Pregnancy and labour stories?

Heather - posted on 01/20/2010

I had a pretty easy pregnancy. I worked until two weeks before my due date in a Dr.'s office. He was one week overdue... They induced me at 10am and he came at 11:12pm. I watched football the intire time I was pushing. :) The only pain I had was right after they broke my water...the little number on the monitor hit 40 and I said give me drugs. I didn't feel a thing after that until they unhooked me after he was out. Thank goodness b/c he was 8 lbs 12 oz! I'm terribly afraid to have more b/c I am SO spoiled and terrified the next one will be hell! I'll just pray the next one is just as good!! :)

Kendall - posted on 01/20/2010

got prego 1st or 2nd try, ate snacks every 3 hours during the day to stay nausea free, gained 15#, no swelling or high BP and worked until 2 days before deliverying. woke up to labor pains at 1am, by 2am they were every 5 mins, in the car on the way to the hospital they were every 2 mins. was 100% effaced and dilated to 4 cm when arriving to the hospital, got admitted at 4am, got a shot of stadol and an epidural by 5am. literally didnt feel a thing after that. fully dilated at 930am pushed 2 hours and delivered at 1146am. the only thing i would change is i hope to go longer without the epidural next time. other than that my only complaint is the skinny nurses boney little fingers that did the first exam when i got to the hospital (wanted to kick her in the face) and back labor, very uncomforable. hope the next time goes just as easy.

Laura - posted on 01/20/2010

Hi! Well my first pregnancy was horrible. I did not really enjoy it at all. I did enjoy being able to feel her kick! The labor was so easy and I actually enjoyed it. I was only in labor for 8 hours and it seem to go by so fast.

Traci - posted on 01/20/2010

What hospital was that?

Alicia - posted on 01/20/2010

I have 3 children so i have some stories, but my most eventful was my last. I was 2 days past due. My dr. said i had low fluid so sent me to the hospital. My labor was fine had the pain got the epidural. Then her heart rate kept dipping so they flopped me like a pancake back and forth. Over and Over. LOL. Then they tell you to wait till you feel like you need to poop to call them. Well i didnt feel that i felt sharp pain so they came in to flop me again. and in mid flop she fell out on the bed. It was crazy i didnt prepare for that at all. She had pooed inside me so the NICU was suppost to be in the room so it was crazy nurses flying everywhere and my dr walked in way later and i just had to laugh. Easiest delivery but crazy!

Amy - posted on 01/20/2010

My pregnancy was great until the very end. I have type 1 diabetes and at the end got diagnosed with preeclampsia so i got induced early. I gained a lot of weight because of the diabetes. I was induced at 38 weeks and was in labor for about 26 hours. I slept through almost all of it- they had to wake me up to tell me i should get an epidural. I got stuck at 8 cm so they decided to do a c section. He came on November 18th at 730 pm and was 9 lbs 15 oz and 21 1/2 in long! Easy pregnancy and easy delivery!

Lisa - posted on 01/20/2010

hi both my pregnancies wer fine n my labours real quik, my 1st i went into labour at 6am my labour progressed real fast n my aunt had to fone ambulance cos i was ready to push, wen midwife got ther she sed i wasnt allowed to push cos his heart rate went down then they took me to hospital, at 9.20am he was born, so i was 3 hours 20 mins, my 2nd was cool, my waters went at 11.20pm i diodnt have my waters break last time he was tryin to get out with waters in tact so i called my partner in and asked if that looked like waters n he sed how should he know and i thought ok fair point, i was havin braxton hicks id had a lot of them thru my 2nd pregnancy and was gettin them now they didnt hurt but waters was leaking at every contraction was really gross lol so i got my other son up took him down road to my dads and phoned hospital from ther and they told me to go in, i went in they took my blood and my blood pressure because i still wasnt in pain and havin braxton hicks they asked me if i would go home so i explained about my 1st labour n that i was scared that if i went home id b too quick and wouldnt get bak so they agreed to let me stay in and if i hadnt progressed by morning id go home but sure enough my labour speeded up from the start my contractions wer 2 - 3 mins apart and at 2.03 am my 2nd son was ere i was 2 hours and 43 mins and im so lucky both my labours wer quick, my youngest is now 11 weeks and my oldest 5 years and i couldnt b a prouder mummy :)

