epidural vs no epidural

jahzelreyes

This is my first baby and would love to hear experienced mothers opinion on having an epidural vs no epidural. I hear that the epidural has bad long term side effects but some woman loved having the epidural. What do you say?

Katerina&Baby

In this case, anecdotal evidence really isn't your friend. Take some time to research this on your own and talk to your doctor about the risks/benefits of an epidural.

amooraxo

I really enjoyed watching The Business of Being Born, and More Business of Being Born. Gives you a lot of different mom experiences with many different kinds of birthing. 

And as PP said, talk to your doctor about your options. Do your research and be as informed as you can be to make this PERSONAL decision. 

taisree

Are you taking a prenatal class? When I did mine last pregnancy they went over the different options for pain control and their possible side effects.

I personally plan to have an epidural (again). I have heard good and bad experiences from close friends.

I agree that the best thing is to do your research and make an informed decision.

Cuij

I had one and it was marvellous. I do regret how soon I got it though.

I Panicked when I went into labour. Big time. I sat on the toilet in front of where my water broke just crying saying I didn't want to do this. My contractions came on very quickly and I never prepared myself for coping with the pain.

The second we arrived at the L&D ward I threw my health card at the reception and they waved me right in to be checked. I was asking for the epidural the second I made eye contact with a nurse... And then the pain went away as soon as it started. Poof.

But then I was stuck in bed for the next 18 hours on my back because it slowed labour right down. I pushed for 4 hours with no progress and ended up with a high forcep delivery.

I firmly believe that had I waited a bit and walked around a bit and stayed calm, that my labour would have progressed better and I would have avoided the high forcep delivery and all the stitches that go along with it.

This time around I will still get it, just not the second I enter the hospital. Looking back I think I was extremely uncomfortable but not necessarily in an unmanageable amount of pain.

kimmarie1105

Although the movie The Business of Being Born is informative it is also biased and very one sided.
In regards to pain management only you know what you are capable of. I'm not fond of pain and preferred not to suffer through the pain of labor.
Others deal better and want that experience.
Go forth and research.

luvindanimals

I had to wait a full hour after they broke my water and started me on pitocin to get my epidural. The people that do the epidural were in the OR. Anyway I kept throwing up due to the pain of the contractions. I felt so much better after that epidural. You never know until you get in there how your body will react to the pain. It's great to kinda know what you want but you may change your mind once things get started.

princessbmw

PPs have given great responses. Do research, go to a birthing class at the hospital you will be delivering at. I had an epidural and had a positive experience.

megron

I can't have an epidural because of my blood disorder, but I have a port in my chest and they're going to mainline narcotic pain relievers right into my jugular!

taisree

Cuij said:

I had one and it was marvellous. I do regret how soon I got it though.

I Panicked when I went into labour. Big time. I sat on the toilet in front of where my water broke just crying saying I didn't want to do this. My contractions came on very quickly and I never prepared myself for coping with the pain.

The second we arrived at the L&D ward I threw my health card at the reception and they waved me right in to be checked. I was asking for the epidural the second I made eye contact with a nurse... And then the pain went away as soon as it started. Poof.

But then I was stuck in bed for the next 18 hours on my back because it slowed labour right down. I pushed for 4 hours with no progress and ended up with a high forcep delivery.

I firmly believe that had I waited a bit and walked around a bit and stayed calm, that my labour would have progressed better and I would have avoided the high forcep delivery and all the stitches that go along with it.

This time around I will still get it, just not the second I enter the hospital. Looking back I think I was extremely uncomfortable but not necessarily in an unmanageable amount of pain.

I can partly relate to this. Except I was on day two of being induced (11 days overdue). Because of the inducement my contractions were strong. However, I was making little to no progress and my water neve broke on its own. Additionally, my drugs that were used to induce were stopped as they were affecting baby's heart rate, and as soon as they were stopped my contractions stopped. So my water was broken and when I made little progress forceps were used to deliver. My doctor has said my difficult delivery was due to the position my son was in.

I too had asked for an epidural as soon as I got settled in my room. I had issues with pain even after that so the anesthesiologist had to return to adjust it/up the dose a second time a few hours later.

