Natural Birth After Having Epidurals Previously? Can I Do It?

GO FOR IT!!! Remember, contractions only last for a minute, then you get a break for a while. You can put up with a lot for just one minute. Take it one contraction at a time. The most intense time is transition and crowning, which is also the closest to meeting your baby! But they don't last forever, and they are near the end.

I've done it both ways with waters broken and intact: it's much easier to labor without broken waters. breaking the waters makes things speed up, sort of, but I recommend saying no if the doc offers to do it--let it happen naturally. The water cushions the baby's head so it doesn't hurt as much.

One more thing: I read that your brain produces either stress hormones or endorphins, based on what you are thinking about. Remember that. It actually hurts more if you are more worried/stressed. (it's the fight or flight response.) So the more you welcome contractions and try to relax, the more endorphins you'll be able to produce to help with the pain.

It's SOOOOO nice to go right home and sleep in your own bed!!!!!!!

Definatly not crazy and you can do this! Instructors there to help you throught this. I would really really look up all the information of what your going to experience and the amount of pain and barfing everything will be different. But after I believe most women without an epidural feel better and quickly jump back.

You can do it!!!

Just do not freak yourself out. .

I was just going to try.. If I really needed something, I was not a fool, I was going to ask.. But I did it! I was amazed and so was my husband..

My contractions felt exactly like the cramps I had when menstruating.. Only harder and longer. I kept telling myself.. Once they got to the stage, I felt I may need meds.. that is when the nurse said.. OK, this is it, time to push!

I kept telling myself..No one died from the pain.. And this is going to end soon..

Just try to keep thinking, yes, I can do this.. Ask your midwife to give you suggestions.. and then try them..

I also suggest, you NOT mention this to people around you. Some women are terrible about sharing the worst stories about birth.. Not everyone has to have a horror story birth..

You need a cheering section with real success stories.. There are way more positive births, than horror births.. And yes, each birth is different and not painless.. It is called labor for a reason, but we were made to give birth naturally.

Do your best.. It will be fine.

I did, I had an epidural with my first and went natural with my second, both births were at the hospital with my OB. I just got in the mindset that I was going to do it and I did. It wasn't bad and I would do it again, however, I felt it comforting to know that the epidural was there if I chose to get it. Not sure how I'd feel about it just not being an option at all. And, I loved my two night stay at the hospital. I had my baby right with me and loved having all my meals brought to me, it really gave me a chance to get much needed rest!

I did not have an epidural. I was at a hospital but with a midwife, no doctor. I was in the bathtub right up until it was time to push. The warm water helped tremendously to relax me. Once I was in the pushing stage, the pain was much less.

Definitely not crazy! I had two births at hospital w epi and my third at a birth center and it was the BEST decision ever!! I loved my midwives and the cozy center! I enjoyed the natural processes. You can do it! I say go for it!

I had all 3 of my children without an epidural or any pain medications of any kind. All 100% natural. My second and third were born at a birth center, my first was a hospital birth. If we ever have any more children we will be at the birth center in a heartbeat, it was the best choice in the world to go there!
The experience I had at the birth center was amazing and so much easier and faster than my first. And considering my first was so fast it caught everyone off guard at the hospital, that's saying something!

Women have been giving birth for millions of years without epidurals etc. It is only fairly recently that they became so wide spread. Your body makes endorphins to help you through the pain. If you go into the whole thing terrified of the pain you are working against yourself. You are causing yourself to produce stress hormones that actually slow the production of oxycontin(the birth hormone) which prolongs labor and makes it more painful. They actually just did a study on this very thing.
Birth centers are infinitely more helpful at helping you work through the contractions naturally. The one we went to had tubs that you could be in or the shower. They had birth balls and encouraged you to find what way was comfortable for you to be in, not flat on your back hooked up to a hundred machines on a horrible, hard, uncomfortable hospital bed. The one we went to had a proper bed (it was at least a queen if not a king), big enough for your partner to lie next to you. I had my kids hanging out in bed with me when I was in labor with their siblings. They let you eat and drink so you can keep your strength up and not crash from hours of no food and nothing but ice chips which makes everything take longer and makes your body work harder.
A wonderful book to read is Natural childbirth the Bradley Way http://www.amazon.com/Natural-Childbirth-Bradley-Way-Revi...
Even if you don't use the method or only use parts of it, the book is amazing and does a fantastic job of explaining what is happening and how to cope. I read it before my first was born. Even though I didn't follow a lot and instead just followed what instincts the hospital allowed me to follow(they are such control freaks! They have no idea how to deal with a women that doesn't want/need all the interference and interventions) the knowledge I had from the book helped me stay calm, knowing that I knew what I was doing even though I had never given birth before.
Don't go into this asking if you can do it. Go into this knowing that you can and will be able to do it.
All the best!!

