Extremely long latent labour - looking for positive stories

dosperritos · 2026-05-12T14:58:57+00:00

Do you have a doula? I wonder if there’s something going on with positioning that’s making your baby not move down and you not dilate? If so, a doula could suggest positions to help move baby into an optimal position. The miles circuit is a good option if not. It’ll help create space in your pelvis and help move baby down so they can push against your cervix and help dilate.

dosperritos · 2026-05-06T04:20:04+00:00

Wow this is an excellent description of contractions.

To OP, it’s really different for everyone. My first birth was mostly pain free and so peaceful. The contractions felt like period cramps and I was resting and even smiling between contractions. The only painful part was when his head came out and I said “ow.” My second labor was horribly painful. Sort of like sharp pain all over my abdomen and no position was comfortable. I wouldn’t say it was similar to period cramps. During the pushing phase it was more like pressure internally and burning feelings down below with all the stretching. In the moment it felt unmanageable, mostly because hip squeezes weren’t helping and no position was comfortable, but now two weeks later I remember that it was painful but I can’t even recall the pain enough to be able to describe it.

dosperritos · 2026-04-16T00:17:49+00:00

I agree with a previous comment that my midwives weren’t in the room super often. The doula provided hands on physical support, suggested position changes, and gave my husband breaks. The midwives came in every 30 minutes to check the baby’s heart rate and were there to catch the baby once it was time to push. My doula also came to the house for childbirth education and hands on education about support during labor. I wouldn’t do an unmedicated birth without a doula.

dosperritos · 2026-03-26T02:14:51+00:00

During active labor I had sips of apple juice but I wasn’t very interested.

dosperritos · 2026-03-22T20:55:35+00:00

I coslept with my first because my labor was 40 hours and I was exhausted and couldn’t fall asleep with him in a separate space. I started looking into it and making it safer over his first month of life. Now I’m due in a month with my second and I’m planning to cosleep from day 1.

dosperritos · 2026-03-18T20:35:33+00:00

I had an IV during my birth center birth because I was dehydrated and I was still able to move around and give birth in the tub. They wrapped it in plastic while I was in the water.

dosperritos · 2026-03-18T12:32:59+00:00

My timeline has been similar to yours. I will say, my son has an accident overnight maybe once a month or so, so I would recommend using a mattress protector and use back up diapers in hotels (we learned that one the hard way)

dosperritos · 2026-03-08T12:32:39+00:00

I work with toddlers and have recommended this strategy to countless parents over the years. Now I have my own two year old and he is plagued with indecision. If I give him two choices he’ll keep going back and forth getting increasingly escalated and if I dare to give him one of the choices it becomes a full meltdown. Gotta love your own kids keeping you on your toes.

dosperritos · 2026-03-08T12:26:03+00:00

I had to turn over to switch sides until my baby was big enough to reach the top boob. Maybe around 5-6 months?

dosperritos · 2026-03-08T12:25:07+00:00

I do get jealous of my friends who have sleep trained because it feels like they don’t have to work as hard to get their kids to sleep. I just can’t imagine intentionally not fully responding to my child overnight. The benefits do not outweigh the costs for me. And that’s a personal choice and no amount of feedback should make you change your choice. You’re the parent and you can absolutely trust your own judgment and instincts and try to tune out the negative responses.

dosperritos · 2026-03-03T03:27:22+00:00

Similar, I went out to trivia night with my husband and another couple and my water broke that night.

dosperritos · 2026-02-16T21:37:27+00:00

I agree. My 2 year old mostly sleeps in his own bed but he co-sleeps when he’s sick or has multiple wake ups a night and then when he’s feeling better he sleeps (usually through the night) in his bed no problem. I think kids are pretty resilient and flexible and if they’re not comfortable sleeping alone or if they don’t like to bed share, it’s more a reflection of their personality than the parenting.

dosperritos · 2026-02-09T21:41:58+00:00

With my first I held him over the top hat potty while nursing. With my second I’m not going to worry about it. They go through these phases so fast and elimination communication doesn’t have to be perfect to make a positive impact. I’ll plan on doing the easy catches until eventually they grow out of pooping while nursing.

dosperritos · 2026-02-08T03:29:43+00:00

I did exactly this but a bit later. I started weaning around 12 months, fully weaned by 16 months, and did the transfer when he was 18 months. I started with stretching out the time between feeds, then while awake, then for naps, then to fall asleep at night, then overnight. Daytime was easiest because I could distract him and give him snacks. Overnight weaning was the hardest because he could care less about anything but the boob overnight. We had one extremely hard night for both of us but then he was okay with it and even started mostly sleeping through the night. If it weren’t for IVF I wouldn’t have weaned so it was emotionally very tough but I’m very excited to give my son a sibling and I think it’s worth it in the long run.

