Having had both a vaginal birth and a C-section I am in the position to be able to decide which is better and less painful. So, in the interest of science, I am going to call it, so that all the world will know. Ready?
If you are afraid of labor, then maybe you think you would prefer a C-section. Labor is nerve-wracking. I had an epidural both times, so the pain was manageable, but the length of time it takes and the fear of the unknown is stressful.
If you plan on an epidural, then labor is not so bad. Sure, the contractions hurt. And they come every 30 seconds or so at the end. And the epidural hurts for a minute. But during the actual pushing out of the baby, all you feel is pressure and tingling. How serious of a pain this is, depends on your personal pain threshold. Episiotomies are great, because they prevent tearing. And if you can get thru it without developing hemorrhoids, that is all the better for your recovery.
C-sections do not (DO NOT) eliminate the pain of delivery. They often do not eliminate the pain of labor either. I went thru labor and then still had an emergency C-Section. During a C-section (local anesthetic) you will feel tremendous pressure and tugging and the Dr. cuts thru 3 or 4 layers of your innards to get to the baby. It hurts. In my opinion, more than a vaginal birth.
Most importantly, after a C-section you are looking at weeks and weeks of recovery time. I am one week post-delivery and I do not think I will be 100% for a long time; I am probably 25% right now. With a vaginal birth, I would have been 80% recovered by this point.
So, for me, vaginal is the way to go. I think its less pain up front, but even if it was not, I would rather have more pain during the labor and delivery and a shorter recovery time.
According to one of the nurses I met at the hospital, C-sections are more and more common and I was in the majority among the my peers in the Mother Baby Unit that day. According to this article, voluntary C-sections are increasing. While this number includes those who do not attempt vaginal after a C-section (the VBAC), it still includes those who elect a C-section for their first delivery when not medically indicated. I don’t know any thing about the VBAC, but did read that it is not as risky as woman perceive it to be.
During one of my days at the hospital, a different OB from my medical group came by to check on me. He looked at my charts and noticed that I had delivered the twins vaginally. I said yes, and I was happier with my recovery then than I was now. He said that if he had been the one to deliver me then, he would have “done a C-section.” (not “recommended a C-section”) Bold statement, since its ultimately my decision whether to try for a vaginal or not. But, to be honest, if the Dr. had recommended a C back then, I probably would have said yes, out of ignorance. But now, I know better. I have read that vaginal births result in lower infant mortality, shorter recovery time, less chance of complications and infections. If the pain during delivery is greater for vaginal then C-section, so what. To be honest, I have forgot all about the pain of labor and delivery….but I am very aware of the pain in my abdomen today. Everyone is different, but I believe that if I had delivered vaginally, I would have less pain today.
So, the answer to my question is: Unless you have a medical reason for needing a C-section, I would say go for the vaginal. Its easier in the long run.
Aunt Bean said,
October 31, 2007 @ 12:21 pm
VBac is also not an option for all. You ,may not have been given the choice being that you are large uterused. I was told - and had it confirmed with Belaina - that my U was so thin around my old incision that the increased stress from labor on the incision may have caused it to spontaneously rupture and tear, resulting in a probable hysterectomy(sp?) I am just not that ready for menopause, so away we went! I am glad you confirmed that pain and discomfort is present with a C, because many V-moms think we are taking the “easy” way out. Good comparison and contrast paper! (oops, post…can’t shake the teacher out can you?!?)
Sherry said,
October 31, 2007 @ 2:47 pm
Thanks for all of you insiders info, BAGM! Its of no help to me now that my tubes are tied, but thanks anyways!
I had hours and hours of labor and then an emergency C with my son (almost 7 years ago). They think it was due to my tilted uterus. My doctor said another C would be best with my daughter (10 months ago). I agreed and went for it. So I have no experience with vaginal births. I do agree the recovery is not fun after Cs though. And if it was less with a vaginal I would probably go for that so that I could enjoy and take care of my baby more easily.
Of course I have had WAYYY more than my share of recovering since my daughter was born…
I was informed never to get pregnant again after my daughter because of how they had to cut my uterus to get her out. But! Before I could get my tubes tied (you have to wait 30 days in the US) I had an ectopic pregnancy which burst my tube and made me bleed internally. Surgery. Got that fixed. Went back to have my remaining my tube tied after my 30 day wait… all went well… was home 15 minutes and started bleeding internally from the surgery. Back to the hosp where they opened up my C scar once again to fix the bleeding, which they never found.
No fun.
Sherry said,
October 31, 2007 @ 2:47 pm
LOL Sorry for the book…. and sorry if this is TMI!!
Ruthie said,
November 1, 2007 @ 2:46 am
I totally agree. I’d choose vaginal over C-section any day. I’m still having issues with my incision from having the twins. Lots of scar tissue on the inside has been causing some pretty bad pain at times. Also, my incision right afterwards was draining fluid, so I had to pack a small hole with gauze for a couple of weeks. Not fun at all.
J said,
November 1, 2007 @ 6:54 pm
Have a coworker friend who has been having stomach pain/abdominal cramps. She was eating M0trin/Maal0x like crazy for several years. Docs narrowed it down to possible endometriosis; surgery indicated. Endo? NOPE! They opened her up and found c-sec scar adhesions from her c-sec 8 years ago had attached to various parts within her stomach. Yowza. C-sections are a big deal. You can’t be so cavalier about them, I’ve learned from this. It’s surgery, plain and simple. This is a risk I might not take. There’s so much to weigh when going into a pregnancy, including the exit strategy.
m'leigh said,
November 3, 2007 @ 10:43 pm
I don’t think C-section should be an option unless recommended by your doctor, , C-sections are for people who can’t have a natural vaginal birth or for those who have complications with delivery, not for people that think they need to fit having their baby into their busy schedules, C-section is not the easy way out as many would think, it’s a surgery that takes at least 6 weeks for recovery if there are no complications, let your baby be born when he/she was meant to be born. I’m all for the drugs take as many as you can, but at least once you’ve delivered your baby your up and walking around in no time instead of being pushed around in a wheel chair with a catheter. You probably think i’m one of those women who had an easy delivery but i’m not, it was very long and excruciating but I would take it over a C-section any day. Sorry it’s a topic that frustrates me.
leelee said,
May 9, 2008 @ 8:01 am
I have been told by my Dr. that I will have to have a c-section due to the baby being in a horizontal position. This is a big dissapointment to me. I have never given birth, but am sick of people making comments about how I won’t have to deal with things that happen in Labor. I don’t know what to say-I am totally in shock that anyone would take major surgery so lightly! I have read about the weeks of recovery from the c-section and like Sherry I would take cmore pain up front so that I wouldn’t miss out on the time with my daughter trying to recover.