One of the most beautiful and natural procedure is childbirth. When you have a child, you become a mother. When a mother hears that she will have a baby the turmoil arises. However, along with the happiness come thousands of questions, worries and doubts as well.
Everyone knows that giving a birth is quite painful. The question is how bad can the pain be and what type of relief you can find? Because of these questions the expecting mother cannot sleep at night. But you do not have to be worried because in this article you will learn more about childbirth.
Cervix, is the opening of the womb, starts to dilate as the contractions increase.
The frequency of the contractions will increase when the cervix is dilated to a length of 10 cm. Afterwards the baby goes through a number of frequent passive movements.
This is called the Crowning.
At this moment the head of the baby appears first. In laymen term, you can explain crowning as the appearance of the head of the baby from the vagina.
It seems like the baby wriggles out of his mother. The baby twists and after its head, the shoulders and body start to appear.
How to know if you are in labor?
This is not a silly question at all, especially if this is your first time. Elizabeth Duff, – NCT’s senior policy advisor, asked this question and it is not silly at all.
‘If you feel that the contractions are getting more frequent, remember to note them down. If you have contractions on 10 minutes apart or less, it is very likely that you are in labor. ‘However, if the contractions are infrequent and mild, it is less likely that you are in labor.’
When you finally realise that you are in labor, the most important thing is not to panic. Elizabeth Duff says that you should stand up, move around and allow gravity to help in the process. ‘You should keep moving as long as you have energy. If you are in early labor, you should eat something as well.
It is very important. You should not eat something heavy. Instead eat something that is easy to digest and something that is going to provide you with energy, because you will need it once the labor progresses. At that moment you won’t be able to eat anything’.
Mary-Rose Pignatelli and Annabel Athill of Kensington Midwives, said: ‘Labor can begin long before you must go to the hospital. ‘This is called early labor. The contractions are building in strength and length. However, hours or even a day and night can pass, before the cervix dilates.
The water breaks, what happens next?
You should know that this probably won’t happen as in the movies. The reality is that many women do not register when their waters are breaking. Ms Duff said that you will feel a popping sensation. That is all. The amniotic sac is just like a tough balloon, which is filled with water and it bursts. ‘Some women can feel a big gush that can be potentially embarrassing.
However this is a rare.’ Instead, most women will say that they are wet. Ms Duff said that women should note what time their waters break. If the labor goes on and takes a very long time, the information will help midwives to judge the risk of infection.
The mucous plug is going to be passed.
It is commonly referred to as ‘the snow’ and it is also known as the operculum. The mucus plug is located at the neck of the cervix, said Michelle Lyne – a professional education advisor at the Royal College of Midwives for Daily Mail Online.
Its job is to seal with the womb and stop infection in the uterus. When the labor starts, the plug softens and in the end either before or as labor begins it is passed through the vagina along with the fluids when the waters break. ‘This is the biggest sign that labor has begun,’ said Ms Duff. ‘Sometimes it is a small smear, which is no bigger than 1cm. However it is not always so obvious. ‘In some cases there are little spots of blood.
And now the big question: how bad will the pain become?
Remember that you cannot run away from the pain. However, there are some methods that can help you to reduce or even minimize it. One of the solutions is the epidural, which is considered to be the Holy Grail for many pregnant women. It acts on the pain nerves as they enter the spinal cord and it numbs the lower half of the woman’s body.
Another option is water birth.
‘The mother can be relaxed with water birth as well’ said Ms Duff. ‘A warm shower may help as well. ‘Another thing that can help some women is a gentle massage on the back. Furthermore, you can try some painkilling drugs which can be managed during labour, such as diamorphin, pethidine and meptid.
They are given with injection to the thigh. Another thing is the TENS machine, which transmits mild electrical impulses to pads on the back and they block the pain signals and help the body to produce more endorphins.
The midwife can leave the room and that is normal!
Another thing you should know is that during the labour you will have one-to-one care from a midwife, said a spokeswoman for the Birth Trauma Association. ‘You could be attended in turn by different midwives and sometimes the midwife can leave the room in order to attend someone else.’ You may think that this is alarming; there is no need to panic, because it is normal.
Sometimes situation can go out of control
Sometimes the umbilical cord may get caught around the neck of your baby. This is alarming, but it does not have to mean that the baby is actually being chocked by the cord. The midwife could ask you to stop pushing for a few minutes.
Chances are that you could suffer a tear down in the vagina because of the constant pushing and stretching. In some cases, the doctor could choose to put an incision in order to enlarge the opening and reduce the pressure. Sometimes, if the baby is in distress the doctor could decide to make a C-Section. If this happens, you should not think of it as a failure. You need to trust your doctor and have faith. It is important to decide what is best for your baby.
But the pain vanishes, when you hold your baby in your arms. The pain actually goes away immediately. Happy pregnancy and enjoy on the never-ending roller coaster ride.
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