Kara - posted on 01/20/2010

WOW! I sat here and read everyone's reply. All I can say is that most of you are lucky to have such an easy pregnancy!
I was 22 years old when I became pregnant. I was 3 months along before I realized it as I was still getting my period. I did gain some weight but I wasn't eating very healthy as I was working a ton and going to school, not leaving much time to eat, was always on the run. So from then on I had horrible headaches, gained 10+ lbs a month, was HUGE. I kept telling my dr about my swelling. She just said its normal. I knew how much I was swelling it wasn't normal. I was seeing a Nurse practitioner too. It was my NP that caught my swelling, weight gain, and high blood pressure. She made me go see my doctor, turns out I had preclampsia so she sent me home on bed rest. Well my swelling got so bad that I couldn't fit my feet in regular shoes anymore much less fit socks over my huge sausage toes. Finally, she said she needed to induce me as my blood pressure was so high. I went in January 6, 2007 6am. Got pit. then waited and waited, broke my water around 8:30am, finally I felt like I had to push. 12:38pm my baby boy was born. 8 lbs 12 oz 20 inches. She let me rip instead of cutting me so i had to have stitches but my doctor wouldn't tell me how many I had to have.He was like blueish purple, and only whimpered not cried. He had a cauliflower ear and club foot. He wouldn't take a bottle or the breast. When he ate he got sick. He mainly slept, hard to arouse him. By the time we were released home, a few days later. He lost almost a pound, assuming it was fluids since my doctor didn't listen to me about how much I was drinking and gaining and swelling. After that my son ate just fine. His ear and foot went back to normal a few hours after his birth. He would always get sick, found out he had acid reflux, was put on special formula and some meds helped. He started gaining weight and now is bigger than most kids his age. Very healthy. Now I am 3 months pregnant, scared going to get preclampsia again. It was horrible experience due to the fact that my doctor didn't listen to me and the fact that she didn't tell me much about what was going to happen since I did have pre clamp.

Holly - posted on 01/20/2010

Hi, My pregnancy was great I had a really easy one and even lost weight while gaining the baby weight, I had an excellent pregnancy no complications no morning sickness and no needing to pee every few minutes I didnt get that until I was overdue.

My labour was fantastic and in 9 hours I had given birth to an 8pound 8 ounce bub naturally, by the time I went to the hospitial I was already 7cm's dilated and then 2 hrs later she was born, I only had to push once and then she was out.

Im really looking forward to my next pregnancy and labour as long as it's as easy as the first one. :)

Heather - posted on 01/19/2010

I had a great pregnancy, I had my 3rd Girl Addison unexpectedly at home on our couch, My Fiance' delivered her and tied off her cord with a shoe string, I told him I needed to push and he said NO NO WAIT!!! I told him I couldn't and he looked and saw her head coming out, I pushed once and my water broke and her head came out and pushed 2 more times and her body came. She weighed 9 lbs 0 oz. 20 1/2 in. My Biggest baby that I had was Hanna my 4 1/2 yr old, she weighed 10 pounds even, 21 in. I had 1 epidural birth with my first, and 2 natural births.

Emma - posted on 01/19/2010

Hi Jenna, luckily my pregnancy went well, everything healthy, only felt really uncomfortable to the end. With my Labour i started on the Monday and was having contractions while we were shopping even had some lunch and drove myself to the hospital as i knew it would be a while, i was 3cm dilated so i went home.
Later that day my contractions stopped, i went and saw my doctor and said the baby had moved and needed to turn back when this happens it should be quick.
At midnight just turned saturday i got contractions and more intense i had my mum up from walcha staying and mother in law up from grafton. I didn't want to panic them so i jumped in the shower. 1.30 my husband is on the phone to the hospital who are telling him for me to go back to bed. We ignored them as i was in a lot of pain and yelled i wanted to push in the car, my mother in law screams not to, we get there and make it to the room this is now 2.15am, was asked for a urine sample when i screamed i cant i want to push, so i was now on the bed, broke my waters a head was right there and Annabella arrived at 2.30am after 3 long excrutiating pushes, and as it was so fast it was so surreal, and i had a ambulance driver whitness his 1st birth and she told them they are not all as easy and fast as this one and luckily no stiches, i don't mind if it happens like that again please please

