Home Birthers & Hopefuls!

[PeanutBean]

Yes I have and that's why I tried it! I've never really been quite this floaty about things before but this pregnancy has really seen a new side of me. I guess I've learnt to let go of my rigourous science brain sometimes!

I was talking with my friend about that anecdote this afternoon. She was like 'that can't happen' - no kids yet. I was all au contraire mon amie! She was quite impressed. I'd like to think some of my floaty learning this time might help her have a better first birth when the time comes.

Going to do more visualisation in a bit. Took like 24 hours or something to get to 3cm with Byron so I reckon if I can do that with mild pre-labour and visualisation I have to have a shorter, better birth to look forward to!

 

[moomin_troll]

wooo i think the bum pressure is a good sign!

im also going to give this ago when im 39 weeks plus to see if it will work for me, the mind is a very powerful thing.

 

[Mervs Mum]

It tickles me how the scientists just don't seem to be able to acknowledge the mind and body connection on certain things. Switch off the neocortex where you do all your science stuff and surrender to the floatyness!!

 

[caro103]

sorry you girls are fed up. we've had a bad day too, Alex has gone jaundice so spent the afternoon in hospital. His 1st outing!! not quite the plan :S. He's been let go for now but i;ve got to make sure he feeds loads tonight and we take him back tomorrow, so hope we avoid admission, that'd totally suck after having such a wonderful birth!

Plus he tore me so badly I'm now on antibiotics, strong painkillers and daily checks , ouch!

BUT every time I look at his gorgeous face its worth it!

talking of mind and bodies I was weird in labour, 1 person supporting was fine but 2 and everything died off until they ru[tured the waters (was that or watch things possibly fizzle out and end up in hospital :S). Reckon if i;d been in hospital i'd have had all sorts of interventions and my mum whos a midwife there agrees...interesting!

Hope some of these babies arrive soon! xx

 

[PeanutBean]

As Caro I'm sorry about the jaundice. Get him out in this sun a bit to clear it up. My son got jaundice quite bad, he had a lot of jitters, and we only narrowly avoided being re-admitted. As if it wasn't awful enough him not feeding! I hope you are both soon well.

MM I'm a bit weird in the science world too know, I seem to bridge between the the worlds. Maybe it's because I'm Pisces with Taurus rising But I use homeopathy and don't believe it is placebo. I can see a case for how astrology (the planets etc being nothing more than a clock) can shape a person's personality (but horoscopes are tripe). I hate the medical world. I hate how closed and narrow and speculative it is. It's mostly not science. Yes it has progressed in amazing ways but is, as you say, so dismissive of the mind. "oh, it's only placebo, better not bother doing it then" Yes better not have any cheap, effective way of treating or managing something when there's no money to be made...

 

[KittenKat]

You sound a bit like me PB, I love science (except physics theory that makes my head hurt) but if you asked my OH what sort of person I am he will likely answer a hippy Visualisation is brilliant, self hypnosis can work wonders on the mind which in turn can work on the body. Have seen it work in a diferent situation other than pregnancy and birth

I personally don't think even proven phamacuticals always work as intended but I do believe a little that if you think they will work they will. I know that paracetamol have very little effect on me after building a tollerance to them many years ago, yet I still took two at the onset of labour and somehow it helped a little because I believed that taking them would actually help me

I didn't do any hypno for birth or learn any special breathing methods, but I know full well that if you don't breath well your muscles are going to lack oxygen and things are gonna start hurting (more). I did fall back to remembering with DD1 how to breath as if I was walking long distance and uphill (different story lol) heck even had an old marching song going through my head while delivering her which was oddly apt but if I had burst out with it I think my MW at the time would have fallen over giggling.

 

[chuck]

Now I'm an empiricist, a mathematician/physicist mind very reductionist I see beauty in the clockwork nature of gravitation of heavenly bodies, chemical reactions, and the almost nonsensical behavior of the universe at a quantum level - HOWEVER when it comes to people I'm a bit of a holist a humanist, we are more than the sum of our parts.

As much as I have studied psychology and teach it I love physiological psychology and the biological basis for our cognitions etc it just dosen't always add up, there is more to us than chemical reactions, enzymes and electrical impulses that can be controlled with drugs/interventions/treatments.

 

[MandaAnda]

Caro, I second the sunshine advice. Natural phototherapy. Strip him down to his nappy and have a bit of skin-to-skin in the garden in the sun. If it's still too cool out, sit in front of a window with the sunshine streaming in, doing the same thing.

As for the power of the mind in labour, I totally think it's the way to go. I went inside myself and only experienced pain if I was disturbed from that concentration. With each contraction, I was saying in my head, "Down baby, out baby" and visualising the hormones doing their bit, my cervix dilating and the baby doing his thing. I really think it worked.

