if you were me would you go thru labor without any hospital drugs?

Question

i'm talkin about pain killers or the epidural? i don't want my baby born on drugs its just doesnt seem right...

well ive read about the effects of drugs and i dont care about the pain its my baby i care about.

Answer 1

I'm all for supporting women if they want a natural labor. The less interventions you have the less risks there are. However, having said that, the risks of having interventions like an epidural or narcotic pain relievers is relatively small, and for many women the benefits they receive from being comfortable to them outweigh those potential risks.

Epidurals offer the most complete pain relief with the least amount of risk to the baby. Since the medication goes into your spinal space, virtually none of it enters your blood stream and gets to the baby. Your baby is not born drugged up. The main risks for epidurals are infection (anytime you break the skin), nerve injury that could be temporary or long term and range from mild to severe (1 in 200,000) but I have never ever heard of paralysis, or a spinal headache, which is 1 in 200, but easily treated. There are some arguments that epidurals lead to increased c-sections because your labor might stall or you might not be able to push effectively, but the vast majority of women who have epidurals do not have these problems and successfully deliver vaginally without assistance from pitocin, vacuum, forceps, etc.

Narcotic pain meds do enter the blood stream and cross the placenta. They are not as effective as an epidural. They mostly take the edge off the peak of the contraction and allow you to rest better in between contractions. Babies can be born a little sluggish and drugged. If the med is given too close to delivery, the baby could potentially have respiratory distress and need help breathing or have a medication to reverse the action of the narcotics, but this too is also relatively rare.

For those who don't choose medications, warm showers and baths, counterpressure on the back, hip squeezes, massage, bouncing on a birthing ball, rotating the hips, and slow deep breathing are all measures that can help you stay comfortable while laboring.

There is no right or wrong choice. I believe that there are instances where pain relief is extremely beneficial for a woman and her baby - such as a woman who has been in latent labor for many days with no rest, or stuck at a certain dilation with no progress, women who are extremely stressed and out of control, etc. When you are tense and exhausted you are essentially fighting labor your uterus can't work as efficiently. In these cases, I've seen a woman get an epidural and suddenly after an hour of rest her cervix magically goes from 4cm to complete.

Answer 2

Although nobody can answer that for you, it is hard for you to answer that yourself until it actually happens to you! I thought I didn't want an epidural, I thought i'd try it natural with no drugs. Boy did I change my mind! I got an epidural just before I hit 7 cm and the pain was so bad that time seemed to stand still and I wasn't even aware of anything going on around me. Once I had it, I was able to relax a bit more and focus on my husband and what was actually happening. My daughter was born alert and breast-fed right away. I also only had 30 minutes of pushing, so I don't believe people who say an epidural slows things down. I had the epidural around 5:30 or 6pm, and I delivered at 7pm.

Its up to you, but keep an open mind because you never know what will happen!

Answer 3

I did quite a bit of research regarding epidurals in labour & the findings suggested there was a very small increase in the duration of the second stage of labour (pushing) & instrumental delivery. However, I had my first baby 18 months ago & although 7 cms dilated when I reached the hospital I still opted for an epidural as I didn't know what to expect. It was magnificent! I did not feel a thing, but the flip side of that was I didn't have any sensation in my pelvic area & after 2 hours of pushing (or attempting to), I had an episitomy & ventouse. Baby was well, but the episitomy site was very sore & uncomfortable for a good few weeks. I did plan to have an epidural for baby No2 (born 7 months ago), but alas, did not even make it to the hospital. My labour was only 45mins, & my husband ended up delivering her in the hallway!! It was painful, but not unbearable. The recovery was so much nicer & easier. I would keep an open mind, take one step at a time & do what is right for you. Good Luck!

Answer 4

I think you should form a preference, but keep an open mind and give yourself permission to change your mind once in labor.

From the moment I became pregnant, I knew I wanted to be medicated ASAP. But when I first started active labor (I was induced), I wasn't hurting badly enough to feel like I needed it. I ended up being in labor for 2 days. On day #2, I was hurting so severely that I couldn't talk or think straight. I did get pain medicine, and was very glad I did! Even with the pain meds, the pain was incredible! Unfortunately, after 2 1/2 days, I couldn't progress past 2 centimeters and my water had already been broke. I had a c-section, which I had hoped I wouldn't. Turned out my pelvic bone was so narrow that I can't naturally have a child. So medicated is the only way I'll be able to deliver as you can't do a c-section without anything!

Even though I wanted to have my daughter vaginally with drugs, my labor turned out different. I was glad afterwards that I was flexible. Some women feel "cheated" if they take too strong of a stance for one way or the other. Remember that labor is unpredictable. Do research now, but make your final decision when you are actually experiecing it...

