Birthing Balls

Bargainbabe_2

Ha! It was the early stages of my labour that I had the ball. The ball and a tens machine. I did give it a good try out however it didn't benefit me at all. I suppose its not for everyone and we all have our own ways of getting through labour. I was in labour for 18 hours in total and the last 2 was the best. I couldn't feel anything thanks to the life saving epidural. Glad really as I had a ventouse delivery and was cut all the way up! :eek:

purplepurple

I tried tens and a ball for my first one.. loved the tens and hated the ball... used tens for my second one and it helped so much with the pain we only left the house 15 mins before my son was born! I think the trick with tens is to use it for a few weeks before your due date to get used to it... you can hire them quite cheaply and just buy new pads from boots.... but I'd say try anything... you never know what might work!

Crispy_Ambulance

these balls are great for your posture and can be really good to sit on in late pregnancy, as you have to sit up properly on them to stay balanced. They can be very useful in labour eg for circling your hips etc and you could also try leaning on it in labour as well. and afterwards, if you have stitches, it may be more comfortable to sit on the ball than on a hard chair for the first few days.

You need to make sure it is the right height for you and that it is strong enough not to burst on you while you are in labour!

carpool72

I used my ball a lot in the late stages of my last pregnancy and in early labour as it was really comfy to sit on. My friend's got it just now and I'm desperate to get it back already coz at 5 months my hips are complaining already about being sat on the sofa!

Karnam

i was told birthing balls are the same as gym balls and that size only matters if you're v short (under 5"2) or v tall.

mine was wonderful in early labour though.

Savvy_Sue

Just wondering: nothing to do with pregnancy but can you deflate these balls? I know they take a lot of air, but we've got a pump which runs off the car battery so not too much of a problem.

Only my back sometimes gives me grief, and when I did 'Active Back' classes at physio one of the things we did was sit and bounce on a gym ball, so I'm wondering about getting one of my own. Only I wouldn't want it up the whole time, not in a houseful of chaps!

Karnam

yea they deflate. at least my reebok one from argos does.

jellyhead

i used one in labour, it was a reebok one and i loved it. to begin with just sitting on it helped with the pain but later on i was kind of lying back on it, rotating my hips. much easier than standing up, i had a midwife who told me off for lying on the bed, she wanted me to stand the whole way through - eep! i liked the ball, the rocking chair was good too but i don't suppose you can take one of those in with you lol! put something absorbent onto the ball before you sit on it, or when your waters leak out you'll slip onto the floor!

callansdad

I used a Tens machine for about the first 22 hours of my first labour and although it helped me i didnt want to take it off, the pain was unbearable and i wasnt sure whether it was helping me as my labour progressed, it was really good for milder pains though. I used gas and air and when the Tens machine came off i got a shot of diamorphine, followed by another about 5 hours later. I couldnt bear to sit on the birthing ball this time, DS was lying back to back and the midwives were trying to encourage him to move but it was just too uncomfortable to sit up never mind bounce on a ball.

For my 2nd labour i sat on a birthing ball for about 8 hours. I liked it a lot but i did find that when i got to about 7cm with every contraction i felt so much pressure so i came off and went for a bath. The water was excellent for pain relief, i would highly recommend it. Later i had gas and air again and then my waters were broken just as i had a shot of morphine and my labour progressed extremely quickly after that and i felt like i was ready to push within minutes of my waters breaking. The drugs just started to kick in as my DD was pushed into the world.

I do think that if i went back for a third one i would spend most of my time in the water or i would get some drugs straight away

jellyhead

i wanted water but wasn't allowed because i was on a drip and continuing monitors. everyone who's tried water thinks it's great, but not everyone is 'allowed'. both my labours have been on a drip with the 2 tummy monitors on permanently - one was lying on the bed with epidural (didn't work) and um, novocaine i think it was. the second was on a ball on kneeling on the floor, bed for the pushing part and i only had gas and air. the second labour didn't hurt as much as the first - i never thought i could give birth using only gas but i did, i really think the ball helped. even if it's just because it gets you off the bed and stops you lying down. when it got too much for me on the ball i slid off and knelt on the floor, leaning on the bed. i think being upright and off the bed helped a lot.