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December 2013 Moms
Epidural debate
This discussion has been closed.
Re: Epidural debate
I had an epi with DS and I hated how I was stuck in bed with it, with back labor that I could feel the whole time. Because i was stuck in bed, I couldn't really do much that would alleviate the pain. I had a rough induction last time and I'm hoping for a little more control over this birth.
Nope, not when I had posted that, but I will be shocked if there isn't a couple of comments about how we were meant to do this, I can handle the pain, blah blah blah on page 2 and 3.
About as necessary as it is to falsely claim that epis lead to pitocin and c/s.
ETA - not to claim that was you, but it was said above.
My link above mentions this. Is it in dispute that there's a higher likelihood of needing pit and a c/s with an epidural? I thought that was medically solid. Please correct me if it's wrong.
Everything I've read shows that births with epis more often include those interventions, but it's a chicken and egg situation. I had pitocin before my epi, but it would show up in those stats and could lead people to believe that the epi meant I needed pit. Same with nicu time - I needed that because my baby was post term, not because of the pit or epi. People often get the epi after a long, painful labor, in hopes of giving birth vaginally instead of having a c/s and, guess what, that last ditch effort isn't going to work. Plus, people who end up needing c/s almost all get an epi/spinal, except for the ones who are put under.
Anyway, I'm not saying there isn't correlation, and I'm not even saying there's no causation. But the statistics that people throw around are really misleading, based on conversations I've had with multiple nurses and doctors.
ETA - this nih article states that epidurals administered during active labor (they say once the woman is >4cm) do not appear to cause increased c/s risk. But apparently it doubles the risk before that point. That is still far less than what is usually bandied about. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1481670/ Ding Ding Ding! with an epidural the amount of medication in the mother's bloodstream is extraordinarily low, and in studies the presence of medicine found in the infant is almost non-existant.
This! Not being able to bond with your baby due to an epi is the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard. Please do not spread garbage like that unless you have research to back it up. There are a lot of FTM's on here who don't need extra worry over bogus information.
"Happiness is like a butterfly; the more you chase it the more it will elude you but if u turn your attention to other things it will come & sit softly on your shoulder."
BFP! 04/26/11 - DS born 12/28/11 - BFP #2! 04/02/13 - DD born 12/11/13 -
My Ovulation Chart
"Happiness is like a butterfly; the more you chase it the more it will elude you but if u turn your attention to other things it will come & sit softly on your shoulder."
BFP! 04/26/11 - DS born 12/28/11 - BFP #2! 04/02/13 - DD born 12/11/13 -
My Ovulation Chart
My girlfriend warned me of this prior to having DS because she didn't want me to get upset like she was. The best way I could describe it is that I immediately would have laid down in front of a bus for DS but I also felt like he was a little stranger. I don't think drugs have anything to do with it.
"Happiness is like a butterfly; the more you chase it the more it will elude you but if u turn your attention to other things it will come & sit softly on your shoulder."
BFP! 04/26/11 - DS born 12/28/11 - BFP #2! 04/02/13 - DD born 12/11/13 -
My Ovulation Chart
CP: 01/2011 | MMC: 01/2012 | MMC: 10/2012 | DS: 11/2013 | MMC: 11/2014 | DD: 01/2016
BFP: 06/2018 - EDD: 02/09/2019
Mine was : med-free, but epi option if I felt like it was too much. Labour was slow so I was given Nubain overnight to help me sleep. The next day, labour was still slow, so they suggested Pit. The plan in this case was to get the epi. So we did. She went into distress after labour was about 20 hours along, and they suggested vacuum suction or cs. My chiro had advised against vs. We chose cs. Turns out she was sunny-side up, and she was so stuck!
I don't know if we made all the right choices, but in the end, we made the choices we believed would give us our baby without any harm.
All subsequent births were RCS. I feel like I'm going to pass out and throw up, but they've got it covered. I jump when they give the lidocaine, because I have no pain and there is a needle actually going into my back, and I want to smack the anesthesiologist for saying don't jump /:) , but oh well.
Open mind, and yet, if you feel strongly enough about one way or another, make sure you have a support system in place to cheer you on.
Good luck with whatever you decide!!
Edit: oh, bonding was no problem... Even though I only got to hold her in recovery for the first time.
pitocin.
She said "extra drugs in my blood." Like I said, if she received pitocin that would definitely fall under the "drugs in my blood" category.
Also, I'm not saying that you're supposed to have an immediate bond with your baby, I'm saying that naturally there should be an increase in endorphins making you feel extremely happy and content, making you feel like you have a connection with your baby. Pitocin, which is commonly used with Epis, can interrupt that from happening. But just because you've had pit doesn't mean that your hormones won't work just fine. It probably depends on how much pit you've received
Again, I'd love to see some credible research that supports this.
"Happiness is like a butterfly; the more you chase it the more it will elude you but if u turn your attention to other things it will come & sit softly on your shoulder."
BFP! 04/26/11 - DS born 12/28/11 - BFP #2! 04/02/13 - DD born 12/11/13 -
My Ovulation Chart
"Happiness is like a butterfly; the more you chase it the more it will elude you but if u turn your attention to other things it will come & sit softly on your shoulder."
BFP! 04/26/11 - DS born 12/28/11 - BFP #2! 04/02/13 - DD born 12/11/13 -
My Ovulation Chart
In regards to your last response on how you reacted to your bay after delivery, it didn't have anything to do with pit blocking endorphins. If you look back at my response (I believe on page two) I mentioned my girlfriend who felt horrible after L&D because she didn't even want to hold the baby. She did not have pit but was so traumatized (her words not mine) from the experience that she didn't want anything to do with her DS. I've heard this from both moms who have had drugs and drug free births.
"Happiness is like a butterfly; the more you chase it the more it will elude you but if u turn your attention to other things it will come & sit softly on your shoulder."
BFP! 04/26/11 - DS born 12/28/11 - BFP #2! 04/02/13 - DD born 12/11/13 -
My Ovulation Chart
Bravo! ITA. I am by no means a scientific survey, but I had both an unmediated birth and one w pitocin and an epidural. I was DEAD frm the unmediated birth and pretty much unable to care for my baby. W my second medicated birth I felt great and was up and at em immediately after delivery. That being said, I believe this magical bonding moment that happens instantly at birth is a bunch of bs designed to make moms feel guilty. It's the beginning of that cult of prefect motherhood. Let it go! Choose your birthing options but don't feel guilty, or self righteous, about them. I will def be getting the epidural again, no guilt!
"Happiness is like a butterfly; the more you chase it the more it will elude you but if u turn your attention to other things it will come & sit softly on your shoulder."
BFP! 04/26/11 - DS born 12/28/11 - BFP #2! 04/02/13 - DD born 12/11/13 -
My Ovulation Chart
Epi for me!
My hopsital says that only 1/4 of births are med free which means for me, the unmedicated mamas are much more vocal. I would have guessed it was 50/50.
Personally, I want to be awake and not totally exhausted for my first few hours with baby. The epi will let me rest in between contractions. Plus, I am a wuss and want to avoid ALL pain to every extent possible.