Epidural

I gave birth in Canada 2 yrs ago. My Labour was induced at 39 weeks due to low levels of amniotic fluid. They started the induction at 9pm on a friday and by saturday morning 4 am, I needed an epidural badly. I was 5 cm and not progressing. I'm told, that the contractions are much stronger and much more painful when you are induced rather than when you go into labour naturally. The epidural for me personally was a heaven sent. It was not painful getting it in- it felt uncomfortable and it's an odd sensation having something go into your spine- but I wouldn't classify it as pain. After the epidural- I was able to relax and sleep and I didn't feel my contractions. By 3pm saturday I was fully dilated and ready to push. My labour resulted in a c-section because somewhere along the line- my sons shoulder got stuck in my hip bone and according to my dr, my bone structure didn't allow for them to be able to manually move him into proper position and my efforts to push proved to be futile. So the dr's decided on a c-section. When the spinal block was finally removed, I had a bit of soreness at the epidural site for about 3 months after birth, but it went away. I had no complications (alhamdullilah) and no issues walking afterwards. I'm now pregnant with #2, and I'm hoping on having a successful vbac. Will I get an epidural again? I don't know. I'm hoping on going into labour naturally and seeing how long I can go without it and will try my best to manage the pain in other ways (walking- moving- large pilates balls). I'll try and test myself- but , if I need it- I'll keep and open mind about it.

Apologies if this has been mentioned, I don't have time to read all the replies but are 'walking epidurals' available here? I had one when I had my first baby in the UK. I was able to move around and change position when I was pushing. They let it wear off a bit when it came to pushing so I was able to feel when to push. My legs were numb and tingling and it felt a little odd using them but it was nice to be able to move around as I wanted. Daza, I think you will find that "walking epidurals" are technically not legal here but I know when I had my epidural I asked for one and whilst was told they were not permitted I was able to move around just fine on the bed to get comfortable (just needed DH help so I didn't get myself into trouble) so suspect I did get one anyways. OP, my epidural was worn off by the time they were ready to transfer me from the delivery room to the maternity floor (an hour or so). DD came out back-to-back and I have to say the sense of relief when the epidural kicked in meant that I enjoyed every minute of my delivery. Don't misunderstand you will still feel things - the pressure of giving birth was immense (not sure if that was because DD was b-t-b or not but will find out when No. 2 arrives in September) but completely doable. My approach was to go as long as possible naturally and then make the call if and when I thought I needed it. I was happy with my decision for me and will try to have exactly the same approach this time. But as everyone says it has to be right for you to make sure you enjoy your delivery. There is no right or wrong answer - just your one.

Apologies if this has been mentioned, I don't have time to read all the replies but are 'walking epidurals' available here? I had one when I had my first baby in the UK. I was able to move around and change position when I was pushing. They let it wear off a bit when it came to pushing so I was able to feel when to push. My legs were numb and tingling and it felt a little odd using them but it was nice to be able to move around as I wanted. Daza, I think you will find that "walking epidurals" are technically not legal here but I know when I had my epidural I asked for one and whilst was told they were not permitted I was able to move around just fine on the bed to get comfortable (just needed DH help so I didn't get myself into trouble) so suspect I did get one anyways. OP, my epidural was worn off by the time they were ready to transfer me from the delivery room to the maternity floor (an hour or so). DD came out back-to-back and I have to say the sense of relief when the epidural kicked in meant that I enjoyed every minute of my delivery. Don't misunderstand you will still feel things - the pressure of giving birth was immense (not sure if that was because DD was b-t-b or not but will find out when No. 2 arrives in September) but completely doable. My approach was to go as long as possible naturally and then make the call if and when I thought I needed it. I was happy with my decision for me and will try to have exactly the same approach this time. But as everyone says it has to be right for you to make sure you enjoy your delivery. There is no right or wrong answer - just your one.

All the best for your births ladies, ultimately healthy baby = happy mummy, regardless of how they come out. Ironically my brother is an anaesthetist, so he makes his living giving epidurals ;). Just wanted to add, talk though with your OBGYN about freedom of movement during labour, middle eastern hospitals seem to be a bit archaic when it comes to birth and the majority of Drs still want women to labour on their backs. If you don't want an epidural, its vital you be able to manage your pain through position and movement and that your husband is prepared to be proactive in getting you alternative pain relief (like hot packs, cold packs, birthing ball, hot shower etc), also stay at home as long as possible, if I had lived closer to the hospital I would have stayed home another hour, you feel the contractions far less when you are able to busy yourself around the house and its much easier to keep moving, which helps things along.

