What is it like to push? What muscles did you try to use? I'm planning on an epidural so wondering how this works if you don't have full sensation down there!
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From what I've heard, it's a similar feeling to when you're going #2 (sorry if that's TMI!)...
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My BFF is an OB, and she told me to push like you're taking the biggest poop of your life
I'm planning an epidural too, and am due in 5 days so I'll follow up soon and let you know if she was right haha
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Haha the trying to poo is what I've heard and read! I couldn't do childbirth class b/c I was on bedrest, so this is my official research : )
@betsyboop: GOOD LUCK!!!
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it really is like taking the biggest poop of your life. in the beginning i wasn't pushing right. i was putting too much pressure in my head/face, which only tires you out and you don't make any progress.
you have to put all the pressure in your pooping muscles. i had an epidural and you feel the contractions and you feel like you want to push!
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With both of my babies, they turned the epidural down/off, before I started pushing. If you've ever done Kegels, it's using the same muscle group, so it's kinda like that, only much stronger. Not exactly like pooping, but pretty close.
With DD, I wasn't pushing right at first, so the nurse actually had to show me where to push. With DS, it was a lot easier, since I'd already done it once, and if he didn't have such a big head, he would've been born much sooner, lol!
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They told me to push like I was going #2. I had an epidural and I could feel the pressure when I was having a contraction so I pretty much knew when to push. She also told me I could put my hand on my stomach and I would feel my uterus get hard during a contraction. That helped a lot too.
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I had an epidural and by the time I was ready to push, it had worn off enough for me to "feel" where to push. And yeah, it's like taking a giant #2...It's the same feeling.
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I had an epidural and there was still so much pressure that you know exactly when to push. Like painful pressure, especially when she was farther down.
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It really is like pushing out the hugest turd of your life. As my grandmother used to say, "it's like sh*tting a football".
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I never really felt pressure (i had the best epidural ever) but i felt like i was really pushing with my abs...it felt really natural, like my body just knew what to do!
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@duckduckkristen: I laughed out loud at your grandmother's description. That is so funny!
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Ok, this was TMI to put in detail in my labor story post, but the best thing you can do is to "practice." All the midwives and doulas I spoke with during my pregnancy told me the same thing. Baby S was out in 9 pushes, I had it down!
To practice either have sex with your partner and literally use your muscles to push him out. Or if that makes you laugh hysterically and is totally ineffective then use a, ahem, personal pleasure device and just keep using your muscles to push it out. Practice as often as you can.... I swear, it made all the difference. If only my bridesmaids who gave me the thing during my bachelorette party knew how it would be used
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You have to push like you're going poop. Which is why so many women get hemorrhoids!
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If you've ever had bad constipation (either before or during pregnancy) and had to push so hard but didn't think that poop was ever coming out... then you'll know how to push during delivery. Maybe there is a reason for constipation during pregnancy ....trains you how to push. (???)
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@Mrs. Stroller: That's a great tidbit to know! I know about kegels to strengthen the pelvic muscles but didn't know how to practice actual pushing! I am afraid to push in fear of preterm labor (though everything is closed up nice and tight) but maybe once I'm at the safe point designated by my midwives, I'll be brave enough to try it!
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@Mrs. Stroller: I had never heard that before!! Practices makes perfect!
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I had an epidural, but I still really strongly felt the urge to push. It felt really natural, and honestly I felt like my body did most of the hard work for me without having to try too hard. That being said, it was definitely kind of like taking a really big poop like others have said.
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I agree that it felt really natural and like my body knew what to do. I'd had medication earlier in labor, but was drug free by the time it was time to push. I think it was about 5 pushes and about 15 mins of actually pushing. I don't know that practicing would have helped. The best advice though was when I was crowning, my midwife had me pant and wait to push until things had a chance to stretch out naturally. It was crazy hard in the moment, but I didn't have a single tear. Totally worth it!
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You have to push like your going to crap!
Hence why we often crap on the table (but the nurses never tell us) Honestly.... when your pushing you couldn't care less about what else is going on. -
Oh and I had an epidural (that was slowly wearing off) and the monitor wouldn't capture my contractions so I had to "guess" when I felt I was having a contraction.... and you know what it worked.
I did push for 2 hours.... no joke, but I had a 9lb baby who wouldn't pass! But he finally did (after a dislocated shoulder though)
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Yep. Pretty much like pushing out a giant poop. But if the doctors and nurses are managing your meds at all they will turn down the epidural so you can feel some pressure. I couldn't really feel much in my "area," but I could feel contractions so I knew when to push. And it helped to have the doctor put her fingers where I was supposed to push. Somehow I felt that.
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What really helped me is the doctor and nurse were massaging the opening and using oil the whole time so my tearing would be minimal. The nurse would tell me to focus on pushing where her fingers were, and yes, you use the same muscles you use when going #2.
I'm planning an epidural too, and am due in 5 days so I'll follow up soon and let you know if she was right haha
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