]

I think there's a huge difference between what you feel when your body is working the way it's supposed to, albeit it working in a pretty challenging job, versus what you feel when there is something wrong and your body is trying to tell you that.

In the first case, everything in your body is doing what it's supposed to, but it may be doing it for the first time or it may be working really hard. In the second case, something has moved in a way it wasn't supposed to, something has torn, something is blocked, and your body is sending you an alert that something is wrong. There's no way to compare the two!

[chandasz]

No relationships between that sort of pain and childbirth. How AWFUL.

Things that I have experienced that were WAY worse than either of my childbirths (and my first was a 17 hour back labor)

1. Jaw surgery recover (both jaws were broken and re-set)
2. Breaking my elbow
3. Cluster headaches
4. Food poisoning (botulism)

[Beccadoula]

OHHH, don't listen to people who say that it is the worst pain you'll ever go through...my understanding is that a kidney stone (which is what it sounds like you had) is FARRRRR worse. Not to mention the fact that labor pain includes oxytocine...the LOVE harmone. Labor (especially unmedicated) causes a release of this harmone which in turn makes you more able to handle what is happening and also keeps things going strong. Labor is not injury pain...it is work pain...like running a marathon. AND you do get little breaks between contractions. I am a doula and I RECOMMEND that you have one...because having a doula can really help you keep on top of all that instead of sinking in it. YOU are going to do great!!!

[Katielady]

The pain of childbirth is SO different than the pain you experience when you're having a medical problem. For one thing, it starts off slow and gradually builds, and there's a whole hormonal cocktail taking place to help you cope with the sensations. And for another thing, you know that it's what's supposed to happen, that it's opening you up and bringing your baby closer.

Pain from a medical problem- especially one that's unexplained- comes with a high level of fear, and the fear makes it so much worse. It's not something you want, it's something you want to stop as soon as possible.

I've had three root canals- for the first one, I was in terrible pain and was completely freaked and had a full-blown panic attack. That experience was awful. My labor was painful, but I also loved it- I can't even compare the two experiences. And then for my second root canal they gave me valium beforehand and I had a lot less pain, because I wasn't having the psychological pain. Just goes to show, fear makes a huge difference when it comes to pain. (And drugs are great for helping with medical problems, if not childbirth!)

[MegBoz]

Oooh, no no!
No, CB pain isn't like the pain of injury. My Bradley teacher said repeatedly that CB pain is NOT like breaking a leg or having your appendix burst. She said normal labor pain shouldn't leave you passing out from the pain. I've also heard that a kidney stone is worse pain.

First, you get a breat between cntrx. (yes, I know back labor is the exception here, but there are things you can do even in that case.) I had no pain at all between cntrx, even in transition when the pain was really bad.
Second, it doesn't come on all at once, like a broken leg. It ramps up gradually over time, both in intensity and duration (cntrx getting longer, stronger & closer together over the course of hours.) Even each individual cntrx ramps up & down during the 1 minute or so it lasts. It's not like a sudden punch in the face.

And third, you know it will end. As cntrx get longer, stronger & closer together, AND your cervix is continuing to open up, you know there is an end in sight, at which point, not only will the pain be gone (except for some after pains), but you'll have a fabulous prize at the end.

For me, I am a lucky gal who has never broken a bone & the worst physical ailments I've had in the past are ear infections, a tonsilectomy & the removal of wisdom teeth. YES, transition was the worst pain I personally have ever felt (worse than those things) but it was perfectly manageable. At the worst of it, I did dread the next contraction starting up, but I never felt in utter misery, never felt terrified at having to endure more (hehe.. just not quite lookin' forward to the next one.)

You can do it! All the birth stories I've read sound NOTHING as bad as what you went through. Sorry to hear about that.

[gwen's mom]

My first bout with kidney stones was when I was 28 weeks with my first child. I suffered at home for about 8 hours before going to the hospital. Morphine was the only thing that helped with the pain. The doctor told me that natural birth would be a breeze after a kidney stone. He said that when rating pain, the most painful experience was a severe burn, second was a kidney stone and childbirth came in third.

I have had kidney stones with two of my three pregnancies and yes, they are much worse than natural childbirth. I would take my 31 hours of back labor over a kidney stone.

[micah_mae_]

Thanks ladies, I feel a lot more at ease now...I was just stressing out about it I guess. It was really hard for me to look at my husband and see him crying because he couldn't do anything to help me. As long as labor doesn't get that bad, I think I can handle it.