I had an epidural with my first and my next three were unmedicated. I liked it so much better without the medication. I felt so connected to my babies when they were being born and I was up and running within hours of my unmedicated birth. My advice - build a good team, pick people you trust, people that make you feel safe. good midwives, maybe a doula or a close friend or family member who is supportive of your decision. Give yourself tools to help you cope with the ups and downs of labor - take childbirth education that is geared towards unmedicated birth or hypnosis or just read everything you can lay your hands on. Good Luck! We are all rooting for you!

K.

You can ,I did twice.
Walk around ,sit upright ,breath though contractions.
See contractions as a positive thing,sit into the pain,don't fight it.
I used to say to myself " feel the pain ,embrace the pain,stay in the pain and then release the pain" You will get a break between each contraction.
Also the pain is only intense for a short time . Dilating to 5-6 cms is fine,7-10cms can be intense.
When the contractions are coming very close together ,DON'T PANIC. This is a sign that you are close.
Your body will tell you when it is time to push.
Now push from your anus and not your vagina,this will prevent stitches ,I got none with both labours.
You will feel a burning ring of fire when the head is coming out,stay calm and breath like blowing out birthday candles.
Natural labours are so worth it ,you will have a burst of energy afterwards from the surge of hormones. I was in the shower half hour after labour.
Sending you strength and positive thoughts.
Finally I would recommend completely natural. I had gas and air with my first and felt a bit out of it .It is better to be in complete control.
B. k

You probably can in a birthing center...I would think it depends on if each of your labors has gone faster the the one before...my second birth was super quick. I think if they had checked me before giving the epidural (when I arrived at the hospital I was at a 4.5, and by the time the epidural doctor (can't seem to spell the title today) showed up I was already at the grouchy don't touch me I am not sure I can do this stage...aka transition. After the epidural I was at a 9.5 and then ready to push about ten minutes later.

If I had waited a bit longer so I could have stayed on my feet and swayed though the contractions or had a birthing tub. I wouldn't have needed the epidural and she would have come just as quick. It was when they stuck me in bed flat on my back that I panicked because the contractions were so intense and I wasn't suppose to move so they could monitor the baby. As long as I was able to move around the contraction were painful but bearable...

If you want to try it...go for it...the baby will get here...and I hear the high from a non-medicated birth is awesome...

I gave birth to my second child without an epidural after having an epidural with my first. It's doable. I had an epidural with my third if it's any indication about how I felt about the experience. But it is doable.

I did both births without epidural, but I did take the laughing gas to get through some of the contractions. Is that an option at a birthing center? My contractions weren't bad enough to make me want to get a needle!

I think you have the ability to do it.
I'm not sure whether you're going to enjoy it.
I only have one child, but my labor was 36 hours long and I would have been too exhausted to push when the time came had I not had the epidural.
As it was I went 19 hours before I had it and I was SO ready for some help with the pain - I was in tears and starting to lose it.

There is no reason why you can not do a natural birth. ONce you are educated on the reason for hard labor and that it only lasts for a finite amount of time and you prepare yourself for this you will do great.
I had three natural births. That is why it is called labor. You work through it, but it is manageable and best for you and the baby.

Here is reality... the contractions are going to hurt... bad. I don't think any amount of fancy breathing or hyponosis will change that. Psha... menstrual cramps? Maybe if you have the menstrual cramps of an elephant!

