Why do women want to give birth without an epidural?

Question

I am not trying to start a big debate. I am genuinely curious why women choose pain over an epidural.

I have had three babies, all born by
c-section so this was not an issue for me.

Answer 1

I had a child without an epidural and not because I wanted pain, beleive me I cant handle pain that well...lol...but I chose not to have the epidural because I am terrified of a needle going into my spine. I have heard stories about how women get paralyzed if its not done right, or they suffer back problems, or they have headaches all the time. If I wasnt so afraid I would totally have it, I think its an amazing thing that the doctors have come up with something so great to help women do the hardest thing in the world! Also many props to the women who have many kids without it and arent afraid to get it, but just want to do it natural!!

Answer 2

Honestly? My first two were born naturally not by my choice, I really wanted an epidural because everyone sang it's praises, but I just didn't get there in time. For my 3rd, I had one. The pain of the thing going in my back while I was having contractions was endless, I had to have a catheter of course, so I wasn't even able to go potty by myself. And a natural birthing tip used and tested by time, walking, squatting... were not a possibility for me. I also did not feel in control. I counted on everyone to do everything for me which is just not normal for me. The epidural made me itch everywhere and sick to my stomach. I could not drink. Only ice chips. The risks involved with an epidural are insane, paralysis! If you move with a contraction and that thing slips going in, you're paralyzed! So, now that I've had one I can honestly say I will never have one again. My next child will be born naturally unless medical intervention is needed (life or death). The pain of natural birth is my way of knowing I am strong. I can endure and I'm never given anything that I cannot handle. I'm actually more proud of my natural births than I am of my epidural birth. It just wasn't what everyone said it would be and the pain is only there for a little while in a natural birth, I lived through it and so will everyone else.

Answer 3

I have had one baby so far, and I am pregnant with # 2 now (29 weeks), and I had an epidural with the first, as I plan on having one with the second too. For me it was a no brainer... why subject myself to that pain when it can easily be avoided. I was compleatly "with it" for the birth of my daughter, although the first try at pushing did not work so well because I could not feel anything... so they cut back on the epidural, and I pushed her out no problem. She was born compleatly aware and did not seem "drugged" at all. I was able to enjoy the experience. Not saying that women who deliver naturally don't enjoy the birth... just saying I was able to enjoy it with out much pain.

Also, I have a friend that has 3 kids that were all natural... not because she was against the epidural, it was because she was more afraid of the needle going into her back then actuall birth... I am sure many woman go natural because of this fear...


By the way, I forgot to say the total time I spent pushing was 29 minutes!!! (not including the time I took for a break to let the epidural wear off a bit). So for those who say it slows down labor, that is not always true...

Answer 4

Oh blah blah why does everyone know it all in this forum. Fact is not a single person here can tell you how bad or good it will be. They couldn't even tell you how THEIR next birth will be. No one knows how painful or not it will be... I've had two babies. First was about 10 hours labour, gradual build up, easily managable pain - natural, no I don't brag , people aren't impressed it's just how it panned out. Might I add i only pushed about 5 times - further reducing the agony. The second one was about 5 hours, pain like a b*tch from the get go. Even though I knew it wasn't going to be long I would have killed the midwife if she hadn't agreed to call the anesthetist. They spent an hour and 8 attempts to get the needle in but I wasn't about to stop them from trying to get it in. After it was in - bliss, and a baby in less than 30min & two pushes. (although I'm told if you've never given birth before it can be hard to know how or when to push with an epi). They were both brilliant, the first was truely cathartic, all that pain & joy. The second was awesome, surreal and beautiful, it was so quiet when he came into the world. My advice to you: People will tell you about birth plans, don't make one, you can't really since you have no idea what you're getting into having not given birth before. Keep all your options open and do what you need to when the time comes. Read lots too, that helped me. The epidural is not the devil, I had a cerebro spinal fluid leak because of the number of times they tried to put it in. It was a super crappy headache whenever I stood up for a couple of days. I still breast fed etc. This is the most common complication, but I would still have the epidural again if i felt I needed it.

Answer 5

A lot of women that I have talked to about getting any kind of pain medications say that they are afraid that the baby will have some of the drugs in his system when born. I personally can't see giving birth with out an epidural. My contractions before my epidural were absolutely horrible. They were all in my back and painful! Plus I have a low pain tolerance so I can't handle pain well. There are also some women who handle pain very well. My mom, for instance, had 4 kids with NO pain medicines of any kind for any of us. She's a brave strong woman lol.

Answer 6

In my case I gave birth four times without an epidural. I did have pain relief, just not that. As to why - its a choice. The doctors gave me the options, the pros ands cons, and we went from there.
Epidurals can slow the labour, making it longer and harder on the baby. It can reduce the mother's ability to assist in the delivery, some don't feel the urge to push the little one into the world. They can cause migraine like headaches in the mother, which can persist for days after the birth. As with anything invasive (they put a needle into the spaces between your spine bones) there can be complications.
I went to birthing classes so was prepared mentally to deal with the pain, at least to some extent. I don't have anything against mothers and health professionals that go that route, just knew it wasn't for me.

Answer 7

I'm going to try to forgo an epidural because I'd like to try to do it "on my own"... with as little intervention as possible. I just like to idea of accomplishing something that strenuous with nothing other than my own strength and will power.

Plus, I've heard horror stories about nerve damage and leg/back pain from the epidurals for years to come... I'm just not crazy about the idea of having a needle stuck in close to my spine.

However, it's nice to know that, if I ever feel it's more than I can handle, an epidural is always an option. :) I think labor really varies with each woman and each delivery, so there's nothing wrong with admitting you're in pain!

Answer 8

I was in labor forever (it seemed) with my one and only child. I was 23 years old and I did not have an epidural. I finally got so tired from the labor and pushing that the OB/GYN had to use the vacuum thing on my daughter's head to help me get her out. It was exhausting, and frustrating, and it hurt! To be honest with you, I think I had ruled an epidural out due to pressure from a child birthing class and my mother. My last birthing class was the night I went into labor and the class made me feel like I would be a bad mother if I had the epidural. My mother kept telling me how she did it without any medication. I felt such extreme pressure, so I suffered through it. I ended up having my tubes tied a couple of years later, but I swear, if I were ever going to do it again, NUMB me up. I wanna almost be near unconscious! I do not believe there is a good reason to go through that pain. And, btw, I am not a big baby, as I can normally handle pain.

EDIT: I am seeing many women mentioning the fear of paralysis. That is very rare.

"Paraplegia (extremely rare, less than 1:100,000). "

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epidural_anaesthesia#Side_effects

That is .001% chance of paralysis. The risk of getting in a car accident and being paralyzed is higher. We still ride in cars everyday. If I gambled everyday, and only had a .001% chance of LOSING, I would be rich, rich, rich!

Answer 9

I had 2 natural births but not by choice. The anesthesiologist was busy both times so I had to go natural. I don't think that the idea of having a long needle inserted in your spine is too appealing to a woman. Also I have heard that if you move when it is done, you may cause paralysis. My sister had an epidural and 8 years later, she still suffers from lower back pain where the needle was inserted.

Answer 10

Some just want to go with the natural experience. There are and have been plenty of women who have delivered without! And, some are too far along in labor to actually get one.

Personally, I went into my first labor wanting to do a totally natural childbirth. After like 4-6 hours of contractions, I broke down and asked for an epidural. Ahhhh! Relief! Now, I would not consider NOT having one!