Since I want a natural birth, I know the fear is something I have got to shake! I am pretty nervous about it...The fear of failure or something going wrong is definitely there.
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Hmm I'm not really nervous, since I know it has to come out somehow, lol. I'm going in with not much of a plan - handle the pain as long as possible then hit up the drugs if it gets too much to handle!
I am nervous about delivering the placenta though for some reason. I don't know why (Everyone tells me it's nothing) but it really freaks me out.
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I think being nervous is perfectly normal. The closer I got to my due date, the more nervous I became, but I worked through it by trusting in my body. I gave birth with no pain meds, no episiotomy and no formal program, like hypnobabies.
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I was nervous but when it was happening, I was so excited!
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@char54: I'm with you. I don't really want much of a birth plan other than to get her out as quick and safely as possible. I don't want to read too much about it either, as I don't want to get stressed out about it when you have no idea how it's going to go until it happens.
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@HLK208: I think I'm going to be super excited too. All my books and my childbirth instructor warn me to sleep as much as I can during first stage labor, but I will be wayyyyyyy too excited! That's like a kid sleeping through Christmas morning!
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@grizz: lol there is no way I could have slept with so much adrenaline!
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Not for my first, and in the days leading up to this past one, no, just anxious to meet my baby.
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I'm nervous and am also planning a natural birth, but am sure to not get too attached to that plan because fear of failure is not something I need on top of... labor! Trying to go into it with an open mind to whatever ends up happening
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@JoJoGirl: Me too! Baby keeps turning breech, and its late in the game for him to be doing so... so I'm just trying to come to terms with whatever happens to get him here safe and sound!
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@illumina: I don't want too much info either! Apparently my labor and delivery class shows a very graphic video that leaves nothing to the imagination. Friends who have taken the course said it's frightening and a lot of people have to leave the room. I don't know how watching that would help me and I KNOW DH would be totally freaked out!
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I'm actually not nervous at all. I'm looking forward to it! (Not the pain, but being DONE with pregnancy.
) But I'm also not aiming for a natural birth so that could be why.
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I'm nervous about managing pain even though I'm open to an epidural, tearing (OMG. Tearing is my biggest fear ever), and the pain during recovery from said tear. *shudders*.
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I was terrified, and I didn't even want a natural birth. But you still have to wait until you can take meds and the actual pushing didn't seem fun. I would sit there and think about how I could get the baby out without me pushing her or having to have a c-section. Obviously there is no other answer and she came when she wanted to come out, how she wanted to come out.
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You know, the closer I got to the end, the more i was just anxious for it to all be over with and for the baby to be here and all the other stuff.
In the end, what i imagined in my head was probably 10x worse than what happened, haha.
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I was terrified!
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No, I wasn't nervous about giving birth. I knew I wanted an epidural and hoped for a vaginal birth. Despite the early pain during active labor, I was goal oriented and knew what I had to do. I had tearing, but didn't really notice until a couple of hours after he was born.
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Yep!! Thanks to an epidural it wasn't bad at all!! The worse thing was the lack if sleep and not being able to drink anything.
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I was nervous because everything was so unknown but everything went so smooth I won't be as nervous next time I don't think.
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I was super nervous! At one point I thought the baby could just stay in me... that would be okay right? Silly thoughts you have when it's closer to your due date.
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@Raindrop: I have that feeling too! Every time I see how big he is as compared to a certain fruit on my What to Expect app, I think 'Holy crap. I have to push that out!' lol! He is the size of a canteloupe this week, and my remaining weeks are fruits like watermelons and pumpkins. Those are very large things!
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I was definitely nervous - it was mostly the fear of the unknown. Especially since nobody can really describe what a contraction feels like, how to push, etc. But in the end, it was really not as bad as I anticipated it to be. I also lucked out that I started light contractions at 6am, was fully dilated by 6pm and had her at 7:30pm. I did tear, but even the recovery was not at all bad. You'll be fine.
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@grizz: I kept trying to sleep but it wasn't happening. I finally slept 16 hours in when I got the epidural. It was GLORIOUS!
ETA: re: your orginal question - I was definitely nervous. For me it was just the fear of the unknown - What's going to happen? How much will it hurt? Will I make it without pain meds? Will I be able to deliver vaginally, or will I have to get a c-section? Being nervous is totally normal!
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@grizz: I wasn't nervous the first time. By the time I was at that point in my pregnancy, I was just ready to be done. And I know how hard it is to relax and sleep in early labor, but it's totally worth it. I went into labor in the evening the first time and spent pretty much the whole night trying to get things moving because I was so excited that I was FINALLY in labor and was so tired by the time I hit transition the next afternoon. When I went into labor with Tractor Girl, it was also in the evening and I was smart, hehe, and went to bed and slept for as long as possible, even when I had to wake up for contractions. The next morning I started doing stairs and pumping to get things moving and she was born at 6:00 pm, without me being so exhausted. Soooooo, just sayin'. I was more nervous as I thought about labor the second time because I knew what to expect and the memory of the intensity of transition labor is burned into my brain, lol. But let me assure you, transition really is the shortest part of labor and OMG, pushing that watermelon out feels SO good after that!
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Also, if you feel like your nerves are really something you need to deal with, I hear the book 'Birth Without Fear' is really good. I want to read it before my next birth, to deal with baggage from my birth and anything I've picked up at births I've doula'd.
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I wasn't as nervous as I expected to be. I was worried about the pain since I wasn't allowed an epidural and I was worried that I would need a csection (would've been under general anesthetic). I was more nervous about being a mum since I knew labor would only last a day (longer for some people!) but I'd be a mother the rest of my life. I was also excited for the pregnancy to be over and finally meet my baby!
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I was nervous both times. First time I had to be induced after the water had been broken for 24 hours. Second time was an unplanned natural birth.
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@grizz: One thing that got me over being super nervous was a midwife told me that your body was made to do this and to trust your body.
You will do great!
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I was definitely nervous because I didn't know what to expect, but by the end I was so ready to not be pregnant anymore that I was eager for it to start. It helped me a lot that I went in without a definite plan...ideally I wanted to go as long as I could without an epidural, but I also mentally prepared myself for a c-section and sought out positive c-sec stories (and induction stories, and natural birth stories...)
It was nothing like what I was expecting, and that was okay. Even at the worst I found it exciting. In hindsight, I rather enjoyed the process.
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I wasn't too bad. I'm more afraid of teenagers lol
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I'm so incredibly nervous about vaginal delivery and tearing... BUT every single person I know who's had a baby says that by that time, you're SO ready to meet your LO and your adrenaline is pumping. I just keep telling myself once I'm at that point, I can do it (since everyone else can!).
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I wasnt nervous at all, but when it came time to push I started shaking and I couldn't stop! I think it was a huge rush of adrenaline, and I could not calm down. Once I started pushing I was fine again! I pushed for an hour and 45 minutes... Ugh!!
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I wasn't nervous because I didn't know what to be nervous about. If we have another I think I'm going to be more freaked out since I have something to compare it to.
) But I'm also not aiming for a natural birth so that could be why.
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