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NB, the evil epidural, and narcotics?

tilelady85tilelady85 member
in Natural Birth
Good morning ladies, as I approach week 38 labor and delivery are weighing heavy on my mind. I have been planning a natural birth since day one and have very NB-oriented midwives in a very pro nb hospital. 

My fears lie in being pressured to take narcotics. I generally feel awful on narcotics and it worries me that my pro natural midwives push this so often, yet are really against epidurals. To me this seems ass backwards. Isnt baby more drugged by the use of these narcotics than by the use of epidurals? We avoid caffeine and alcohol and exercise and eat well in hopes of having a healthy baby, why then at the very end administer these heavy meds simply to avoid an epi? 

I know all about the cascade of interventions that can come with the epidural, but feeling drugged out of my mind is the very last thing I want. If I feel I need the epi I don't want to have to fight for it either. 

I guess this turned into more of a rant, but please comment if you have any insight. 
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Re: NB, the evil epidural, and narcotics?

  • mandi195mandi195 member
    I planned on going natural with my son. In the end (for reasons I won't get into, as my birth story was scary and not something I usually share with expecting mommas) I ended up deciding to get an epidural. The option for narcotics was there, but the reality is that those drugs go to baby, too. An epidural does not, at all. It is a nerve block (basically). 
    My advice is to stick to your guns. Communicate what you want/need, and do not let them convince you to take any medication or interventions that you do not want. This is your baby, your birth experience, and you are the one who is calling the shots. Stay strong, momma!
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  • sschwegesschwege member
    edited November 2014
    Yeah, I wouldn't have considered narcotics, but would have opted for an epi if I felt I needed one.  For all the reasons stated, but also don't they have to stop the meds when you reach 6 or 7 cm dilated?  So basically you are getting to the most challenging part and now it's time to turn it off?  Of the few women I know who opted for narcotics over an epi, all but one said never again!  That it only made them sleepy, restricted movement and didn't deliver the relief they had hoped for. 
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  • JCWhiteyJCWhitey member
    I have heard way too many first hand horror stories from narcotics.  My friend's baby had a bad reaction and they had to flush the narcotics from her system before they could give her anything else so she was basically tied to bed getting the drugs flushed out and was beyond sick and the baby was getting sicker... ugh.  No thank you!  I know that's rare but what's even rarer is the baby having any sort of reaction to the epidural.  I'll take that option if I want pain meds!

    B born 7/15/13, C born 3/2/15, #3 on the way May '17


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  • yvanehtniojyvanehtnioj member
    It really seems like narcotics alone are not a viable option, both for safety reasons PPs have mentioned and because they don't work that well for childbirth. My nurses told me that the narcotics they use are pretty fast acting (about an hour or so) and each time you have to "re-up" the dose it gets less & less effective. So you're likely to be let down when the shit hits the fan. They also stressed that even at their best, they only take the edge off. 

    I happily accepted an IV pain medication while they were stitching me up after the birth. It did work for that at least.

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    H e n r y  May 21, 2014

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  • catsinawindowcatsinawindow member
    I know where you are coming from regarding choosing an epidural vs narcotics.  I also have always thought that I would accept an epidural if I needed it, but would not opt for narcotics.  I would think (hope) that midwives, no matter how natural-birth focused they are, would be understand and be willing to respect your wishes on this point.  Can you put something to that effect in your birth plan?  (i.e. "If I do decide that I want pain medication, I would rather have an epidural than narcotics.")  It doesn't mean that you'll need one, but will be in writing if the situation arises.


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  • tigerpawietigerpawie member
    Delurking here. I would not do narcotics ever again. DD (2nd birth) had an reaction to one of the narcotics they gave me and she came out not breathing. The NICU team was called in and they gave her medicine to counteract the narcotics effects. It was awful waiting quietly wondering if she's survive. I had both narcotics and epidural with DS (1st birth) and his heart rate dropped several times. I am not sure if it is because of the narcotics or the epi. After the birth, I was sluggish for a full day and just generally felt like crap and overwhelmed. With DD, no epidural, I was up and walking around, in a great mood. I bounced quickly from that birth. So... If you want a NB and could avoid both then great!!! If you need pain management, I'd go with epi. I don't think epi affects women and babies as much as narcotics would...
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  • leela02leela02 member
    I preferred a nb but ended up asking for an epidural (I'm a wuss, what can I say. No regrets) but declined the narcotics. From everything I've read/heard it seemed like the narcotics were riskier for the baby. Also, a friend who had given birth a few weeks before told me the narcotics didn't really help her much & she ended up asking for the epi anyway. I know every labor is different but I really didn't want to get narcotics AND epi if I asked for pain meds. So when I couldn't take the pain anymore I just asked for the epi.
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  • tilelady85tilelady85 member
    Thank you all for the support. You really helped me stick to my guns. DH already knows not to allow me to cave to pressure for narcotics. I still fully intend on going natural. 
    My midwives also use phenergan alot. They says it helps ftms get some rest in early labor. I can't find much info on it but it seems to act as a sedative, which I assume will also sedate the baby. Has anyone heard of this? 
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  • Mama-BearMama-Bear member
    If it comes down to it, the epidural will help you get rest because you won't be in such intense pain.  Usually anything you have the baby gets, so I personally wouldn't do any sedatives or narcotics. 

    GSx1 - 05/13/2013
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  • WhitfryWhitfry member
    tilelady85 said:

    Thank you all for the support. You really helped me stick to my guns. DH already knows not to allow me to cave to pressure for narcotics. I still fully intend on going natural. 

    My midwives also use phenergan alot. They says it helps ftms get some rest in early labor. I can't find much info on it but it seems to act as a sedative, which I assume will also sedate the baby. Has anyone heard of this? 
    I've been prescribed phenergan as an anti-nausea medication and when I take it I do notice a soporific effect. (I usually take it as a suppository because I have to be really sick before I'll try it.) I'm not sure about it being used for a sedative during labor, though...
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  • RacieRacie member
    During my very long labor I had morphine to help me sleep.  I'm very glad I went that route rather than the epidural.  I slept, I woke up, labored for another 8 hours unmedicated and then I had a happy and alert baby.
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