Anna - posted on 01/17/2010

Hello, I was lucky enough to enjoy both pregnancy and labor. I did have some issues with my pregnancy at first. I was sick, throwing up all day and all night. So much so that I lost 9 lbs in the first 3 months. Finally at the 4 month, I started feeling better and did great until about 8 months when I dropped and just felt alot of pressure and uncomfyness in general. I had contractions starting on a saturday. I finally had them bad enough to go to the hospital on Monday. They sent me home because I was only dialated at 3. Several hours and a bean rice and cheese burrito later, my water broke. It was 12:50am, we got to the hospital at 1:15 am. Around 3am I was given an epidural, I was dialted at 5. I went to sleep and woke up at 4:30 am, dialted at 7. Went back to sleep and woke up at 5:30 and was at a 9.5. At 5:55 am I stared pushing and had my beautiful baby girl at 6:15 am on Tuesday june 9, 2009. It was the most amazing experience ever. I had very little pain and my baby took to breastfeeding right away. I know some l&d's are difficult but I would do mine over again in a heartbeat. When the time comes, I will be ready and looking forward to my next one. Although, we are in no rush as we are fully enjoying our little angel :)

Terra - posted on 01/17/2010

I was 19 when i found out i was pregnant with my now 3 yr old daughter and i would have to say my pregnancy went well i was very small at first until i was about 4 months along when i started to get a little bump and it wasnt until then that people started to believe me that i was pregnant...i had no morning sickness with her at all. the only thing that made me feel queesy was the smell of any meat being cooked. i went to as many young mom groups as i could. i wanted to prepare myself as much as possible for the upcoming labour... i had heard many horror stories about other pregnancies and labours so i thought the worst for the longest time and it turned out that pregnancy wasnt all that bad after all. i went into preterm labour new years eve of 2006/2007 i spent new years eve in the hospital hooked up to a stress test machine and could not lay anyother way but on my back it was horrible because everytime i went to lay on my side the least little bit the doctors lost madisons heartbeat which was probably the scariest thing out of my whole pregnancy. My due date was Feb 1st 2007 and i think if the doctors had not of given me demerol to stop my labour she would have been born on time. i went to my scheduled OB appointment on feb 8th and requested that i be induced because i was so tired of the round belly and not being able to put my own socks and shoes on. i was checked to see if i was dialated any and it turned out i was 2 cm. i was scheduled to be at the hospital for 7am on feb 9th. i was excited to finally see who was growing and thriving off me for the last 9 months. later that evening on Feb 8th i went into labour on my own and i didnt believe that i was until i couldnt take the pain anymore and called my mom. we got to the hospital and i was only 3 cm. i was in labour from start to finish for 18 hrs including 4 hours of pushing. my daughter was born Feb 9th 07' at 8 lbs 10 oz and 20 1/4 inches. after being stiched with over 143 stiches we were able to go home the recovery was the worst it hurt to move and i was in some pain but it did not last very long and was then able to move without any pain and care for her like normal... 5 months after i had madison i became pregnant again.... i was not prepared to be pregnant again so soon after giving birth.. i was thinking this pregnancy would be a breeze like the last one but i was completely wrong.... i was sick the whole pregnancy. i wasnt putting weight on and the doctors were getting worried. My boyfriend and I split up when i was 7 months pregnant and with the stress of that and taking care of my 1 year old daughter on my own stressed me out big time. i ended up going into labour with my son at 34 weeks... Labour was easy with chase it didnt hurt like it did with madison and i went to the hospital thinking i was only about 3-4 cm dialated, but i turned out i was 8cm so the doctors check the posistion of chase and it turned out he was briech and i needed to have an emergency C-section. it was the scariest day of my life.. I never have had surgery in my life and i was the only one at the hospital at the time so i panicked and called my closest friend and told her she needed to get to the hospital right away and i would explain when she got there. 15 min later she arrived just in time to see me being wheeled down the hall to OR all i could tell her was he was briech and coming fast and they needed to cut me.... it was the scariest 30 min of my life.... i was frozen from the waist down and awake!!!!!! he came fast and healthy which was my main concern.. Chase was born may 10 2008 weighing 6lbs 12.5 oz and 20 in. long. I was in recovery for 4 hours due to an allergic reaction to morphine.. I did not see my son until the next morning, when i went to my room to see what my little boy looked like i saw his father there in the room with him and i was furious!!!!!!!! Chase was colic the first 4 months and after had some health problems my recovery was the worst feeling i have experienced in my life. the only thing i liked about my pregnancy with chase was the fact that i had a tiny tummy and could still put my own socks on my feet lol..... if i had to choose between natural and C-section i would have to choose natural for the pure fact of it being a shorter recovery and you get to hold your baby from the beginning. I had experienced post partum depression after chase was born and was put on meds for 10 months. Chase is now a very healthy, very big boy with minor problems.

