I have made some notes on all sorts of child-related things...and labour and childbirth would appear to be a good place to start...so here are some tips on labour, along with personal perspectives. Do bear in mind that this is only a blog, and the advice contained here may be useful for you, or it may not work for you. It depends on the individual and the circumstances involved.
LABOUR
Sheila Kitzinger’s book on pregnancy and childbirth is excellent
During labour Rather than lying flat, try and walk slowly, squat, use the exercise ball etc whilst having contractions, even if you have to cart around an IV pole attached to you. In short, let gravity assist and make the whole birth process shorter!
Get your mother and/or husband to massage your lower back hard during contractions. It eases the ache tremendously.
Once you take the epidural you are completely numb from waist down, so all you can do is lie flat on your back. Basically try and dilate as much as you can before taking the epidural. Check if you can have a ‘walking epidural’ – have heard they are good.
Breathe through each contraction – don’t clench up – go with it. Close your eyes, and picture the baby making it’s way through the birth canal. Rest in between contractions, sip water, listen to music, hum along, take your mind off the next contraction.
Tell your Mum and husband to keep motivating you when you are flagging, and to be strong for you.
Mistakes I made:
- I later wished I had eaten throughout the labour with our first child A –even though I was not hungry. Instead, all I did was drink lots of water (which is fine) but then when there were complications and they decided on a C-section they did not let me eat after this decision, so I was starving for 6 hours whilst waiting for the surgeons. They refused to give me anything but a saline drip, and then A was born with low glucose because (the Doctors said) I had not eaten enough during labour!
- I was terrified when I got the shakes after the C-section. I therefore turned the nurse away when she brought A for a feed. I also thought I did not have anything to feed him – also wrong – the body produces colostrum which is rich in nutrients and antibodies and an excellent start for the baby, and enough for the tiny tummy (size of baby’s fist). Actually, getting these uncontrollable shivers is normal – I was just not aware of it. They could give you Magnesium in a drip (I think) to stop the shakes quickly, or they subside on their own – you can still breastfeed the baby.
Good advice from Kitzinger’s book:
· Don’t go into hospital too early. Wait till your contractions are fairly frequent, say about 4 minutes apart before going in. The reason is that the clinical atmosphere, tube lights, people poking you etc. puts women off and the contractions subside altogether. Then, they induce more contractions artificially, and your chances of a natural delivery go down slightly.
· With Z (our second and last child), when the contractions started at about 7am in the morning, I did my normal morning routine with A etc. and just stopped and breathed through each contraction while holding onto something (the wall / a lamp post / etc.). They were sporadic pains at first, every 15 mins, then 12 mins, then 7 mins, then again 15 mins apart etc. I went for a long walk with my mother, stopping and breathing through each contraction when I had them. Basically, as Kitzinger advised, I kept things as normal as possible for as long as I could, and only went into hospital when they were 4 minutes apart. Z was born naturally in 5 hours’ time after that.
