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@ballerinabee: Pre-e is it's own crazy animal, I'm sorry you had to deal with that. It's one of the rare issues that totally warrants an induction. And lady, if I were on mag and pit I'd for SURE get an epi.
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I'm embarrassed to say that I wanted to go med free because 2 of my friends had, and I wanted to show that I could too. I didn't really give it too much thought beyond that. I made it to 10cm and 1.5hrs of pushing with no progress before I caved/the on call OB told me I had to have one, as i was being brought in for a forceps delivery and if it didn't work in 3 contractions I would need a C section. For about one hour they let me push with a super light epi (took the pain away, but I felt all the pressure), and still no progress, so they numbed me out completely and luckily my son was delivered by forceps.
If I could do it again I would get the epidural around 5cm. I'm upset that I went through all that pain and then got the epidural anyway - it was the sweetest relief I've ever felt and I will never labour hard without one again! -
I wanted to go med free mostly because I was afraid of the cascade of interventions leading to c-section, because I wanted to be able to labor out of bed and in the labor tub/on the ball/in the shower, and because I thought that my odds of tearing badly/needing an episiotomy would be lower with no epidural.
I ended up getting an epidural because I was induced and had horrid back labor (epidural worked perfectly, I felt 0 pain until it started to wear off and then they upped it and felt 0 pain again). I'm torn on if I'd get one again (unless I was induced again-- then I would definitely get it again!)
Pro epidural:
- totally took care of my pain FAST
- did not stall my progress at all. I actually progressed much faster after I got my epidural
- I didn't have any real complications from the epidural, beyond some lingering back pain for a few weeks that was not horrible
- When I ended up needing a c-section (LO was sunny side up and tilted and my midwife wouldn't let me go longer) it was super easy, they just turned up the dose. I didn't need to sit through placement at 8 cm dilated.Against epidural:
- It completely killed my legs. I couldn't move them hardly at all, and that means that I couldn't get out of bed to labor at all.
- It did make me sick. After getting the initial dose and then the upped dose I got nauseous and threw up and got the chills and that sucked.
- I still worry about tearing from ineffective pushingI think if I was to have another baby I'd try to go med free again. But if I was induced and/or if I had back labor again I'd get another epidural and not be too terribly concerned about it.
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I really wanted to be with the midwives, and one of their stipulations was that you couldn't be planning for an epidural. Also, I was freaked out by the whole needle/catheter thing. I got an epidural after 40 hours of labour (back labour), and I didn't regret it at all.
Next time, I'll try med-free again.
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I've never been a big medicine person. I wanted to experience childbirth and be in tune with my body. I felt like an epidural would hinder that. Plus I didn't want any further complications or interventions from it.
After 12 hours laboring unmedicated I took one so I could sleep. Labor stalled and I had an uncomplicated c section!
Haven't talked to my doctor about VBAC with number 2 yet, but I still dream of being able to have an unmedicated natural birth. But realistically I just don't see it happening based on my first birth.
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Im not big on medicine as a whole and try to live with pain before taking it. I also kind of went with the belief that woman have been doing this for as long as mankind has been around and I am as strong as any woman and wanted to at least experience some of labor before deciding if I needed to change my tune. I was lucky to have 2 unmedicated births so far
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With LO1, I think I was scared into not wanting one by the birth class teacher, who made it sound like an epi would lead to tons of interventions and complications. I always knew it would be an option, but wanted to try without. Well, when my contractions finally started, they were 2 min apart, so I couldn't catch a break. I got one at 7cm.
With LO2, I was totally on board for the epi, but I labored even faster and it was too late for one by the time the anesthesiologist made it to my room. My entire labor/pushing was less than 45 min. I would not wish that pain on anyone!
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I hate needles. And I didn't want to feel numb or fuzzy or anything because that would increase my anxiety.
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I was worried about additional interventions. I also worried about it not working and then feeling like I wasn't able to handle the pain. As it was, I ended up needing a small dose of Pitocin because my water broke but I wasn't in labor. I was able to manage the pain without an epidural. As my EDD for #2 gets closer, (39w today!) I am nervous about being able to do it again, though it's still my plan to avoid an epidural.
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With my first I wanted to go med free because I was worried about it slowing down labor and leading to interventions. I was induced a week early so I was expecting to wind up with a c section if I "gave in" and got the epidural. The induction contractions were so awful that I got the epidural relatively early and it was wonderful and labor from that point on was quick and easy. Based on my experience the first time I planned on an epidural for my second but for me regular labor was so much easier than pitocin labor that it was too late by the time I wanted it.
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@coopsmama: My reasons were that 1) I was having a home birth, and pain management (with drugs) wasn't an option. 2) I just knew I could do it ... I saw my own mom give birth without pain medication, and I think it was a pretty formative experience.
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I didn't want an epi during my pregnancy because I had an irrational fear of not being able to move my legs and feeling "frozen". I broke my back when I was 16 so I was worried that would complicate the epi even though I'm fully healed and the dr said it wasn't a problem.
After 24 hours of intense, exhausting labour and stalling at a 3, I got an epi. I took the most peaceful, joyous nap and woke up 2 hours later ready to push. It sped up my labour unlike anything else. I felt every contraction while pushing, but in a helpful way. I didn't feel a thing when they were stitching me up which might be the best bonus of all.
You can be sure the next LO I will be walking in the hospital asking for that miracle drug!!!
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For me, there are a few reasons I want to try for an epidural-free birth:
1. I want to minimize interventions period and epidurals, "cascade of interventions", etc (everyone's already touched on this).
2. I want to be able to get up and move around during labor if I so desire.
3. The thought of someone sticking a needle in my spine gives me the heebie-jeebies.
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