Painless labor?

allnurses Guide · Mar 3, 2004

Kids-r-fun . . .you reminded me of a delivery a few months ago. The surreal part where you said you "detached" during the contraction.

This woman at first made sure that we knew she wanted no pain relief, no epidural, etc. I think when the pain started getting really bad she was shocked, she started refusing everything. No vag checks, nothing. She just detached . . . finally let the doc check and she was 10 cm . . but was afraid to push. We encouraged her to push with each contraction but then she started detaching again and we couldn't tell when she was having a contraction (she refused the monitor). She would say "Ok, I can do this" and would start to look like a contraction was coming on and we would be there ready to cheer her on and and then she would go somewhere in her mind - it was the weirdest thing I ever saw .. . . . . . and then deny she had a contraction. Stayed this way for hours . . .finally did a cesarean because she wouldn't push and baby started having decels. I can't imagine not pushing when you get to that point . . there is an uncontrollable urge to push that I would not be able to ignore.

When I was in labor, I stayed in control, breathed well through the UC's . .. . but it still hurt. I think you do disengage a bit . . . .

steph

nekhismom · Mar 3, 2004

well, mine hurt. I was at 6 when I got an epidural. I was at 3 or 4 when I walked in the door. I had decided beforehand that I WOULD get an epidural, and I walked in the door in not much pain, but requested one at that point. GOod thing, too, because by the time the anesthesiologist got there, i was ready for him. Oh, and I got Stadol IV about 5 mins. before he got there. I slept through the rest of my labor. I couldn't see very well or talk clearly after the Stadol, so I just went to sleep. Looking at people hurt my eyes at that point. I remember waking up during contractions, looking at the TV and watching "Passions" and going back to sleep. My husband would update me on Passions with each contraction. Of course, after the meds, it didn't hurt anymore. That is until he crowned!

My mom had a painless labor with me. Too bad I wasn't luck enough to inherit that gene! :chuckle:

OBscraper · Mar 5, 2004

I have worked OB for 4 years now, and, most women definately have pain(its just the amount and how they deal with it that varies). However, one of my funniest memories is a women who came in 10cm with her 5th or 6th baby ( I can't remember) and she stated it was time for her to push, but, she stated she was in NO pain. It was hilarious the patient, her husband, myself, and the MD just sat in the room talked and lauged about the situation and got to know eachother. I had stayed past my shift when she came in complete because I wanted to do her delivery and I thought it would be any time. Finally I let another RN take over b/c it had been 1 1/2 hours and she still had no urge to push. My friend took over and she let me know that they all sat there for another hour and then she finally wanted to push and she had the baby in 2 pushes. I was told she never had any pain. It is unbelievable to me I have had patients deal with pain well, but to not have pain that is amazing. I just hope I have her good luck when I deliver my first baby this spring.:rotfl:

csarracco · Nov 14, 2011

I also think that this is hereditary. I had a normal labor with my son, painfull contractions 13 hours of labor. Then 2 years later when I had my daughter, I had very low amnio fluid and they wanted to delivery the baby a couple of weeks before my due date. I was not looking forward to being induced, I thought it would be much more painful. But I had painless contracts throught out the whole induced 12 hours of labor. Only had pain during the pushing part. This is also what happened to my Mother when she delivered me. She had 2 normal pain filled labors with my brothers. Then me nothing.

LouisVRN, RN · Nov 14, 2011

When I had my son I would say my pain got to maybe a 4. It wasn't really that bad, I was putting on makeup when I was 8cm. I was having back labor though, my contractions didn't hurt at all, just felt like I had a rabbit trying to dig out of my back from the inside. if my husband applied pressure to my back, it was definitely bearable. i went into it not knowing really what to expect, but really not bad. I find it kind of funny when on these birthing shows the women are screaming up a storm. Oh and my son was 9lbs 6oz.

klone, MSN, RN · Nov 15, 2011

I once took care of a woman who was practicing hynobirthing. She ended up having an orgasmic childbirth. It was...um...interesting. And a bit uncomfortable.

CT Pixie, BSN, RN · Nov 15, 2011

Both my deliveries were pretty painless. I won't lie..there was "pain" but to me it was more discomfort/uncomfortable but nothing I couldn't handle (maybe 3/10). Now ask me my pain rating after having 4 wisdom teeth pretty much jack hammered out of my jaw..yeah THAT was a 10/10! No drugs used for either delivery.

