Reddit reviews Natural Childbirth the Bradley Way

First-timer here who's hoping to go without pain meds. Here's my plan, loosely based on things I've picked up from reading Ina May's guide to childbirth and some Bradley Method books.

1. Avoid an induction if at all possible, i.e. let my body begin labor when it is ready to.
   
   
2. Labor at home for as long as possible. (Keep in mind, I live five minutes from the hospital. If you live farther away or might run into traffic, take note of what others have said here about how much it sucks to labor in the car.)
   
   
3. Change positions as needed. Know what positions are helpful in what circumstances (such as all fours to help ease back labor). There was a helpful one-page document posted here a few days ago about labor positions, but I'm having trouble locating it. If I find it, I'll update this post with a link. Try out other things like laboring in the shower or on the toilet, too. I really don't think there is one single perfect position for each woman to use the entire labor - I think it will help to move around into different positions as things progress.
   
   
4. Think of the pain as "work." As in, this is my body working to get my baby delivered. Don't be scared of it; know that it's happening for a reason. Prior to labor starting, read about what the uterus and cervix are doing during contractions, and what to expect as far as how the contractions will change in timing/strength and how your mental/emotional state will change throughout labor. I've been finding the information in Natural Childbirth the Bradley Way really helpful for this. Not only does it go into how the uterine muscles work to dilate the cervix, but it also goes through the "emotional signposts" of labor so that you can know in advance how you might feel at each stage.
   
   
5. Focus on relaxing through the pain. This goes hand in hand with number 4. I think that if I tense up and fight the pain, it will make the whole process take longer, so I'm going to focus on relaxing into it. That is totally not a natural reaction to pain in humans, so this is the one that I'm most unsure I'll be able to do properly when the time comes! This is one area where I still feel unprepared at this time. I think the biggest key will be breathing. I'm not planning to do the Lamaze-style breathing, because I think it will make me tense. Instead, I'm going to try for deep, slow abdominal breathing.
   
   
6. Labor support - if you can get a doula you like and feel comfortable with, I'd do it. If you have an SO who will be there with you, encourage him or her to prepare for the labor and birth alongside you, learning the same things about what your body will be doing and how you might feel. They can also learn some techniques for helping you, like backrubs and counterpressure.
   
   
7. Don't start "working" until you have to. Early labor can take a long time, and I think if you're intensely focused on "holy crap, I'm in labor!" that entire time, it can really wear you out and increase your feelings of "I've been doing this forever, I can't take it any more!" later on in labor. I'm planning to have a bunch of other stuff I can do/focus on in the beginning, such as: painting my nails, coloring in a coloring book like this one, watching a movie, watching ASMR videos on YouTube, going for a walk, baking cookies, playing with my dogs, and playing cards and board games with my husband.
   
   
8. Try to get a care provider who is on board with your unmedicated birth goal. I'm still working on this myself! I currently have an OB, and I don't think she is really on the same page as me with regard to my desire to not use pain meds. I'm interviewing a midwife this week to see if I can find a better fit there. Either way, talk to your care provider beforehand and explain your goal. I'd present it as, "this is what I am hoping to do; I know things can change in the moment, but my goal is to avoid using pain meds." I'm also putting together a one-page birth plan, and in it, I ask the staff to please not offer me pain medicine; I will ask for it if I want it.
   
   If you can't tell, I've been thinking about this a lot, too! I hope there is some useful info for you in what I've rambled about here, and good luck for your upcoming birth!

That book is crap because it IS ancient and sexist. Bradley isn't wrong, but he's not from 'our time' so the way he explains it is degrading. Getting a book written for us is far more beneficial.

Get this one: http://www.amazon.com/Natural-Childbirth-Bradley-Way-Revised/dp/0452276594/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1373065618&sr=8-1&keywords=susan+mccutcheon#

I actually didn't even have my husband read it. I read it and relayed the important bits to my husband, and I found it extremely helpful.

Vague feelings of peace or calm are the most I ever got aside from frisson while singing or hearing hymns.

I can duplicate the calm via meditation upon nothing but focusing on my breaths, so certainly peace or calm aren't unique to religious confirmation of truth either. I view meditation as a much more powerful tool than prayer ever was for me, I used a meditative method to go through childbirth without medication. I had a nine pound baby and only seven hours of labor and only at the very end did I feel like I was getting overwhelmed. That method of childbirth actually teaches that when this occurs, it actually means the mother is very near to being finished with labor, which I immediately saw and got a second wind from it, my daughter was born moments later. It was the Bradley Method, if any one is curious. I found it simple enough that I bought a book on it, read it and used it.

