Nervous for birth

Don’t induce if you don’t have too.., pitocin is the devil and the contractions with it are hell!! My first was induced and it was the worst pain in my life… second child was a breeeeze no induction and the contractions were way way easier.. was at 6cm and didn’t feel anything lol 😂

I def recommend the epidural if you are getting induced and if your pain tolerance isn’t good. 10000% take the opp if you can to get a massage or pedicure ect. Your world is about to change drastically… take a bath.. do what you can to relax!!! As there won’t be much relaxing once baby comes.

Be ready for changes in your birth plan. I had to be induced and due to my son’s heart rate dropping I had to have an emergency c-section. I had also not planned on getting an epidural but due to being induced I had to get one because the pain was awful.

Nothing is solid in your plan. Be ready for changes. And speak up or make sure your partner knows what you need/want to speak up if/when you can't. If you want any sort of pain medication make sure you are assertive about it. I was not and did the whole thing zero pain meds. Its do able but it definitely didn't make the experience one I'm psyched to do again. Also I counted down from 60 through as many contractions as I could then my husband took over. The practice itself helped me focus on something else.

The two things that got me through were 1. Trust your body, even if you did nothing, that baby would come out as your body knows what it’s doing 2. Just do one contraction at a time, don’t think I’ve got X amount of time. A contraction is just a minute and deep breathing really helps I laboured at home for 3 days and was 8cm when I finally went it and it was all fine. He was 9.2lb and still had no issues ♥️ you’ll do absolutely amazing, believe in yourself x

@Elizabeth thank you Elizabeth! I appreciate your kind words and you are right I forget that woman have been doing this and our bodies know what to do! 😊

@Kelsey thank you Kelsey for your advice! ☺️

@Desiree' hi Desiree! Definitely keeping an open mind, thank you! I know sometimes complications can arise and I just need to be ready to go with the flow.

@Julie gotcha thank you!! I definitely plan on the epidural and made it clear to OB that it’s something I want. As for being induced i plan on having everything as natural as I can but if I need to be induced for some medical reason I’m glad I still can get the epidural. And yes I agree! Prenatal massages for self care have helped so much! Thank you 😊

If you have to be induced with the foley bulb be ready for that to be painful. I had to have IV pain meds for that because it was bad. I was able to ask for the epidural first thing in the morning right after having my water broken so I didn’t feel very many contractions and actual birth was pain free thanks to the epidural. Idk if that is everyone’s experience with an epidural, but for me I felt nothing. Nurses had to tell me when I was having a contraction to push. Sending you all the easy, painless, healthy birth vibes 💕

When I got the foley ballon I didn’t have any pain other than my contractions. I did end up getting an epidural after my foley ballon came out though.

There's a lot of scary stuff online and people telling you different things. I was also anxious and none of the stuff that I was worked up about even mattered. I researched everything under the sun and had a detailed birth plan etc. Just focus on yourself when the time comes and take it one step at a time. The hospital staff are pros and will be able to guide you along the way depending on your situation. I hope everything goes smoothly for you as it did for me.

Really recommend the epidural. I didn’t feel any pain whatsoever (just pressure). I was on the hormonal drip as part of my induction which apparently is the worst of the worst as far as inductions go. However, I felt nothing because of the epidural Please don’t worry, you will be fine ❤️

Have you thought about having a doula? I had one for my second and it was so nice to have someone so experienced in childbirth that was kind and supportive.

You already have plenty of advice here. But if you can read a book before your due date, please read "Birthing from Within: An Extra-ordinary Guide to Childbirth Preparation" by Pam England and Rob Horowitz. I'm currently pregnant with my 3rd baby due in Nov. And I've referred to that book since my first! Both were natural, water births. No medical interventions of any kind. Giving birth and labor is a lot about mindset. This book is great for that! It has a good table of contents so that you can pick and choose which information best suits you! Please give it a read if you can! It's life changing!