Apologies if this has been mentioned, I don't have time to read all the replies but are 'walking epidurals' available here? I had one when I had my first baby in the UK. I was able to move around and change position when I was pushing. They let it wear off a bit when it came to pushing so I was able to feel when to push. My legs were numb and tingling and it felt a little odd using them but it was nice to be able to move around as I wanted. With regards to the headache, I didn't get one with any of my three epidurals but I did get one when I had a spinal tap for suspected meningitis. The headache, whilst very painful (ok, very very painful) wasn't anything nearly as bad as hours of contractions!

Hi ladies, I was one if those unlucky ones who got an epidural headache after delivery. The birth experience itself was very good (except when they put the epidural in, i lost it completely and burst into tears). However the headache started a couple of days later, was already at home, we were new in Dubai, so husband rushed and brought me an acupuncture Dr which helped a bit but in the following day it was getting so bad and I became neaseatic. Went into emergency, couple of hours later they decided to keep me in and carry on a blood patch in the morning which promises to clear the headache in two hours, if successful. Apparently blood patch carries the same risks of epidural. We preferred not to have it done so In the end i was kept in hospital for 48 hours lying on my back showing signs of improvements hour after hour. I went home and stayed on my back for 2 weeks and that's how the headache had gone. Now my second due soon im debating whether to have it not, going to discus it with my Dr and carry on researching. Whatever you choose, wish you all a safe delivery x

Hi Ladies I'm currently pregnant with baby number 2 and had an epidural for number 1 and it was fantastic and I plan to do the same for baby number 2. In fact my birth plan is one word EPIDURAL!!! I worked as an anaesthetic practitioner for the NHS for a number of years in labour and delivery and yes there are risks with epidural, however, in my experience they are very small. The benefits definitely outweigh the risks. Epidurals are a relatively safe method of pain relief, not just used for childbirth, and there have been countless studies done over the years. As kiwispiers mentions there is a risk of a spinal headache due to puncture of the dura (epidural space in adults is very small). This can cause a fluid leak which causes the headache. In severe cases it is treated with a blood patch, however, most causes resolve by themselves. In the UK we have mobile epidurals where you can get up and walk around, however, i'm not sure they are done here. There is a lot of information available regarding the pros and cons of epidural. You are always going to find someone who has had negative experiences. I would advise you read up on epidurals so that you are able to make an informed decision when the time comes. Everyone's perception of pain is different and I would say go with what feels right for you at the time, just remember that once you reach 7cm dilated you will not be able to have an epidural. Good luck with your decision and hope it all goes well. Lexie

Kiwispiers thanks for taking the time to write that reply. I have decided that I do not want an epidural for many of the reasons you've mentioned plus the fact that I'm suffering from pelvic pain and giving birth on my back would be the worst thing I could do with regards to that. However part of me is just putting on a brave face as the closer I get to my due date the more I am feeling unprepared! So reading your post has given me faith that I am making the right choice. MrsAbdalla, I have just bought some natal hypnotherapy cd's. I don't know if they will work for me, but I'm going to give them a try as at least it's something I CAN do to prepare for the birth. Whatever you decide there is not right or wrong and you are still doing something truly fantastic by giving birth to a human being!

