Vaginal Delivery

What is Vaginal Delivery?

Vaginal delivery is a big step into motherhood. You have had your pregnancy follow-up done regularly. After a long but enjoyable process of nine months, you have come to the stage of vaginal delivery. Now is the time to go out and hold your baby that you carry in your womb and that you are trying to communicate with from the outside. From now on, you will taste the feeling of motherhood very closely. At this point, our pregnant women may have some concerns about vaginal delivery. This is very natural. After all, you will give birth to a life. Although it is not an easy experience, conscious mothers prepare well for vaginal delivery by reading and applying different exercises during pregnancy follow-up and perform a successful delivery. At this point, thanks to your doctor's different medical practices, your pain during childbirth will be reduced and vaginal delivery will remain a good memory in your memory.

Vaginal delivery is the vaginal delivery of a baby. It is not possible to know in advance when a vaginal delivery will occur. We can only understand whether the birth is approaching according to the complaints of the pregnant woman and the symptoms that occur in her. Generally, after 38 weeks of pregnancy, the cervix gradually begins to mature and prepares for vaginal delivery. Then a plug, which we call engagement, is thrown. We do not know when labor will start after this plug is removed, but vaginal delivery usually takes place within 1 week.

In what week does a vaginal delivery occur?

We call the vaginal delivery in pregnancies that have completed 37 weeks of gestation as a normal delivery. Births after this week are not considered premature births. However, ideal births are normal births at 39 weeks and beyond. In vaginal delivery after this week, the probability of staying in the neonatal intensive care unit is very low. At 37 weeks, the baby begins to descend into the birth canal. For vaginal delivery, it is necessary for the baby to begin to settle in the birth canal at 38 weeks in first pregnancies. Otherwise, it would be appropriate to conduct an examination of the pregnant woman to see if there is any obstacle to vaginal delivery. We often encounter questions about how many weeks a baby boy will be born. There is information that male babies are born later than female babies. However, this is not a rule. You can calculate the expected date of birth with the birth calculator. 

What are the signs of vaginal delivery? How to understand that the birth is approaching?

Symptoms showing that the birth is approaching may differ in each patient. Birth symptoms may even begin as diarrhea. However, normal birth starts with pain in many patients. The pains may start in the groin and waist first and then spread to the whole abdomen, as well as birth symptoms may begin in the form of leg pain. If the contractions in the abdomen become more frequent, coming every 10 minutes, it is useful to go to the hospital. In the hospital, your baby's heart radiographs (NST) will be taken.

In some patients, watering occurs before the onset of pain. In these patients, 6-12 hours can be waited for the onset of pain in pregnant women whose day is over. In premature births, it is beneficial to go to the vaginal delivery method with artificial pain without waiting. If the pain does not start during the waiting period, artificial pain will need to be started.

Patients whose pains become more frequent or whose water comes out are followed up in the delivery room. At regular intervals, the baby's heart radiographs are taken and the pregnant woman's vaginal examinations are performed. Its opening is 10 cm. Pregnant women whose baby's head has descended to the perineum are taken to the delivery table for delivery and delivered.

Baby movements will decrease somewhat as the birth approaches. Do not be alarmed, but if your baby plays little or not at all, contact your obstetrician immediately. When your pain starts, do not forget to take the delivery bag you have prepared before going to the hospital.

How do vaginal labor pains start?

Vaginal labor pains usually start in the form of groin or lower back pain. It then increases to spread over the entire abdomen. However, the pain may not become frequent immediately. Sometimes the pains we call false labor pains can be confused with vaginal birth pains. False labor pains are irregular, usually not severe, and improve with rest or position. Birth pains, on the other hand, begin mildly at first, but at regular intervals, and become more and more frequent. On the one hand, the intensity of the pain will increase as it becomes more frequent. Pain relief treatments or position changes will not relieve the pain of vaginal labor. However, sometimes vaginal birth pain starts and goes away on its own.

What are the vaginal delivery stages?

From the onset of pain, the uterine opening is 10 cm. The time until birth is the first stage of labor. At this stage, the pain has increased considerably. Since the uterine opening is full, the baby will now begin to descend. If the baby's heartbeat is normal during this period, circulating the mother will make it easier for the baby to descend. When the pain comes, it may be recommended for the pregnant woman to do straining movements. This will help the baby descend.

Uterine opening 10 cm. The period from birth to the birth of the baby is called the second stage of labor. When the baby's head begins to be seen at the hatch, the dose of straining will increase even more. Health personnel will assist in regular pushing. It is necessary to stop pushing during the full birth of the baby. Otherwise, it may cause excessive tears in the vagina while the baby is coming out. In cases where it is thought that the baby will come out difficult, an incision called episiotomy is applied to facilitate delivery. The episiotomy incision, which was used routinely in first pregnancies, is now used only in cases where delivery would be difficult. Routine application is not recommended.

The third stage of labor is the period from the birth of the baby until the fall of the placenta. In this period, the baby was born and the umbilical cord was cut off. The baby's care and necessary first interventions are made by the pediatrician. When the baby is born for the first time, it should be placed on the mother's stomach and first contact should be made. After the pediatrician's examination, the baby should be taken back to his mother, and the mother should be kept together with the mother until the procedures are completed.

What are the methods that facilitate vaginal delivery?

In order to end the vaginal birth process more easily and successfully, we should first be equipped with good information about vaginal birth, and we should not occupy our brains with bad vaginal birth stories you hear on the internet or around you. We should start to be informed during pregnancy follow-up. You can follow different books or magazines. You can benefit from sites created or consulted by an obstetrician. You can also attend special courses during pregnancy.

You should learn to overcome your stress during pregnancy or childbirth with relaxation exercises. You can learn to relax through yoga, prayer, listening to music, singing, or other forms of meditation.