Epidural, Natural, other options?

Question

Is an epidural as dangerous as people keep telling me? Is Natural Birth better or is there another alternative?

Answer 1

natural birth is the best way it lessens your recovery time and empowers you as a woman. epidurals can be dangerous but most cases are fine. why any 1 would want to have a c section willingly is insane. its major surgery and it takes away from the bonding time between mother and child. after a vaginal delivery the baby is laid on the mothers chest and it forms a very important bond with its mother. with a c section you dont get that chance to bond with your baby and there is major pain after the surgery and you wont b able to ever hav a vaginal delivery if you get pregnant again due to the chance of your scar on your uterus rupturing and you bleeding out

Answer 2

Ok. The World Heald Organization and the Pan American Health Organization have established upper limits to the acceptable amount of c-sections in realition to population density. That's because it comes with much higher risks of complications during the birth work or after it. Mother mortality rates are highly correlated with overall c-sections amounts. And as someone already said, the recovey time it's much longer and painful that the natural way. Think about this: epidural shots are NOT made specially for this. Neither the horizontal form of the birth work. The latter was designed to make it easier to phisicians, no to the mother. C sections are also more expensive. That' of course, should be covered by your insurance policy, but a doctor earns more money from this procedure anyway, and he or she can make up to 20 c-sections a day, instead of 2 to 3 natural births.

Answer 3

Epidurals are not dangerous. The pain relieving medication does not cross the placenta so the drugs will not enter the baby's system. Since you do not feel the pain labor tends to be a bit longer and it can increase the need for a C-Section. Other drugs that are used to ease the pain do cross the placenta, and therefore do enter the baby's body, however they are not dangerous, your baby may seem a little more "groggy" which he will most likely be anyway.
Personally I went natural, I had planned to go natural, but then decided it was too much pain and I wanted the epidural. My labor progressed very quickly and by the time the anesthesiologist got there it was too late to give me one.
Any way you choose will be fine. Find what's best for you and remain flexible because labor is so unpredictable. Good Luck!

Answer 4

I thought I was going natural, or with just the shot, but when my water broke (I was on potosin) and I felt those real contractions, I thought my body was being chainsawed in half. I did have an epidural, there is a reason why they were invented, so you can stay focused and push during delivery. My doctor said she wished she could influence everyone to take the epidural. I know I will with baby #2. By the way, my son was born alert, and stayed awake for an hour or two until he was done feeding, then he was awake for along stretch after his first nap. He did not seem drugged or out of it at all. Do what your body tells you to do. Have a plan and a back up plan!

Answer 5

I have 4 kids...1,2, & 4th natural and the 3rd I had an epidural. I would recomend Natural. The one with the epidural was a lot less painful and them putting it in my back didn't hurt as much as I thought, but I was numb in that spot for months afterward. I have a friend who was the same way. That kinda scared me because I'd heard horror stories of things happening that was much worse. I wouldn't recommend a c-section because the healing process is so much longer. I won't lie and say that natural birth isn't painful, but it is a pain that is gone instantly and is hard to remember after seeing your sweet little baby. Good luck on whatever you decide.
Beth

Answer 6

With my first labor and delivery my epidural did not work. I believe that as long as you listen to what they have to tell you (i.e. sit still, take deep breaths when they say, be truthful when they ask what you feel, etc.) that you will be fine. I would highly recommend an epidural, but each woman's pain threshold is different so only you can make that decision. Good Luck! I hope I have helped.

Answer 7

I was going to try to go natural, but was convinced to get the epi when I was 6cm dialated. I did, and I was glad, except, it broke when I was at 9cm. The Needle popped out of the nerve in my back. They kept pumping in more and more medicine and it was not helping at all, untill they took it out and replaced it. This took hours!!!!! I was in the most god awefull pain in my life. I was screaming, crying, puking, and could not find anyway to sit or lay that was comfortable. The babies head was pushing apart my hip bones at ths point. I think that going from no pain with the epidural, and having it fail at the height of the painfull part of labor made the intensity so much worse. But after feeling that, I NEVER want to go natural. Just be carful not to wiggle the epi needle loose like I did.

Answer 8

C-Section is the safest. Natural birth is fine, but I would advise an epidural beforehand. No reason to suffer through an already difficult experiance.

Answer 9

They will offer statol or demoral as well... those are better alternatives than the Epidural.. which I don't reccommend (which I had twice) but it is better on the baby if it is natural because then you have to worry about it making your baby woozy and such after birth..

Answer 10

i had c-section with my first one. i was induced and just about having a uterinerupture. almost dying. it was awful.

and then, with my second, i had a VBAC. i had to try this labour without induction and epidural etc. even not a pain killer. so it was 100 % natural. (because any epidural could mask the pre-signs of uterine rupture during labour).

and believe me, this is NOT a very bad, unresistable, nightmare thing. i could do it, every woman could do it.

just trust your body and the nature. do walking everyday after your 34th week.

of course, during the dilation, you feel like killing every ob, nurses, etc around you. but afterwards, i would never change the feeling of the baby's out moment to any stupid epidural.

take care.