Question re placenta

[Sazaroo]

Hello ladies,

After a traumatic first birth I am now pregnant with my second - I am desperate to feel in control this time round and am doing natal hypnotherapy and pregnancy yoga. I would like a water birth with no interventions etc.
I also want delayed cord clamping.
My question is about the placenta, last time round I had to have intervention due to baby being distressed and ended up having the injection to get the placenta out. This time, considering I'd like a natural birth, what happens with the placenta if no injection is given? Obviously it comes out still but now long should it take? Do u keep contracting after baby is born until the placenta passes? I'd like as much skin to skin straight away but worry about trying to hold and breastfeed my bubba if I'm still having contractions to pass the placenta.
Thanks in advance!
Xxxx

 

[ttc bubby no2]

I think it varies for everyone but after my home birth mine took about 30 mins. I forgot about the placenta for a while and then started getting contractions again. I passed my son over to his dad at that point so I could deliver the placenta. The cord was only cut about less than 5 mins before the contractions started for the placenta (I have a lot of photos which helps me work out the timing!)

 

[MindUtopia]

Like the PP said, I think it varies with everyone. I know I didn't keep having contractions after, though I also eventually opted for the injection after an hour plus of waiting for it to come naturally. I didn't even have contractions of any sort after that and it eventually came after about 1 1/2 hours. You may feel some contractions either way, but that's also just your uterus reducing in size, which will happen however you deliver the placenta. For many people though, it happens really quickly, and lots of women who have water births say it falls out when they stand up to get out of the pool.

With NHS midwives, they tend to like to see you not go longer than an hour or so before they want to discuss the injection. I waited just over an hour, with the cord intact, having skin to skin. When we decided we would opt for the injection after this time (I was just knackered and ready to not be waiting anymore!), I passed our daughter off to daddy and she had more skin-to-skin with him while I dealt with the placenta and got a few stitches. He even sat next to me on the bed (we had a home birth, so had a big bed) with her so she was always close by.

Generally, as long as you are healthy and doing fine, there isn't usually a rush, but after an hour they do get twitchy about doing the injection. Personally, I'd rather do it naturally, but I would probably do the same again next time (skin-to-skin for the first hour, leaving the cord intact and waiting for the placenta, if it didn't come after that hour, I'd do the injection again). My understanding though is that doing it naturally is more comfortable than the jab.

 

[peacebaby]

Congratulations and I hope this time is better for you. Natal hypnotherapy will certainly give you more control no matter where or how you labour.

My midwife said the max time they wait is 1 hr.

From memory the contractions don't continue immediately after baby is delivered, it stops and then starts up again. In fact she said its the skin to skin and baby's sucking on the breast that gets things going again due to the oxytocin being released.

Good luck!

 

[Sazaroo]

Thank you so much ladies! Very helpful, sounds like a plan to wait it out and reassess a after an hour if needs be
Thank you again xx

 

[Sam Pearson]

I've always birthed the placenta within 10 minutes of birthing my babies but it can take much longer.

Babies don't need to be breastfed right away and it's something that doesn't need to be rushed.

 

[BunnyN]

My contractions stopped after the birth. Then maybe 15 or 20 mins later I said 'ooh, I think I'm going to have a contraction' it came out with a couple of gentle pushes. I was holding the baby and feeding her throughout. If it had taken a lot longer I might have handed her to my OH but I was enjoying cuddles and didn't really care what else was going on. I was holding her while I got stitched too.