So did it slow my labour? Maybe. But I won't hesitate to ask for one right away. However, this is because I know what I require for pain control.

agapeflower117

In my birth plan, I figured I would go as long as I could without one but not hesitate to ask for one if I wanted it. I ended up not getting one, but it was honestly because I didn't think about it. I don't know if this is true for everyone, but when I was in labor, the contractions hurt, but not the time in between the contractions. So it's doable when your contractions first start and they're 15 minutes apart or whatever, because 45 seconds of pain is okay if you know you have 13 minutes of no pain until the next one, but it gets really crazy when they're 2 minutes apart because that's not a lot of downtime in between them. By that point in labor I was so focused on trying to wait for the downtime that I forgot about the epidural option.

Labor is crazy.

That's not to say that epidurals are bad, because I am not averse to getting one...if I need one this time around, I'll do it, but I have to say that I didn't mind not getting one after it was over.

megron

My friend is all "I don't want to be HIGH when my baby comes into the world!" And I'm all "fuck me up, I'll meet the kid later!"

My spine is constructed of 18 inches of metal so I'm just planning on the whole experience sucking really bad, luckily I have my trustee side kick, Peter the Powerport.

kimmarie1105

Eye roll. Epidural a don't make you high.

megron

kimmarie1105 said:

Eye roll. Epidural a don't make you high.

I know! I tried to tell her that... I, on the other hand am planning on actually getting narcotic pain killers that will make me high (not as bad as some people get but I'll be feeling good) like the second the cord is cut, and I'm cool with it.

taboullio84

I had two natural and two with epidural. I'm going for epidural again.

megron

taboullio84 said:

I had two natural and two with epidural. I'm going for epidural again.

They won't give me one because I can't have any of the drugs they use to numb before putting it in. I get epidural steroid injections once a month without it and it sucks but I deal with it so I really don't see the problem.. I'm honest a lot more worried about if I'll need sutures if I tear.. Sutures without the local in your arm sucks *shudder*

rkannady

This will be baby #5 for me. I had 3 vaginal, drug free babies. My most recent delivery, baby #4 was born 6 months after my mom died. I hallucinated between every contraction that my mom was coming into the delivery room. The emotional pain was so great I opted for an epidural to deal with the physical pain.
I do not advocate for women to deliver drug free or to deliver with medication.
I do advocate for women to educate themselves about the choices available to them and then make an informed best decision for them and their labor situation.
I wish you and your baby a healthy and safe delivery in whatever method you choose!

WifeDeAngel

megron said:

taboullio84 said:

I had two natural and two with epidural. I'm going for epidural again.

They won't give me one because I can't have any of the drugs they use to numb before putting it in. I get epidural steroid injections once a month without it and it sucks but I deal with it so I really don't see the problem.. I'm honest a lot more worried about if I'll need sutures if I tear.. Sutures without the local in your arm sucks *shudder*

So, I had my first with no epidural, and tore naturally. They do give you many injections of local anesthesia before they sew you up. I didn't feel a thing while they were doing it.

megron

WifeDeAngel said:

megron said:

taboullio84 said:

I had two natural and two with epidural. I'm going for epidural again.

They won't give me one because I can't have any of the drugs they use to numb before putting it in. I get epidural steroid injections once a month without it and it sucks but I deal with it so I really don't see the problem.. I'm honest a lot more worried about if I'll need sutures if I tear.. Sutures without the local in your arm sucks *shudder*

So, I had my first with no epidural, and tore naturally. They do give you many injections of local anesthesia before they sew you up. I didn't feel a thing while they were doing it.

I can't have the local, ever. So I get to feel eevvveerryything, that's what I'm worried about.

WifeDeAngel

Well, then you'll need to research birth options. One way is to push slower. It will give your body time to stretch naturally. Of course this will mean your baby will be in the birth canal a little longer, but as long as your baby is not in stress, that's fine.

megron

WifeDeAngel said:

Well, then you'll need to research birth options. One way is to push slower. It will give your body time to stretch naturally. Of course this will mean your baby will be in the birth canal a little longer, but as long as your baby is not in stress, that's fine.

I've got some serious medical issues going on, so it's probably going to end up being a case of get it out however we can as quick and we can and just deal with the issues after. I might even get a C-section. Whatever happens, I'll deal with it, and probably get loads of dilluadid after :-p It's just bad that with all of the potential for disaster I'm totally focused on the stitches!

kimmarie1105

megron said:

WifeDeAngel said:

megron said:

taboullio84 said:

I had two natural and two with epidural. I'm going for epidural again.

