Opinions/Experiences on pushing

524 Views 12 Replies 13 Participants Last post by 2much2luv, Apr 10, 2006

ariahsmum

Discussion Starter · Apr 7, 2006

Hi all- my most recent poderings regarding birth are about pushing. What I am looking for are people's opinions about pushing, and for those of you to share your stories/experiences if you didn't add any extra "effort" to pushing urges? How did this differ from your pushing births? If you are a mw, what do you encourage your clients to do?

I am curious about laboring down the baby and "rest and be thankful" stage as well as molding. Did any of you take a break for a while before your body began pushing? If you didn't push with the contractions, did you have the urge and have to work through it, or did any of you somehow get a baby in your arms with little urge to push?

I don't know why I am fixated on this- I have done quite a bit of research on pushing during birth, its effects, whether it is necessary or not, when it started, etc. I guess I am feeling like I want to let my body do the work rather than me doing the effort, but I really have nio idea how realistic that is. If I am having an irresistable urge, do I push with it, or just breathe through it?

TIA

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1 - 13 of 13 Posts

CalebsMama05

· #2 · Apr 7, 2006

I have thought on this as well. my ideal uc would be me squatting and breathing through it while my body pushes my son out. minimal effort on my part. I think the reason for that is that during my first sons birth i didn't feel like pushing and they wanted me to do a LOT more pushing then i wanted to and it took forever *rollseyes* honestly i'm just gonna go with it..if i feel like pushing i will if i don't then my body can do it for me.

not much help from someone who's in the same boat as you!

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cottonwood

· #3 · Apr 7, 2006

"If I am having an irresistable urge, do I push with it, or just breathe through it?"

Whatever you feel compelled to do in the moment. Let your body decide.

I did end up adding effort to what my uterus was doing, but it was involuntary, if that makes sense. What I mean is that it was totally primal, there was no decision by me like "oh, I think I should push now."

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dsvkc

· #4 · Apr 7, 2006

With my last two births, my body pushed the baby out. With my 3 birth(1st of my last two) I didn't know this because I thought I was pushing, till a few days later our mw told me, her mw partner had never seem that happen before, she had read about the body being able to push the baby out, but never had seem it. She didn't think a scar uterus could do that, first HBAC. My next birth was very fast and end up being an unplanned u/c, because it was so fast he just came out. I was on hands and knees in my living room, told my friend and dh that the baby was going to be born in a minute and then he came out into my friends hands. Hoping this up and coming labour will be as easy.
S

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CuriousLion

· #5 · Apr 7, 2006

I found that I couldn't not push. It was an irresistable urge..."irresistable" being the operative word.

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MommyTorf

· #6 · Apr 7, 2006

I agree with fourlittlebirds and CuriousLion.

I remember the end of "transition" b/c it was like my body "slammed" (can't think of a better word) into the pushing stage. It was a sudden, overwhelming urge to push, but at the same time I didn't have a choice. My body just did it.

BTW, I only pushed for 20 minutes (1st baby!), so I'd have to say that going with what my body was trying to do really worked for me!

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pamamidwife

· #7 · Apr 7, 2006

I guess my only advice or input is to listen to your body and do what feels right.

For me, I had a strong urge to push right away (I compare it with having dry heaves, only on the other end....), but I was in a horrible position and unable to really work with my body because I was on my back. Over a couple hours, it became clear that I was fighting with my body rather than just letting it be. I don't know that I couldn't have avoided pushing, at it was not like I was choosing to push, but that my body was just doing it.

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NowOrNever

· #8 · Apr 7, 2006

My last two births, second to last was a overwhelming NEED to push...not push because I was 'technically' complete. First push broke my water, second push he was born. For my last birth, I never pushed. My body did everything and I actually even talked calmly through everything! It was so weird!! I told my dh that I thought he was coming and my dh looked down to see him out to his nose. LOL The next contraction, he was out! It was a really fast birth, though...26 minutes. Everyone teased me that it was because by number five, they just walk out. HA HA. LOL

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bobandjess99

· #9 · Apr 7, 2006

I also had a true physiological second stage....My body did the pushing, like a frieght train bearing down and my coat was caught in the door and i had no choice but to go along with it....
I DID "help" the pushes......it seemed very much like what was supposed to happen, like i had to push in addition to the fact my body was already pushing. But, compared to the absiolute ferocity and strength of the contractions and pushing my body was doing on it's own, my "helping" pushes were like the icing on the top. I am sure that had I had the luck to have fallen unconscious at that moment, my body would have pushed that baby out without any active "help" from me!!

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barbara

· #10 · Apr 7, 2006

Listen to your body! Follow your intituition. Be in the moment, and you will know what to do, or not do, in that moment. Birth is an art, let your body teach you and release your mind so that you can truely have a wild birth, and not just a tame natural birth.

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orangebird

· #11 · Apr 8, 2006

Listen to your body. Everyone's will be different too. I never had a rest and be thankful stage or any time to labor the babies down. Both my homebirths I was pushing by the end of transition and that was that. This last birth went so fast I was pushing at 7 cm (I let my midwife feel me because everything went so fast we weren't sure what was really going on.) Although if my midwife wasn't there, if it were an unassisted birth, I would have known exactly what was going on. Because I knew- my body wanted to push and so it did. It didn't matter what the stage was called or that this part or that didn't happen, when it was time to push it was time to push. And you will know.

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littleteapot

· #12 · Apr 10, 2006

I couldn't *not* push. It's totally beyond your control.
At one point my midwife asked me to try and give a few little pushes because I was about to tear (?) and that was IMPOSSIBLE. I managed to do it for like... two seconds, then I said, "I can't!" and just kept pushing. However, her head had already shot out by that point without tearing so it ended up fine. She was just coming out super fast just then.