Have you ever had a pt and her spouse have sex in their room "to get things going naturally"?
We had a couple come in that had had intercourse that am, stimulating contractions. Her cervix was changing but then stalled out around 7 CM. The mother to be's sister was gaurding the door. Her nurse went to go in to the room because the central monitoring was showing a decel. When she approached the room the sister stopped her and told her what was going on.
To make a long story short it sure enough stimulated contractions, her water broke and delivered precipidously and the nurse delivered as her doc was in the OR.
In our busy unit with all our experieced and long time nurses said it was a first for them. Would love to here if you have had a similar experience;
Can't count the number of times I've told a labor check pt to go home & have sex. Hey, what gets 'em in, sometimes will get 'em out.
And, yes, have had couples do the deed in the pt bathroom w/ door locked, in the parking lot per pt report, and other undisclosed hospital locations.
Just be sure to warn them that sex in the hospital bathroom can have other untoward consequences - if the labor pt. happens to lean up against the Emergency Call button during the act and 4 nurses come running in to see what the emergency is! Daddy was left with nothing but a washcloth to cover up with.
We're not talking about submarines here, people...it's semen. And to add, as I volunteer on a postpartum floor, if I walked in on a couple "getting busy", I would die of embarrassment right on the spot.
So yeah. No submarines, please.
SEAMEN are FULL of bacteria, especially after days at sea without a shower....
Um...how to put this delicately? Sex is a heck of a lot less painful than those 'safe drugs'...assuming you're talking about pitocin? I have to ask, have you ever had this drug drip into your vein? It hurts like the devil on wheels. A whole lot worse than sex.
I'm not a female so wouldn't know how it feels, I'm not saying the drug will not hurt under the circumstance , what I did imply is that the drug is highly safe ( when administered properly and proportionally that is ). I'm sorry but in this situation I don't see how sex would be less painful than pitocin ( not a fact my opinion ), sexual intercourse, when her lady partsl muscle's are already in a world of hurt would be highly overwhelming for most MoM's in this case.
I'm quite aware of the actual medical indications for a c/section. I work in this field full time. However, we're not talking about uterine rupture, a cord prolapse, or any of the other emergency conditions you mention (please note that my previous post said 'newer is not always better'). We're talking about 'failure to progress', which is a very very common reason that women get sectioned these days. At least in my facility it's why most primary c/sections happen. And if sex can get a cervix started back dilating, rather than taking Mom back in the OR for a section that may not have to happen...then I say go for it. It can't hurt to at least try.
I did state in my previous posts that they are free to do what ever they want before coming to the hospital, simply because that is highly unacceptable in a health care facility especially under the pts circumstance. Once she's in the facility, the staff is totally responsible for treating her not her husband, so they will not be relying on the husband/sex to jump start the delivery. If anything had to the pt That the OP is referring, due their sexual acts in the hospital, the hospital would be totally responsible and that's food for thought. Oh and a C section is the last resort at my facility in this pts case.
Sex has a heck of a lot fewer side effects than labor augmenting drugs and c-sections. Also much more comfortable! Even at 7 cm!
Remember this is a forum for L & D nurses so we are quite aware of the indications for c-section and labor augmentation. As a nurse midwife I would love to have any of my patients use intercourse as a means to have a normal labor and delivery before resorting to drugs. You should read up on side effects, risks and benefits of cervidil, cytotec, pitocin, and cesarean section before making this call, you will be mighty surprised about what you find.
well by all means they should do what ever they can to have a normal delivery, but make sure their not in the hospital when in having sex. having them being sexually intimate doesnt automatically mean a delivery will be less abnormal either.
you cannot compare the side effects of sex and drugs to base your argument that sex is better than drugs, simply because sex cannot be a substitute for drugs in all cases ( if any at all ) of delivery. sex can only do so much, while drugs does a whole variety of wonders. I'd rather live with the side effects drugs than live with a dead baby or a unrepairable uterus, due to my ignorance of thinking sex is better.
in conclusion sex is unreliable (none effect in some cases) option before administering drugs, its not a substitute
No one is saying that sex is always going to be the solution. No one is suggesting that if a uterus is rupturing, or if there is a complete abruption, that a good dose of hanky-panky will fix it.
I get that you won't ever be able to compare sex to Pitocin. I am here to tell you, firsthand, that one of these things is not like the other. The former is mildly uncomfortable at worst, and the latter makes contractions hell on wheels. I think there would be a few people who've experienced both that would say the same.
Nor is anyone saying that drugs and surgery aren't sometimes necessary and sometimes beneficial. But what we are saying is that they don't have to be the first resort, and far too often they are. We treat a normal process (labor and birth) like it is a disease, and that mindset can cause just as many problems (if not more) than it intends to fix. If you can use the resources Mother Nature has made available first, then there is no good reason not to.
I'd rather live with the side effects drugs than live with a dead baby or a unrepairable uterus.
