Drugs? or no Drugs? (Question Pertaining to Birth)

[Muireannach]

If you are planning on having a child in future, or have had one, where do you stand on drugs during birthing? (I mean the doctor administered kind...not the illegal kind!)

Share your experiences or views on the topic.

I personally plan on being heavily medicated during birth, I want to keep the pain to a minimum.

[Arinya]

I have not had children but if I do I would very very very much like some pain killers. My mom was doped up and I turned out alright, I'm not too worried about it hurting the baby. Although my SO thinks we shouldn't use any pain meds and have a natural birth. yeah...then he can have the kid! Hehe

[Shanti]

I didnt want anything at all when I had my kids. The drugs go to the baby and I didnt care for that either. I figured it this way..humans as well as animals in general have been giving birth, naturally since we all existed!!! I spent each of my pregnancies learning as much as I could about mental control over pain and relaxation. I am pleased to say all my kids were totally natural and I wouldnt have changed a thing. :)
Thats what was right for me.
I have always avoided all meds from docs as much as humanly possible!!! So its part of my way to refuse the same for birthing, which to me is not an illness but a natural event so, if I wont allow drugs except in extreme circumstances due to illness, I wont for a normal event. :)
I'm hard headed in this area for myself only! :)

[spirit wind]

I have had 3 kids. I mostly used the gas. My first labour was drug free. It wasn't too bad, mostly back pain. And i didn't know you could have pain killers while in labour. No one told me.
My second labour was a labour from hell. I was in so much pain, though i refused pain killers right up until the end. Then i screamed for something. The docs gave me a Pethidine injection, which in turn made my baby freak out. She had her first bowel movement inside of me and had to have her lungs sucked to remove all the yucky stuff as she couldn't breathe. Then the next day she had to have it done again. I swore i would never use Pethidine again.
My last child was induced, so i was on an Oxytocin drip for about 5 odd hours. I used the gas then because i was in so much pain. Worse than the other two combined!!! But i used nothing else.
I was offered an epidural and i totally refused that. The docs were worried i was going to need a c - sectionbecause my baby was big and stubborn (typical male lol ) and i told them to knock me out for it.

[WingedTigerChild]

My mother was medicated for asthma while in labour with me...I have mild cerebral palsy, thanks to the meds. Although I realize she had no choice in the matter, it definitely makes me wonder about other drugs during labour and their effects on the baby.

[FaerieGothMommy]

I had to have epidurals with both my labours, i had no choice really.
Both labours were VERY similar, i'm not sure if it was my body & it didn't have the abbility to do it or some other reason, i've never asked.
In both my labours, i got to about 5cms and stopped dilating, however my contractions carried on getting worse & worse, and still it wasn't making me dilate. I had no choice but to have those epi's, my babies started to get distressed so also i had to think of them. I tried to go aslong as i could without having them, but i wasn't getting anywhere, the only thing that was progressing was the pain. My first labour was 21 hours long & my second was 15 hours long.

I'm not sure if it's because my body wasn't capable of dilating or not, but with both i was also induced.... It's kind of a sore spot for me, i often feel guilty for not being able to go into labour naturally or to have been able to dilate.
I had to have the epi's to calm me down & after i carried on dilating.
People have said it was probably because i was tense, but with my first i was in the birthing pool VERY relaxed, so i wouldn't have called that tense. I had to get out though as my daughter was getting aggitated.

[Raven Reed]

I had an epi with my first and things were great, although the labor lasted 30 hours... I could still feel pain but it was managable. I ended up having a c-section and they gave me morpine for that. As much as I can tell, child A seems normal and as obnoxious as a fourteen year old should be.

With the second they wouldn't give my ANYTHING. I ranted and raved and screamed and it was awful. Finally they gave me half a dose of demarol which I had a reaction to, but it did nothing to stop the pain and because I was so far in the labor they couldn't give me anything else, or so they said. Child B, although normal in other ways, has always been more high strung, even from birth. I always wonder...

