Other pain meds besides epidural--Your story/thoughts

MellBabyPeeps · December 2015

So, I'm a ftm and I'm the girl that if it can happen to me, it generally does. So, I'm leery of an epidural and interested in those women that gave birth via other pain meds besides an epidural. What was your med of choice and experience. Advice and thoughts are most Welcome.
(Disclaimer, this is not to say I'm against an epidural and that I won't make a game day decision to use it.)

alylove11 · December 2015

They gave me Stadol (I think that's how you spell it). It only worked for an hour and took the edge off. I also was induced, so the pitocin was hard lab prong without pain meds. I definitely got epidural, but not with fentanyl. I believe it was Mepicaine and it wasn't good. I got restock to adjust and I felt everything on my left side.

MDKC14 · December 2015

No epi but they have me something through my IV that made me feel what I suppose being high feels like. It barely took the edge off but it was just enough for me to not need the epidural. Also, I got in the jetted tub for 45 minutes and that worked wonders! It took the edge off even more than whatever they gave me. I'm sorry I'm not sure what the name is of what I was given but there are plenty of other choices besides epi.

scotten · December 2015

I'm unable to get an epidural due to a previous spinal fusion surgery, but I did have a "saddle block" during labor with my DD. It's like an epidural, however it only numbs the hips/butt/vagina. The point is to numb the lower region before you start pushing. It's not popular in hospitals anymore (it was big in the 60's), but it's an option I guess.

However - I have to mention that I was induced and had extreme back labor with a "sunny side up" baby, so the saddle block did virtually nothing for me. The poor anesthesiologist was just trying to find anything to help me!

MamaNicoleof3 · December 2015

I was induced and had awful back labor. I desperately wanted a natural birth, but made it to transition (8cm) and couldn't do it anymore. I had an epi, but recovery was far worse than my natural birth with our second. I did have stadol to try still going epi-free, but it didn't do anything for me.

You sound like you're well-prepared for whatever happens and not set in stone for what you'd like- that's awesome!!

VikingGirl12 · December 2015

I opted for an epidural. The anesthesiologist gave me stadol before the epidural. He told me since my contractions were so strong and was in so much pain he wanted to give it first (looking back Im like "what?"). It was amazing and made me feel almost no pain for an hour, just slightly drunk/floating. It also made me think my epidural worked but it didn't. I could have got through labor with just that, but I seem to remember them saying you can only have 1 or 2 doses. I should add, I'm a wimp

jjvh · December 2015

I had a walking epidural. After a couple hours, the benefits were negated by other issues, making me bed ridden. My labor was long, and I needed a cesarean. In the end, the multiple shots in my back caused issues with the spinal tap. I was put under with a general anesthetic. Woke up 2 hours after she was born.

This is not typical with low dose epidurals, and usually the benefits are great. My experience was not.

cy&damonsmommy · December 2015

With my first I didn't have any pain meds. I did have to have something for nausea but I can't remember what it was.

sthomas1222 · December 2015

I didn't have pain medications for either. I had a doula & we did the Bradley method so my husband would learn pain relief methods such as a double hip squeeze & other positioning. I will say if I ever need pitocin again I will very likely opt for the epidural b/c that sh*t was ridiculous. But mine was also turned way too high. There is a hospital back home that offers laughing gas with rave reviews. Takes the edge off & within seconds of moving the mask away its out of your system.

MellBabyPeeps · December 2015

Good information. Thank you. I'm just trying to look at other pain management options. There is a birthing tub at the hospital and I'm really excited to try that out! It's so hard to know what to do on your first time.

Bear14+ · December 2015

I was given stadol in early labor to help me sleep that night at the hospital. It spaced my contractions out big time. It was nice though because I could sleep. The next morning pitocin was started and it was rough! Epidural followed very shortly after because those contractions were crazy strong!

BPaisley · December 2015

With my first, I was hooked to the epidural so I could just push a button and it would administer more "juice", because I had the epidural pretty early on - I think around 4 cm.

With my second, I waited a lot longer before going to the hospital and I was already 8 cm, so the ob/gyn administered my epidural and literally just shot me up with one dose, rather than hooking me up to anything, I pushed him out and it was done. I thought that was really awesome because it wore off quickly after that and I felt totally normal, with no tubes and strings to be removed after delivery.

I don't have experience with other drugs, but I know my sister, who opted to not get an epidural for any of her 3 children, had something else (maybe the stadol?). She told me that for her, it only slightly took the edge off for the pain and just made her feel really out of it and high as a kite. Personally, I think I'd rather have the epi over feeling high during delivery, so I am going to try to avoid other drugs.

MynaBird · December 2015

I wanted to put off the epidural until late in labor so I could walk, use the ball, etc., but after seven hours of back labor I asked for something to take the edge off the pain. They gave me stadol, and I don't know if it was the drug or the fact that I'd been awake for 24 hours, but I was OUT for the next 12 hours. I'm not sure if I would do it the same way again. I had never taken stadol, but normally I don't get knocked out by pain meds, so maybe my body just really needed the sleep? I couldn't walk around anyway since I spent all that time asleep, so I might have been just as well off getting the epidural instead of taking pain meds.

kellyadam2016 · December 2015

With my first i just had the gas and sat in the shower. That worked wonders for me

Emztron500 · December 2015

I did not want an epidural so tried other methods beforehand. I was an attempted out-of-hospital natural birth so I got to the hospital at 8cm - I was told at that point they will not give morphine/Demerol/etc due to the possibility the drugs will be in the baby's system when it is born (an interesting factor to think of...most pain meds other than an epidural will be go to your baby as well). I was given nitrous gas which helped me calm down and manage the pain for a bit, but after about 2 hours I needed something more - it didn't seem to touch the pain at all, just calmed me. I then tried fentanyl, which is a very strong narcotic pain medicine but only works for about 20 minutes. It worked wonderfully but I found I was in a lot of pain again after 5-10 minutes. I got 4 separate doses of it (the max they will give) and then was back where I started and nowhere near delivering. At that point I got the epidural, slept for a few hours, and delivered 9 hours after getting to the hospital. In my case the epidural was clearly the best choice but thought I'd give my input since I felt like I tried everything

I also tried labouring in water before I got to the hospital which did help a lot with the pain, until my midwife kicked me out and said I needed to go to the hospital. But I would definitely recommend labouring in a tub if it's available to you! I will be doing that again this time and hopefully not going to the hospital or having to rely on pain meds.

zanaerob1 · December 2015

I'm also a FTM so haven't tried anything yet! But just wondering, is gas and air (nitrous oxide) not commonly used in the USA? I'm in Australia and have been on a labour ward as a medical student, and pretty much everyone gets it here, and then other pain relief if they need it. I was hoping to try and go this route, and am just surprised its so rarely mentioned on here?

alysemci · December 2015

The hospital I use just started using nitrous oxide this year and I've heard great things. I delivered my son a few months before they started that so I got the epidural around 9 cm and honestly loved it. I was induced and they used 3 methods of induction but I didn't find myself needing anything until around 8 cm. I got the epidural at 9 cm and had him an hour later after 10 min of pushing. For an induction, I had an awesome L&D and used an epi at the very end (thank God I did because I needed a lot of stitches) I guess I don't have much experience with other pain meds but I want to try nitrous oxide with this one, if it's not what I was thinking it would be, I have no problem switching to an epi

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