Most moms can agree: Childbirth is a painful experience. But one Canadian woman recalled having an orgasm while giving birth to one of her three children, and she didn't want it to end. Hanna Faustino, 36, recently shared her story, and we couldn't help but be curious about her unusual orgasmic experience.
The mom of three said she reached her sexual peak while delivering her daughter, Kaiya, and credits prenatal yoga classes for helping her with the experience.
“During birth, I surrendered my mind to my body, and I had similar sensations to an orgasm,” she told Southwest News Service according to the New York Post. “It was really natural to push, and the contractions didn’t feel as painful. I had this fullness, and I didn’t want the feeling to stop.”
Faustino recalls having a long and painful childbirth with her first child.
First-time moms often have concerns about experiencing unbearable pain during childbirth, and that's not unfounded. In May 2018, the American Society of Anesthesiologists conducted a nationwide survey and concluded that 46% of women said the pain during childbirth was more manageable than they expected.
The process was seemingly different for Faustino after stating that childbirth was long and painful during the delivery of her first child, River, nine years ago. “It was harder than a marathon and I’ve run many,” she said.
Faustino said she contacted birth coach Jannine Markou after learning she was pregnant with her second child. The coach has more than 16 years of experience in prenatal yoga, helping other women reach more positive experiences during childbirth.
Markou uses special techniques — movement, toning, and breathing exercises — to help ease the birthing process.
“If you allow birthing hormones to work for you then a woman can come into a state of bliss or ‘labor land,’” she said in a statement obtained by the New York Post.
“The pain is then not so intense because the endorphins are flowing and there is no fear,” she added. “It’s said they [the endorphins] are 10 times stronger than morphine if you can get that working for you.”
Markou's famed yoga classes worked for Faustino after she went into labor with Kaiya in 2015, with the help of her supportive husband Will by her side.
Faustino explained the birthing process with her second child.
“I was in a squat in my bedroom and the lights were dim,” Faustino explained while crediting her husband as her main support system. “I found a rhythm of breathing … and it was really natural to push,” she stated. “The contractions didn’t feel as painful.”
Faustino also said she was able to lessen her contractions by visualizing them as waves "bringing my baby closer to me.”
“It wasn’t the same as an orgasm, but it was a really profound moment and one I’ll never forget,” she added. “It was a blessing.”
Faustino used Markou's services again after learning she was pregnant with her third child.
Faustino, who currently works as an educational assistant, said she did things a bit differently the third time around. During labor, she switched from the previous squatting position to lying down on her side with her leg up.
“It was almost like a peeing dog,” Faustino said of the position. “I embraced the sensations of the birth.”
While she didn't have an orgasm with her third child, Terran, she said the process was painless and "beautiful."
