PI/SPD sufferers birth stories?

[Little Crow]

I have been really unsure how i will cope with labour this time around and was hoping to hear how others with PI/SPD coped with their labour and birth.

I am at home on bedrest now. I'm 29wks. I have a walking stick, belt, and i go to hydro twice a week. I am going to order some SRC shorts next payday. I've been looking on ebay but cant find any in a size XS :(

I'd really like to be induced early, so i'll be talking to my docs about that on Monday. The thought of an epidural scares me, but i guess it will probably be necessary this time.

Any advice??


*Sent from the couch* (via my iPhone)

[BlissedOut]

I had severe SPD, but had a c-section.

A few of the mummies in my birth month group here had babies naturally with SPD (no epi), I'll post a link to this to them.

[MummyoftheMuffins]

I had a natural birth with my third daughter in April after suffering SPD from about 18 weeks onwards. My labour and birth, compared to my first VBAC with my second daughter was completely different and alot more painful. Because of my pelvic instability bub was fully engaged from about 30 weeks onwards, and during labour she sunk extremely low into my pelvis. This caused my labour pains to be more in my lower back and bottom. I couldn't sit during labour as her head was so far down, but I wouldn't say that the SPD would have stopped me from having a natural birth. I had another drug free labour, although i found the hot shower to be a godsend!! I was more upset at the fact that i went into labour at about 8pm, and didn't have her until 7am the next morning...no sleep and not being able to sit down during my entire labour really sucked. I felt like i couldn't hold myself up anymore as i was so tired.

Sorry if i haven't helped much... I would discuss all options with your doctors etc, just to see what they recommend in terms of pain relief etc during labour. Hopefully your labour and birth are a little less painful than mine was... Bottom pain is horrible!!

[Livvey]

I had SPD while pregnant with DS2 from about 16 weeks. While i wasn't on crutches or bed rest i was lucky that DS1 was sleeping in the afternoons for around 3 hours so i got to rest up then. I would find that on days when i was on my feet a lot i would be in agony by the afternoon and struggle to walk around. I saw the physio twice a week too, and had a belt to wear also.

When i went into labour, i found rocking my hips helped the pain, which on an ordinary day with SPD would have been agony. When your body goes into labour it releases all these blissed out hormones that help your ligaments relax, which i wasn't too sure about before i was in labour, but once i was there i understood it. I also found that once labour was fully established i could no longer really tell the difference between the SPD pain and contractions. I birthed in water, no pain relief (didn't really need it in the water) and it was just lovely. I honestly don't think that having SPD lessened my chances of having a natural birth. I had a wonderfully supportive midwife, she actually told me it would be less stress on my SPD to have a natural birth with no epi as i could get up moving straight away (where as when you're still for a long time with SPD the pain gets worse, like laying in bed). Read up as much as you can on epi and SPD before you go to see your care provider....if you're at all uncomfortable with it speak up!

I should also add that after the birth, it was only a matter of days before the SPD pain went away, had absolutely no trouble walking straight away, the only problem i had was sleeping position and getting out of bed, but as i said befoer, it was only a day or two then it was gone.

This is only my opinion, from my own experience. Having been there now, i am really glad i gave my own body a chance to do it without the SPD getting the better of it. I was so scared i'd end up with a c/section and an epi, but the more i read and spoke to my midwife about it the better i felt.

Good luck, SPD is a horrible thing to deal with :hugs:

[BlissedOut]

It's also not recommended that you birth on your back, especially with SPD. Having an epidural I assume would mean you would need to birth on your back, so it's actually probably a thing to avoid.

[MummyoftheMuffins]

I should add as well that my pain also went away within the first few days after having her... The only real issue i had that took a few weeks was the instability in my pelvis... During pregnancy i couldn't lift one leg off the ground and stand on the other, i always had to sit first, and even then i struggled to lift one leg. The pain wasn't there after the birth but the instability was still there for at least three weeks or so, but it got better and better with each day.

Oh, and i was naughty and birthed on my back but did my whole labour on all fours or standing as like i said i couldn't sit... But the only reason i birthed on my back was because i was so tired i physically couldn't hold myself up while pushing... That resulted in having bad tears, but had nothing to do with the SPD as such.

