Hearing women’s stories of labor and birth can help us know what to expect and reassure us that our experiences are not unique. Below are unedited stories submitted by Our Bodies Ourselves readers.

• Here is my version of what happened, and how I felt about it. I didn’t leave anything out, and I didn’t edit anything down. This is my story, in my words… read more

• Friday night I was having some sporadic contractions. I timed them and they varied from 15 minutes … More