They won't give me one because I can't have any of the drugs they use to numb before putting it in. I get epidural steroid injections once a month without it and it sucks but I deal with it so I really don't see the problem.. I'm honest a lot more worried about if I'll need sutures if I tear.. Sutures without the local in your arm sucks *shudder*

So, I had my first with no epidural, and tore naturally. They do give you many injections of local anesthesia before they sew you up. I didn't feel a thing while they were doing it.

I can't have the local, ever. So I get to feel eevvveerryything, that's what I'm worried about.

What if you need a c section? What can you have?

megron

I'm not sure, I'll find out more on the tenth during this hospital stay when we come up with a solid birth plan. When I got my Powerport put in they couldn't put me under or give me local so they just gave me a shitload of versed and dillaudid and everyone held onto their asses.. I'm hoping if I need a C-section they come up with a better plan!

megron

kimmarie1105 said:

megron said:

WifeDeAngel said:

megron said:

taboullio84 said:

I had two natural and two with epidural. I'm going for epidural again.

They won't give me one because I can't have any of the drugs they use to numb before putting it in. I get epidural steroid injections once a month without it and it sucks but I deal with it so I really don't see the problem.. I'm honest a lot more worried about if I'll need sutures if I tear.. Sutures without the local in your arm sucks *shudder*

So, I had my first with no epidural, and tore naturally. They do give you many injections of local anesthesia before they sew you up. I didn't feel a thing while they were doing it.

I can't have the local, ever. So I get to feel eevvveerryything, that's what I'm worried about.

What if you need a c section? What can you have?

Realistically, though, I'll probably be under general and SO and I will both miss the birth all together.

lilitaliangirl

Everyone's experience is different. I was induced at 41 weeks with DS - pitocin, broke my water, then epidural. Didn't slow my labor down at all. However, I think doc expected it to because he checked me around 1:00pm and said he expected DS arrival later that evening. ....house doc delivered him 2 hours later. As, far as the experience of the epidural, I would say, for me, it was wonderful. I was nervous about the whole needle to the back part, but it wasn't bad at all. However, for a good year I could feel a bit of residual pain at the location of the needle. I was told by my chiropractor that is common and caused by scar tissue.

megron

lilitaliangirl said:

Everyone's experience is different. I was induced at 41 weeks with DS - pitocin, broke my water, then epidural. Didn't slow my labor down at all. However, I think doc expected it to because he checked me around 1:00pm and said he expected DS arrival later that evening. ....house doc delivered him 2 hours later. As, far as the experience of the epidural, I would say, for me, it was wonderful. I was nervous about the whole needle to the back part, but it wasn't bad at all. However, for a good year I could feel a bit of residual pain at the location of the needle. I was told by my chiropractor that is common and caused by scar tissue.

Huh, I get an epidural about once a month and I've never had a problem with pain there, guess I'm lucky!

lilitaliangirl

megron said:

lilitaliangirl said:

Everyone's experience is different. I was induced at 41 weeks with DS - pitocin, broke my water, then epidural. Didn't slow my labor down at all. However, I think doc expected it to because he checked me around 1:00pm and said he expected DS arrival later that evening. ....house doc delivered him 2 hours later. As, far as the experience of the epidural, I would say, for me, it was wonderful. I was nervous about the whole needle to the back part, but it wasn't bad at all. However, for a good year I could feel a bit of residual pain at the location of the needle. I was told by my chiropractor that is common and caused by scar tissue.

Huh, I get an epidural about once a month and I've never had a problem with pain there, guess I'm lucky!

You are! I couldn't figure it out at first. When I would bend over, like to pick something off the floor, I kept feeling a pull that hurt like a mug. After about 6 months I happen to mention it to my chiropractor and he explained the scar tissue thing. I guess it makes sense. I still plan to get an epidural with this one, though.

megron

I'm kind of pissy they won't give me one. Yes, I understand that usually you use a local numbing agent, but 1.) I get them all the time without it and I'm still alive.. And 2.) I'm about ready to push a baby out of my vagina, I think feeling the needle of the epidural would be the least of my problems. However, I'll take my own advice and listen to the people who spent many years and loads of money on medical school to tell me what to do.

jas9210

Hi! I usually just lurk, but I thought I could chime in and tell you my experiences.

I have a 3 year old son a daughter who will be 2 in a week. I got the epidural with both of them.

With my son I really wanted to try to go natural. I was induced and the pitocin was up a little too high and my contractions were very hard and painful. I tried some other pain drugs to take the edge off, but it barely worked so I went for the epidural. It went very well and my pain went away right away. No problems and I could move my legs the whole time, so it didn't take me very long before I could move around more. It was a pretty good experience.