[TinyLittleTootsies]

I agree with blissed out. Research all birth techinques and positions you can use to reduce the pressure on your pelvis. I would avoid the epidural as you can really damage your vagina from lying on your back. Midwives said silly things to me that have no truth to them, like "it won't be as painful because your pelvis will be so loose!" This is not true, and in my case, my daughters head pushed apart my pelvis instead of her head compacting as it went through, which in turn tore my vagina horribly because I had an epidural due to the pain and so I couldn't move off my back, and this put too much pressure there as I birthed. If i had known to be prepared for the pain, and how to avoid an epidural, I wouldn't have torn where/how I did.

Have you looked into a water birth? I have heard of this being one of the best options becuase you can move around freely in the water which you can hardly do on land with such a bad pelvis. When the baby moves into your pelvis, you might not have much movement at all. By being in the water, you can move to different positions as your body needs to do during labour to be comfortable. Water birth is also a way to control the pain. Does your hospital have a birthing pool that you can use?

When you say you are on bedrest, you don't mean that you are not moving as much as possible do you? You just mean resting at home? I was put on bedrest with DD1 and it made the situation so much worse. I lost tone, which was helping to hold me up, and the stiffness that set in meant that I wasn't able to walk at all in the end. When I had DD2, I had the pain as my first pregnancy symptom, but with a toddler I couldn't sit down for more than 15min. I stayed at home and didn't do any big lifting or walking, but by not being in bed/on the couch all day I never stiffened up, I was still able to walk around until my due date and I was so much better off after giving birth because I still had all of my muscle tone to support myself. It did hurt to keep getting up to my toddler and i I probably would never have been able to do it if I didn't HAVE to like that, but it ended up making my second pregnancy much better, even though the pain came faster and worse. If I had done bedrest again I would have ended up worse than in my first pregnancy, and now I know that bedrest is NOt recommened for SPD. I am glad that you are going to hydro. Are you also going to physio?

Also, I know the pain is bad right now, but being induced can be a very hard labour, with most inductions ending up in epidurals. If it is too early, the induction might also just fail and you could end up with a c-section after failing to progress. Try to hang in there and go to term, I know it is hard :hugs:
I really, really can't stress enough looking at natural methods of pain relief and being mentally strong for a natural labour.

Have a look at the book written by JuJu Sundin, called "birth skills". It is about ways to manage labour and be in control and have an active birth.

[Little Crow]

I admit i know nothing about SPD - only what i've been told by my midwife and physiotherapist. But after reading your responses i am quickly losing faith in them. I was told to rest as much as possible. ie, in bed or on the couch, rest my hips, no movement. Not knowing any different, i took their advice. I'm not allowed to do any housework or anything. Luckily my 3yo is very independent. I still have to get up to prepare our lunch and to go to the toilet, but the rest of the day i spend on the couch. I don't seem to "seize up", but anytime that i overexert myself, like last week when i decided i'd tidy & vacuum the lounge room before a friend came to visit, i was unable to walk at all the following day. Absolute agony.

It scares the hell out of me how much muscle tone i must have lost already, and will continue to lose on this bedrest advice. With my daughter, i had a wonderful pregnancy: no spd, no weight gain, no negative symptoms whatsoever. I went to the gym every morning before work and swam laps a few nights a week. I had a drug-free birth (well, pain-relief free, i was induced with Syntocin when i failed to progress) i used distraction methods from the "Birth Skills" book TinyLittleTootsies mentioned. In the pushing stage i was mostly squatting which i found the most comfortable. The whole labour was actually quite enjoyable.
But i really don't think i'll have the strength to do that this time. There is no way i could squat for more than a couple of minutes let alone a few hours.
I have been told i am not allowed to have a water birth due to some other complications i have going on. But my delivery suite does have a shower and one of those big old corner spa baths and i can sit in it for pain relieve up until the actual delivery.

It is encouraging to hear your advice and experiences. Thank you to all of you :hugs:

[BlissedOut]

TLT I was on 'bedrest' with my pregnancy and most likely will be again if I have another (doctors have recommended I don't), I was on crutches from about 20 weeks just to get to the bathroom, I did a bit of physio and swam a lot.

Different degrees of SPD most likely.

I've had very little trouble after baby came out, post c-section pain was mild in comparison to my SPD.

[Girl X]

I had a csection because of the SPD. (This was just in my case - I know that many with SPD have natural births).

For me most of the pain disappeared immediately. I kept racing around and forgetting to rest, as the cs recovery felt awesome compared to the pain from the SPD! :)

One year on I still get it occasionally, but it's mild. I can play most sports - just no lunges or horse riding yet...