Well, I have had enough fun and am never going through THAT again. Not for anyone or anything.

[morrigen]

My little one presented posterior..which is when their spine is against your spine instead of the other more usual way (thier spine towards your stomach). When they present posterior, your spine and theirs basically grind together all the way through the birth process. Quite bluntly, this is *agony*

I had gas all the way through, a pethidine shot...and then because he wouldn't come out, I had to have an epidural so they could deliver him with forceps.

The pethidine was next to useless. The gas, which I refused to let go of, got me through, but that epidural...suddenly the pain vanished, after 24 hours of agony...I could have kissed the anaesthesiologist.

And my son not only came out fine, but has been in the 98th percentile for height and weight, and has been a fast developer all round. And he's extremely cute :)

I have no problem saying that if I could go back and do it again, I'd take the drugs.

[Faery-Wings]

Two completely un (pain) medicated births. However both were medicated with Pitocin. Ouch.

I think it depends on your pain toloerance. I seem to have a high pain tolerance, and I dilate very quickly and easily. I was 9cm when I got to the hospital with #1 and didn't think I was in labor, cuz...well it was supposed to hurt!

Now before all you moms hate me for that, I ended up pushing for *4 hours* (with no drugs!- now *that* hurt and was exhausting) cuz stubborn Taurus male didn't want to descend. bah.

I used a combination of lamaze breathing and hypnotherapy for pain management, and I know they really helped. The hypnotherapy was great and I would recommend anyone who wants an unmedicated birth to try that.

[misschief]

i had one child with no drugs, and two children with drugs... #1-drugged, #2-not drugged, #3-drugged... the first two were easy and quick, and relatively painless... the third.. OHHHHHHHHH BOOOOOOYYYYYY it was hell. HELL i tell you. nearly 24 hours of killer contractions that the medicine did NOT dull, but i'm not sure i wouldn't have had a psychotic break without the meds.. lol. so i opt for meds all the way.

[Ceres]

EVERY single intervention will lead to the *need* for more intervention. sometimes its neccessary, sometimes completely unneccessary. i didnt know enough about the drugs before i had my first and it led to a birth injury that could very well have left me in diapers to rest of my ife. there are a lot of women walking around in diapers because of birth injury, btw, its just something ppl are embarrassed to admit.
by my second and third births, i knew more about the procedures and drugs and their possible side effects. i made the decisions about what to do during my births, not a medical attendent, and so any interventions were by informed consent, which is supposed to be the norm, but unfortunately isnt because women dont realize they need to be more informed than reading "what to expect when you're expecting" consequently, the births were much safer and easier on both me and my babies.

[Ben Trismegistus]

Obviously, it's a matter of personal choice, but here's my wife's experience.

She decided beforehand that at long as her labor continued to progress forward, she would refuse medication. She had spent a lot of time during her pregnancy working with Yemaya, and she called to her during labor to help her through the pain. Because of this, she was able to weather the contractions in a quasi-trance state, riding over the pain in waves rather than struggling through it. Because she didn't resist the contractions, her labor progressed quickly and our son was born just under three hours after she got into the birthing room.

She insists that the absence of pain medication made it possible for her to control the pushing part of labor. She could feel everything, so she knew when and how to push, depending on where the contractions were. So, she only pushed 3 times and Joey popped right out. In contrast, a good friend of ours had an epidural, and couldn't feel much of anything below the waist. So the doctor had to tell her when to push and when to stop, and she was pushing the wrong way for several hours before they realized what was wrong. In that time, however, she burst a bunch of blood vessels in her face - ouch.

It's a natural process, one which women have been doing for millennia, and in an ideal situation, the doctors are simply there to help you along and make sure nothing goes wrong. Of course, there are always exceptions - you may be stuck at 5 cm for 10 hours, or have back labor, or any number of other things that would necessitate drugs. I'm not judging anyone one way or the other (since it's not something I'll ever experience), but my wife is very proud of how she did, and feels a real sense of accomplishment and kinship with the centuries of women who have come before her.

