How painful is it to really give birth?

Depends on your pain threshold as well as whether you are on pain relief. I gave birth naturally with laughing gas and it was an interesting experience. It helped to take my mind off the pain during contractions but gas takes a few seconds to take effect and only lasts for a short while. Therefore, when the baby was about to arrive, the pain escalated and it did feel like my vagina was going to tear. At the split second she was born, I felt as if I was going to black out. Anyway, you may want to opt for epidural if you are afraid of pain. It's actually not the most painful thing in the world, childbirth.