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Men in simulated labor: good for them for gaining a new appreciation!


Halftime Hope
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Well done. The men gave it a go, the women weren't smug. The men looked very much like how women look when in labor.

 

Making them do it for more than two hours without a real reason (birth) would have been silly. It was clear that the lesson was well learned: labor is painful and women aren't faking it or being wimps about it.

 

Obviously, they can't simulate the entire thing, but they tried to give it as much of a go as they could.

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No vomiting? Or was that just me?

No broken bloodvessels in the cheeks? Or was that just me?

 

In one birth class, they had daddy put his arm in ice cold water and see how breathing, support, etc helped him keep it in the iciness longer.

 

My labor with ds was 73 hours. I threw up the last 14 hours - I was having coffee ground emesis by the end.

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My labor with ds was 73 hours. I threw up the last 14 hours - I was having coffee ground emesis by the end.

 

 

:svengo: I don't know how you long laborers did it! My first was 12 hours and was relatively easy after the epidural at hour four. My second was only 1.5 hours long from first contraction to me holding her. That one was drug free and I thought it was tough. I can't imagine it going on for days.

 

I liked the video and it looked they were really feeling a bit of what we go through.

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:svengo: I don't know how you long laborers did it! My first was 12 hours and was relatively easy after the epidural at hour four. My second was only 1.5 hours long from first contraction to me holding her. That one was drug free and I thought it was tough. I can't imagine it going on for days.

 

I liked the video and it looked they were really feeling a bit of what we go through.

 

Well, my first labor was very unusual and was because of all my health problems. My second labor was only 5 hours and I only pushed for 15 minutes and didn't puke once!

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Guest inoubliable

 

 

:svengo: I don't know how you long laborers did it! My first was 12 hours and was relatively easy after the epidural at hour four. My second was only 1.5 hours long from first contraction to me holding her. That one was drug free and I thought it was tough. I can't imagine it going on for days.

 

I liked the video and it looked they were really feeling a bit of what we go through.

 

My first was absolutely horrendous. I had my first just a month after my sister had HER first. I was present at hers. She was in labor for three hours, pushed for 20 mins and a big holiday ham popped out with no problems. Easy peasy nice and cheesy, right?

Oh no. Not my labor. 48 hours of hard labor. So much vomiting that the last six hours were just dry heaves on top of contractions. In the end there was a vacuum and forceps. And then (this is the way my mother and sister say it went down) they said, "He's tiny. He's going to the NICU. You can hold him tomorrow." and I said, "BS. Whatever. Fine by me." And my mother said something like "Oh, no woman every remembers after a few hours. You'll forget all about it." And my sister said my eyes turned all steely blue and my voice dropped an octave or two and I growled out, "Never again will I birth another child".

I didn't. C-sections for the last two.

*shudder*

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and I said, "BS. Whatever. Fine by me."

 

All I was thinking the last couple of hours were "Once this is done I can sleep." Then I had the baby and I realized that they wanted me to hold him. Dh took one look at my face and took the baby for awhile. I did cuddle and nursed him soon afterward but I did not have immediate loving feelings.

 

It took 4 years for dh to even consider putting me through that again. He was totally awake for all those hours. I was only semiconscious by the end and have blocked much of it out.

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Guest inoubliable

 

All I was thinking the last couple of hours were "Once this is done I can sleep." Then I had the baby and I realized that they wanted me to hold him. Dh took one look at my face and took the baby for awhile. I did cuddle and nursed him soon afterward but I did not have immediate loving feelings.

 

It took 4 years for dh to even consider putting me through that again. He was totally awake for all those hours. I was only semiconscious by the end and have blocked much of it out.

 

Thank you for sharing that. Really. Because I felt the same way and I've heard over and over how that makes me a terrible person and mother. I knew I couldn't have been the only woman who felt like that, though. Honestly, labor was just so rough for me and so not what I was expecting - I just didn't have anything left to give at the end. I also blacked out a few times during labor. At one point, my grandmother said she noticed my eyes had rolled back and I wasn't responding "right". The nurse told her that it was fine, my body knew what to do. Good thing. I think I'd given up close to the end. I just needed to sleep. It didn't help that DS was resuscitated and then whisked away immediately to the NICU for a collapsed lung and was kept there for 10 days for pneumonia. I couldn't hold him for two days.

