Although I read that moaning or grunting can help get you through contractions, I found that making noise actually took more effort. I was very silent throughout the whole process, including the pushing!
What about you?
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No not loud at all! But I also had an epidural for the majority of labor!
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Can't speak from personal experience yet, but my mother said that she had to be very quiet so she could concentrate (3 unmedicated labors, 1 augmented with pit).
My sister was also quiet (she got an epidural at 7cm), but I think that was out of politeness. The women in my family have a tendency to "put on a brave face" instead of vocalize.
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In early labor...yes! Not so much later on.
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I was almost silent all the way through. My MIL kept trying to get me vocalize with her (not pressuring or anything, more of a "you should try...") but I couldn't do it. I was cursing when the OB was pressing on my uterus after delivery, though.
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No, I was really silent. Being silent helps me focus and I did not want any distractions from talking, music, nothing.
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Nope, I was quiet and focused!
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@FutureMrsMcK: ooh, I forgot! I WAS LOUD during the afterbirth. When I was getting stitched up and when they were pushing on me to get the placenta out. it was HORRIBLE!!!
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Totally silent. Noise would have taken away from the effort I was putting into pushing. I did talk between pushes.
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I was silent until transition, then it was a lot of moaning and "ow ow ow!" and, "why aren't I in a room yet? Where's my epidural?"...I had a trying triage experience!
Once I got the epi at 10cm I was happy and chatty
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I wasn't loud but I did do low moans through every contraction and while pushing.
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Yep, I did a lot of low moaning and going "ow ow ow". Ha, the nurses would just talk to me through my moaning.
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I was moaning very loud and low with both births. It really helped with the pain.
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Yes, I screamed. It was a full out scream and it somehow made me feel better. Everyone hated but the nurses said if it got me through to keep going. I screamed less during pushing though.
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No. I'm not a loud person in general. I did make some noise, but not a lot.
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I tried not to be but I was so loud! Not my personality at all...I have a friend whose SIL was pretty far down the hall the night I gave birth. My friend had asked her how her night was and unknowingly she said she couldn't sleep bc someone down the hall was giving birth so loud! Whoops. My entire l & d was less than three hours so I've always wondered why I was so loud. I couldn't make the noises I was making again if I tried!
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I was really quiet. My mom was so surprised at how I handled my pain. She was impressed that I didn't curse dh out too. Haha
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I was pretty quiet until afterwards. I think my baby might have been traumatized by how much I yelled during the stitches when she was hangin out on my chest!
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I am usually a pretty quiet person and I was quiet through labor until it came time to push. Then I was LOUD. I was so surprised but I really felt like I had to make noise! Afterwards my husband (jokingly) said, "I had no idea you had such a beautiful singing voice."
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I wasn't loud until after I had pushed for three and a half hours and then my epidural wore off. We had to wait 45 minutes for the anesthesiologist to get back before I could be given more so I could be wheeled into the OR. I had been on pitocin for hours and my contractions were right on top of each other. I just laid in bed begging for someone to give me something. I had no control of myself. Worst experience of my life.
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@pointybird: Ha, that's pretty funny!
I was impressed he joked about labor afterward!! It's been a year since Mrs. Bee last gave birth, and I still am scared to joke about it! Not that she would be offended... I guess I've been kind of putting the birth experience on a pedestal. Hadn't realized I was doing that, until I read your comment!
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@mrbee: It felt good to laugh about it! We are not a serious couple, so it felt good to laugh about something!
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@pointybird: Props to you and your husband for having such great sense of humor!!!
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Yes! Loud, low moaning really helped during transition & pushing. Sometimes I'd shout "oh it hurts" or something, but then I'd pull it together by breathing deeply & exhaling loudly. The sound helped me focus away from the pain & relaxed me.
I was super embarrassed though when my mom said they could hear everything from the family waiting space. She said she didn't even know women really made those noises!
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I was for about two hours when the contractions got really bad, before I got the epidural. Looking back, I'm a little embarrassed! I was REALLY moaning/groaning loudly.
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I wasn't until the very end when I was just extremely frustrated. It seemed like that baby was never coming out. I would let out a bit HUFF after I was done pushing. I never got as loud as you see it in TV and movies, though.
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Yup. I was in serious pain and basically felt like I was dying a slow, cruel death.
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Yes, it's one of the reasons I decided to get an epidural. I was a bit embarrassed. For awhile I was very quiet and focused and if DH asked me something I'd answer in a whisper. But once I hit 7 cm I yelled through contractions.
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I was pretty composed & quiet until I hit transition, got checked, and got REALLY discouraged about my progress. The hit to my confidence really did it for staying on top of contractions so I found myself praying in moans quite loudly.... =(
Next time I plan on cutting off cervical checks after I hit 5-6 cm (which ever I am when I get checked)
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I'm a really loud person who cusses constantly and was prepared to have to apologize to all of the nurses but ended up being silent pretty much the whole time. No grunting, no moaning, no screaming. DH was just as shocked as I was!
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Nope. It was actually a laid-back experience for me after the epi kicked in. There was some groaning particularly on the drive to the hospital (our city has the WORST streets and I swear we hit every bump in them!).
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nope i was surprisngly silent most of the time.
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Nope, pretty silent for both of my deliveries.
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I was so quiet they didn't think I was having contractions and kept upping my pitocin
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I screamed as if I was being murdered. Natural childbirth is painful.
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Nope I was pretty quiet.
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@Mrs.B: glad I wasn't the only one!!
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I should not have read this thread! Giving birth sounds terrifying! What have I gotten myself into...????
Lol.
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I was extremely quiet. I had an epidural though.
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I lost my voice so I guess I was pretty vocal. I was in labor for a very long time so that also contributed.
I really, really wanted it to be quiet and peaceful but it just wasn't. My doula encouraged me to vocalize during contractions and I felt like both my doula and midwife were yelling at me to "get mad" and yell during pushing.
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