However, being that this is your 4th child, assuming there are no complications, it will probably be much faster and easier that if you were having your first.Can you handle the pain- YES! You can do it! I birthed my two daughters without an epidural... and with pitocin (which actually makes labor a little more painful...)

Don;t let people dilude you into thinking that it won't hurt- bad... it will. But it is something you can work through. For me, doing it (mostly) naturally was so empowering and spiritual. In my first labor... at transition I felt a point where I thought... "Oh I can't do this... It is so hard... I might want an epidural (little did I know that it was too late anyways)... however I had an OPTION in my hospital. We had a jacuzzi tub available to labor in.Ironically... while the nurse ran the tub water, I pushed out baby number 1... so in my first birth I didn't get to use the tub...

Give yourself an option, or several. bring a birthing ball, or see if they have a nice shower or jaccuzzi. If you reach a difficult time... try not to get through "the next three hours"... Just focus on "can I find peace to go on 10 more minutes?" when you reach the point of "can I make it through this next contraction?" I am willing to bet you will be within minutes of pushing! After three babies... pushing will probably be a breeze (as much as you can describe pushing out a person as a breeze... haha!) With my second daughter I asked for the jacuzzi before I got to the "i don't think I can do this" stage.... and you know what - BEST choice ever. The jacuzzi felt SO good... I relaxed and just let the contractions come over me like waves and in a matter of about 5 minutes... everything was dialated and on we went to pushing. In the future I might just have them run the tub when I get there!

That brings me to my last bit of advice - RELAX... In labor everything you stress about will make your labor harder and longer. Focus on doing whatever you can to relax your mind and body. If something in annoying you or stressing you out- get it fixed if you can! For, some, deep breaths and visualizations help... some soft music helps, aromatherapy... for me that jacuzzi hit the ticket... and keeping in mind that I am not in this alone- millions of mother have don't this before, and will do it again, and I can draw on that strength and experience!

You'll do great!
-M.

Not crazy at all. Sometimes I think it depends on the labor, but I had my first without any pain meds, and it was super intense because they started pitocin on me even though it wasn't necessary so the contractions were right on top of each other and within 4 hours my baby was here. I think if it was that intense and longer I may have been tempted but it really helps just to keep things in perspective that this is for a purpose and will be over soon. Personally, I feel like being aware of what's going on with your body makes you more able to work with it. Practice some meditation and deep breathing and perhaps employ a doula....they have all kinds of tricks to help the labor progress and help you be more comfortable. Perhaps consider water birth.

I am a baby when it comes to pain and everyone who knows me thought I was kinda crazy when I said I wanted to go natural....but honestly I knew it would be better for both of us and I was scared of that big needle (which I ended up having to have for a C the second time around and that was much much scarier for me). Your body is made to birth babies and a birth center can always get you somewhere if something goes wrong.

I have always dreamed of being able to have a completely natural birth in a birthing center where people aren't constantly poking and prodding you and telling you what to do, but it's a bit late for me now and I don't think I can handle another. Go get'em! You can do it!

I've had 3 natural births....if I can do it anyone can! I had policing with the first 2 and no drugs. The 3rd one was all natural and by far my best delivery. Good luck

It really depends on how well you can control pain and your pain threshold. I always got epidurals because damn if my kids didn't decide to come in the middle of the night and I wanted sleep. The pain really wasn't that bad.

So when my third came too quick to get the epidural, no biggie.

If you were getting epidurals because the pain was too bad and this was long before the baby was born you may either take some classes on pain control.

No you are not crazy! I'm in EXACTLY the same boat-having baby #5, and seriously considering hypnobirthing this time around to experience something different. I will be having the baby in a hospital still, which makes my decision even tougher because I will "know" that I can opt for that epidural any time I need to.
You can DO this! Make sure you have a supportive partner for the laboring (and this doesn't necessarily have to be your spouse). Our bodies are made to do this; they are designed uniquely for this purpose. Just think, your great-great grandmother probably birthed 8 children with no drugs-just supportive women around her :)
Good luck! When are you due?