Jess - posted on 01/17/2010

I hated being pregnant... I never glowed, my baby refused to kick for people and most of the time I just looked fat rather than pregnant :( I had 24 hour morning sickness for 5 months straight... than I passed out on a train going to work, out cold for 10 minutes... rushed to the emergency room and than constant fainting spells after that. I then got pre eclampsia and all of my organs started failing. Even my brain started shutting down!



I was induced at 36 weeks.... on a public holiday ! So there was no staff at hand, I was left in a room with no help for 3 hours, no pain relief and I wasn't even allowed to move not even to roll over because I was being monitored by a machine! I vomitted constantly and my mum had to clean me up ! I was assulted by the midwife and screamed at to shut up as she pulled my cervix back with her hands, she even spat in my face !!! A new midwife took over and just managed to catch my daughter in time, who I was told wasn't coming and to stop pushing !!! And then they took her away from me for a week and threatened me with a restraining order if I tried to discharge my daughter. They even sent government staff to my home to interview my partner and I... a program which is meant for drug addicts....... I was mortified.



But I will have more children.... the experience just made me believe more in my skills as a mother ! In 2009/2010 you would think not being married wouldn't be a problem for the hospital but it was and they never bothered to work out how old I am or my partner they assumed we were teenagers... which we arn't my partner is nearly 30. We have good jobs and a nice home and can support our daughter ! Take that mean hospital staff !!!

Jenna - posted on 01/17/2010

April: Definately agree with you on the labour and not being pregnant.
Both of my boys have cone early one at at 35 and one at 36 and i had more than enough even by then!

April - posted on 01/16/2010

I was 20 when i fell pregnant with my first son, I was very sick in the beginning and was huge i felt like a beached whale and to top it off there was not a lot of maternity clothes around and especially in my style so i found myself just buying bigger sizes in normal clothes, although i did enjoy the attention that i received from hubby during the pregnancy. I went in for a checkup at 37 weeks and was whisked away and induced as i had high blood pressure and pre eclampsia, hubby was not with me so until he arrived i was scared and didn't know what was happening, after 2 days of being in and out of labour they realised I was too dry and hooked me up with fluids, he was born later that day 7lb 7oz and 3 weeks early, he would not suckle both breast and bottle and was put into special care nursery for 8 days, I enede up with post natal depression and his not drinking habits went on for 6 weeks of trying the breast, bottle feeding, then expressing for next feeds, until hubby had had enough at 6 weeks when my nipples were hanging off and bleeding and told me just put him on formula...It was a nightmare. I got a lot of bleeding after his labour for months and was advised to go off the pill to have a clean out and consequently fell pregnant with #2 when #1 was only 4 months old. I had a great pregnancy except the morning sickness until i was 20 weeks, although huge again he was mainly in my bum and back and when you have a bent coccyx not very nice. a friend had lost her baby and at the funeral i went into labour...stress...1 week early had a 6 hour labour and gave birth to son 9lb 5 oz his shoulders got stuck and the cord was wrapped around his neck twice so there was not a lot of length left every time i pushed it pulled and consequently i haemmoraged. Other than that no tearing with either births. I then went on to have #3 4 years later, induced due to previous child and shoulder displacia, easiest pregnancy and birth yet, 4 hour labour, and came home 4 hours after having her 7lb 12 oz...all where very different, but must say my daughter was a breeze. I put 20 kgs on with 1, 20 kgs with 2 and only 12 kgs with 3 and looked my best a small round BELLY, not bum and legs as well...I love the whole labour part even with bad experiences i would labour all over again and not be pregant