I had my first baby scheduled c-section with combined epidural spinal block. It did not really hurt getting the epidural and I had no pain afterwards apart from where the tape holding the catheter was. It really stuck to my skin and when they removed it it left me with a rash :( Its very unlikely you would have complication from the epidural itself. There is a chance of paralysis but it is minute. The most common "side effect" is called an epidural headache. This happens when they push the needle in sightly too far and it goes beneath the spinal dura. The result is an incredibly severe headache for around 24 hours. They treat this with a "blood patch" where they inject some of your own blood into your spine. The headache is reasonably common, I think around 10% of epidurals, possibly more or less depending on the anaesthetists skill. You can also get an all over itc The real reason to not get an epidural is that it increases your chances of ending up with a failed labour. Getting an epidural too early on can slow down or even halt your contractions. Once you have an epidural you are stuck in bed. You can't get up to wee so you have a urinary catheter, increasing your chances of developing a urinary infection and needing antibiotics post birth. You can''t really change position, which means you can't really help if the baby is a bit stuck. You can't push very effectively (or at all depending on the strength of the epidural) so you are more likely to need an assisted birth, i.e ventouse (the plunger :) ) or forceps. These can slightly injure your babies head and will pretty much guarantee you will have a wide episiotomy. These are all reasons why you might want to try an avoid an epidural. There is of course an obvious reason why you might decide you want an epidural, childbirth generally involves a level of pain. There is no point in listening to other women's stories about needing or not needing an epidural. The birth process is very different for each woman and each baby. A big baby will not necessarily be a difficult birth and a small baby will not necessarily be easy. I gave birth last year to my second baby. I did not want another c-section (although I will say that my first c-section was not nearly as bad as I had thought it would be, certainly less intensely painful than giving birth naturally, but the recovery time was uncomfortable and it was annoying to not be able to lift things). I wanted to avoid an epidural for all the reasons I mentioned above, but I kept an open mind and decided I would see how I felt at the time. When my contraction started at 6am they were not very painful, really just like menstrual cramps and I was able to go out and about for the whole day (take my toddler to softplay, do a supermarket shop etc). Basically I kept moving and kept busy until they started to become quite sore and went to the hospital at around 8pm, by that stage I found it difficult to talk during a contraction but it was not excruciating and when I was examined I was already 7cm. Some women are in a lot of pain and having harder contractions at only 3cm. Because I was so far along already and not really in that much pain I decided not to have the epidural. I was not really in much pain until I was around 9cm, by that stage it wouldn't have been worth having an epidural as by the time they put it in and it took effect my baby would already have been born. I did like being able to move, change position and walk though. I did not have an episiotomy but I did tear naturally, I did not feel that really, only a slight burning feeling and I imagine had they given me an episiotomy at that point I wouldn't have felt that either. I won't lie, I had about 45 minutes of fairly intense pain at the end of my labour however my labour was fast, I only pushed for a few minutes at the end and my baby was never in distress, it was do-able. I was given a local anaesthetic for my stitches afterwards and I healed quickly, faster than if I'd had an episiotomy (according to my obgyn) in my instance I am glad I didn't take the epidural however mine was technically a very easy labour (in hospital around 9pm, baby out just after midnight). The only thing I would change is that my doctor did break my waters at 9cm, in retrospect I think she was trying to hurry things up so she could go to bed herself, I was in a lot more pain after that and I wonder if it would have been easier if she hadn't. Some women have much longer labours, or much more painful contractions and I can totally see why they have an epidural, I think just go in with an open mind and try and follow your bodies cues, if you feel like moving, move, if you feel like sitting, or squatting, or kneeling then do that. If you are in too much pain then ask for an epidural, but first try heat compresses, moving around, a hot shower and the gas & air, they might be enough. Just let it be YOUR experience and don't put yourself under any pressure with the idea that there is a "right" way to do it, so long as you understand the risks and benefits to any intervention offered to you then you won't feel mislead or disappointed afterwards. Likewise be mentally prepared for a c-section, you have around a 30% chance of ending up with one so its better that you have a plan in place for that eventuality. Its hard not to stress about the birth towards the end of your pregnancy but ultimately its one day of your life and you will get through it.

I just delivered in Dec 2012. Thank advanced science for the miracle of epidural. I did feel a little uncomfortable a few minutes after it was administered to me...my one leg felt number than the other and it bothered me to no end.....but an hour later, I was fine. I was reading "The Life Of Pi" and whatsapping away with friends till about half an hour before my baby arrived. Thanks to the epidural, I did not even realize the pain of the episiotomy that I had. Thankfully, there have been no side effects as well (so far). I would vouch for it. Good Luck!!!

I had a spinal block for C section, the same as Daza mentioned, and I did not feel it, and I was not in labor either. Just in case you don't already know, there are some procedures that your husband should give consent for (especially if he is local). I have seen a friend in a desperate condition waiting to be taken into theatre but her husband had to arrive in a helicopter from offshore to sign for it. I don't think that she or the baby were necessarily at risk, but the hospital held out until he arrived. Anyway, just convince him to agree to whatever you decide or you can tell him that you may decide on not so many children as you had planned! You will not feel it and hopefully it will be effective. Funny you should mention it, he keeps telling me they'll ask him to sign a release form and i'm wondering "why would they do that? I'm an adult woman, it's my choice" but maybe you're right, I should check with the hospital before hand. I know they require it for c section but for epidural i'm not sure. And it's scary to think he might not be there (he's a pilot so could very well be away when i go into labour). Gosh i hope they dont! We're already fighting over it, he's brainwashed by his family thinking that it will damage by back and it's bad for the baby and i don't think he'd be keen to sign! yikes Hi! My DH was not present at my labor and I had no problems getting an epidural. I don't know about the c-section though.

I have had epidurals with no regrets. For my last labor, I was on the IPad just a few minutes before my son was born. I would not have been able to do that without an epidural.

