Pregnancy & Childbirth

» Brenda Lane - "sharing my story"

Wow what a story and how beautifully written.

I do wonder if patterns of labor continue from mother to daughter because I often see it.

Here is my take on a few of your questions.

Some women just need to labor for long periods of time. Either contractions are just not effective, hormones are not strong enough, baby is not in a favorable position, etc..

When your daughter is have long periods of early or prodromal labor as you did, the best strategy is to rest, eat, drink and conserve energy. Also long showers, tub baths, massages and even acupuncture can be tremendously helpful. Interesting is that with all of these methods, stress hormones are reduced and labor tends to quiet down a bit - which is nice for the mother. Sometimes getting into a relaxed state can ultimately cause labor to start to pick back up in earnest after the mother has rested more and is not so drained.

Not everyone gets regular predictable contractions. Your daughter's labor is what it is and is IS working! The urge to push comes more likely with the descent of the baby's head rather than dilation. Which is why a baby at a low station can cause a mother to want to push at 6cm, and a baby high in the mother's pelvis may cause no urge at 10cm. I have seen mother not be able to control the urge to push and the dilate very quickly. I have seen others struggle like you did and need pain medication to control the urge to push when their cervix was not fully dilated.

There are still monitors for the baby's heartbeat, however the intensity of contractions is best measured by your daughter (or the mother in labor) It's very discouraging that classes do not teach breathing anymore. Your daughter can use a simple, slow rhythmic deep breathing like this:

Deep cleansing breath (in thru nose and out thru mouth)
Continue breathing slowly, breathing in to a count of 3-4 seconds - inhale thru nose, exhale thru your mouth
Continue throughout the contraction
End with a cleansing breath.

Encourage your daughter to rest. Tell her that her labor is normal and that her body is doing what it needs to do in its own time and in its own way.

Brenda