With my daughter, the contractions were not nearly as bad as with my son. I think it was because I went into labor on my own and not induced like with my son. I think I could of handled not getting epidural but I was a little scared the pain would get worse and it would be too late to get the epidural, so I chose to get the epidural again since I had a good experience with it last time. The anethesiologist was kind of rude though so that was the first problem. Then it took a couple of times to get the needle in the right spot. At one point there was a shooting numbing pain that went through my right hip down my leg. It was because the needle went too far to the right and hit a nerve i think. But it scared me to death! After that, it finally went in good and it was only like an hour or two and I was able to push so I kind of feel like I could of made it those last hours without it. I did have an achy sore spot around that area though for a week or two after.

So I've had both a good and not so good experience. Im really going to try my hardest this time to not get the epidural. Mostly because I can still imagine that shooting numbing pain in my leg and it just scares me. But i'm still going in with an epidural as an option. I think its just one of those things were you have to just wait and see how you react to labor and pain and not go in one sided.

Amanda0043

For me this one I will try my best to go natural. I had an epidural with my son 19 years ago and I just had an epidural 2 weeks ago for a Cerclage placement. Both left me with on going back pain and bad constant headache. I'm sure my case is not the same as others. I already have degenerative disk disease and migraines. Every woman different and every birth is an individual experience.

briafields94

So this is kind of a question within this question, I'm a FTM too and I was talking to my cousin who just had a baby about three months ago and she said that her epidural failed twice! Has anyone had an epidural fail before? I was considering getting one if I couldn't handle the pain but I do plan on going natural since my pain tolerance is pretty high most of the time. Her story scared me into almost not getting one if it'll just fail!

Amanda0043

You can do it!

kimmarie1105

Amanda0043 said:

You can do it!

You can do what? Who are you talking to? Not OP cause that response doesn't make sense.

maddibayer

I had an epidural with my son and thought it was still painful.. Until I had my daughter. They induced me and were going to give me one until they came in and said my white blood cell counts were too high. Which can happen if your a little sick. So they wouldn't give it to me. I dialated from a four to a ten in one hour. Her head was coming out and I was screaming for the nurses. They came in and said there's no way she's coming out we just checked you am hour ago. Well I made her check again and yep there was her head. Lots of yelling for the doc and running ensued. It was the most excruciating thing I have ever been through in my life!!! I will be having the epidural this time and making sure that I am healthy enough to actually have it! Just ouch..

babyperrynumber3

It's such a personal decision and there no right or wrong answer, do your research & consider your tolerance for pain & what kind of experience want to have & what risks & outcomes your willing to take. There is thought that epidurals can slow your labor, which in turn causes you to need pitocin, which creates much stronger contractions which increases your risks for complications & needing a c section. The thought is the more natural & less interventions the smoother it will go, but I have had many friends have the epidural & no complications & were able to deliver vaginally & had great experiences. Myself & one friend unfortunately did not have as much luck & babies went into distress & we had emergency c sections, related to the epidural & or pitocin, no one would know for sure. But it's a pain you'll never know until you go thru it, so if you want to try natural I say go for it, the epidural will still be there as an option (except until really really late in labor which at that point i'd say just finish it up you've gone that far lol) ...my official advice tho: 1) take your Lamaze classes either way!!! And practice!!! That way your prepared if ur handling the pain to go for it naturally, but also unless your water breaks (not super likely with first baby) they won't give you an epidural until you're 4 cm so you will experience some pain & proper Lamaze (that you've practiced like daily at home! Not just showed up to the classes) can really help until you can get the relief from the epidural
2) someone mentioned the alternative pain choices to the epidural, I highly don't recommend those! They cross the placenta & effect the baby so no good! And I had a friend try one of them & it made her feel out of it & groggy & out of control of what was going on & it didn't even work!! Ended up with epidural, just go straight to that if want help
3) don't let people pressure you either way!! It's YOUR decision! I had people pressure me both ways believe it or not, the naturalists who basically told me I was horrible if I wanted epidural & the other side that it was rediculous to not have one. It's up to you, I say be prepared to try & take it on but know the option is there for you
4) I watched the business of being born, it's good source of info but definitely one sided, so take with a grain of salt if you watch it
5) good luck!!! Enjoy the experience!! Trust your nurses & doctor too, speak your wishes when you're there but honestly their job is to help you deliver a healthy & safe baby!!

kimmarie1105

poohbearlove123 said:

All natural birth is the best.