OP: I also have a low pain threshold. I have had three epidurals and have barely felt anything. I can't even remember any of them, other than being nervous about it just beforehand. Please try not to get worked about about what others are saying that haven't even experienced it themselves. You should do what feels best for you. With my first child, it was a small hospital and their only anesthesiologist was in surgery. I remember having to wait and counting each dot on the ceiling tiles. Once that epidural was in, it was so much easier. My second child I opted for it as soon as I could and it made the labor & delivery (13 hours) a piece of cake! And same as for DreamC, the two epidurals (3rd ended up C-section) both wore off within a few hours. I could walk, bend, etc. without any trouble at all. Wishing you the best with [u'>your[/u'> decision.

Mrs Abdalla in an ideal world you would have a birth plan that you would discuss with your OBGYN prior to the big day... However be aware that not everything goes to plan when you're in there!! I had an epidural here in Doha for a c-sec, couldn't feel my legs for a few hours afterwards, and had intermittent back pain for a few weeks afterwards. The worst part was trying to keep still with a major needle phobia.

i took epidural when i was 4 cm dilated. Anesthesiologist at IMH here was so good that apart from getting afraid of the set up of epidural i didn't felt a thing. well i was almost forced into epidural as even after 12 hours and with induction my dilation was still the same :( i did researched alot before delivering about epidural and got different views from here too and from friends too who took it. i was not able to move my legs but i wanted to walk so badly and remembered begging nurse to just let me stand for few seconds.. and as OP suggested i also think walking would be beneficial or even standing as lying down keep your entire focus on contractions. some people gave me views that apart from paralysis(which happens in inexperience staff cases) you will have lower back pain all through you r life.i still hear it after 11 months. i didn't had any back pain during pregnancy but now i have it sometimes and it is due to lifting baby (heavy) in arms for longer periods (which i have to say to my dh again and again). no back pain for life due to epidural. only problem is the area where i had it sometimes pains if i feel it with my fingers but doc said it takes almost 1 yr-15 months to go away.all the best and don't be scared.baby's awake so has to rush

I would not choose to have a dentist extract a tooth without anaesthetic, so I personally dont see anything wrong with taking advantage of effective pain relief during child birth. This is not a fair comparison. Childbirth is a normal human function, a tooth extraction is abnormal and is done specifically because someone is ill/the tooth is unhealthy. There's a major difference. I'm not saying in any way that women shouldn't be allowed to get epidurals during labour. Quite the contrary. I had one with one of my births and was glad I had the option. However, childbirth isn't an illness. When we treat it like an illness and have a highly medicalised birth, we take on additional risks. As long as women are aware of those risks and are willing to undertake them for the pain relief, more power to them. In my experience, however, most women are not full informed of the risks. I know I wasn't. In would argue that childbirth has become LESS risky as it has become more medicalised, in that advances in medicine have allowed more lives to be saved. This is why the number of women and babies dying in childbirth has fallen over the last 50 yrs and why it is lower in developed countries than developing countries. I am grateful I did not have to give birth 200 years ago, or today in rural Afghanistan for example. Anaesthetic as we know it is a modern invention, but I suspect that before it was invented, people used whatever they could to relieve the pain on childbirth. Queen Victoria is known to have used chloroform as an anaesthetic during child birth, and I would imagine that modern epidurals are infinitely less risky than that! To imply that all women managed fine before epidurals implies that using modern pain relief makes us somehow inadequate, because we don't do what billions of women have done since the beginning of time in the same way. And that's simply not true. Billions of women died or were badly damaged by natural child births because they didn't have obstetricians, anaesthetists, forceps, sterile theatres for c-sections that we take for granted and that save lives today. Taking advantage of medical know-how should apply equally to childbirth as it does to pulling teeth or treating cancer, in my opinion.

MrsAbdalla Can't speak for anyone else, but once the epidurall wore off, I could walk albeit slowly, no back pain. No probs bending.

Meagle, that is simply not true and to be honest, it's a bit of an insult to women who have required intervention in birthing their babies. I'm not sure how that's insulting. Macrosomia is fairly rare. On the whole, most women should be able to birth the babies their body grows. That doesn't mean there aren't instances where a baby can be too big or that other complications can't occur. There's nothing wrong with requiring interventions during labour. I never suggested that. Interventions are critical when there are complications. But to suggest that all women in the developing world die in childbirth because they are unable to birth big babies is a little misleading.