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[TinyLittleTootsies]

TLT I was on 'bedrest' with my pregnancy and most likely will be again if I have another (doctors have recommended I don't), I was on crutches from about 20 weeks just to get to the bathroom, I did a bit of physio and swam a lot.

Different degrees of SPD most likely.

I've had very little trouble after baby came out, post c-section pain was mild in comparison to my SPD.

I don't want to derail OP, but I just wanted to say quickly to blissedout...

With all respect, I don't think it was different degrees, I didn't have a mild case of it;) I couldn't walk either on bedrest. I also had crutches, but in the end, my husband would carry me to the toilet it was so bad I would collapse if I tried to put weight on my legs. It took hours in the morning to build up to being able to stand up and get anywhere. He would leave me with food and water and to go to the toilet it would take me ages of slowly putting the weight on my feet and crutches. He even had to push me up in bed, and lift my legs off, as that movement was impossible as it would pull on my muscle and pull on my pelvis making a huge crack/click sound every time and the pain was like it was broken. I couldn't walk on any inclined ground, I couldn't walk up stairs, I didn't go in cars because of it as it was too hard to get in and out. I would say that my first pregnancy, the SPD was literally crippling for me.

I was terrified my second pregnancy when less than two weeks after ovulation I started having stabbing pains as I was walking or rolling over in bed. I didn't even test positive for a few more weeks after that! I thought that 100% i would be bed ridden and I was devastated because it was an unplanned second pregnancy as after my first, I was never going to do that WITH children already to look after.

I just wanted to say from my experience, I didn't have the choice to go on bedrest that time around, I had a 9 month old to 17.5 month old for the whole time. She still woke up to feed all night etc. There was no way she could be independant and look after herself and we had no family to help. I HAD to keep moving. When I say I didn't go on bedrest, I wasn't jumping around either. My husband still had to help me to the toilets most nights, I still took ages to be able to get out of bed and get my DD from her bed. She would cry for a while before I could manage to creep to her room. THen I would slllooowwwlly all morning start to feel a little better as I creeped around the house getting her food for the day, setting up easy games etc. Then I would rest again for a few more hours on the couch, only getting up to change her nappy, get her water etc. To ME, this wasn't bed rest, and it also meant that I could still MOVE by the end of my pregnancy, and I could still lift up a leg while sitting etc. I lost so much muscle on bedrest in my first pregnancy, moving was hard in itself for that reason. It made my second pregnancy MUCH MUCH better in terms of overall pain and movement. I was also pain free as soon as DD2 was out of me. Very different to the first time, so I just thought that I would share.

I have since talk to a LOT of doctors about this, including specialists and physio's specialising in this here in melbourne. They all feel angry when I tell them I was told to go onto bed rest for my first pregnancy, as bed rest is a really last resort thing in health care as it can be more damaging. It is not anyone's fault, SPD is considered a fairly new thing in terms of doctors recognising it as a problem in Australia and so it can be pretty misunderstood.

I also feel good about this because I am TTC#3 knowing that I don't have to be on bedrest and suffer like I did when pregnant with DD1, so it is information that I don't want to keep to myself :)

**sorry Justshiney, I didn't want to derail, just wanted to clarify what I meant earlier***

[BlissedOut]

I had a csection because of the SPD. (This was just in my case - I know that many with SPD have natural births).

For me most of the pain disappeared immediately. I kept racing around and forgetting to rest, as the cs recovery felt awesome compared to the pain from the SPD! :)

One year on I still get it occasionally, but it's mild. I can play most sports - just no lunges or horse riding yet...

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That's most likely to be permanent damage caused when you had the SPD rather than SPD.

[TinyLittleTootsies]

That's most likely to be permanent damage caused when you had the SPD rather than SPD.

And on this note, I just want to add to my post above that if you can't put ANY weight on your legs due to severe pain, I do think bed rest is the best option because of long lasting damage that can be caused. I am talking about still being able to support your weight during the day (harder at night). Doing too much, carrying anything, going up and down stairs etc can make it worse and i don't mean anyone should be doing this, I am just saying lying in bed not moving all day can make it worse than it needs to be. :yes:

[BlissedOut]

TLT yours sounds much like mine was, my two have 13.5 months between them (no SPD with number one). So my bedrest was much like your second pregnancies bedrest.

I found if I did anything beyond that I wouldn't be able to do the bare minimum for my son.

So I'm on the same page as you now (sorry, didn't see your big post after I posted), my bad for misinterpreting.

[Girl X]

That's most likely to be permanent damage caused when you had the SPD rather than SPD.