Answer 5

No one's suggesting you're being "tough" by not getting pain meds ... and that's not what it's really about. I don't really agree when people who think you 'shouldn't be a hero' - it's not about that, either! For me personally, I wanted to see how far I could get without pain meds. I did have Nubain, which is a narcotic - but it does zilch for the pain except 'make you not care' about it. Which is true. BUt you still feel everything. I think you have the right approach as opposed to screaming "Give me pain meds!" the minute you come out of the elevator at the OB wing. There are lots of things you can do - changing positions, walking around, massage, take a hot shower or sit in the hot tub, if there is one; rock in a chair, etc. all can help manage pain. I hired a doula and she was great in helping me focus on something other than the pain. If you have support from someone non-biased who is not trying to talk you into going straight to an epi, but rather can help you manage your pain objectively, it really helps. Having a focal point helps, too. I gave birth in a Catholic hospital, so my focal point was the crucifix. I will be looking for it again as I give birth this time in another (different) Catholic hospital. Hey, whatever works for you! I would wait as long as you feel comfortable before going in to the hospital ... once contractions are regular and at five minutes apart, yes - but you can cruise the lobby and pace for a while until you really feel the need to go and check in. The walking helped me a lot, and when I got to the hospital I was already dilated to 6 cm. Good luck! You can do it! :D And don't worry if you can't ... get as far as you can and just see what happens. You never know.

Answer 6

The decision to use or not to use pain killers during labor and delivery can be a difficult one to make. Regardless of your decision, once you begin the labor process, your plans can change once you begin to experience the actual event. When my 4 children were born, it was not as common to automatically take the epidural as it is now. So, I delivered all 4 vaginally with no medications. My oldest daughter had her baby in April. She intended to deliver vaginally with no medications as well. However, her water broke at home and she ended up 25 hours later with a stalled labor. She was exhausted and hadn't even started pushing yet, so she agreed reluctantly to the epidural. More complications began arising such as our daughter developed a fever and our grandson's heart rate became too fast. It became evident that a drug-free vaginal birth was not the best plan any more and it was necessary to deliver our grandson via C-section. Despite the medications my daughter needed, my grandson was not adversely affected by them. It is certainly a good idea to have a general idea as to the preferred labor and birth method you would like to use, but be realistic when it comes to your expectations. Sometimes unavoidable things happen and even the best laid plans have to make way for a Plan B or even a Plan C.

Answer 7

I am 40 wks and 1 day as of now. I plan to go thru without any pain medication at all. When I had my first child, the hospital gave me demerah 2 times and it didn't work. The 3rd time was a success but it only made me rest for four hours. Now with my 2nd pregnacy, i heard that demerah is not good for the baby so says my dr. Also with my 1st i had an epadural. didn't work. at all. so i am not having one this time. I was put in the hospital a week ago b/c i was having contractions and they got so painful i told the doctor to give me some pain medication and he gave me staydhal which made me stop with the contractions. so this time i am not having any medications

Answer 8

I keep playing with the idea of a natural childbirth as well, for a couple of reasons. With my research, here's the tips that I gathered:

1) Take Bradley Method childbirth classes
2) Talk to your doctor before hand on how much experience they have with natural childbirths. If a midwife is an option for you, maybe look into that, they have a lot more experience. If not, a doula is always helpful with calming and coping techniques in the hospital room.
3) Don't go into it thinking it's the ONLY way that you can give birth. A lot of women end up changing their mind and/or needing a c-section, and feel very guilty afterwards. Just keep an open mind.

Good luck!

Answer 9

I took a Bradley Methods birthing class and felt totally prepared to go without drugs. If you practice deep breathing, meditation and even Yoga you can learn ways to control pain without drugs. I unfortunately had a breech baby that was stuck in my rib cage and had to have the Cesarean. I did labor and dilate to like a 6 without any problems using these techniques before the Cesarean though. I have friends that went in relying on the drugs and consider childbirth one of the most painful horrible experiences of their lives. Everyone I know that has done it natural using Bradley describe it as the most beautiful fulfilling moment of their live. Prepare and do what you feel is best for YOU!!

Answer 10

As a mother of 3 children & one on the way, I would never use any drugs on myself. I've had easy & natural birth with all my 3 kids. I believe that epidural or whatever it is, slows the birthing process down, leaving you & the baby too numb to know when to push, etc...so try to relax & do your breathing techniques often and walk around lots thru out your labour as gravity helps the baby move down for birth.
Just think of the pain as a helpful method for the baby, for every pain/contractions you have, it's helping the baby move down easier. So just visualize your baby everytime you have a contraction...