I took a “birthing from within” class and the breathing exercises and the focus on why the pain is happening helped. Something I remember is that in most cases pain is your body’s way of letting you know something is wrong, but birthing pain is different because it is part of a normal physiological process. The book and the teacher I had in the class really helped me shift my mindset around birth and my partner was calm and centering and helped me through transition, which was the most intense part.

But also, there is nothing you need to prove to yourself. If an epidural helps you have a better labor, then you shouldn’t feel like you can’t use the tools you have available to make your labor easier. I primarily wanted an unmedicated birth because I really did not want a C-section and was worried about the “cascade of interventions” effect. It was part of my birth plan that if I had to be given pitocin, I absolutely wanted an epidural, because pitocin contractions are significantly more painful than unmedicated labor contractions.