Shut up
:P

megron

babyperrynumber3 said:

It's such a personal decision and there no right or wrong answer, do your research & consider your tolerance for pain & what kind of experience want to have & what risks & outcomes your willing to take. There is thought that epidurals can slow your labor, which in turn causes you to need pitocin, which creates much stronger contractions which increases your risks for complications & needing a c section. The thought is the more natural & less interventions the smoother it will go, but I have had many friends have the epidural & no complications & were able to deliver vaginally & had great experiences. Myself & one friend unfortunately did not have as much luck & babies went into distress & we had emergency c sections, related to the epidural & or pitocin, no one would know for sure. But it's a pain you'll never know until you go thru it, so if you want to try natural I say go for it, the epidural will still be there as an option (except until really really late in labor which at that point i'd say just finish it up you've gone that far lol) ...my official advice tho: 1) take your Lamaze classes either way!!! And practice!!! That way your prepared if ur handling the pain to go for it naturally, but also unless your water breaks (not super likely with first baby) they won't give you an epidural until you're 4 cm so you will experience some pain & proper Lamaze (that you've practiced like daily at home! Not just showed up to the classes) can really help until you can get the relief from the epidural
2) someone mentioned the alternative pain choices to the epidural, I highly don't recommend those! They cross the placenta & effect the baby so no good! And I had a friend try one of them & it made her feel out of it & groggy & out of control of what was going on & it didn't even work!! Ended up with epidural, just go straight to that if want help
3) don't let people pressure you either way!! It's YOUR decision! I had people pressure me both ways believe it or not, the naturalists who basically told me I was horrible if I wanted epidural & the other side that it was rediculous to not have one. It's up to you, I say be prepared to try & take it on but know the option is there for you
4) I watched the business of being born, it's good source of info but definitely one sided, so take with a grain of salt if you watch it
5) good luck!!! Enjoy the experience!! Trust your nurses & doctor too, speak your wishes when you're there but honestly their job is to help you deliver a healthy & safe baby!!

Did you not catch the "as soon as the cord is cut I'm getting narcotic pain medicine"??

When your spine is held together by 18 inches of rods and metal you can judge me using pain medicine, until then I think I'll go ahead and make my own decision based on knowing my body and what my entire TEAM of high risk specialists recommend for me.

Take a few stitches to your vag without any local anesthetic to numb it then come talk to me.

Emilywooddesign

I'm getting an epidural fo sho!! I have a hard time with menstral cramps, I can't imagine labor. Give me all the drugs.

megron

Emilywooddesign said:

I'm getting an epidural fo sho!! I have a hard time with menstral cramps, I can't imagine labor. Give me all the drugs.

I think I'm going to use the phrase "give me all the drugs." I have a team meeting during my February appointment and when we discuss pain medicine that's going to be my input!

dedebush02

DS was breach so I never had contractions since they scheduled me a week early for my c-section. I have no idea what they feel like so no input there. I was given a spinal tap and was numb from neck down. I definitely wasn't high at all. I have to say though they barely showed him to me and then he went off with dad and I went to recovery where they pumped me up with morphine. I don't remember holding my little Noah for the first time cause I was drugged up. This will not be the case this time around. I will be having another c-section but I will get to bond with baby and I'm going to be sure to tell them to go easy on the morphine.

mccall35

I had pitocin, epidural, then c-section followed by morphine. I have had zero complications and DS has had zero as well. He scored a perfect 10/10 on the apgar and even though I opted for the full amount of morphine post-surgery, I was still able to hold him while they closed me up and in recovery. I even breastfed in between surgery and morphine (and we bf until DS was 21 months).

So while there can be negative side effects of getting an epidural (Or any type of intervention for that matter), it is often the exception to the rule. I often find those with the bad experiences are often the loudest and therefore it can seem like the most common outcome.

Just a heads up re: back pain post epidural. It's actually quite common for any woman who has laboured to develop chronic back pain as a result of the pressure/positioning of the baby and resulting trauma to the spine (epidural or not). So opting out of the epidural =/= no chronic back pain.

Eta: TL/DR: there are very real risks to epidural, but these negative outcomes are the exception, not the rule. Do your research and make your own decision. Just know that opting out of epidural =/= avoiding chronic back pain.