Contents:
- Medical Video: Preparing for Childbirth: Exercises for Circulation, Pain Relief and Strength
- What is the difference between giving birth naturally, normally, and by caesarean section?
- Tips for preparing for a normal delivery
- 1. Do research and discuss with your partner, which birth process you most want, and make sure the partner supports 1000%
- 2. Create birthing plan You are detailed, and make sure to get your doctor's approval
- 3. Follow couple class, pregnancy exercise, prenatal yoga up to hypnobirthing to prepare yourself and your partner physically and mentally
- 4. Choose and practice yoga poses that you can do during labor to help open and reduce pain
- 5. Breath is your best friend during the contraction process to giving birth
- 6. When you want to scream because of pain, if your voice becomes sound with vibration
- 7. Sleep, sleep, sleep, sleep, and sleep
- 8. Go with the flow
- 9. Document this precious moment
- 10. Take advantage of the stay in the hospital as a break time and learning to be a mother
Medical Video: Preparing for Childbirth: Exercises for Circulation, Pain Relief and Strength
Some time ago I received a question from a friend who was pregnant in the last trimester, and a short message from my husband reading my column at Hello Sehat. The question is easy, but requires a long and deep explanation because it is related to what must be prepared so that it can give birth normally.
I will try sharing my experience gave birth naturally 10 months ago, but keep in mind, my personal experience can only be used as a reference, because everyone is different. So, whatever your decision, whether you want to give birth naturally, normally, or through a caesarean section, all are personal choices that only you and your partner have the right to decide.
I myself had a natural delivery process for 23 hours with help water immersion at a hospital in Singapore at the end of June 2016, starting with my amniotic fluid broke without contractions, and immediately called the obstetrician. I was asked to go directly to the hospital because usually if the membranes rupture first, the doctor needs to monitor the baby's heart rate to make sure the baby is in good condition until the contractions come.
I do not use induction to speed up the contraction so it really awaits the opening of 1-5cm for 17 hours without anti-pain medication. Ahead of the 5cm opening, I began to consider whether I would like to use an epidural, but fortunately my husband tightened my heart, so I undoed my intention.
When the 5cm opening has arrived, I can immediately soak in a bathtub filled with water with a lukewarm temperature or the same as the amniotic temperature, so the baby stays safe. An unforgettable 23-hour journey where my husband is always by my side and stays awake for 23 hours full, holding my hand, guiding me to remember to breathe well when the contractions come, and help cut the placenta of our baby. All the pain paid off when our baby lay on my chest. I'm glad.
What is the difference between giving birth naturally, normally, and by caesarean section?
Before I go far to explain the tips for giving birth normally / naturally, I inform you what is the difference between giving birth naturally and normally. Both of them are together vaginal birth aka giving birth vaginally. It's just that, if you choose to give birth naturally, then you are not using drugs at all to help speed up the process of contraction (induction), or drugs to reduce pain when you experience contractions (epidurals).
If you give birth normally, you experience vaginal birth but can be helped with drugs that help speed up contractions or pain, or one of them.
While giving birth with C-section or a caesarean section delivery procedure is a labor where you will usually be given spinal anesthesia or anesthesia from the waist down, and the baby is removed by making a slice in the abdomen to remove the baby from the uterus. Many mothers immediately choose to give birth cesarean because of fear of the pain of childbirth. I will discuss this pain further below.
Tips for preparing for a normal delivery
After understanding what is different from the birth process above, what should you do?
1. Do research and discuss with your partner, which birth process you most want, and make sure the partner supports 1000%
This is the most important and in the first place, because it is important to know what you want, and your partner needs to understand and be ready to be a partner in the birthing process. I myself decided to give birth naturally after considering and discussing with my husband, and also read info about induction and epidural, both from the procedure and also the side effects of these drugs, also what the benefits of giving birth were normal / natural if compared to caesarean section.
I am sure that I want to go through labor without medication for the good of me and my baby. If after conducting a short, in-depth research you choose to give birth normally or naturally, proceed to the next point.
2. Create birthing plan You are detailed, and make sure to get your doctor's approval
What the heck the birthing plan? Birthing plan is a piece of paper with details of the plan and wishlist You are about what you want to do and get at birth. For example, I want my birth naturally with help water immersion.
What's the difference water immersion with water birthing? Water immersion is I soaking inside bathtub after experiencing active contractions or when the opening has passed 5cm. Soaking in water besides making me and my baby's body more relaxed means that it can help reduce the pain of contractions because I don't use anti-pain medication. While water birthing is the process of giving birth to your baby in water.
I wanted a process water birthing, but because this was my first child, after discussing it with my obstetrician, he suggested doing it water immersion just because I don't have experience in giving birth, I fear water birthing too intense for me.
That can be added in birthing plan This includes whether you are willing to perform emergency surgery (C-section emergency) if your childbirth is on the verge of an emergency, perhaps your baby's heart rate is increasing, or your blood pressure is rising, or other things that your doctor thinks can harm you both.
