What was your experience of childbirth ?

I was really lucky - the NCT were helpful in advising that I didn't have to go to the nearest hospital, which back then was the worst in the country for midwife ratios - 1 to every 40 women! I had a lovely water birth at a midwife run unit, own ensuite room etc, although the gas and air didn't work properly as the pipe was broken! Second time around, went into labour so returned to the same place but as it was 4 weeks before due date, we had to go to a "proper maternity ward". This ended up as an emergency C-section as he was upside down.

I clearly remember a well-meaning nurse squeezing my hand on the way to theatre, saying "You're doing really well Sandra" - I'm not Sandra, but was in a slight state of shock that things were going differently to what I'd hoped/expected, so just said nothing!!

My first baby was small for dates DD born at one of the big London hospitals in the late 60's I was well cared for but never had any explanation of what was happening or why she was small. I believe I was one of the first people to have a scan at Queen Charlottes, I was taken in an ambulance and had the strange sensation of seeing DD on screen.
DD2 was in a small local hospital, she arrived on her due date, quickly and easily and I think lulled me into a false sense of security, unfortunately the birth of my DS two and half years later, was prolonged, 8 weeks in hospital beforehand, and distressing with an awful midwife at the end. I cannot write more about it as it has affected me more than I would wish.

I was booked into the small GP maternity unit ( a small bungalow) I was in Labour 3 hours, no pain meds. All was fine. MzOops was 2 weeks overdue. I was in there for 48 hours and had an ambulance to get me home! Those were the days.

For MissOops I was booked into the maternity unit again but after my waters broke at home out she popped, she was late, but the placenta broke up and shot her out, no Labour pains so pain meds not needed.

It wasn’t without its problems immediately afterwards, but she was fine, I was in my own bed and the GP and Midwife were both very close by and we’re brilliant.

I wouldn’t recommend my second birth ‘plan’ to anyone though.

Were not we’re, another word the ipad doesn’t like.

Late 70s, U.K. hospital, forceps delivery with epidural, I had no complaints. Was grateful for expert obstetric intervention. In for a week.

Early 80s, hospital again, but Middle East this time. Forceps and no complaints again. Only 4 days that time - the British matron apologised for kicking me out early because there were local women who (she thought) didn’t know how to look after themselves, or didn’t have e.g. the means, like running water on tap. I shared a room with one such (it was a converted hotel) and gathered that she was a Bedouin, still apparently in the clothes she’d arrived in.

She evidently thought I was a clueless mother - just before I left she took my baby (wrapped in a shawl) from me, saying, ‘Laa, laa, laa!’ (No, no, no!) and re-wrapped her in a very tight swaddling fashion, like a tiny little mummy!

I was I labour with our first child for more than 36 hours. I was in hospital most of that time and progress was slow. I can hear the Irish midwife telling me to ease off on the has and air as she didn't want me away with the fairies! Then everything ground to a halt. I remember the dr coming in and saying that if I'd not given birth by a particular time, about 30 minutes later, i'd have to have a cesarean & I was willing the time to go quickly. Of course, it was an emergency by then so I had the full works and our DD was safely delivered 38 years ago. 2 years later, the obstetrician allowed me a very brief "trial of labour" after which DS was also born by C section. The first experience was pretty traumatic but the second not so much and the staff were very kind and sympathetic.

I was playing cards with my hubby in hospital at 9.30 and had a baby by 12.20pm no labour or pain a planned caesarian under general anesthetic brilliant!

1982 Breech birth. Caesarean would be automatic now but not then although in the last stages a female doctor did threaten me that, if I didn’t get the baby out quickly, I’d have to have an emergency caesarean. At some point my husband was kicked out and not invited back for the birth or told for some time that he had a son. Also had a row of students watching at some point although by then I was beyond caring. I also, as a result and for other reasons, have only one child. Our experiences are determined by the times into which we’re born. I imagine a breech birth would be better handled now but way back maybe I and/or my son might not have survived.

exactly the same for me-both times

4 C-sections due to a fused spine so the pelvis under strain might have torn it apart. The first was a shock to the system as I wasn't expecting it to be as painful as it was. In my innocence I thought, no labour, no pain! The last 3 were fine because I knew what I was in for pain wise and was able to use mind over matter a lot more.
I couldn't complain about the care for the first three confinements but the last one was absolutely dire. It is the first time I have ever told the hospital I was discharging myself. There were signs on the wall that said that the babies weren't the patients and we were expected to look after them. Unable to move after the op? Tough luck, we'll put baby in bed with you. On morphine so worried that the baby will roll out whilst I am comatose? We'll put the sides of the bed up. Mum vomiting? No problem, baby won't worry about that. He's yours so look after him. Why aren't you asking for pain relief? Because all the advice says don't sleep with baby if you have been drinking or using drugs! IT WAS DIRE!
Fortunately, because of my insistence on going home I was moved to a mother and baby unit and treated so well with all the help I needed with service which was akin to the best hotel. I was so grateful. They also ascertained that baby's weight had been recorded wrongly at the hospital so he hadn't lost half his birth weight in 3 days!

My experiences are of the doctors and midwife standing at the foot of the bed and me being left to get on with it; OH was watching TV in the relatives room and didn't put in an. appearance until the. event was over asking, and I quote him, "has she had it yet and what is it?"
Being birthing partner for my daughter showed how far things have come since,

Awful for both ☹️.