That I can't do lunges/ horse riding?

I hadn't realised that! So (sorry to be slow on the uptake) you're saying that damage caused by trying to move around with SPD is why it still hurts sometimes now? I had no idea.. :( I just figured it was not 100% 'right' afterwards and that it would get better over time... And hopefully (this may be wishful thinking) not come back next time!!

So... permanent as in - it'll never be all gone?

Dumb question, I know...

[BlissedOut]

That I can't do lunges/ horse riding?

I hadn't realised that! So (sorry to be slow on the uptake) you're saying that damage caused by trying to move around with SPD is why it still hurts sometimes now? I had no idea.. :( I just figured it was not 100% 'right' afterwards and that it would get better over time... And hopefully (this may be wishful thinking) not come back next time!!

So... permanent as in - it'll never be all gone?

Dumb question, I know...

The body repairs itself often, so it may come right, but SPD usually is all gone within a week of the baby getting out (probably a day for me), but my step-sister is still on crutches 2 years later and has been told it is damage from the SPD. She had a slip (splits) and strained that area horrifically while pregnant and suffering from SPD.

Not sure if SPD always goes away soon after or if it can linger though.

[TinyLittleTootsies]

Yeah, sorry blissedout, I didn't really explain well the first time, and probably not the second time either, but I am glad you get what I meant (aghh screaming toddlers meant I couldn't think over their noisy game lol). I know people can end up not being able to walk at all, so I know that it wouldn't help in that case, but yeah, the end of my first pregnancy was about lying down as much as possible and not moving my legs much at all. It meant I couldn't walk after I gave birth either and an active birth was out of the question, which is why I asked about OP's bedrest, as I know an active birth for more than a few hours would probably be too hard on muscles that are depleted from bed rest on top of an unstable pelvis! ouch! I was the same as you, not being able to do more than the minimum for my toddler or it would make it worse, but doing less than this (not moving) made it horrible too.

Justshiny, I just wanted to say as well, I had a c-section for my second birth and I loved it. I was pain free the same day and the movement I had recovering from the c-section was bliss compared to having SPD! I could even sleep for hours which I couldn't with SPD lol. I know people are against them, but I was really happy with my choice and so i wanted to say, don't be afraid of making the right choice for you.

Ok, I will stop writing novels in this thread now :laughing:

[BlissedOut]

Justshiny, I just wanted to say as well, I had a c-section for my second birth and I loved it. I was pain free the same day and the movement I had recovering from the c-section was bliss compared to having SPD! I could even sleep for hours which I couldn't with SPD lol. I know people are against them, but I was really happy with my choice and so i wanted to say, don't be afraid of making the right choice for you.


Yeah I was out of bed about 7 hours post c-section and the elation of being able to put on my undies while standing up was amazing, haha, the small pleasures in life. I think by that stage I didn't really believe my body would ever work properly again.

Not sure if you have, but I'd love it if you could spare a bit of time to add your c-section story to this (http://www.bubhub.com.au/community/forums/showthread.php?t=365617) thread, I'm sure it will help LoCo and many others. It's my favourite thread in the hub.

[Little Crow]

With regard to the c-section, i know a lot of women have them and say it's the best thing they did, but for me i just can't quite reconcile with the idea of having my baby cut out of me and not being part of the the birth. That's probably a backwards way of looking at it, but i really would be devastated if i had to have a caesar. I'm very mainstream in a lot of ways, but in a few select things (birth being one of them) i am staunchly traditional and just can't get my head around such intrusive medical intervention. If it is an emergency, that's different. But i couldn't elect it. And no judgement on those who do elect to have a c-section for whatever reason. I just couldn't do it.

So TLT, for the second time when you were moving around more, what was a normal day like? ie. what could you do, and what did you have to avoid?

[Girl X]

With regard to the c-section, i know a lot of women have them and say it's the best thing they did, but for me i just can't quite reconcile with the idea of having my baby cut out of me and not being part of the the birth. That's probably a backwards way of looking at it, but i really would be devastated if i had to have a caesar. I'm very mainstream in a lot of ways, but in a few select things (birth being one of them) i am staunchly traditional and just can't get my head around such intrusive medical intervention. If it is an emergency, that's different. But i couldn't elect it. And no judgement on those who do elect to have a c-section for whatever reason. I just couldn't do it.

So TLT, for the second time when you were moving around more, what was a normal day like? ie. what could you do, and what did you have to avoid?

