Birth🤰

I will always say this but make sure you are prepared for a possible c-section I don’t want to scare you but sometimes things dont always go the way we want

Same as above and just don’t stress. Not all birth plans go the way you want it too but the biggest blessing is giving life. Gave birth 3 times and all were different

@Louisa Weirdly enough I’m already completely prepared for a C- section 😅 A LOT of my friends have had them; a larger proportion than have had natural births which is a bit nuts! Having said that, I’m equally worried about either option x

one thing to remember is don't expect everything to go as planned, hope for it but also prepare for things to go differently than expected. for example, I planned for a natural birth, but ended up needing a c-section. also remember that labor can last many hours so definitely be prepared for that and also definitely consider getting an epidural, it helps so much with the labor pains & contractions.

@Bella This is lovely advice, thank you! So true, I’m so excited to be able to bring my baby earth side 💘

@Cerys that’s great to hear I can only speak about the c-section part as that’s all I’ve had but don’t stress to much the whole time of mine I was laying there talking about how bored I was haha you should be fine altogether experiencing birth altogether is frightening

Your birth could be super easy, everyone’s preparing you for the worst but like for some women labor and giving birth is a breeze. Ive had 5 kids myself, I’ve had friends go 100% natural and still had very easy times. So like please don’t look at this as some terrifying time. Just like any life situation things go wrong but things can also go so right.

Trust your body. I went in labour early at 36+2 week but ended up giving birth 2 days later after the hospital almost didn’t believe. And also have everything packed along with snacks and sugary drinks (lucozade sport is the best) and and extra long charger x

Also, for post partum bleeding right after birth, the honest brand lavender mint pads are a god send.

@Allexys This is lovely, thank you! Good to hear positive true stories! I’m trying to do a lot of positive affirmations and visualisations already even though I’m only 13/14 weeks, and just trying to rationalise that women have done this since the dawn of time 🤰

@Julia More brilliant advice, thank you so much! The sugary drinks is gonna be essential I feel🤣 I love Lucozade sport 💘

Really learn how to breathe from the diaphragm. So important for birth but also stress. If things aren’t going to plan, you need to breathe and try and be as relaxed as possible. Exercise-wise, squats and alot of walking. Walk everywhere, up and down stairs. Keeps you healthy, and in my head, I think it helped me with labour.

Let go and let God. Worrying about anything until you're in the thick of it accomplishes nothing. Trust your body and trust your medical team👍 being relaxed is the best thing you can do for yourself

Always have a back up plan for everything. I just had my second in March and I was not prepared to do a unexpected and non medicated home birth. I should have went to the hospital when I first started having contractions but since I don't drive and my partner was at work I had to power through them until he got home. We also had to quickly call his mom to pick up the older boy since things progressed very quickly. Everything ended ok and my partner delivered our baby and then the ambulance showed up to take us to the hospital.

Try a TENS machine for Labour and put it on early on!

@Allexys this brand is amazing. I used them through my periods for my endometriosis. They have postpartum pads!

i’ll say try your best not to worry, stay relaxed as much as you can through the pain and during your whole labor/birth experience. try every method and find what works best for you. it’s easier said than done trust me but it’s possible. i have an extreme low tolerance for pain and i was so tensed up during my contractions because i just couldn’t handle the pain no matter how hard i tried to relax. well, because of that, it prolonged my labor — i wasn’t dilating fast enough. my body was just too tight and couldn’t do it’s job naturally. the nurses even considered sending me home. eventually, they gave me an epidural and put me on pitocin. within 10 minutes, my body finally loosened up and my daughter’s head was already popping through 😭 the nurses had walked away to do other things, they weren’t expecting me to give birth so quick. they came rushing back 😅 most importantly, make sure you have a good support system there with you and always vouch for yourself. good luck mama!

I found writing a birth plan really helpful, not because I expected everything to go to plan, but because it helped me to research all of the possibilities so I could figure out what my preferences were but also understand more about what might happen. We did NCT antenatal classes which I found really helpful too as it explains the whole process of labour/birth, and I felt better knowing that my husband also understood it all and I didn't have to explain things to him. I think being as relaxed as possible is always good. Lots of people find hypnobirthing helpful with that but for me it was knowledge of what was happening and the reassurance of midwives and doctors on hand that was most relaxing

…now i’m thinking about how i have to go through the labor/birth process all over again now that i’m pregnant with my second 😮‍💨 i still have time but whew, pray for me guys lol

Go there like if you go to the beach relax on the sand . Meaning don’t stress . More you stress more labor get bad in my opinion. More you are relax and smoother it goes. Breathe deep and don’t hesitate to destroy the epidural button 😂

Don't be too upset if ur birth doesn't go according to plan, when it comes down to it the craziness and stress of the event will be forgotten pretty quickly, as long as u have ur baby u won't care about anything else x

I lasted a pretty long time without an epidural but ended up getting one just in time before they broke my water and my baby came out extremely fast one thing I did learn though is to ask them for the placenta if you want to keep it before you have the baby because they take it out of the room as soon as possible

(Easier said than done) but those last couple weeks just be patient! Baby will come when they are ready 🫶🏻 the more stressed you are the worse it makes everything.

when you think you absolutely need the epidural, you’re actually almost ready to push. i’ve said it everytime minutes before baby came shooting out

If you need the epidural take it, you’ve got nothing to prove 👍 also take an eye mask! X

Don't rush the pushing stage, take it slow. You'll avoid tears by doing that.

I’d say have a plan and do some nice prenatal exercise (yoga, etc), but be prepared for that plan to change. In the end it only matters that they arrive safely.

Thank you for your lovely helpful comments everyone!! Really feeling the support rn 🥹💗

Make sure you have a good birthing plan printed out so your wishes are writen and can be respected . Go with your bodys flow, the moment your brain says "I cant do it!" Is actually when your going to be pushing LO out. Dont stress so much during pregnancy, I stressed over soo much, my blood pressure beinf excessive, my iron levels, my feet swelling like balloons, being 2 weeks past my due date etc, and everything ended up being 100% fine. I wish I would have enjoyed pregnancy more. This time I will. Youve got this.

Prepare a bag a month in advanced and don’t let your partner touch your nipples 😅. From personal experience, it caused me to go into labor a month early and we were not prepared

Listen to your body and the professionals around you. Everyone’s experience is different and how we feel pain is different. With my first i stressed a lot because i didnt know what i was doing and didnt listen ended having forceps to help baby out with my second a knew a little bit more and pushed her out in less than hour without pain relief. Whatever happens just deep breaths and listen.