Epidural Fail !?

JoReavesMommy · September 2015

Question for those who used an epidural with previous babies ... What did you feel while pushing? Looking online I saw that many women say they only felt pressure.. But for me I felt everything when it was time for him to come out (although it did indeed numb all contractions) .. Has this happened with anyone else?

megandchase · September 2015

Yep mine didn't work. I felt everything and knew when contractions were coming. I had a csection after 3 hours of pushing and because my epidural had completely failed they had to take it out and do a spinal to do my csection.

maiatene · September 2015

With my epidural I felt zero pain but was aware of everything going on down there for the most part. I knew when contractions were coming before they actually hit and told the nurse when I was going to push. I don't remember the exact moment my son came out, but I think that had less to do w the epidural and more to do with the fact that I was exhausted because I had been in labor for 24 hours and just wanted to eat and take a nap.

MargaretC5 · September 2015

I stopped progressing so I has a CS and never got to push. The epidural did help with the pain of the contractions, but I still felt pressure and some light pain with every contraction. My epidural stopped working completely after a couple hours, but they were able to fix it so it was helping with the pain again.
Not sure why but I have heard a lot of different experiences with epidurals, some conpletely numb and other it did not help at all. You may want to try searching, there were some epidural experiences on other threads.

athomas8369 · September 2015

With my first my epidural ran out right before it was time to push and they would rebolster it at that point so I felt it all. My next two I made sure they gave me another dose well before so I only felt the pressure of it and it was lovely :-)

Gapeach83 · September 2015

First one stopped all together felt pain and everything. Second felt all the pressure and was able to feel contractions enough to push but no pain. Also started to wear off when I was getting stitches.

flas · September 2015

I felt lots of pressure and definitely pain too, though I don't have a natural birth to compare it too. For both pregnancies I stopped topping up the epidural a bit before pushing and with the second it ended up wearing off right around when I was 9-10 cm. I was actually happy that I could feel the pain, it made me more determined to get the baby out so it would stop!

Jame414 · September 2015

megandchase said:
Yep mine didn't work. I felt everything and knew when contractions were coming. I had a csection after 3 hours of pushing and because my epidural had completely failed they had to take it out and do a spinal to do my csection.

This except...I had to do general anesthesia.

ZoeH3 · September 2015

They gave me too much epidural so I didn't feel anything. No pain, pressure, etc. I also could not stay awake. After my c-section I went right to bed. It was pretty dreadful.

poupoule · September 2015

ZoeH3 said:
They gave me too much epidural so I didn't feel anything. No pain, pressure, etc. I also could not stay awake. After my c-section I went right to bed. It was pretty dreadful.

A friend of mine got a similar experience last year, her husband had to slap her to keep her awake during labor... She could not stay awake and does not remember anything. She must have been extremely sensitive to it... But when they told me that it definitely made me want to go natural and see how it goes

MadBloom · September 2015

Mine wore off. It really wasn't THAT bad though. I did ask for a numbing shot when I was being stitched up though because that was rather unpleasant to feel.

sarahsnowball · September 2015

Mine worked a little too well as I was completely numb. Although I was glad not to feel the pain, I felt helpless because I didn't know when to push and they had to tell me when I was having a contraction. I eventually needed assistance to get my baby out.
I'm hoping to avoid an epi this time if I can cope because I want to be able to listen to my body when it's time to push.

farmmomma99 · September 2015

I loved my epidurals and they worked great on all 3 of my births. I never felt a thing and that is exactly how I wanted it! I could tell I was having a contraction because I could feel my belly getting tight with my hands and it also became a little difficult to breathe during a contraction. Although I could not move my legs, I was able to push just fine and all 3 of my babies were born within just a few pushes.

modanz1 · September 2015

I am a FTM so I don't have personal experience but my hospital gives light epis. They said I would still be able to squat using the bar, etc., so I would imagine if you are concerned about being totally numb and having no control that you could ask for a lighter one? Maybe ask your doctor if that's a possibility for you where you will be delivering. I feel like it's the perfect compromise for me, as I don't really want to be in loads of pain but do want to be able to control my pushing and you know, walk afterwards.

ZoeH3 · September 2015

poupoule said:

ZoeH3 said:
They gave me too much epidural so I didn't feel anything. No pain, pressure, etc. I also could not stay awake. After my c-section I went right to bed. It was pretty dreadful.
A friend of mine got a similar experience last year, her husband had to slap her to keep her awake during labor... She could not stay awake and does not remember anything. She must have been extremely sensitive to it... But when they told me that it definitely made me want to go natural and see how it goes

The anesthesiologist had to squeeze one hand and my SO had to squeeze the other in order to keep me awake and I was still barely conscious. I sure hope that does not happen this time.

DAnglen · September 2015

I've 2 kids. This will be my 3rd.
I had an epidural both times. I felt tummy getting hard and watched the monitors when contractions came. I had ZERO pain with both deliveries. Only mild pressure. The nurses told me when to push. I am going to go for the epidural this time around as well. Because I wasn't in pain, I feel that it gave me the opportunity to see everything that was going on. I watched both deliveries in the mirror. I was able to see it all. I feel like I would have missed so much if I tried for natural. That may not be the case, but that's how I felt. I wasn't exhausted from the pain or from pushing. I was very alert and aware. It was awesome!

Good luck to you, with which ever you choose!!

Elyse1384 · September 2015

My epidural experience was delightful. I felt when I was having a contraction and pressure telling me when it was time to push, but boy did it help with the pain. It helped me get a little rest after a sleepless night prior so that I had the energy when it came time to push.

Want a personalized experience?

Epidural Fail !?

Re: Epidural Fail !?

Choose Another Board

Search Boards