I understand that, and I felt exactly the same. I was devastated when I found out I needed a cs - but on reflection it turned out great. I'm not saying that to persuade you that way, as natural would have been my first choice, but just to say that IF things ended up that way then it is not as bad as you might think! Hope that makes sense :)

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[BlissedOut]

I understand that, and I felt exactly the same. I was devastated when I found out I needed a cs - but on reflection it turned out great. I'm not saying that to persuade you that way, as natural would have been my first choice, but just to say that IF things ended up that way then it is not as bad as you might think! Hope that makes sense :)

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:yes: I was the same, I really wanted a water birth and when bubs wouldn't turn I had to have a c-section and really enjoyed it.

But I absolutely understand your point of view on that (as it once was mine).

All the best with everything. :goodvibes:

[TinyLittleTootsies]

With regard to the c-section, i know a lot of women have them and say it's the best thing they did, but for me i just can't quite reconcile with the idea of having my baby cut out of me and not being part of the the birth. That's probably a backwards way of looking at it, but i really would be devastated if i had to have a caesar. I'm very mainstream in a lot of ways, but in a few select things (birth being one of them) i am staunchly traditional and just can't get my head around such intrusive medical intervention. If it is an emergency, that's different. But i couldn't elect it. And no judgement on those who do elect to have a c-section for whatever reason. I just couldn't do it.

So TLT, for the second time when you were moving around more, what was a normal day like? ie. what could you do, and what did you have to avoid?

I understand what you mean about the c-sections, it is how I felt as well. I really struggled with my choice when i was pregnant with DD2. In the end it was mostly because I have severe prolapse due to the damage from my first birth (a reason why I am passionate about active birth if you can). I knew I couldn't be in the positions required to have teh best chance of preventing further prolapse damage (due to the SPD restricting how I was able to birth). I was determined to have an active, drug free birth and the public system was supporting this, but I went to the home birth place to talk to them, and talked to my midwife and a private ob and they all said I would be really risking long-term fecal incontinence. I had this at the end of my pregnancy and was glad I had my SPD as an excuse to not leave my house! So at 37 weeks I made my choice to have a c-section. For me it was great, I was really sick from my labour and natural birth for months and the SPD and my tearing damage. My c-section was a walk in the park lol. But yes, I understand where you are coming from. If you think you can do an active birth, I am all for it! I just personally shudder at the thought of a woman with SPD birthing on her back because of what I have learnt. A poster said she birthed on her side with SPD, and this is also a way to do it with less risk of damage.


I didn't do the washing except for DD's cloth nappies (like 4 MCN's a wash, nothing at all to put in etc, no washing baskets involved). I didn't do heavy cleaning at all. DH did all of that but we did the minimum anyway and figured it was only for the duration of the pregnancy so we didn't fret too much. He vaccuumed and mopped in other words, and changed our sheets.

Nightly, I would get up to DD 4 times a night, but DH would get her out of her cot and i would feed her on the spare bed, then call him to put her back in and he would take me back to bed. In the morning I would get up slowly when she started calling/crying out for me. I would sit on the spare bed and talk to her and give her the bottle DH had made for her before he went to work. When she finished I usually felt good enough to get her out of her cot. DD was really active and stong, so to get her out of her cot, I would put all the spare bed pillow in her cot and she would climb them and climb out onto the spare bed haha, and this is how she would get back in again for her nap at lunch time! We would then walk to the lounge, DD would watch TV while I made her breakfast. Sounds simple, but you know it's not! So i would be standing, walking around the kitchen doing that for 15min or so. Then I would sit with her on the couch and eat breafast. No lifting into highchairs or sitting at the kitchen table for me, it was too much. Then I would get up and wash those dishes and get something for DD to play with or read. I would sit on the couh and do that with her without moving much. Then up again later to make lunch and do all that again. Sit down on couch and eat lunch, then put on a movie and watch it with her, probably getting up to go to the toilet and change her nappy. Nap time for both of us and then pretty much the same thing all afternoon. All up it meant not sitting down for too long at all before I had to get up for a few mins at a time. This was different to my first pregnancy where I lay in bed or on the couch for most of the day every day. I did try to sit and lie down as much as possible but having a toddler was a blessing in disguise for me as it meant not being totally still for hours at a time except at night.