 

The stories my mom and sister told DH about it scared him out of wanting to have a baby for years.

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I thought it was very interesting. I'd kind of like to be hooked up to the machine to see how it compares to the real thing. I doubt they can simulate the feeling of contractions as you approach transition and I think one of the men should have had the pads placed on his lower back to give a taste of back labor with a sunny side up baby. For me, that was a very different feeling. I think it would have been different if they hadn't told the men in advance how long it would last too. I can take just about anything a whole lot better if I know there's a time limit to it.

 

I think the midwives were so compassionate and patient with them. Those are the types of ladies I'd have appreciated when I was in labor.

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And this is why I am waiting to have another one...This is totally getting posted on my facebook page. It may not be a completely true representation of labor but at least one of the men made it two hours. My last labor was 20 hours, I would have loved a two hour labor. The way they were throwing themselves all around the bed, yea, that's me. I scream a lot louder though. :p

 

I think the midwives were so compassionate and patient with them. Those are the types of ladies I'd have appreciated when I was in labor.

 

The nurses I had the last time around were awesome like these ladies. I would love to see these type of women around for births for anyone that goes to the hospital out here.

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I understood te first time why people become drug addicts. I don't know what hormones kicked in right after the labor, but I have never in my life felt that good. It was supernatural extasy. I wish I could experience that again.

My first labor I blocked out of my mind. After 18 hours of it, ended up pushing for three more. I was lucky I didn't end up on the operating table.

Loved the video!

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Guest inoubliable

1. I don't think they should have known how long it would last.

 

2. At some point, they should have given them something to induce vomiting.

 

 

3. A good kick to the crotch afterwards, too.

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Yeah, a taste but not very representative of real birth. My first was 25 hours and the last 2 were having my cervix manually pushed back (med free!) because they let me push early and my cervix swelled. She was over 8#. But I love birth. It's treacherous during it, but I'd do it again in a heartbeat. Thank God for Hypnobabies! Got me through my 8 hour unassisted back labor.

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Eldest was okay. The cord was wrapped around his shoulder and he crowned for 2 hours.

 

Youngest was most NOT good. He got his directions wrong and tired to come out my leg. He ended up tearing up my insides pretty badly. But he was kind enough to take them with him on the way out. 16 stitches later they just put them back in. I still have pain and need physiotherapy and he is 7. He was named the Demon Child during the birth process. It's a good thing he was my last, because if he was my first he would have been an only.

 

But for a different perspective I know someone with 5 kids. All larger then average babies. She said she has yet to experience labor pain. For her she just pushed a bit and voila a baby.

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All I was thinking the last couple of hours were "Once this is done I can sleep." Then I had the baby and I realized that they wanted me to hold him. Dh took one look at my face and took the baby for awhile. I did cuddle and nursed him soon afterward but I did not have immediate loving feelings.

 

It took 4 years for dh to even consider putting me through that again. He was totally awake for all those hours. I was only semiconscious by the end and have blocked much of it out.

 

After Youngest was born they wanted me to hold him. Supposedly I was suppose to hold and snuggle them when they stitched up my insides and stuffed them back in. Um, no... I screamed that I was going to drop him and they took him back.

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Eldest was okay. The cord was wrapped around his shoulder and he crowned for 2 hours.

 

Youngest was most NOT good. He got his directions wrong and tired to come out my leg. He ended up tearing up my insides pretty badly. But he was kind enough to take them with him on the way out. 16 stitches later they just put them back in. I still have pain and need physiotherapy and he is 7. He was named the Demon Child during the birth process. It's a good thing he was my last, because if he was my first he would have been an only.

 

But for a different perspective I know someone with 5 kids. All larger then average babies. She said she has yet to experience labor pain. For her she just pushed a bit and voila a baby.

 

Sounds like my SIL. Didn't even know she was in labor until baby came out. Oh my. But she had the nerve to taunt me about that after my 4 difficult births. Let's just say karma was good the next time around for her. ;)

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I agree with pads on the back, not knowing how long it will last, and inducing vomiting. You can't really simulate the pushing, burning, tearing when the baby is actually coming out though.

 

Also, they shouldn't have gotten laughing gas.

 

My dh was laughing and cringing at the same time while watching it. He was cringing while watching me while I was in labor. After I had my first homebirth he said, "Wow, that looked like it really sucked."

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