What is your birthing plan?

[thendricks]

I'm 26 weeks and starting to consider my birthing plan, my doctor expects me to have this baby around 36 weeks due to prior comlications with umbilical cord so if the baby is ready he will be able to come then at 36 weeks. This will be my 3rd birth with 1 living child, the first birth with my 7 year old was vaginal, my water didnh't break but i went into active labor on my own, 4 days before her due date and I did have an epidural, I was 24 years old. My 2nd delivery at 20 weeks due to my baby dying in utero from an umbilical cord accident was also vagianl and was induced but no epidural just pain meds. Now this baby I will be 31 years old and I really want to go vaginal again (if all goes well) but I'd like to not have the epidural, any suggestions to me on how to follow thru and not chicken out once the pain starts? What are the pr's and con's to not having the epidural?? Thanks ladies and baby blessings to all ():-)

[lawgirl17]

Has your doctor approved vaginal with umbilical cord problems? Sometimes if the baby is having complications due to the umbilical cord, vaginal is not an option. I wish you the best on this decision. Congratulations!

[surfergirl602]

my birthing plan......  GET OUT!!!!!!!  :)

[mary345]

i wish i could give birth vaginally but i will be having a planned c-section with this one YUCK but atleast i know ahead of time with my first i had it all planned out and it all went down the drain b/c i had to have a c-section lol

[AnnieBrooke]

I just wrote mine tonight (the hospital where I go gives you a little form, it's not elaborate) and wrote "I would like to at least begin laboring using the Lamaze breathing, and continue like that unless the situation merits painkillers."  My dh and I are in a good Lamaze class (surprising because generally people don't say their Lamaze class was all that good) and there is patterned breathing you can do that really is quite good.  My suggestion is to find a getting-ready-for-birth class or a Lamaze class, not a one-evening thing but one of those that has a lot of material (ours is 6 weeks) and take it.  There is a world of information in a good class.

[thendricks]

Thanks ladies, i'm sure I'm to big of a wuss to not get one, the only thing is that with the last birth with no epidural I could feel myself pushing and when she was out, I was in terrible pain I do recall and that was at 20 weeks witha baby less than 1lb, so I'm sure the epidural will be for me :-) thanks for sharing

[amy524]

Personally, I don't know if I could have done it without the epidural.  BUT I did hear something one time that made me think about women to DON'T get one.  "They" say that the pain you are feeling during labor gets to its WORST point and that is generally when women who were trying to do it naturally think "there is no way I can handle this if it gets even worse" so they get an epidural...but apparently that point usually IS the worst and it plateaus from there.  Does that make sense?  Try to think of that during delivery...When you think you can't stand any more pain...keep telling yourself that that is as bad as it's going to get.  

That wasn't stated nearly as eloquently as I'd hoped...but I hope you still get the idea.  :)  It's been a long week!  

Amy
PS - And I applaud you for wanting to do it naturally but NO ONE will fault/judge you if you change your mind.  ;)

[happymom3]

I'm with trentonsmom, thank you God for the epidural. I had my daughter natural, with very good arguments from my mid-wife as to why it was better...HOWEVER I had an epidural with my second child and when it was over I was like "what was I thinking before?". I have fond memories of my second ones birth, not so much with my first one. GET THE EPIDURAL:)

Good luck.

[Trentonsmom]

All I have to say is THANK GOD for the Epidural. I have no problem being called a wuss for having one ;). I look at it as "the less stress, the better". And I associate stress with pain. But, hey, if you can go without, more power to you. :)