I am thinking I might try it with no epidural if I have a choice -but possibly pain meds if I need them -Do they even help at all? And if so which ones? ↓
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Name: mjvdec01 | Date: Apr 20th, 2008 12:58 AM
Regular pain meds may take the edge off, but it is temporary, and you can only have so much then they cut you off. They can just make you feel as though you don't care so much about the pain you are in. Why not an epidural? ↑
Name: junebaby | Date: Apr 20th, 2008 1:27 AM
I had a spinal tap go wrong and was sicker than ive ever been in my life and now im afraid of having complications again-I have a major fear of needles-I will prob end up getting it if I can't take it I was just wondering. I'm not sticking to anything yet b/c I know I'll b singin a different tune when im in labor lol ↑
Name: mjvdec01 | Date: Apr 20th, 2008 12:00 PM
I don't think a spinal tap is done in the same area as an epidural, but I could be wrong. All I can say is that all of my girlfriends have had epidurals and no one has had a problem. I hope when the time comes that everything goes well for you. ↑
Name: mandee25 | Date: Apr 20th, 2008 1:11 PM
I only used the gas and air and a little bit of fentanyl in my IV with my first baby and did fine. My labor was short though Thank GOD!!! I don't want the epi this time. I would rather feel the pain than worry about complications from the epi and I hate the thought of a needle in my back. Sometimes they don't work either. ↑
junebaby I have given birth to 4 children all natural Not by choice. I have odd labors. I dont feel any contractions or discomfort til I am 8-9 dialated. By then they wont give you anything. So make sure if you are going to get something you have plan and don't wait to long, because once the pain is unbearable it is usually too late. SO get a good plan together of what you want. It is horrible to deep into labor and be begging for pain medication and no one will help. ↑
Name: junebaby | Date: Apr 21st, 2008 4:21 AM
Wow 4 natural-i am still not sure what im going to do-i will talk to my ob weds ↑
Name: cors1wfe | Date: Apr 23rd, 2008 12:23 PM
I had epidural with my last 2 labors and no complications - my only experience with the other drugs is dilauded when I had kidney stones and mjvdec01 is right - they dont' really get rid of the pain as much as they just make you not care about it - while my pain was a 6 on a scale of 1 to 10 I would no way rely of something like that to provide relief like an epidural - if you are still really really concerned talk to your doctor and try to see about meeting the anesthesiologist in advance that might help you put your mind at ease...Good luck with what you decide! ↑
Wow, pain meds take your mind off of what is going on,...but really, they do not relieve that kind of pain. If you have a high pain threshold, you can probably do it au naturale. But I have low pain threshold and COULDNT imagine NOT getting an epidural. I had some pain medication first and it didnt do anything but make me loopy. Its up to you. ↑
Name: ddmohr1054 | Date: Apr 29th, 2008 4:14 PM
My contractions were so painful that I had both. First the pain meds but they weren't able to make me relax like people had told me so i went for the epidural around 7cm and thank god I did. ↑
Name: junebaby | Date: Apr 29th, 2008 6:04 PM
I have already had false labor and it killed me so Im thinkin I have a low threshold and am gonna go for the epi i dont care how scared of needles I am! ↑
Name: cattac | Date: May 9th, 2008 9:35 PM
spinal blocks and epis are different. with all 3 i had epidurals...aka godsends...with my first i wanted to avoid epi bc i was scared so got iv meds...just made me feel drunk and cant remember much and vowed id never get them again only epis. ↑
Name: fefer1 | Date: May 9th, 2008 10:37 PM
I went with the epi around 5cm and thank goodness cuz 30 minutes after I got it I was at 9cm. :) I don't know about pain meds except that I hear they don't do much but take the edge off. I am petrified of needles too but I was the point where I did not care. I really didn't think much about it though because I could not see it and I was concentrating on contractions anyways. Just keep your options open! You never know what you'll be feeling! :) ↑
Name: Grimsfury | Date: May 14th, 2008 6:44 PM
my doctor just told me today that an epidural doesn't affect the baby where pain meds through an iv does, but not much. Hope that helps your decision. ↑
Name: Rachel H | Date: May 22nd, 2008 12:30 PM
I agree with ferfer1, the epidural actually helped me. I was stuck at 3 cm and the doctors and nurses were beginning to consider a c-section. Then I asked for the epidural and went straight to 10 cm within the same hour. I call it my lifesaver! lol... And it did help with the pain a little bit (wink wink) lol. ↑
Name: Rachel H | Date: May 22nd, 2008 12:32 PM