[misschief]

i'd be proud too! it sound easy, but it's just not. lol. i can handle pain better than most.. but childbirth? no way. :lol:

[Ceres]

its true that labour is unpredictable, but it is also true that you are more likely to have complications from interventions and from being in a hospital setting. try taking your cat out of the closet she has cornered herself in to give birth and drag her to the vet's office with bright flourescent lights and scary equipemnt and see how HER labour progresses.
ben, what u say about controlled pushing is very true. when u can feel yourself stretching too much too fast, its very easy to stop pushing forcefully and let your body accustom itself before continuing. the notion that women need to be told how to push is a result of medicated births being the norm. its also important women choose their own position to birth in to prevent "purple pushing" . the typical "on your back with knees pulled up to your chest" position that is so common in american hospitals is arguably one of the worst for the both the mother and the baby, causing reduced oxygen to the baby, more pain for the mother and more difficulty all around. the mother actually has to pusht he baby up and OVER her perimium in this position. no wonder we need so many lifesaving procedures!
i am not judging anyone either...women do the best they can with the information at hand. what i am saying is that we need to be better informed and by more sources than just the doctor doing the delivery. we need to decide what will be done, with the doctor or midwife making recommendations, not the other way around. who is serving whom here?

[Zoritsa_Nepenthe]

My oldest was without any drugs to relieve pain.I did however have pitocin to kick start my labor that had stalled after my water broke(and they say thats suposed to increase labor...ha!).Anyways,my oldest was born drug free and natural.

My youngest I was miserable,so I opted for an epidural as soon as I could get it.Shortly after the epidural my son's heart rate declined and after a short time of him being in distress,I had to have a c-section.Was it related to the epidural?....I don't know and will never know.There were some other issues that the Dr. found when he did the c-section,but even he didn't know if not having an epidural would have made a difference or not.

Had I been able to do both pregnancies over...I would have waited as long as I possibly could in the comfort of my own home.That way I could walk around,sit and rock in my rocking chair,or what have you...instead of being told when I could and couldn't get up and walk around...when I could and couldn't eat and so forth.

[Ceres]

when your water breaks, it can stall labour because it sometimes reduces the pressure on your cervix to open. it can go either way - thats why its best to leave well enough alone as long as possible. but of course, sometimes nature has different ideas.
(i am lmao @ 31 sleeps till my kids quit bugging me)

[bluglass]

It is up to each woman to make a decision for herself based on only her unique circumstances and needs.

As for myself, my understanding is that drugs during birth increases risks for drug abuse, addicitons and other risk behavior in males later in life. Also, medications interfer with babies ability to nurse and mom's ability to get milk production going. My understanding also is that statistics show children of unmedicated births have IQ higher by a several points. As a woman giving birth for the first time at 40, very high risk, but with no showing genetic problems as far as genetic testing can currently go, I opted for no meds. Besides and most prominently, I hate needles and the thought of an IV in my arm let alone a needle in my spine makes my blood run cold and I break out in a panic sweat. As a matter of fact with my first I actually stood on my legal right to refuse the IV until that point in labor where it becomes medically necessary in case of an emergency. My nurse was sympathetic and held my hand and used a child-sized butterfly so I wouldn't feel it. She was right but the solution is slightly salty and burned going in.

My first child, my son was sunny side up, you grind in the opposite way of spine to spine as previously mentioned and it too is painful. Not having previous experience the pain was what it was and I grunted, groaned, moaned, breathed and did creative visualization as best I could which was pretty good. When the doctor thought I was getting too tired, after 6 hours of in-hospital labor (4 hours at home before going to hospital) she suggested a little medication by IV. I declined for another half hour and then agreed. My child was actually given NARCAN at birth -- this is a drug they give to people who have overdosed. I was not pleased. It did interfer with his ability to nurse as well as hold his temperature and he actually when hypoglycemic which is odd in a newborn. I will never know if this drug has anything to do with my child's neurodevelopmental differences. I probably could have gone without and I do regret this decision and would have done it differently but the outcome was good without medical intervention.