Thank you!

[TzippityDoulah]

I once had a client who was so afraid of natural birth b/c she had an eye surgery and she said she couldn't imahine going thru that without pain meds b/c it was the most pain she has every gone through. I reminded her, that our bodies are MADE to go through labour. they aren't MADE to go through eye surgery.

I'm a HUGE believer in natural birth with no meds and when I had my gallbladder attack there is nothing in this world that would have kept me from the pain medications!! it was excruciating!

[kalirush]

My pitocin-augmented, unmedicated labor didn't top a 9 on my personal pain scale. It never got anywhere near the worst pain I've ever experienced. It was pretty bad (especially because it was pitocin augmented) but not 10-on-my-pain-scale bad.

So, don't worry, I'm sure you'll be fine.

[coyotemist]

Everyone else has said it so well...but I'll give you my version too!

I've had both gallbladder and kidney stones. And I've birthed 2 children. Give me childbirth anyday before gallbladder attacks and kidney stones. Childbirth is MUCH easier!

[Mamabeakley]

I'm not laughing at you, just at myself . . .

My first labor was 22 hours, mostly back labor, but I did it and was ready to do it again right away. Wisely, I did actually wait a while!

1 week before DS2 was born I dropped a space heater on my big toe, totally killing the nail. That HUUUUUUUURT. It swelled up and I had to lie with it elevated and distract myself even with OTC pain meds. I whimpered. I whined. I said, "if I can't do this, HOW am I going to give birth again????"

Giving birth was fine. Not nearly as bad as my stupid toe (and it was 6.5 hours of back labor.)

P.S. - I am not saying my toe was as bad as your pain - it sounds like your pain was way worse. But my labor pain was not as bad as my toe.

[luckymamato2]

Even while I was IN labor and pushing, I knew there had to be something worse, like breaking a leg or getting shot or kidney stones. I bet once you get this problem figured out, labor/birth will be easier than you think.

[MadameXCupcake]

Originally Posted by HennyPenny

when I had my gallbladder attack there is nothing in this world that would have kept me from the pain medications!! it was excruciating!

:

Gall stones! Or a Gall Bladder Attack!
I got one a few days before I had my daughter at first I thought it was labor and told my husband that if this was labor I was going to the hospital to get an epi ASAP!!!
It wasn't labor,.. So post pregnancy we figured out it was gall bladder attacks, the pain was MUCH MUCH ten million times worse than child birth!
I found pasteurized dairy triggered the attacks and I only drink raw milk now. Yum!

Aleve[Tylenol makes them worse, said the doctors] and Flax oil helps end an attack very quickly! I had to walk around with my arms above my head doing calm breathing.

Feel Better!
Maybe keep a food diary for a few weeks if it happens again so you can figure out what your trigger is.

[avivaelona]

Oh gosh that sounds awful. Normal Labor is not as bad as that. It comes in waves and so its like ouch ouch ouch, relief, even if it HURTS (and it doesn't always hurt that bad) and well your body just is kind of almost wanting to deal with it.

[cappuccinosmom]

This may make me sound strange, but honestly, if I could choose between having a baby every year, and having poison ivy every year, I'd absolutely go with labor and a baby. And my last labor *did* hurt quite a bit.

Labor isn't always the worst pain for everyone, and even when it is, that doesn't always make it unmanageable. Who knows, this mystery attack might have shifted your brain's perspective on pain and will make labor a breeze. Wouldn't that be neat?

[ColoradoMama]

My gallbladder "attack" was way worse than labor and delivery. Later in my pregnancy my gallbladder became infected and "Whoa Nelly!" That was awful! In many ways, labor and delivery were harder - as in more tiring and more work - but not more painful. After my last child was born, I had an infection in my jaw, and I would totally go through his labor and delivery (he was posterior) before going through that pain again. Labor and delivery can feel overwhelming and yes it can be pretty painful, BUT it is different. Your body is working hard to birth a child. With the proper support, chances are that you will come through it just fine. I'm so sorry you had so much pain - that is awful.

[mikayla's mama]

My highly medicalized first birth (26 hour, 4 hours pushing, pitocin, epidural, back labor, malpositioned baby, meconium, vaccuum extraction, episiotomy, rip into the urethra, etc.) was pretty comparable to how bad it was having kidney stones. I just passed two of them this summer, it was truly excruciating.

My second all natural labor was a breeze in comparison.