Preparing in case epidural doesn't work

GPeterson24

Just wanted to mention that getting an epidural, or any pain medication for that matter, does not guarantee a pain/discomfort-free birth.  Sometimes due to anatomy, timing, etc woman feel more sensations than they wanted to.

Brushing up on some non-pharmaceutical coping techniques is always a good idea in case you find yourself in this situation.

Thought this might be worth mentioning since I see some women debating whether or not to go naturally.  You may not end up with a choice. ;-)

mysticl

I wanted to go natural but was induced with Cytotec (I didn't know any better, everyone presented it like a safe, mild drug).  After 12 hours I caved and asked for epidural.  It didn't work.  Well, it numbed my legs but that was it.  The contractions got worse because I couldn't move and I'm sure some of it was mental because I was expecting pain relief and didn't get it.  There was a lot of screaming and crying involved until they could get the anesthesiologist back in.  She moved it and it finally worked and I was able to sleep.  Until then no one had bothered to mention they don't always work.  

The hospital sponsored childbirth class didn't include pain management techniques but they don't tell people that until it's too late to find another class.  Especially since the nearest one is about an hour drive.  

MississippiCatfish

@mysticl I had a similar epi experience. I was induced, water broke at just 2cm and hard labor started, back labor, baby lodged in bad position in my pelvis...and I couldn't get up and move because I had 3 epis, only one worked, and it only worked on my left leg from the thigh down.

I was completely unprepared, as I went into it with the "if I can't handle it, I'll just get an epi" mindset. I also wish that someone had told me that they don't always work! It certainly gave me the push I needed to prepare for an unmedicated birth this time!

dmhrn13

OK listen, no one "caved" getting an epidural when they are induced. I am a midwife & hypnobirthing teacher. My water broke & my cervix was long & closed. I waited 16 hours & no labor started. I got pitocin & a balloon in my cervix. I got my epidural after 6 hours of that & had my baby 5 hours later. I did not have a natural labor, so I didn't have a natural birth. But I didn't cave, my body needed help. I totally understand how you feel because you had a plan of natural birth, but try not to be so hard on yourselves! 

Also, this is a great point, I tell women all the time to prepare even when their plan is an epidural. First, you can't always get it the first second your uncomfortable. Second, sometimes you have to wait a long time, if anesthesia is tied up, etc. And then there is the epidural that only works on one side, or doesn't work at all, so women can still feel discomfort with an epidural, its great to be prepared. 

mysticl

dmhrn13 said:

OK listen, no one "caved" getting an epidural when they are induced. I am a midwife & hypnobirthing teacher. My water broke & my cervix was long & closed. I waited 16 hours & no labor started. I got pitocin & a balloon in my cervix. I got my epidural after 6 hours of that & had my baby 5 hours later. I did not have a natural labor, so I didn't have a natural birth. But I didn't cave, my body needed help. I totally understand how you feel because you had a plan of natural birth, but try not to be so hard on yourselves! 

Also, this is a great point, I tell women all the time to prepare even when their plan is an epidural. First, you can't always get it the first second your uncomfortable. Second, sometimes you have to wait a long time, if anesthesia is tied up, etc. And then there is the epidural that only works on one side, or doesn't work at all, so women can still feel discomfort with an epidural, its great to be prepared. 

I did cave.  As in I gave into the pain and realized I needed help.  I am not least bit hard on myself for the epidural.  I am angry at myself for other things relating to the birth and if I had made different choices and had different information I may not have needed the epidural.  But I am extremely thankful that the second epidural worked because I wouldn't have made it otherwise.  I know I made the right choice at that point in time.  I just wish I hadn't gotten to that point in time.  

The thing is I thought I was preparing because my plan was no epidural.  I didn't know that my childbirth class wasn't a natural childbirth class until the class was over.  That night I tried to find a class but since I was 35 weeks along at that point it was too late for me to take one.   This is one of the things I'm angry about because I never specifically asked if it was a natural childbirth class.  I naively assumed that child birth class meant natural child birth…..isn't that the whole point of taking a class.  It was the only class my OB's office gave me information on and they knew I did not want an epidural, so that also led me to believe it was natural.  I was given a list of topics but when I looked at them I figured they would only take up about 4-5 hours of a 9 hour class, leaving 4-5 hours for childbirth techniques.  Well, the reason it lasted so long was because they showed movie after movie of women giving birth.  Ironically in each one the woman said she used the techniques learned in her class to get her through it and the birth coach said the same thing.   Here's the entire section on natural childbirth:  They put up a power point slide with a list of techniques and said "If you plan on using any of these you better have been practicing them all along." This was said in a snide tone like they had no faith in people using them.