 

[PeanutBean]

I do believe science has all the answers though, in theory. I just don't think we will ever be able to recognisem, test or understand all the variables. I think medicine in particular but other areas of biological science can be quite close minded; scientists/medics can be rather conceited and in the end allow prejudice and conceit to mask as objectivity. It's a terrible shame. The beauty of science is in thinking widely and exploring not closing doors on the basis of a single poorly designed, small-scale study, which is certainly what seems to happen in medicine.

Whilst I am spiritual I am sure that were we able to measure everything science would be able to understand the soul but I don't think we can ever get there. It's a conundrum!

 

[Rmar]

Talking about the power of mind in labour, this would probably be a good place to put this as it may offend people in other sections but I came across an article here which talks about epidurals but the mental part of it really struck me:

The anesthesiologist takes a large gauge needle on a 5 or 10 cc syringe and starts digging into the laboring woman’s back. The hole has to be large enough to fit the drug-bringing cannula which goes in 4 inches, or 10 cm, in and up her spine. Blood flows down her back in a half-centimeter stream from the hole. It hurts to be stuck. The hole will hurt for a few days like any wound. During this time, the woman in labor has to stay absolutely still during her contractions. The anesthesiologist explains to her that if she moves, the needle may tear the epidural membrane in her spine. The anesthesiologist threatens her that she can cause a terrible headache if she makes a slip or, alternatively, cause a hematoma which may result in permanent spinal damage. Amazingly, this woman who was writhing and moaning with pain just a few minutes before is now absolutely silent and doesn’t move a hair during the contractions that were so very painful just a minute before the anesthesiologist arrived.

Is she aware of her ability to have strong contractions at 5 cm dilation, seated under fluorescent lights while a total stranger carves a hole in her spine, merely by breathing in a careful, concentrated manner? No one points this out to her. The epidural is her choice, the midwife whispers to me. I certainly would get thrown out of the hospital by the cultural majority if I went around pointing this out to women. But I must write it for those who desire to know. Anyone who has the mental and physical strength to sit through strong, painful contractions without budging a single muscle, in the bent-over, uncomfortable sitting position required for getting an epidural, for 10 long minutes, on a raised bed, under bright fluorescent lights, while a strange, unknown anesthesiologist sticks a large needle in her back, can have an easy attended labor in the comfort of her own home, without any need for pain relief beyond a few Tylenol capsules. This is a fact that needs to be told to her.

Love to know anyone's thoughts on this part in particular.

 

[PeanutBean]

That's interesting. Having had an epi it isn't quite like that though, or at least mine wasn't. They stop what they're doing for contractions and mine was in quite fast I'm sure. I also wasn't told any of that about the implications of a slip! I definitely agree in principle. I didn't want an epi (by that point I'd been in labour 30 hours and was having augmented contractions) and I was so exhausted and defeated there's an argument I didn't have the energy to care about anything anymore, even moving, though I never writhed through contractions anyway...

 

[chuck]

I think that can be true of some epi's...I would guess that most anesthetists arent that graphic when performing the epi, although everything mentioned there should be mentioned to the mother getting the epi as they are dangers.

Having my epi put in wasnt all that bad...having the spinal for the EMCS was however.

They had broken my epi prepping me for theatre so I then after having had the drip turned up again with no pain relief having had augmented contractions for hours no food no sleep - I was in pieces to then be shuffled from one bed to another holding my own catheter bag crying being told to shut up be the anesthetist then having to bend over stay still and have the spinal done = horrific I dint even have any one to hold my hand or see afterwards to make it better as I went to theatre alone.


Too many women dont know they down sides to epi's and will gladly take them when really they could go a lot furthur with their labours without considering how difficult getting an epi can be.

 

[moomin_troll]

my mum had a epi with her first and could still feel everything down one side, so safe to say it didnt work. the next 3 times docs f*cked up and she couldnt have one.

she tried to push me to have one but i kindly said no thanks, far too scared of needles to even think about one lol.

it is ashame when i read about people saying they want a epi without actualy experincing labour yet. not enough people believe in their own bodies.

 

[lousielou]

I do think if you're in the mindset of "I'm definitely going to need an epidural" then the chances of you going into labour and then thinking, "Hmm, actually this is pretty manageable" are really very slim.

 

[chuck]

I got mine when I got the synto drip as I knew after having been in slow labour for 24 hours and in actual labour for something like 9 hours and having another dilated 2cm with little food or sleep in days I wouldn't last much longer. They kept turning the drip up so I needed GnA over the epi anyway - then they broke the darn thing!

 

[lousielou]

Sorry Chuck - I don't want you to think I was having a dig for having an epi! I was just responding to Moomin's comment about people saying they want one before experiencing labour

 

[chuck]

no no no I didnt think you were having a go....I'm just doing my normal defensive OMG I need to justify why I got an epi thing. Pay no attention LOL

 

[moomin_troll]

an epi is there for who ever needs it lol so going thru what u did u needed one. no need to explain urself here sweet x

 

[chuck]

I know - I still jump to this stupid MUST justify my terrible choices to myself and anyone who will listen.

I'll get over it one day LOL

 

[lousielou]

I do the same RE: my C-Section Chuck