ita, thanks to you I'm now know what the hell is going on (well, not really, but I know what it isn't) when I get the weird stress headaches that feel like someone tightened my scalp at the back of my head. I figured it was some weird muscle thing (and would ponder if unscrewing my head might work,) but no! It's right where all those ocipi... nerves are! I couldn't figure out how it could be muscles, because my neck and shoulders never hurt with those things. My scalp is just too tight and crampy.

What happens in labour if you don't try? They yell at you to push and stuff--what if you just fucking can't? Does that mean they have to do a caesarian to avoid bad stuff?

Your body's doing 80% of the work without you. Back in the day, they'd put women in twilight sleep, and they'd deliver.

There are some schools of childbirthing on the woowoo side that tell you not to push, as I recall.

Most women I know have really, really, really felt the need when the time came, though. It's physically not unlike feeling as if you really, really, really need to use the bathroom.

Sara, I bought Gray's Anatomy flash cards, and was starting on the neck and spine section, since that's most of my issues these days. But studying gave me a headache so I stopped.

Your body's doing 80% of the work without you

So you could just chill and then when the urge came over you, push? I also remember TV deliveries yelling at the chick to stop pushing, even if she felt like it.

So you could just chill and then when the urge came over you, push?

After they gave me my epidural (I was 7cm and 80% efaced), I went to sleep. Deep sleep. I slept all the way through transistion. Joe asked the nurse, "How will she know when to push if she's asleep?" The nurse told him, "Her body will tell her."

Sure enough, 10am I sat right up in bed, and announced, "I need to push." The nurse came in and yep. 10cm and fully effaced, baby at station negative one.

A friend of mine didn't even realize she was pushing until suddenly there was a baby in the tub with her. I didn't tell my SIL that, though. She's still not over the fact that the base hospital was waaay understaffed christmas eve and they didn't have a spare person to give her a epidural or any pain mgmt drugs.

A friend of mine didn't even realize she was pushing until suddenly there was a baby in the tub with her

I hope at least she knew she was pregnant. Otherwise, quite a scare.

We watched a video in my birthing class in which a woman delivering her 4th child suddenly yelled "It's pushing!" (meaning the uterus, presumably without her cooperation) and the baby came shooting out, like, shot from a cannon, as a nurse ran in to catch. We were all sort of stunned.

So you could just chill and then when the urge came over you, push? I also remember TV deliveries yelling at the chick to stop pushing, even if she felt like it.

My doctor was 15 minutes away from the hospital. The L&D nurse "suggested" I breathe through a few contractions until she got there to handle the last bit.

I didn't have a lot of coaching. I just did what felt natural and it all worked out well in the end.

What happens in labour if you don't try? They yell at you to push and stuff--what if you just fucking can't? Does that mean they have to do a caesarian to avoid bad stuff?

I couldn't push effectively with Ben, because of the epidural (I think). They had to use what I think is some sort of vacuum extractor--a big suction cup on the end of a (horizontally) pleated cylinder. I just remember the doctor saying, "We have to help her," which freaked me right out. My regular OB didn't deliver Ben. I just turned my head and closed my eyes, and pushed when they told me.

Considering she knew exactly where he was conceived (and kindly shared that with me. Joy. I'll never be able to go to that bar ever,) I think she was expecting the outcome.