Read them. You should at least know the risk you are putting you and your baby under if you choose an epidural. I know, some cannot do it without one. That's fine. There comes a time when you have to decide, no I cannot do it. I could handle it. Besides, your body makes it's own painkillers. I will pick the article apart to explain why I decided on no epidural, and why I will probably go for a completely natural homebirth next time.
"Epidurals may cause your blood pressure to suddenly drop. For this reason your blood pressure will be routinely checked to help ensure an adequate blood flow to your baby. If there is a sudden drop in blood pressure, you may need to be treated with IV fluids, medications, and oxygen."
Um. No, thank you!!
"You may experience a severe headache caused by leakage of spinal fluid. Less than 1% of women experience this side effect. If symptoms persist, a procedure called a “blood patch”, which is an injection of your blood into the epidural space, can be performed to relieve the headache."
More unnecessary intervention may be needed because of it. Again, no thank you.
"After your epidural is placed, you will need to alternate sides while lying in bed and have continuous monitoring for changes in fetal heart rate. Lying in one position can sometimes cause labor to slow down or stop."
Um. Duh. Laboring in a lying- down position will cause labor to slow down. Why? Gravity...
"You might experience the following side effects: shivering, ringing of the ears, backache, soreness where the needle is inserted, nausea, or difficulty urinating."
Sounds uncomfortable. I do not understand why anyone would choose that. And why does it matter if you have difficulty urinating? You pretty much have to wait to get up until the baby is delivered anyway, in this situation.
"You might find that your epidural makes pushing more difficult and additional interventions such as Pitocin, forceps, vacuum extraction or cesarean might become necessary."
I pushed like a champ and had her out in 6 pushes. Yeah. It's better when you can feel it. I have read births with epidurals can take 15 minutes longer of pushing, and up to two hours. No thank you. I would rather not feel like my vagina is on fire longer than I have to. :D
"For a few hours after the birth the lower half of your body may feel numb. Numbness will require you to walk with assistance."
I do NOT do well with assistance. This alone made me decide not to get an epidural. Plus, I could get up and move around directly afterwards!
"In rare instances, permanent nerve damage may result in the area where the catheter was inserted."
Uh no no no no no!!!!!!!!!! I would like to ride and chase my two year old and NOT worry about back issues later on down the road!!!
"Though research is somewhat ambiguous, most studies suggest that some babies will have trouble "latching on" causing breastfeeding difficulties. Other studies suggest that a baby might experience respiratory depression, fetal malpositioning, and an increase in fetal heart rate variability, thus increasing the need for forceps, vacuum, cesarean deliveries and episiotomies."
I wouldn't want anything to come between my breastfeeding relationship with my baby! Also, I know that BECAUSE epidurals, as a whole, cause labor to slow down, they leave baby more open to infection because as the fluid drips out, the baby's protection against infection get less and less. I don't want that. More babies wind up in the NICU as an indirect result of epidurals than I care to count! I just don't want to leave my baby open to that kind of thing.
Epidurals ARE necessary in some cases:
- Allows you to rest if your labor is prolonged
- When other types of coping mechanisms are no longer helping, an epidural can help you deal with exhaustion, irritability, and fatigue. An epidural can allow you to rest, relax, get focused and give you the strength to move forward as an active participant in your birth experience.
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