Is childbirth really scary?

This is the 4997th article of Da Yi Xiao Hu

All movies and TV dramas, without exception, want to move people with emotions. From domestic movies such as "Dear Child" and "Qiu Ju Goes to Court" to foreign movies such as "Romance" and "The Tin Drum", there are scenes of childbirth, which is undoubtedly one of the good ways to win the audience's sympathy for women: before giving birth, the woman's face is twisted in pain, sweating profusely, howling in pain, while the man nervously paces back and forth outside the delivery room... This scene is a vivid lesson for every person who is about to become a father.

Childbirth is undoubtedly a painful experience, but the dangers of childbirth seem to be exaggerated to a considerable extent in most movies and TV shows. Many infectious diseases that once threatened mothers have basically disappeared, and childbirth is actually safe now. According to statistics, in countries with modern medical systems, about 95% of childbirths are very smooth, and pregnant women can give birth safely without too much trouble; only about 4% of people will encounter some minor troubles, but they can overcome them quickly; only 1% of people may encounter real troubles.

So does childbirth have to be painful? First of all, we need to know the degree of pain. Generally speaking, pain is divided into 10 levels in medicine, represented by numbers 0 to 9. 0 points for painless, 1 to 3 points for mild pain (such as pain caused by mosquito bites or venous blood draw), 4 to 6 points for moderate pain (such as pain caused by skin trauma such as skin cuts), and 7 points or more for severe pain (such as pain caused by traumatic fractures and trigeminal neuralgia). The feeling of pain is different at different stages of childbirth: in the early stages of childbirth, most women will feel abdominal pain, and some women will also have back pain, feeling that their waist is about to break. At this time, the pain is generally around 4 to 6 points; in the later stages of labor, as the fetus moves downward, the pain will gradually transfer to other parts, so many women will feel that the pain in the abdomen has been alleviated, but because of the pressure of the fetal head on the perineum and the stimulation of the pelvic floor muscles, they will feel a sharp knife-like pain or sharp needle-like pain in the perineum. In addition, due to the stimulation of the fetal head on the anus, some women may have a strong urge to defecate, which may even mask the feeling of abdominal pain. Having said that, I believe that expectant mothers have a general understanding of the pain of childbirth, but in the actual delivery process, they may still worry that they cannot bear the severe pain. In fact, there is no need to be nervous. With the advancement of medicine, painless delivery technology has been more and more widely used, and about 80% of the pain can be relieved. Therefore, during vaginal delivery, there is no need to worry too much about the pain of vaginal delivery. If you feel that the pain is severe and unbearable, you can communicate with medical staff at any time. According to the progress of the delivery process, the medical staff will take appropriate analgesic methods to help you deliver smoothly.

Because of the misleading information in some movies and TV shows, many people are particularly nervous before giving birth, as if a disaster is imminent. But in fact, this is completely unnecessary. To paraphrase a popular European saying in the late 19th century: "You will be fine!

Fund projects: 2023 Jing'an District Science Popularization Project (KP2023055); 2023 Jing'an District Health Science Popularization Leading Project; Shanghai Health Science Popularization Youth Talent Capacity Improvement Project (JKKPYC-2023-B14)

Author: Shanghai Jing'an District Central Hospital

Xia Lemin