Reading other experiences, I feel very lucky that both my deliveries were only a couple of hours. I had gas and air for both but I kept forgetting to use it as it didn’t seem to do much and made me feel a bit nauseous. Both my boys were early, born at 36 weeks and 34 weeks. Both stayed in the SCBU for 10 days but I was allowed to stay in hospital with them. I lost my mum 2 years before my first son was born so I had no one close to ask for help. The time in hospital was beneficial to me to learn how to bath and handle my son but I have to say I found it came very easily and I loved every moment.

My first was 2.5 hours and my second 1 hour only just made it to hospital but no problems during the pregnancies.
Both my girls have had their own now all grandsons aged 3.5 years, 5 months and 2months but both girls had pre eclampsia, one whizzed into surgery immediately after giving birth and the other had an emergency c section at 29 weeks. Stressful for me as well as them!

OOOOOw it brings it all back, foetal distress and mismanaged are two phrases that sum it all up, the air was blue during the delivery! Son arrived eventually but with very low Apgar scores. A day later I was told by the pediatrician that my son may have sustained brain damage during the birth they wouldn't know to what extent until later on. This was all in Hong Kong in the 1990s. Luckily son met his developmental milestones and has flourished with just some Aspergers and dysgraphia so show for it. I do wonder if that is a result of genes or birth trauma, I will never know. We deal the hand we are dealt and have to live by those choices. Needless to say we also only had the one child.

Not so bad that I didn't do it again, even if I did spend most of my pregnancy in hospital!!
Then, when I did do it again, I had a similar experience with the hospital stays, and then afterwards (when youngest was about 12 months old) I had to stay in for nigh on 2 months!!
And I still wanted another a few years later, but mother nature decided 2 was enough for me!

48 hour start-stop labour starting with waters breaking at 4am Sat morning (I thought I'd wet myself!). Eventually given something to get the labour going properly. I supposed all that was bearable, but what sticks in my mind was that I tore, and had to be stitched up. Ah OK you probably think, except that it was a male student who did the stitching and his embroidery skills were somewhat lacking, as the midwife in charge looked over his shoulder, told him he'd done it wrong, to unpick it all and do it again!!

I’ve only had one, my DS. 2 hours in the first phase of Labour, 40 minutes in the second stage.

There wasn’t enough time to discuss pain relief.

All went smoothly but breastfeeding was painful. I soldiered on breastfeeding for 7 months, then he was on the bottle after that.

First- horror show - 6 hours screaming induced agony .
2nd - 10lbs- face up- at home
3rd - 8 lbs at home- arrived in 33 minutes - nearly had her on the stairs !

Ditto Daisymae, don't even want to start thinking about it, too many horrendous memories but did result in a lovely son, could not have asked for better.

My first was a 15 hr labour -not allowed to get out of bed- with pethidine and an episiotomy. My second 20 months later was 2 3/4 hrs walking around and no pain relief

1st DD
I told nurse I wanted an epidural, 'like Cills Black had' nearly 50 years ago. She said yes if they could find a consultant. So had it and was ok. 2DD. Miles away from hosp got there in 2 hours, born an hour later but can't remember anything at all about the birth.

Very traumatic experiences particularly the second one with twins. The first was a very long labour and then an emergency c-section. The second time I was expecting twins and it was to be a planned c-section by epidural. However my blood pressure had gone up a bit when the twins were about 35 weeks and I had begun to feel unwell - I couldn’t sleep and just felt irritable and then felt contractions. So I was admitted for a section on a Friday evening and given an epidural. During the operation I started feeling the most awful pain where I had been cut. Somehow I was doing breathing for the pain and couldn’t call out to anyone but my husband who was beside my head could see that I was in huge pain and said this to the anaesthetist. Suddenly everyone started into action. My husband was taken out and I was given a general anaesthetic. I didn’t really know what was going on for the next couple of days and drifted in and out of consciousness. My parents were called in to say that I might die. I had turned yellow and all my organs were shutting down. The twin boys were fine -6lb 10oz and 5lb 11oz. Eventually another consultant physician arrived and said to stop all pain killing medication because I had had a very rare type of pre eclampsia which was difficult to diagnose and drugs were damaging my liver. So I used a tens machine for the section pain and gradually my body started coming back to normal. I was very weak and in hospital for 10 days. The nurses were wonderful and the paediatrician did not allow the babies to be bottle fed so that I could breast feed them when I was strong enough. Before I left one of the nurses said that none of them wanted to see me back to have anymore babies because I had been so close to dying! It was a very long time before I got over the trauma of the c-section and I often wondered if having a locus anaesthetist and lack of consultant at the weekend had something to do with the experience.

I felt very lonely my husband was a long distance lorry driver so he was always away when all of mine 3 were born and it was in the days when only husbands could be present a the birth

I consider myself very lucky, my first baby was born in hospital after a 2 and a half hour labour. I was already in hospital as my blood pressure had risen, I slept through an hour of the labour as well. He weighed just under 9lb - I was only 8 stone before I had him. My second was 3 weeks premature and only weighed 7 and a half lb, she took an hour and a quarter from start to finish. Hospital staff were wonderful both times. My M the door and they laid me on the first bed where my daughter weighed in at 8 and a half pounds after just 45 minutes labour, again the staff were wonderful. My final baby was born in a city hospital where the staff were a bit distant but efficient. She weighed in at 8 lb 5, after a 3 and a half hours labour ( that was a long one!!). after 24 hours they sent me back to the cottage hospital where I stayed another 11 days so that I didn't get home before the other kids were back at school. The food was so good there I put weight on before I left!

To top it all, my first baby went through the night at 3 weeks, the second 4 weeks, the third 2 weeks and the last 6 weeks. So all in all having babies was a breeze for me which is why I consider myself very lucky indeed.