Congrats on your baby's upcoming arrival! I'm the mum of 2 and have had the first with an epidural and the second without. I went into my first birth thinking I'll wait and see and get an epidural if I decided I couldn't take the pain any longer. No one told me that I was in transition when I finally got the epidural. If they had, I probably would have made it through the birth without one. I also didn't realize that laying in a bed on your back is the absolutely worst thing you can do during labor. Makes the contractions much harder to tolerate. I think if I would have been up and about during the first labour and had someone tell me I was nearing the end, I really wouldn't have needed the epidural with #1. I had an unmedicated birth with my second and have absolutely no regrets. If we have #3, I will try to do the same again. Labour is intense, but women have been doing it for generations without epidurals. Our bodies are made to do this. [b'>Our bodies generally also don't make babies we cannot birth naturally unless we have complications like gestational diabetes.[/b'> With both births, it got super intense and I started to doubt myself just at the point where I was in transition which means I was nearing the end. I think knowing that the end is in sight makes it much, much easier to endure. The epidural is a medical procedure and medication. That always comes with risks. Go over those risks thoroughly with your doctor (NOT untrained medical professionals or people who have never had one). Also know that getting an epidural does increase your risk of needing a c-section. For some people that's not a concern, but for me that was a big driver for wanting an unmedicated birth with my second. Oh, and I always thought I had a low pain tolerance, too, until I birthed 2 babies, 1 without medication. It's not about pain tolerance. I think if you understand what's going to happen, have a good support system with you while in labour, and can trust yourself you will be fine without an epidural. Meagle, that is simply not true and to be honest, it's a bit of an insult to women who have required intervention in birthing their babies. The UN estimates that around half a million women die per year due to complication is child birth or soon after. The vast, vast majority of these women are in undeveloped countries where they don't have access to medical care. I thank my lucky stars that I have been lucky enough to be pregnant and give birth in countries where I do have access to good medical care. Sorry to deviate OP and I hope that didn't scare you, luckily you are fortunate enough that you live somewhere that you have the choice of medical intervention if it's needed.

I would not choose to have a dentist extract a tooth without anaesthetic, so I personally dont see anything wrong with taking advantage of effective pain relief during child birth. This is not a fair comparison. Childbirth is a normal human function, a tooth extraction is abnormal and is done specifically because someone is ill/the tooth is unhealthy. There's a major difference. I'm not saying in any way that women shouldn't be allowed to get epidurals during labour. Quite the contrary. I had one with one of my births and was glad I had the option. However, childbirth isn't an illness. When we treat it like an illness and have a highly medicalised birth, we take on additional risks. As long as women are aware of those risks and are willing to undertake them for the pain relief, more power to them. In my experience, however, most women are not full informed of the risks. I know I wasn't.

Hi MrsAbdalla, the important thing is that you have the birth that YOU want to have, what your relatives think it totally unimportant. Don't let them put any expectations on you and try not to put too many expectations on yourself, every birth is different and only you will know what you want when the time comes. I had an epidural for my first baby and it was absolute magic. Totally the right thing for me. There was a sharp sting when it went in but compared to the pain of contractions, it barely even registered. It worked perfectly although I do know a few people that it has only worked on one side. I could still walk and move around. The rest of my babies have been c-sections with a spinal block which goes in the same way as an epidural. They used a local anesthetic first so I didn't feel it. Your in laws are just scaremongering with regards to be left paralysed or the needle being like a sword. Neither are true.

I had an epidural with my ds in the UK 11mths ago. Wont go into details, still too fresh. But be aware they sometimes don't work, I had it put in 3 times, twice it didn't work, 3rd time with 10 extra top ups it kicked in. I had it put in when I was still 1cm dialated, with contractions in my back the whole time. I will do it again though if needs be though. I didn't feel much of the needle going in. It took a a few hrs before I was able to walk again. <em>edited by dreamc on 14/03/2013</em>

With my first pregnancy, I got it when I was around 8 CM, didn't feel any pain at all as I was in more pain at the time. Basically got it just to push him out and def needed it for the stitches later. With the second, I progressed much more faster and way more intense than the first time and the anesthesiologist was late! They tried to use the oxygen on me, but I was not having it...I still managed to get it right at the end, I felt so much pressure that I thought something wasn't working, but it was actually the baby's head! The drs were so surprised that everything happened so fast. Both times, the delivery was at City hospital. The first anesthesiologist was a German lady, very awesome and I was also way more alert with that one. The second time, was a man, and was either super rude or I was in A LOT of pain with having back to back contractions or both. He kept yelling at me to sit still....I wanted to yell at him and tell him to try to sit still with these contractions...such a jerk, lol With both times, I didn't feel the needle and if I did, it wasn't as bad as it seems thinking about it beforehand and I didn't have any side effects, thank God. I'm already ready for the 3rd delivery (whenever that happens) and I'm going to say I want the epidural before anything even starts! :) And yes, people have done it before without any medications but when science has advanced so far, why not take advantage of it. People also use to use camels for transportation! <em>edited by Chi2dxb on 14/03/2013</em>