But seriously, I think I'm going to try with no epidural this time also. I can handle pain pretty well, but I think my body really needed it the first time. Good luck junebaby! It won't be much longer for you! :) ↑
Name: loulou83 | Date: Jun 22nd, 2008 6:45 PM
I had gas and air for mine and that was all I needed. I think labour is more frustrating with all the pushing than it is painful. All depends on the person and the labour itself though. ↑
Name: alirenee86 | Date: Jun 25th, 2008 12:19 PM
I too am afraid of the whole needle in the spine idea, even though I know it is common practice and generally safe. I have heard from a couple of people that they could still tell me exactly where they inserted the needle and they didn't like the epi. I just have a thing with it and have a high threshold for pain so went without one for my first. I did have in the very beginning, a shot of Demerol. It takes the edge off a bit yes. It makes you not care as much and sleepy in between contractions. I remember waking up after a minute or so and being in such unbearable pain that I screamed for an epi but by that time, I was JUST about ready to push. I do not recall the pushing hurting at all. I am pregnant again, due in September and hoping do do without an epi again. If you can tolerate pain at all and can count yourself through each contraction and mentally know that it's temporary and going to end, I think you could get through it if you're trying to do it without one. But the Demerol, known to have the same effects as heroin, only put me a bit in la la land, if that, and made me sleep a bit in between. My adrenalin was so high that it didn't even have much of an effect at all. Without the epi though, I felt like a superstar afterwards, the baby was alert and came out after just one push. Best of luck- you can do it! ↑
Name: Crystal83 | Date: Jun 25th, 2008 4:48 PM
Pain meds don't help IMO. I had an epidural with my first and it was wonderful! Unfortuantely my 2nd and 3rd came to quickly and I was unable to have an epi. but everything turned out okay in the end. in fact for my fourth i don;t really care if I go natural or if I have time to have an epidural then that's great too. The pain is horrific but it gives you a better handle on how hard you need to push. ↑
Name: ers_0890 | Date: Jun 27th, 2008 8:40 PM
I’m unsure if I want to go with an epidural mainly because if you choose to go that route then while the medication is taking affect it will confine you to the bed. This means being hooked up to a catheter. I can’t stand the thought of being confined and unable to move around.
But it has two major benefits, in my opinion. The first one would obviously be the dulling of the pain, some women have had trouble pushing because the epidural has numbed them. And some women have wanted the epidural not to affect them while they are pushing because they feel that pushing is a special to experience the baby coming. If you know what you want during pregnancy you should really make sure your doctor knows, an epidural takes about two hours to take effect. Therefore your doctor must know a certain time ahead so that the medication will be useful. And they should also know if you want to feel the pushing so that the epidural to be discontinued in time.
My second reason that I would choose an epidural is because you can feel comfortable giving birth in one position, which is the way that pregnancy is typically portrayed on T.V.; on your back. I don’t really want to give birth in a standing or any other awkward position. Because without an epidural you might feel the need to move around and get in a more comfortable position while the baby is coming. ↑
Name: schreck | Date: Jun 27th, 2008 10:56 PM
I didn't have an epidural and my midwife made change positions every half hour because it helps keep things moving (something about your body adjusting to the position so the contractions aren't as effective). Also I delivered while I was on my side not my back. I stayed in the position I was in when I was ready to push. I due agree that many women who receive an epidural seem to push for a long period of time. Recently I have even hears of a couple of women being given petocin to deliver after pushing for several hours. ↑
Name: Teddyfinch | Date: Jun 29th, 2008 8:13 PM
i've read they push for longer because the epi affects the muscles down there, not letting you push as hard as you were if you weren't having an epidural. ↑
Name: MelissaP | Date: Jun 30th, 2008 12:55 AM
my sister sure seemed to like the epidural. I think they had to wake her so she could push..lol ↑
Name: MADISONSMOMMY | Date: Jul 9th, 2008 12:37 AM
june baby.. i had an newbane first and it did nothing for me. finally i asked for the epi and was sooo relaxed. it was nice. and i also think that getting ur iv in ur hand hurts worse then getting an epi. thats my opinion. ill take the epi everytime if i get in fast enough ↑