With my 2nd delivery I walked onto the L&D laughing and joking with the DH. I was sent there to be evaluted for true labor since I had been having what I would call menstrual like cramping all day, but they were becoming more regular and longer. Called the doc and he told me to go to the hospital to be evaluated, and that if it was labor they'd call him and he'd meet me there. The nurse smiled and said, well, it's a good bet that since you are smiling, laughing and talking through these contractions, you aren't very far in your labor most likely its the beginning stage of it. That was at 9:50pm.

Good thing I'm not a betting person because I fooled her. I was put in a room, changed into a gown and checked. I was 8.5cm when they checked. A few minutes later my water broke. The nurse ran to call my doc to tell him to "get a move on!" , the attending doc was there for the first 2 pushes, my doc showed up at the beginning of the 3 push and then was holding my daughter, 15 minutes after stepping on the floor to delivery (10:10p delivery).

ETA: To answer the originial question of "Can keeping physically fit really take the edge off the pain that much? "

I am NOT what anyone would call physically fit in any stretch of the imagination. Well, I'm healthy..but my eating habits aren't the best and as for "excersise" unless you call walking the 200ft to my mail box excersise..I'd say I'm pretty lacking in that deptment. I do have a very high pain threshold usually. I don't know about deliverys being kind of herditary as both my mom and her mom, along with my mom's sister and my sister all had horrid, painful long labor and deliveries.

CT Pixie, BSN, RN · Nov 15, 2011

Any relation to hight of the mother laboring? In my (limited) experience, taller moms have a much easier time.

I am 4ft 11in tall (very short torso, but my height is in my legs). My labors were very easy, quick and pretty much pain free.

However my sister, mom, grandmother and maternal aunt all are under 5ft 3in had long, drawn out an painful deliveries.

GooeyRN, ADN, BSN, CNA, LPN, RN · Nov 15, 2011

My 3 were quite painful, but I almost enjoyed them... I am an oddball that considers labor/childbirth a personal challenge. I think a lot of it is the mindset going in. I won't allow myself pain meds unless something major is going on, just a personal choice, I have nothing against them for others.. (I recently also avoided all pain meds after an incisional breast biopsy) I enjoy the whole process of labor and delivery. I have LONG labors. First 23 hours, second 18 hours, third was on and off for 1.5 weeks. :eek:

MomBabyUnitRN · Nov 15, 2011

I wish I would have experienced painless (or close to painless) deliveries. I had my kids in the backwoods of Montana. We didn't even have an anesthetist to provide epidurals. :) My deliveries are what I base my 10/10 scale on. My pain didn't really start though until I got to be about a 7.

In relation: Even after an open bowel resection, sans pain meds, that pain only reached a 4/10. When I had a power port placed, that pain wasn't even a 2/10. My total abd. hyster was maybe a 3/10. Delivering a baby was the worst pain I'd ever had. Ever.

I can't say I've seen a lot of ladies in minimal pain during deliveries. It would be interesting to see such one though.

Elvish, BSN, DNP, RN, NP · Nov 16, 2011

My mother's labor with me was painless per her report, and I was a 9-pounder. "I've had bowel movements that hurt worse," she tells me. Also, her labor (primigravida) was under 5 hours. What I would have given for THAT.

My water broke with my son and I piddled around in terms of ctx, but once they did start they were really painful. I was barfing from the pain at 1-2cm. With my daughter, the labor was shorter by half and less painful, though it still did hurt, and I got to 9 before asking for pain meds. Incidentally, my membranes were intact until 9 as well. Whether that had anything to do with the ability to handle the ctx is anyone's guess.

jennylouwho · Nov 20, 2011

Contractions are said to be easier with intact membranes.

I have had (in this order), a CS, a lovely labor that was fine but I was scared into the epi despite no horrible pain, then with my third,, my water broke so I needed pit after 24 hours to jump start things. A nurse cam on at 7 and cranked the pit up- up until that point it was tolerable. Then it was 20 minutes of pain. My last was really quick, contractions started at 930 pm, 10 mins apart. About 1030 I took a warm shower. Didn't take the edge off.

Decided to lay down to nap, that didn't last much either. Got up, got dressed. It was 1150. Called my midwife. At 1155, I couldn't sit, so I told my husband to call his sister and tell her to drive fast. She got her at 1210 and I was waiting for her in the driveway. My husband wanted to wait until my midwife called back but I said no, go. Got there and had her 18 minutes later. The midwife missed it (she was on her way for a patient that wasn't urgent in triage, got a blank page for me and thought it was a screw up from that patient). The house dr was doing a CS. I had a nurse just off orienting and another nurse, both freaked out because I had a VBAC label. The midwife on the phone was telling them that I have had two VBACs, which seemed to settle them some. Good thing bc despite them telling me to blow through the contractions (haha), that baby slid out after two pushes that I could not stop. The last 10 minutes were painful.