why do women prefer to have a natural birth?

Question

i just cannot understand why women want to go through labour with no pain medication, surly you are alot more relaxed and focused if you have had an epidural why be in pain there is no need to be in pain

epidural may have serious side effects however thay are rare and epidural is not just used during child birth so lighten up with the negative epidural thing

if it was so natural then why do we have to go for so many appointments to see the midwife and so many tests not to mention the fact that most woemen have there babies in hospital

Answer 1

They say its better for the baby but every expert ive read says that having pain meds have had no ill effects on baby

Answer 2

Statistics show that an epidural increases the likelihood of assisted birth, i.e. forceps or ventouse and so increases the chances of having to be cut for delivery. That was the main reason I was adamant I didn't want an epidural. Who wants to be cut for goodness sake???

I got to 10 cm with just gas and air and TENS and it was a doddle. There was no pain!

Unfortunately, I had to have an emergency caesarean in the end so I don't know how I would've coped with the actual delivery.

I'm pretty sure it would have been easier than recovering from a major operation and having your baby taken straight from you to special care, because caesarean delivery often means the baby's lungs retain fluid, making breathing difficult.

Answer 3

I think, it's mostly about feeling in control. As a woman, to give birth naturally means to be in full control of your own body without interference from others. If the situation is not masked by pain relief we can feel what is happening, and we are more in tune with the process, rather than feeling like a sausage machine. However, in the vent of the pain becoming so unbearable, or the birth too difficult we lose control again, in a different way, and medical intervention can restore it for us, because we are not in a state of panic and/or helplessness.

I wanted to have a natural birth with both my children, and things started out that way, but due to complications I ended up having an epidural and forceps with one, and a caesarian with the other, and I was grateful for these at the time. We must not forget the women who give birth in countries with lesser facilities than ourselves who do not have this luxury!

It is up to individual women to choose what makes them feel in control within the circumstances in which they give birth. At the end of the day what matters is having a healthy baby.

Answer 4

Not all women prefer natural.

But there are benefits. With narcotics, you have a harder time focusing on things to take your mind of the pain/pressure and you risk harm to the baby. I was in labor with my first daughter for 72 hours and they gave me a narcotic during the second day. It was miserable.

With epiderals, they don't always work, for one. For another, epiderals can cause drawn out labor and a higher chance for a c-section. Because the woman can't feel what she's supposed to be doing and can't push. Or sometimes it'll stop the contractions all together, and since the water has already broken, you end up going under the knife.

For me personally, I like to have an epideral during the majority of the labor so I'm not worn out when it comes time to push. But I like for my doctor to time the doses so it wears off shortly before time to start pushing. That way I can feel what I'm doing and get the baby out faster.

You also have to keep in mind that human body is designed wonderfully. There are a lot of natural responses that help the woman from feeling the full brunt of the pain of natural child birth.

Answer 5

In a question yesterday about dotors telling women when to push, many people stated that with an epidural you can't feel the contractions coming on and need a doctor with a monitor to tell you how to work with your body. These were not natural birth boosters just folks explaining the facts of modern birth. There is also the fact that labor and delivery are more comfortable and progress better when women move and find optimal positions rather than lying still on their backs, and epidurals (and other routine interventions) can remove those options.

I was able to work with my body to push exactly when I needed to and wait out the contractions when there was a cord wrap, and I gave birth to an alert baby who responded to my touch and was able to nurse almost imediately. I was also able to do it in the comfort of my own home, with only those people I wanted there and no one trying to manage me or my baby. That was the advantage of a natural birth and it was certainly worth it to me.

Unfortunately, it apears you don't actually want answers, but its here for anyone who wants to know.

Answer 6

Because we brainwash them into thinking that natural is better. Epidurals do have a slight risk of harming the baby. However, so does natural childbirth. My labor with my first child was 33 hours and started with contractions that were only 5 minutes apart (there was no gradually easing into it). I finally had an epidural and it made a huge difference and I think it was actually better for my daughter because it calmed me down which was less stressful for her. It doesn't make you out of it or drugged out like some people suggest, it simply helps reduce the pain. I had natural childbirth with my second child. This was not by choice. I only labored for 1 1/2 hours before he was born. The fast delivery was very stressful on him and the doctors were concerned about how it was affecting him. There are risks in every delivery and there is nothing wrong with wanting to be more relaxed. I really think a lot of women just like to think they're better because they choose natural. I really think it's a bunch of crap. This is a personal decision and I think people should do what they think is right for them and their baby and other people should not judge.

Answer 7

I don't know myself. I think it's every woman's personal choice how she wants to deliver the baby. People are so crazy, they criticise women who prefer Cesareans, what's their business. The child is born, that's the most important thing.

Saying that this or that will harm the baby is just plain stupid, stupid, STUPID! Everybody seems to forget that a human being is a baby for a very short time, so how can it affect anybody??? When you're 30 years old and you get a headache, a common thing, do you blame your mother that she didn't have a natural birth and that is the reason for your headache? What kind of rubbish is that?

And what makes a good mother is NOT the way she gave birth. It's the way she is with the child long after the child was a baby!

Answer 8

I would have no idea....I have two kids..one with an epidural the other natural ,not by choice -didn't make it to the hospital in time....

if you ask me...the epidural birth was not only easier on my body it was less stressful on my son.....the second one wasn't the case...his heat rate dropped...my blood pressure went out of control...it was a bad scary situation for a little while..........

If I was going to have another...there is no way, I would have it natural...I would rent a room next to the hospital when my time was near...and when the first pains hit...I would be there demanding the epidural.......

ok, all you natural birth mothers...thumbs down me for downing the "beautiful ,natural experience"..I have been there and done that...it was not beautiful ..it was scary....and nor is it an experience that I wish to ever repeat.........

Answer 9

The epidural can cause a woman to have longer labor because it shuts off the pain that allows labor to progress into birth and on top of that, many women have done it naturally in the past and lived through it...so why not do it naturally?

That was my philosophy...I didn't get the chance to have natural childbirth because of complications that forced me to have the epidural to avoid seizures due to high blood pressure.

Oh and not to mention that women have been paralyzed by epidurals. My outcome was fine but if I had the option next time, I think I would go without the epidural (I almost had to have a c-section because I wasn't progressing with my labor).

Answer 10

Most women do it so they can know the feeling and so that they don't have to use drugs. I tried but after I dialated 5 cm I needed an epidural. I was hoping to have an all natural so I can feel when I need to push but it didn't turn out that way.

Answer 11

Well, any type of intervention carries risks, and if your labour is an uncomplicated, natural one, it's for the best for you both. I am by no means anti pain relief, and if a woman feels that that is what she wants, I am all for it. My personal choice was to have an intervention-free labour with both of my children, although I did use TENS machines. Having said that, I was lucky enough to have straightforward labours. Your body is designed for childbirth and is generally very good at it! Understand though that people may take offence at the tone of your question - remember we all have a right to choose how we wish to have our babies, and just because you think it's better to have an epidural, many don't think that way. If you want to know the risks to yourself and your baby with epidural anaesthesia, read this:
http://www.childbirth.org/articles/sideeppi.html