Kitty - posted on 01/16/2010

I remember the moment of conception vividly, the only way to describe it was magic. I absolutely loved being pregnant. I felt healthier and happier. I took 12 weeks of Bradley Birthing classes to prepare for labor, I worked out every day for an hour, I was very regimented about getting a wide variety of fruits, vegetables, grains,and proteins in my diet--and trying to listen to my body. I had wicked heartburn though, I haven't been able to eat bacon since. :( But I did a lot of research on the best way to give birth, so I had a midwife instead of a doctor. My birth was all natural and only 10 hours and 20 minutes long. Actually, I almost didn't make it to the hospital because my water broke with a vengeance at 1:20 am and we stayed home laboring until our midwife was technically on duty at the hospital. Then we called her to let her know what had happened. She had the room prepped for us, and we arrived around 9 or 10 am. My son was born at 11:40 am. I had a water birth which was like floating on a cloud, it really helped localized the pain and release muscle tension. It was the most amazing and life-changing event I have ever experienced. I can't wait to do it again!

Leah - posted on 01/16/2010

My pregnancy went perfectly. I never took anything for the pain,my skin was glowing,and I never once had morning sickness. This was my my 1st child. I had went in to see if my contractions would start if I walked but got sent home because I wasnt dialated enough. So then I had to come in a week later to be induced. So I was 41 weeks pregnant. I had went in on a Sunday at 7:30am got induced at 8am with oxytocin,didn't get an epidural until like 10pm on sunday. I had my boy at 4:30am on Monday. So I was in labor for like 18 hours and I pushed for two. The nurse had shut the epidural off like 10 minutes before he came out and I could feel every bit of it but so worth it in the end. He came out at 8lbs 4oz which is the EXACT same weight his daddy was when he was born. It was a breeze for me and I can't believe I believed everyone when they said it was horrible and painful. I enjoyed every second of labor and my pregnancy

Amanda - posted on 01/14/2010

First time pregnant I thought in the beginning it was going to get easier. Then it did, but then I got really sick the last trimester. I really couldn't stand it anymore. Not to mention, when I was due, and my little one passed all the tests so we could induce, the doc kept saying for 4 weeks straight, "no, let's check you next week and see how things look." He kept coming up with different excuses.

Sheree - posted on 01/14/2010

Yes very true, i had had some niggling pains through the day, but i seriously thought they were braxton hicks. Oh well either way it was nice and quick and not one of the labours that makes you never want to have any more :)

Jenna - posted on 01/14/2010

Annie, I also was not medicated for either and both mine were premmie although my second was a lot bigger. I was 36 weeks and he was 7lbs 4oz and my first i was 35 weeks and he was only 5lbs 8oz.

Jenna - posted on 01/14/2010

Its so nice to hear some real stories and not people who try to glamorise it or amke it seem like a total nightmare. My pregnancies were healthy etc but just uncomfortable. Labour was nice as soon as it started i was relieved as i knew i would no longer be pregnant. Sheree: you may not have been in labour yet. My first labour only lasted 2hrs 45mins and my second only being 1hr 30mins (rush to hospital in an ambulance), was only there for 1/2hr before he was born. Hubby made the last 20mins or so!!! If money and being pregnant wasnt a problem i would take the labour and babies a dozen times!