The frisson is duplicated for me across genres though. I get frisson from listening to Tool or Infected Mushroom, so frisson certainly can't be some sort of spiritual confirmation that the message of the music is true.

My midwife made me read this book:

http://www.amazon.com/Natural-Childbirth-Bradley-Way-Revised/dp/0452276594

And take a birth class. The class was pretty much just the book in verbal form, with a few extra videos, meditations, and stretches.

As long as you are curious to learn, and believe in yourself, you will have no problem getting all the info. you need!

It's good to get info. from multiple sources too. I really like the Bradley mindset, but a lot of what I was taught was pretty heavily anti-hospital /anti-intervention. I ended up with an emergency C-Section, and I had a really supportive hospital experience, which surprised me because of the messages I had been receiving.

Best of luck! :-)

Came here to recommend Penny Simkin's The Birth Partner and Ina May Gaskin's Guide to Childbirth (already recommended) along with Natural Childbirth the Bradley Way.

I think you'll be in good shape with just the books! I'm reading Susan McCutcheon's Bradley Method book and highly recommend it. It's very informative, has good diagrams, and includes the "exercises" you can practice with your husband/coach. I've really learned a lot reading it.

If anything comes up in the classes that isn't covered in the book, I'll let you know!

For actual pregnancy, I loved the American college of obstetrics and gynecology's book and I know a lot of people loved the mayo clinic book.


Planning for Pregnancy, Birth And Beyond: Second Revised Edition https://www.amazon.com/dp/0525941401/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_PLZHAbPZ6V85C


Mayo Clinic Guide to a Healthy Pregnancy: From Doctors Who Are Parents, Too! https://www.amazon.com/dp/1561487171/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_tMZHAbRTF0RMQ


I also read what to expect when your expecting but it was a lot of the same info in my apps, except the actual birth and labor part. There was some helpful stuff in there!


For laboring I read Ina May's guide to Childbirth and I LOVED it. I feel SO prepared after reading it!


Ina May's Guide to Childbirth https://www.amazon.com/dp/0553381156/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_VNZHAbQ7T2S9D


I tried to read

Natural Childbirth the Bradley Way https://www.amazon.com/dp/0452276594/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_HOZHAbRC89D39


But I couldn't take it seriously!


And for breastfeeding I read


The American Academy of Pediatrics New Mother's Guide to Breastfeeding (Revised Edition): Completely Revised and Updated Third Edition https://www.amazon.com/dp/0399181989/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_9PZHAbSMPXVX9


And for baby feeding and sleeping I read


On Becoming Baby Wise: Giving Your Infant the Gift of Nighttime Sleep https://www.amazon.com/dp/1932740139/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_JQZHAbS5P7824

How far is she along? You could look into the bradley method of giving birth, and one of the books, Natural Childbirth the Bradley Way is very good, and might convince you and your friend to sign up for the classes.

The bradley method places a lot of importance on the coach, or the birth-partner. You will be actively able to assist her in having a smooth delivery.

STM here. I read a lot of the Bradley Method.

And then I didn't and wouldn't go into labor naturally... Lol.

Any book that teaches you methods of relaxation and acceptance of the pain with your partner (if you have one) is good. Try to focus the contractions into progress instead of just dealing with pain and waiting for it to be over. Easier said than done when transition hits I hear. I had an epidural by then.

I will agree with the Ina May Gaskin suggestion as a way to hear stories about thinking of birth as a natural life event and read the stories to help you, but in the end, you have no idea what is going to happen!

The Bradley book has a lot of diagrams. Diagrams are cool.

I had a natural birth in a hospital. I think as long as you go in there knowing exactly what you want and your husband is on the same page so he can be your advocate when you can't do it yourself you will get everything you need.

I decided to use the Bradley Method (husband coached childbirth) for my labor. I really think it helped, I didn't take the classes but I bought 2 books about it. I felt prepared with the information I had.

