# Compare your back labor and your "normal" labor for me please



## ashleep (Jul 20, 2004)

I had hard intense back labor for the entire labor with dd. It was really rough.

My MW said that their clients that experienced both were blown away by the relative ease of their "normal" labor compared to their back labor.

Did you find this to be true in your case?

TIA!


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## AbbieB (Mar 21, 2006)

Oh I really hope this is true. I had 3 days of back labor with DD. I thought it was really hard, and then at a 3 month check up my midwife admitted that I had a really rough, difficult labor. I didn't process it that way, so it was interesting to hear her perspective. In a lot of ways this has me jazzed up about this baby. It can't really be any worse!

Have you looked at the spinning babies website for some ways to try to avoid going through it again?


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## cottonwood (Nov 20, 2001)

For me it was much worse, but I'm not sure that what I experienced could even be characterized as normal back labor. It wasn't just feeling the contractions in my back -- I get the feeling that when some women describe their back labor, it's like they're talking about a back ache. I've had back aches, once so painful that I could hardly move without being in a fire of agony. But that's not what my back labor was like -- it felt like my back was literally being ripped apart. There is no way I could have gone through days of it -- I would have lost my mind.

I did have back labor, I guess, before that started up, but for me it was more like a band of cramping around me, both front and back, very much like what I experience with menstruation but more intense and wave-like. For me, that was comparatively enjoyable.


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## LiLStar (Jul 7, 2006)

: I never get tired of hearing back labor compared to "normal" labor. I hope to experience this so called "normal" labor and cant wait!


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## ashleep (Jul 20, 2004)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *fourlittlebirds* 
For me it was much worse, but I'm not sure that what I experienced could even be characterized as normal back labor. It wasn't just feeling the contractions in my back -- I get the feeling that when some women describe their back labor, it's like they're talking about a back ache. I've had back aches, once so painful that I could hardly move without being in a fire of agony. But that's not what my back labor was like -- it felt like my back was literally being ripped apart. There is no way I could have gone through days of it -- I would have lost my mind.


That's how mine was. It felt like five sharp knives were trying to come out of my back, right around my tailbone. The only slight relief I got was my dh applying counter-pressure as hard as he could (and he's a big guy). The very first contrax was back labor, and I automatically assumed the hands and knees position. It was the only position I could handle.

I feel like a first-timer because I have no idea what a 'normal' contraction feels like.


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## wombatclay (Sep 4, 2005)

I did hypnobabies for my vbac (32+ hours of back labor with dd1 ended in a c/s...I never got past 7cm) so I'm sure that played a part but...

The normal labor was amazingly "less" than the back labor. There were real live breaks between contractions, contractions had only one "peak", the birth tub was comfy instead of torturous, and I kept expecting things to get as "bad" as my first labor and it never did.

I'm not saying I'd want to spend 32 hours in "normal" labor either but compared to my back labor exprience my normal labor was cake.

Hope you have a perfectly normal birth...


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## applejuice (Oct 8, 2002)

My first and second were posterior; the second being posterior with deflexed head and ascynclical. Both excruciatingly painful, but at home with no interventions.

My third was easy; my DH thought I was hours from delivery when the midwife said this labor was different and suddenly my DS2 arrived after only four hours - I also felt the "ring of fire" sensation that women describe with the crowning; I never felt that before because I was in too much pain. I was still waiting for those horrible pains I remembered from the earlier labors later in the same day.

It actually made it hard for me to integrate the birth, the arrival of my new son, and the events of the whole day because the birth was so easy; after he was born, I was still waiting for the huge painful contractions to come. It was hard for me to believe I had a baby in a sense.

The contractions felt more like the energy rushes that I had read about at the Farm. Very little discomfort with that labor.

I went to a chiropractor the entire pregnancy...I like to think it helped.


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## Girlprof (Jun 11, 2007)

I had maybe 6-7 hours of back labor with my son. I managed to stay on top of most of the contractions and that made it survivable. I didn't manage for all of them - the ones I wasn't "on top of" were like that pain curse in Harry Potter. Really not survivable for very long. He turned when I was putting my shoes on to go to the hospital and I'm pretty sure I went through transition in the car. Which was an absolute breeze compared to what I'd just done. I hope to find out more about regular labor this time around. I understand you feel something in your stomach area?









Sarah


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## sunshine's mama (Mar 3, 2007)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *ashleep* 
That's how mine was. It felt like five sharp knives were trying to come out of my back, right around my tailbone. The only slight relief I got was my dh applying counter-pressure as hard as he could (and he's a big guy). The very first contrax was back labor, and I automatically assumed the hands and knees position. It was the only position I could handle.

I feel like a first-timer because I have no idea what a 'normal' contraction feels like.









This is exactly what my labor with dd 3 years ago felt like.....

The minute he would lift his hand up the pain would be immediate.....I joked that he needed to stand on it if only I could hold him up on my hands and knees.....

I am hoping this time is alot easier.....I had a long prodormal and then I wakled around at 5cm 90% for almost a month with my posterier sweetie (who started to turn a bit too late and ended up with dystocia) and so far, this baby isn't posterier but who knows......

I would like what my friends call normal labor.....they always tell me, "you can't do anything the easy way can you??" lol


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## pookel (May 6, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *fourlittlebirds* 
But that's not what my back labor was like -- it felt like my back was literally being ripped apart. There is no way I could have gone through days of it -- I would have lost my mind.

That's about how it was for me. Unfortunately, it ended in a c-section and now I'm having scheduled repeat c-sections, so I may never find out what "normal" labor is like.







:


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## kerikadi (Nov 22, 2001)

Two of my five babies were posterior and I had back labor with both.
Fortunately they were both homebirths so I was able to crawl around, sit on a ball, shower and get in the tub at will. My first back labor, #3 is my best labor and delivery as far as pain and relaxation, really everything. She turned right after mt water broke while sitting on a birth stool and was born anterior with compound presentation.

My other was #5 and it wasn't that bad I just had DH squeezing my hips together and pushing on my back with his head like these pictures. The first picture is during a contraction on the birth stool.

http://s184.photobucket.com/albums/x...backlabor1.jpg
http://s184.photobucket.com/albums/x...backlabor2.jpg
http://s184.photobucket.com/albums/x...backlabor3.jpg

Being on all 4s and having water poured over my back was great too.

http://s184.photobucket.com/albums/x...backlabor4.jpg
http://s184.photobucket.com/albums/x...backlabor5.jpg

I know that posterior babies and back labor can be very painful but it's not a for sure thing. I spent too much time worrying about it with #5. I saw the chiro regularly to first turn her vertex and then anterior. She did turn vertex but even with exercises and the Webster technique she stayed posterior until I was in the tub on hands and knees.

Both my babies turned less than 15 minutes before they were born and both labors were 6 hours with 10 minutes of pushing.

My posterior labors were not more painful, just different. However if I had been in a hospital on a bed I would have been miserable.

Good luck,
Keri


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## Seie (Jun 9, 2005)

No. In my case it wasnt true.

My third baby was military vertex, and the contractions were different from my other labors in that the pain was more in the hips/back than in the front. I had these ctx from around the time when I was complete and another 9 hours before I had the water broken in hospital. And it was a trial - no doubt about it - but it was do-able. The real excrutiating, torture-like pain didnt begin till I had my water broken in a final attempt to make baby move down.
It was the same experience I had from my first labor where baby was in a normal position (but marathon labor)
The real torture began when they broke the water - just like third labor.

In my completely uncomplicated second (home)birth the water broke as baby was moving down and that was a huge relief - not at all to be compared with having the membranes ruptured before they were ready to break.


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