The biggest things I did were the slowest, shorest walk to the end of the culdesac and back. Short outings with the family. Like where DH would lift me into the car and I would wince the whole drive there, then I would walk a short, short distance and sit down for the picnic/concert etc on a chair. THese would still exhaust me and it was by no means being "active" or normal, as my walking was very slow and calculated while leaning on DH. It was better than my crutches and zero ability to walk in the first pregnancy though. :)

[Little Crow]

Thanks for that TLT. That's actually not that much more than i am doing now so that makes me feel a little better. I cant manage to do the dishes, i cant stand for that long. And my only outings are to the hospital twice a week for my hydro and physio appts. I try to rest as much as possible, but with a toddler thats impossible. DH makes her breakfast and gets her occupied in the lounge, to let me sleep in. When i get up, i make myself breakfast, get her a snack, go to the toilet, then settle on the couch for an hour or two. Same for lunch and afternoon tea, then hubby makes dinner when he gets home. He helps me shower at night and he does all the housework.

Early on, i think about 18wks(?) i walked to the supermarket at the end of our street. Its a very easy totally flat concrete footpath walk all the way there. Probably about 500m at most. I only got 3 light items to carry home. But i was completely unable to walk for nearly 3 days after that. Thats when i was diagnosed with spd. So i thought walking as little as possible was the best treatment.

I might start getting up a bit more often and see how i feel. Thanks for everyones advice, i really appreciate your help ladies :)


*Sent from the couch* (via my iPhone)

[troopingfairy]

I have SPD also and have 17 weeks to go still.

I finished work 2 weeks to go as my Dr said I needed bed rest to avoid the pain. But I find I can't clean the floors in my house without suffering hours later and especially sitting up in bed first thing in the morning before i swing my legs out of bed - it feels like the baby's head is popping out its that painful :(

DH, son and I walked the dog for 20 minutes lastnight around the block (all flat road) and by the time we got back to the house i was practically limping, yet my GP suggests walking to keep active - and I can't do it without feeling like someone has kicked my vagina in! WTF am i meant to do with that? sorry.. just so confused!

this is my 2nd pregnancy and i didn't have SPD with my first.

we've stopped DTD as i just can't possibly deal with the pain during and after having sex.. i find that when we do DTD i can't walk properly for days afterwards.

i am really scared actually. DD was born 7 weeks premature and i had her while lying on my back and feet in stirups - i was hooked up to machines on the bed for over 30 hours while they tried to stop the labor so DD could get the steroids etc they were injecting me with.

i really wanted an active birth this time - move around and try a few different positions but as DD was 7 weeks early and I have already gained a fair bit of weight and my pelvis is already loosening so much - my Midwife tells me that I'm a prime candidate for having another premie :(

Is there anyone out there in the same situation?? Would I be better off asking to have a C section?

I've read info on SPD and alot of people say that it's better to birth standing up though you have to be careful not to seperate your legs too far - how do you know how far is too far without doing more damage?

I am taking panadol every 4hrs at the moment as the pain is so severe. I am getting a lot of movement from bub so i know that he doing okay in there but i can't help but be stressed over the premature issue let alone now how i am going to birth my baby.. does that make sense?

[TinyLittleTootsies]

I'm really starting to think about asking for a csection. All my other births have been natural drug free but I'm only 29 weeks and need to hold the walls to get the 20m from bed to bathroom and I my poor DD has to come help me get off the toilet sometimes. I'm feeling really frustrated as no one seems to be taking notice when I tell them. The gp says there not much they can do and the antenatal clinic won't see me until 36wks. I feel like I'm physically and emotionally from the pain and frustration but I still can't get anyone to listen

:hugs::hugs: No one listening to me was one of the hardest things while pregnant with DD1 and in so much pain. With DD2 I didn't even bother as I was so scared of the depressive thoughts if I tried to talk to people who told me "oh well, it will all be over once the baby is out" etc. I just didn't think I could take that so I didn't talk much about it with DD2, just did what I had to do.

I think it is a really misunderstood condition. Because there is no risk to the mother and babies health, and in 90% of cases it goes away after giving birth, I feel like zero research and training has gone into what is basically a crippling condition. It can leave you feeling very withdrawn and depressed :hugs:.

My replies to this thread were from when I wasn't pregnant at the time (and am now 30 weeks with #3). So I too am tossing up again over birth choices once again. (re-reading the same threads as you it seems :)).

I have just ordered a TENS machine to hire, to see if that helps with my pain at night. It is 12:30 here and I can't be bothered moving to the bedroom because even being in bed is painful, last night I think I woke up every 5min from the pain. Propped up on the couch now, not moving and hoping I don't need to go to the toilet soon :(.