Gas and air!

[lam_76]

I didn't find that it did anything for the pain but it did help me concentrate on my breathing. I didn't feel sick or anything but it did make my mouth really dry and towards the end i was just going back and forth between the gas and air and my bottle of water! I was allowed to keep it while i was pushing but i don't remember using it.

 

[DoubleTFun]

From the sounds of it, it sounds like our laughing gas. I am definitely going to ask if they offer it when it is my time to give birth to these twins.

 

[londonangel]

I didn't like it. It made me feel sick and dizzy. Was better than nothing though! I found it hard to use but I think I am in the minority. Once I started breathing back into it I felt less sick but it felt really alien breathing into a mouthpiece. It is worth using though and better than an epidural in terms of you being able to move around during labour.

 

[amelia26]

That's great to hear they're starting to offer it in the US. I never really understood why they didn't. I think it's great stuff. It leaves your body really quickly so if you don't like it you stop and you feel normal again in a minute or two. It doesn't affect the baby either and I think using it reduces the liklihood for other pain relief, which can affect the baby or can increase the chances of further intervention.
I find it massively helpful. I had a long, induced labour so did end up having other pain relief later on but had a good day or so of using gas and air and it made an enormous difference.

 

[DoubleTFun]

I know when I had nitrous oxide during my wisdom teeth removal it relieved my fears. I really hope they offer it when I go into labor.

 

[smileyfaces]

Both times i only got g&a at about 5cm and it does help with the pain but once you hit the serious contractions at about 8cm its no good for pain really but is a very useful distraction.

With my first i cried when they took it away for pushing because i felt like i was relying on it. With my second baby i threw it away once I was reaching the pushing stage as I knew it was doing nothing and hindering my screaming

But yes, it is good up to a point.

 

[smileyfaces]

Oh and yes it makes your mouth very dry and makes your voice change a bit lol

 

[Tattoo]

I adored the gas and air when I had my DD. I can't really remember what it did for the actual pain of the contractions, but it did make me feel pleasantly detached from the pain! I definitely had the "somewhere else" feeling others have described, and I felt a bit drunk, so perhaps I was on that beach with a cocktail!
It definitely does dry your mouth and lips out. You'll want something to drink and probably some moisturiser or lipbalm, too. Have you ever been SCUBA diving? It's a lot like the dried out, parched feeling you get once you stop breathing from your SCUBA cylinder. I think SCUBA air is also a mix of nitrogen and oxygen, but obviously in different quantities from medicinal gas and air!

 

[Zephram]

Gas and air did absolutely nothing for me regarding pain relief. All it did was make me feel horribly dizzy and out of it. It was a complete disappointment and waste of time.

 

[vickyandchick]

I loved it, I'd buy a canister of it off eBay if I could. It did make me feel like it was 5am and I was stumbling home drunk but I had diamorphine too so could have been that. It didn't do much for pain relief but was good to grab when the contractions hit. Agree with the others ladies that it makes your mouth dry so make sure you drink and take lipbalm

 

[NotNic]

Really helped the first labour. It took the edge off and left me very calm, almost a little dozy. Second time I told them it wasn't really working. I was given it from 6cms but it turns out I dilated super quickly from that point so I was in transition when I said it. I found it useful for examinations and stitches afterwards.I've never felt any ill effects though the midwife suggested I did without at the pushing stage second time, as it was preventing me from really pushing productively.

 

[GI_Jane]

I don't think I could have managed with out it.
I felt a bit drunk/tipsy on it and didn't feel sick. It really took the edge off.
If I have a second baby I would certainly be opting for a natural birth with just gas and air again.

 

[AK89]

I LOVED it! I'd been in latent labour for 18 hours already on just cocodamol and my waters had just gone and I'd been thrust into a VERY intense active labour. It really helped me. It does make you a bit dizzy at first, but you're totally under control of how much you take in. They say just breathe through that the whole time you're having a contraction but at first I couldn't take it the whole time, but it definitely helped. But as time went by I ended up pretty much breathing nothing but that! Haha.. I was so dependent on it by the time I was getting my epidural (which like you I didn't plan, but I also didn't plan on being in that much pain!! ) that I nearly punched my OH when he took it more than 5 inches away from my mouth haha.. So yeah, it really helped me. I think it's good to have something to focus on too, helps with your breathing

 

[AK89]

Also, the effects of it are so shortlived that if you just don't use it for like 4-5 seconds you feel completely normal again.

 

[laura109]

Helped me for a while felt amazing. Never felt sick. Just drunk lol

 

[Hunbun]

It makes me feel sick when I first inhale it. But I push passed that feeling because the relief it provides is worth it! I used it with both my labours and I will use it with my next!

 

[MummyM86]

Gas & Air is the best thing on earth!!!

I unfortunately ended up in an EMCS but if I'd have managed to fully dilate ever (DD was twisted into an awkward position) I would have pushed her out on it too.

Labour'd for over 30 hours on that bad boy. The student midwife told me she'd never seen anyone laughing at 8 cm's before. I was high as a kite and loving it. (9 months is a long time without wine as far as I'm concerned).

The key is to use it correctly. As soon as you feel that first twinge of each contraction you suck on that pipe like your life depends on it and you don't stop until the contraction finishes.

Also, don't let your husband/partner "have a go", no matter how muchh he pesters you...mine nearly lost teeth!

 

[AK89]

Haha! HOW, may I ask?!?!

 

[MummyM86]

Haha! HOW, may I ask?!?!

The teeth thing?

He insisted as he was adamant I wasn't due a contraction. So I gave in as had no will power. He took one big suck on the pipe when a contraction started so I reached up and yanked it out of his mouth.

He left me alone about it after that

 

[glitterfly]

In short it was amazing. After my first labour being horrendous with a failed epidural, being pinned to the bed and 48hrs of pain I was dreading labour. I laboured for 6 hrs at home on my birthball with no pain relief, went the hosp was 4-5cm and started g&a which was amazing given that I progressed to 10cm in an hour. It helped me focus my breathing whilst taking the edge of the pain. It didn't take it away completely but being honest I wouldn't want that as I found I needed some to understand what my body was doing. I felt my baby drop and engage, I felt her drop in to the birth canal and I felt my body push. To be honest it was a bit surreal but utterly amazing to experience and I don't think I'd have been able to do it without a bit of gas and air...

Good luck for when the time comes as hard as it is try to make the most of every moment.

Xxx