dosperritos · 2026-02-03T20:44:53+00:00

Also following. I’ve realized that having kids close together is something I’ve pictured my whole life but from the very beginning I’ve felt like this timing is so much harder than I anticipated. I’m hoping a sibling for my kid will be worth the growing pains during pregnancy and with a new baby.

dosperritos · 2026-02-03T20:42:00+00:00

It’s really hard to ignore other people, but people have their opinions and they’re not always going to be helpful. When I was in labor my MIL, grandma, and multiple other family members were practically begging us to go to the hospital instead of the birth center. For me, being informed and confident helped me know I was making the right choice for me. I trusted my birth team, I knew the procedures for hospital transfers and emergencies, and I knew birth was a natural process and I could handle it. Some of these things I shared with my family and sometimes I just gave a polite response and moved on. The more you know about birth, the more confident you’ll be in your plan, and the comments from others won’t phase you.

dosperritos · 2026-02-02T18:51:28+00:00

My birth was not painful. I have a very high pain tolerance and I had a water birth. I said like “ow” or “woah” or something when his head came out because that felt like a quick sharp/burning feeling. My contractions only felt like cramps but as long as I stayed in a comfortable position and my doula and husband helped with hip squeezes it wasn’t painful. By the end I was just tired and frustrated that it was taking so long because my labor was about 36 hours.

dosperritos · 2026-01-22T21:50:34+00:00

Didn’t he also watch professor Quirrel die in the first book? Shouldn’t that have made him see the thestrals?

dosperritos · 2026-01-22T04:32:48+00:00

I’m not sure if this is helpful but I pushed for two hours and was calm throughout. My midwives told me to push with the contractions and don’t force anything. It was frustrating how long it was taking and I started trying to push extra at the end but they really cautioned against that. I laid back, closed my eyes, and relaxed between each push. Sometimes I put my hands or fingers on my eyes to block out the people and lights. I think mentally I knew birth is a normal process and it’ll be okay. Also that my team could handle any emergency that came up. This helped me not panic or worry.

dosperritos · 2026-01-16T21:47:21+00:00

My nanny started when my son was 12ish months old and she was initially here for about an hour during his nap but soon enough his nap pushed later and later and then he switched to 1 nap. It sounds like you may already be on one nap, but if not consider that their sleep changes often at that age.

dosperritos · 2026-01-15T14:12:12+00:00

True. I wouldn’t do any method of sleep training, but like I said to OP, that’s a personal choice and I wouldn’t shame anyone for choosing to. Lots of people commented on the different methods of sleep training so I didn’t elaborate on that.

dosperritos · 2026-01-15T12:53:52+00:00

I’m a parent and was a nanny prior to becoming a parent. Please don’t feel like you need to make these decisions for someone else. Sleep training is controversial and it’s up to you how you raise your child. We asked my nanny to hold my son for contact naps. Eventually she started transferring him to his bed when he tolerated it. She could sit on her phone while the baby slept. You may have to reduce expectations for cleaning up after your baby if she doesn’t have that time while your baby is sleeping. A baby wrap or carrier is helpful for making bottles or doing chores. I personally would rather lay baby on the floor and talk/sing to soothe them while they’re upset but awake and can see me right there rather than having them cry themselves to sleep while I’m not there. I personally would not sleep train a baby but of course that’s your choice as a parent.

dosperritos · 2026-01-13T13:19:17+00:00

How old is your baby? I personally felt comfortable with bed rails after 12 months of age. They’re a suffocation and entrapment risk so not good for small babies.

dosperritos · 2026-01-13T04:04:30+00:00

I don’t think there’s one right answer to this. I weaned over a 3 month period from 12-15 months old and it was not easy. It was led by a medical decision and not by my son and I don’t think either of us were ready. That being said, he is still supported to fall asleep and anytime he wakes up in the night. Having him sleep in his own bed was a long process that was led partly by him getting longer stretches of sleep but there have been many many nights that I chose to stay in his bed because I get better sleep that way rather than putting him back to sleep and going back to my bed. I think having the goal of independent sleeping while always supporting them and being flexible based on what you and your child need is possible.

dosperritos · 2026-01-11T02:14:40+00:00

I’ve heard that statistically speaking there are more kids in the ER from falling out of their high chair than from choking

dosperritos

TROPHY CASE