I went for my two-week post-delivery appointment with Jenny the Midwife on Monday. She says everything looks good! I was glad to have the chance to ask her a few questions about my labor experience, especially since this is the last time we are seeing her. (She has decided to go to law school at Michigan, and I had the honor of being one of her final deliveries.)<\/p>\n
Since I’ve been thinking more about labor, I thought I’d list a few of the tricks I read about that actually worked. During the pregnancy, I had written a three-page list of tricks to use, but I only needed to use a few of them, I think because a) you get really spacey during labor, and b) I was fortunate to have a comparatively short labor. But here goes:<\/p>\n
*1. Buzzing Lips*<\/p>\n
During early labor (when we were still at home), when contractions started to get intense enough that I couldn’t ignore them, I made “raspberries” with my lips. “Ina May Gaskin”:http:\/\/boydsnest.org\/news\/2006\/ina-mays-guide-to-childbirth\/ recommends this to help you relax your muscles. This is actually a good warm-up for singing too, for the same reason.<\/p>\n
What didn’t work: actually singing. I thought I might sing (thinking that I would be able to relax the rest of my muscles in the same way), but I never even thought about doing it.<\/p>\n
*2. Concentrate on relaxing during a contraction*<\/p>\n
During the whole labor experience, I tried to concentrate on relaxing all of my muscles as much as possible during contractions. (In between contractions it was quite easy to relax.) The idea is that each contraction is helping to stretch out your cervix, and if you can relax it helps the contraction to do its job. It really helped to have people rubbing my back (I was having some back labor since Lucy was facing forward) and also to have them remind me constantly to relax my face, shoulders, and anywhere else they could see tension.<\/p>\n
What didn’t work: getting in the shower to relax. I was in there for only a few contractions, and it didn’t relax me like I thought it would. (Jon also reports that this was his unfavorite stretch of labor, since he joined me and never got enough of the hot water to stay warm.) I much preferred leaning on the birth ball, for instance.<\/p>\n
*3. Making low moaning sounds*<\/p>\n
Ina May also recommends this technique. It is good to make noise, especially low noise. If your moans start rising in pitch, it raises your tension and anxiety (sort of like screaming does). Soon after arriving at the hospital, the buzzing lips technique wasn’t enough to handle the intensity of the contractions, so I started making low sounds. Our friend Dora got a whole contraction on video at one point, and it is really funny (now, at least!). I sound (and look) like someone pretending to be in labor, it is all so exaggerated. But it definitely helped. I remember thinking near the end of labor, “After this is done, I don’t ever want to hear this note again.”<\/p>\n
What didn’t work: listening to music. It turns out that the room didn’t have the stereo hookup for our iPod we expected — but I don’t think I would have wanted to listen to music anyway.<\/p>\n
*4. Asking for what I needed*<\/p>\n
I wasn’t inhibited about asking for things during labor (like something to drink, or rubbing my back in a particular way). I remember trying to be polite and saying “thank you” to people. Everyone was really nice to me and I kept crying about how friendly they were, in between contractions.<\/p>\n
What didn’t work: swearing. Most people recommend feeling free to curse like a sailor during labor, but I only swore once (and only Jon understood it — it was very long and drawn out). It didn’t help the pain at all, so I decided it wasn’t worth it.<\/p>\n
*5. Pushing as if you are trying to poop*<\/p>\n
Sorry to describe that so crassly, but everyone says this is how you are supposed to push, and I took their word for it. Jenny says I “pushed like a rock star.” By the time I was ready to push, I just wanted the whole thing to be over with, so I pushed as hard as I possibly could. Hence, I got little bruises (“petechiae”) all over my face, but they were worth it, even if it saved me only fifteen minutes!<\/p>\n
What didn’t work: waiting for “the urge to push.” I asked Jenny about this later, and she said that first-time moms often don’t feel the urge to push unless they wait for awhile. But I’m so glad she encouraged me to push when I did.<\/p>\n
That’s all I can remember right now! We’ll see what other tips I can come up with as Jon and I finish writing “the Labor Story.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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