As soon as I went in I made it known to everyone what I wanted. No meds, intermittent monitoring and necessary staff only. Literally the only person I saw the whole time was my nurse every couple hours. My water broke before I got to the hospital but no contractions, they literally walked in with pitocin and if I didn't know any better I would have let them give it to me! I told them I didn't want it, the doctor let me know that was ok but if by midnight I didn't start contracting I had to or baby was at risk. Luckily by 7pm everything got going on its own, I labored for 12 hours in the dark with my husband by my side and only saw any other hospital staff when I pushed, as soon as my baby was born everyone left the room and we got 2 hours together alone to nurse and get some rest.

The Birth Partner is a good one. It is aimed at the partner regardless of gender.

The Bradley Method is another good one and is more heteronormative (written with the heterosexual male husband as the primary audience).

We're a gay/trans couple, so both of these books are a bit of a mindfuck for us, but the information in them is great! I'm still looking for a book that provides all the necessary information without couching it in gender(roles/stereotypes) or mainstream relationships (almost all are written for married hetero couples). The problem with birth and parenting books is they are written in this weird way-- like in the second person with huge assumptions about the reader being written into the text.

I have an awesome intro to weightlifting book that assumes absolutely nothing about the life of the reader. It manages to provide excellent info about beginning barbell training for anybody who wants to learn it. I don't know why birth and parenting books can't be written the same way...

Yes, I would recommend the book. For me it was very informative about pregnancy, labor, and medications. It is biased on having a natural birth, but like I said, it explains all the other options.

http://smile.amazon.com/Natural-Childbirth-Bradley-Way-Revised/dp/0452276594

Ina May's Guide to Childbirth and Natural Childbirth the Bradley Way have been two fantastic resources for me. I highly recommend them if you're more into the natural side of childbirth, and I even found them to be a great prep for what's to come even though I haven't really made my mind up about natural vs. ... whatever else happens that day lol. But I felt that they gave a more accurate (and positive) description of what birth is like than any other source I've read so far.

EDIT: for links

Not sure what your birthing plans are, but I'd check out the Bradley Method. Amazon link.

My hospital offered a deal where you can do the 5-week childbirth class, the one-time newborn care class, and the one-time breastfeeding class for $90.

There's also an organization here called Healthy Start that offers free classes. We're doing the free childbirth class now, and will take a combo of breastfeeding/newborn care in August.

The downside of these classes is you don't get the specialized methods you would get from a private instructor, like Bradley or hypnobabies. The class we're in has been very general, although still helpful... mainly because the instructor is very familiar with the hospital where I'm delivering, so she has given us a lot of hospital-specific tips.

EDIT: I'm also going for natural, and this book was recommended to me. The pictures are pretty dated, but so far I do like the content!

The classes are actually less helpful than you would think. It's more piece of mind for my wife. I put the website below for more info. You can gain most of the information from the internet.

Bradley website
http://www.bradleybirth.com/

Really good book. I have like a thousand bookmarks on various pages. It goes through what you will be going through, how your boyfriend will be able to tell what you are feeling and what he should be doing to make you more comforatble and be more supportive. I highly recommend this one.
http://www.amazon.com/Natural-Childbirth-Bradley-Way-Revised/dp/0452276594

Good luck and congrats!

Congratulations! It weird...there's a bond between BOTL and there's a bond between fathers that make us celebrate with people we've never met face to face! I'm seriously thrilled for you!

My wife and I have a 16-month old girl and it is worth everything you have to go through to get there. The fears and frustrations and pains and changes are nothing compared to the end goal.

Advice:

• Celebrate your woman. She will go through stages of feeling fat and ugly to feeling a new type of sexy. Make a big deal out of her starting now. It's amazing what she's capable of doing and worthy of partying about.
  
  
• Learn about what she's going through now and will be going through then. Obviously you can't experience it from her perspective but that doesn't give us an out. There are loads of great resources. I highly recommend this book, even if you guys are not going to do a natural birth.
  
  
• Fight over names. There are 1,001 books with 1,001 names and most of them suck. Fight for a name that's meaningful and won't get their lunch money taken by a bully.
  
  
• Love every moment of it. You're moving towards one of those life changing encounters at a solid 60 minutes per hour. Relish it.
  
  Again, congratulations!
  
  Oh...and buy one of those stupid baby wipe warmers. They're not nearly as dumb as they sound. Imagine you're changing your (almost) sleeping baby in the middle of the night and you're thinking you're going to make it without waking the baby. Then the chill of wipe touches that little tush. It's all over. I ran out and bought one in the middle of the first night.