Annie - posted on 01/14/2010

I have had three pregnancies and my baby is turning one this month I can't believe it.lol My 1st two were planned and were 2 1/2 years apart. I was still nursing my son peter at 7 months when something was different and in the back of my head I thought I think I might be pregnant. My husband weren't planning on another little one just yet to say the least and talked me into taking a test and lo and behold I discovered my precious little surprise. My boys are 15 months apart and I wouldn't recommend it, just me though.lol Anyways, I don't get morning sickness or heartburn until the last month. I did gain alot during each pregnancy and Luckily I have been able to lose it each time. My deliveries have all been quick; my 2nd baby was the fastest. He was here in under an hour start to finish and he was my preemie and he still weighted 7lbs 14 oz. Derek my third gave me a rough time at the end I had terrible hip problems that lasted until last month when they mysteriously disappeared after I stopped nursing, but hey I am not complaining. I had no medication for any of my pregnancies there wasn't enough time. I figure if I have to choose between a 14 hour labor with meds or an hour with out meds I well that the latter.lol

Lauren - posted on 01/14/2010

I have two kids ands and both pregnancies and labours were both unforgettable. I was in great shape with the both of them, but I was only 20 when I had Gabby. Being young, naive, and uneducated landed me in an unscheduled section which totally stunk. I was fully dilated and Gabby wouldn't come out, she was also induced. If my doctor had been well trained, he would have been able to manipulate my cervix to get her head passed. I was in induced labour for 18 hours. I love my daughter, but it was a horrible experience.

Gianna was a different story. I had the same doctors until 34 weeks. They said they would let me try labour but told me there would be too many risks. I had an awesome instructor in nursing school and my Friend's mom is a L & D nurse. I went on ACOG's website and viewed the stats on VBACs. I was fed false stats and switched to a Dr-Midwife practice where I was able to have a natural childbirth with Gianna who was 9 12...19 oz bigger than big sis. It was tough work, but the natural birth was sooooooo much better.

BrookLinn - posted on 01/14/2010

Jenna, I have two kids, a daughter, 3, and a son, 1. My pregnancy with my daughter was just heavenly. I felt alive and vibrant, although I did get every cold or flu that was passed around at the time. She also turned me into a vegetarian, bleh! I was in labor for 52 hours and was miserable up till they gave me my epidural, like 8 hours before delivery. After that a total cake walk, she was out in three pushes doing no damage to me. I loved the whole experience! My son is a whole other story!! I was miserable and moody and very uncomfortable with him. I think we had two or three friends that stopped coming around during that time!! Most people talk about how eager they are to get the whole thing over and done with, and I did not understand that until that point!! His labor was only 12 hours compared to the 52 before, so that was nice. He was 9.5lbs so he took about 10 minutes to push out, but again no damage. I really feel lucky that I had both types of pregnancies and labors. I can relate to everybody and I can tell good stories and horror stories!

Sheree - posted on 01/14/2010

Hi Jenna, i was exactly the same as you. I had a nightmare pregnancy, but my labour was a breeze, probably as I didnt realise i was in labour for most of it. My mum convinced me I was, i called my husband to come home from work and we went to the hospital 2 hours later. When i arrived at he hospital they examined me and told me I was 6 cm dilated and moved me to a birthing suite as I still had a while to wait. The midwife told me to buzz if I needed anything but she would come in and check on me periodically and leave me to it until i needed her. Well my waters broke and i said to my mum and hubby, i really feel like i need to push, hubby asked if he should buzz the midwife, i replied with well unless you wanna deliver this baby yourself you better call her. The midwife came in and i told her i needed to push, she didnt think i was ready and tried to examine me again, but couldnt cause bub's head was right there. she told my hubby what to do and he delivered our little girl, 90 minutes after being examined when we first got to the hospital. Overall it was a breeze labour, no drugs and all natural, not saying it didnt hurt but no where near as bad as everyone made it out to be. I wish my pregnancy was as easy as the labour. For baby number 2 I would like to skip the pregnancy and start at labour please, lol. If only it were that easy :)