Not only points like emergency C-section, You can enter requests about the music you want to install, or the light settings in the delivery room, the husband's wish is still beside you throughout the labor process and also the process of cutting the placenta, until the request to immediately bring your baby to the chest for initial breastfeeding initiation .
Write on a piece of paper, show your obstetrician, discuss, if there is input you can change a few points, but when all have been agreed together, get the obstetrician's signature and then make a copy of the paper. Make sure your obstetrician's clinic is double and bring one copy in the maternity bag that you will bring to the hospital for a while to give birth. Make sure your husband knows where you keep it, and leave it to the nurse when you enter the hospital. I include an example from birthing plan I created.
3. Follow couple class, pregnancy exercise, prenatal yoga up to hypnobirthing to prepare yourself and your partner physically and mentally
In essence, make sure you understand and recognize your condition, and involve your husband in preparation for natural / normal childbirth. Usually by participating in the classes I mentioned above, you and your husband will practice breathing, pain management, postures and even massage to reduce pain.
It is important for your husband to know good breathing methods when experiencing contractions because later you will forget the technique because it is very focused on the pain itself. Your husband will be your hero to guide good breathing methods to reduce the pain.
Prenatal yoga is usually recommended to be done routinely after pregnancy past 12 weeks or entering the second trimester of pregnancy. From this activity you can get bonuses to get acquainted with other couples who are also waiting for the birth of your baby, exchange information and be able to make friends to share stories of your baby's growth later.
4. Choose and practice yoga poses that you can do during labor to help open and reduce pain
From the results of following the programs in the previous point, choose poses that are easy for you to remember and train with your partner regularly at least in the last month of your pregnancy. If necessary, make a note for a printable husband to be a reminder when accompanying your childbirth.
The most important thing is, a massage method from a husband that can reduce pain, or if needed you can also bring it birthing ball/ large ball that can be used to reduce pain. Ask the hospital where you are going to give birth whether it is permissible or even if they have the equipment, so you don't have to bother carrying it yourself. In addition it is not impossible if your obstetrician allows you to give birth in a different position from the normal position (supine), among others, with a squat position /squat, halfsquat, or maybe table top.
5. Breath is your best friend during the contraction process to giving birth
This sentence is like a mantra that is always mine sharing every time I held couple class for pregnant women and their partners. Because breathing properly and correctly, it will really help you control the pain you experience, be calmer, and if your labor is calm and good, your baby will also experience a calming and pleasant birth experience.
6. When you want to scream because of pain, if your voice becomes sound with vibration
In addition to breathing well, control your voice when you feel contractions. Avoid screaming loudly or hysterically, because besides it will drain you, this hysterical scream can affect the people around you, and also your baby.
Divert the energy to shout by issuing your voice with vowels A or O with vibrations but gently remove it so that your energy is maintained and the labor process is calmer. It sounds strange, but I have already proven this myself, and many of the mothers from my yoga prenatal class are practicing, and according to them this is very helpful.
7. Sleep, sleep, sleep, sleep, and sleep
This may often not occur to your mind, but to prepare your stamina during labor, sleep is the most important thing. Imagine like I am 23 hours contracting without painkiller, I feel like giving up, if there is no husband who is loyal beside me encouraging.
As I said, everyone will have a different experience, but increasing sleep in the last trimester of your pregnancy is not only beneficial to build stamina during labor, but also ensures you have the energy to breastfeed after giving birth and can also be prolonged after your baby is born. From my own experience, lack of sleep can also be one of the causes postpartum depression. So, gather your staff before becoming a mother by increasing your portion of sleep.
8. Go with the flow
If it turns out after the intention and hours of effort even days you have been able to do to give birth normally / naturally, finally you have to end up at the operating table with cesarean surgery, commonly called emergency c-section, run sincerely because the most important result of your labor is the safety of you and your baby. Most importantly, you finally meet a baby who has been waiting for 9 months.
9. Document this precious moment
This point might not need me to remind you, yes, but my experience in the hospital where I gave birth, there was a prohibition on documenting videos and photos during the delivery process, but was allowed after the baby was born. So make sure you find out the rules at the location where you are going to give birth, not to be too busy asking your partner to document until you forget the long breath when contracting.
10. Take advantage of the stay in the hospital as a break time and learning to be a mother
Maybe this is not relevant if this is not the first time you give birth, but for me after a long labor process, the stay in the hospital for 2 days is when I get support from nurses at the hospital to make my husband and I take a break, trying to gather energy to sleep, while my son is in the baby's room. This period is also a moment of learning to be a mother, both from the way latching, changing diapers, or pumping breast milk.
Ok, I hope the above points are quite clear and can help you prepare for a normal / natural delivery. If there's something you want to ask, you can just mention me on Instagram @diansonnerstedt
Congratulations and success for your childbirth.