Have you researched or seen firsthand what Pitocin can do? Cytotec?
Again, you are talking to a forum full of OB nurses. We know what drugs and interventions are available and when they are useful, because sometimes they are. But most of the time? Not necessary. If it's your opinion that sex in labor is wrong, or that sex in the hospital is wrong, you are welcome to that opinion. If it's something you'd rather not do, that's cool. But there is no evidence to suggest that, in a normal pregnancy and labor, it is a bad idea or that it's going to put anyone's life in jeopardy.
I agree with you Crunch. There is a time and a place and the hospital is not one of them. That is what you do before you show up at the hospital in labor and if labor doesn't start then you do what hospitals do to stimulate labor. Sounds very suspicious to me. I wouldn't want that doctor taking care of me.
The doctor was unaware of it happening until the nurse told him.
No one is saying that sex is always going to be the solution. No one is suggesting that if a uterus is rupturing, or if there is a complete abruption, that a good dose of hanky-panky will fix it.
I get that you won't ever be able to compare sex to Pitocin. I am here to tell you, firsthand, that one of these things is not like the other. The former is mildly uncomfortable at worst, and the latter makes contractions hell on wheels. I think there would be a few people who've experienced both that would say the same.
Nor is anyone saying that drugs and surgery aren't sometimes necessary and sometimes beneficial. But what we are saying is that they don't have to be the first resort, and far too often they are. We treat a normal process (labor and birth) like it is a disease, and that mindset can cause just as many problems (if not more) than it intends to fix. If you can use the resources Mother Nature has made available first, then there is no good reason not to.
Have you researched or seen firsthand what Pitocin can do? Cytotec?
Again, you are talking to a forum full of OB nurses. We know what drugs and interventions are available and when they are useful, because sometimes they are. But most of the time? Not necessary. If it's your opinion that sex in labor is wrong, or that sex in the hospital is wrong, you are welcome to that opinion. If it's something you'd rather not do, that's cool. But there is no evidence to suggest that, in a normal pregnancy and labor, it is a bad idea or that it's going to put anyone's life in jeopardy.
And with that, I am bowing out, at least for now.
hey what can i say, your entitled to your own opinions and so am i, no need repeating myself again and again so i'm killing this thread
Specializes in ICU, Home Health, Camp, Travel, L&D.
I'm not a female so wouldn't know how it feels, I'm not saying the drug will not hurt under the circumstance , what I did imply is that the drug is highly safe ( when administered properly and proportionally that is ). I'm sorry but in this situation I don't see how sex would be less painful than pitocin ( not a fact my opinion ), sexual intercourse, when her lady partsl muscle's are already in a world of hurt would be highly overwhelming for most MoM's in this case.
I am a female, who has given lady partsl birth to 7 children. I am also a L&D RN w/ going on 16 years' exp. PITOCIN is a high-alert med, according to AWHONN's new standards requires 1:1 coverage. If that's your idea of "highly safe", I'd hate to see what you think of NIPRIDE.
YOU don't have to see that sex is more comfortable than Pit. YOU have to see that you are not the grand pubah of everything...your PATIENT drives the train & what she does, where she does it, whom she does it with is not your call, necessarily.
I did state in my previous posts that they are free to do what ever they want before coming to the hospital, simply because that is highly unacceptable in a health care facility especially under the pts circumstance. Once she's in the facility, the staff is totally responsible for treating her not her husband, so they will not be relying on the husband/sex to jump start the delivery. If anything had to the pt That the OP is referring, due their sexual acts in the hospital, the hospital would be totally responsible and that's food for thought. Oh and a C section is the last resort at my facility in this pts case.
Staff aren't totally responsible for patient behavior. Entering the hospital does not negate a HUMAN's right to self determination. Get out the books and look up paternalism & why it's not great.
We often count on husband's to help with things in OB...labor support, help with nipple stim for CST (that's contraction stress test); come to think of it, I "allowed" my pt's spouses to "help" when I worked ICU, too...oral care, etc.
Exactly how many hours a week do you work in OB, and for how many years? Because I'd like to know what you are basing your last sentence on.
Specializes in Critical Care; Cardiac; Professional Development.
Yes newer is not always better, but in this case most women don't even want to see their partner during pregnancy not to mention having sex with them before delivery. quote]
So very not true. I'd like to see where you got your loose statistic on that. Many many women do not lose interest in sex or their partner simply because they are pregnant.
And to add, as I volunteer on a postpartum floor, if I walked in on a couple "getting busy", I would die of embarrassment right on the spot.
:yeah:
bagladyrn, RN
2,286 Posts
Just be sure to warn them that sex in the hospital bathroom can have other untoward consequences - if the labor pt. happens to lean up against the Emergency Call button during the act and 4 nurses come running in to see what the emergency is! Daddy was left with nothing but a washcloth to cover up with.