With my second, despite going in 4cm dialated and 25% effaced my labor stalled and my amniotic fluid levels were not good so they jumpstarted me on pitocin. I do not recommend this unless medically indicated. There were other things that could have been done but they did not let me wait until my doula arrived to help me with them. My husband also had not arrived yet and I caved in the best interest of my child. That said, I did NOT have pain meds of any kind. And after 3 hours of agony my child literally popped out in about 3 pushes over 10 minutes -- just like a t.v. show!

I believe that every woman should at least be educated about the disadvantages or negative aspects of medication in order to be prepared to counter them. If a woman is going to breastfeed and needs meds or ends up with a C section at least she will have had the opportunity to prepare to know what to do to be as successful as possible. At least she will be prepared for the difficulties that might follow and have coping techniques in place or know who to call for help. You must do what is best for you and best for your baby as only the mother (and perhaps father) can decide.

[Sasha318]

I'm a home-birthing gal, so no drugs for me.

[Maggie]

I have had two children; labor both times was about 24 hours and I wouldn't have made it without something. I had an epidural both times. I weighed about 110 then and am very narrow hipped, both babies were 7 1/2 lbs and apparently weren't too keen on trying to fit the provided birth canal. Aside from the 'natural' factor, the condition of both mother and child have to be taken into account. A long labor is hard on both mother and child.

Maggie

[Ceres]

good point! fact: hospital births result in LONGER labours than home births in all stages save the pushing phase which appears to last longer because forceps are very rarely used and the mother isnt rushed to push before she has an urge after she is fully dialated.

[zehava]

*if* i ever have another, there will be NO drugs.

with my first i was induced. first with the gel, then they broke my water, then came the pitocin. i had some shots of some kind of pain killers through the labour (i don't remember which because i was in SO much pain that *they* just decided for me - my hubby included). those pain killers didn't work. i was hooked up to an IV so i wasn't free to wander/move/etc as i felt i needed to.

after hours of being stuck in a bed and not being allowed to do much other than pee once (in 12 hours!!!) i had the epidural... and my horror story is that the darn thing didn't take. it *half* took. *half* of me was nicely numb, the other half was in more pain than both sides put together. and the numb half of my body dialated slower... so i had to lay on my side, but i couldn't get there myself because i was half numb, so the nurses had to move me onto my side, and then back onto my back to push... it was terrible.

like radikalwomyn said, it seemed to be just one intervention after the other...

with my son i went *almost* drug free. no IV's, no epidurals. i did use the gas after about 7cms. i was free to move, walk, pee, whatever... it was better, but it still sucked being in the hospital with strangers roaming in and out. his labour was faster and easier in the long run. of course it hurt, but i was more free to manage the pain on my own which made it seem less worse, kwim? and his labour was faster (about 7 hours).

i did hemorrage terribly after his birth and have been told numerous times that i won't ever be able to home birth if i decide to have another because the chances of hemorraging again after birth are increased and i'll need to be 'hooked up' to IV's and such 'just in case'. i don't know if that's true or not.

-z

[Tzhebee]

I have had children natural and with drugs. I fully intended to have natural childbirth with both of my children. But sometimes things do not work out that way.

With my daughter, I was able to have a natural childbirth (which means absolutely NO drugs, injections, IV's etc.). Only after I gave birth, I had two tylenol 3's (which are stronger than regular OTC tylenol). It was fairly painless and short (as far as birth goes).

With my son, I was intending to have another natural birth, but changed my mind. My water broke early but because my contractions did not start, so I was basically induced. The medication they use to induce a person is HORIFICALLY PAINFUL!!!!!! So, I tried to just take a few tylenol, then something stronger, then finally decided to have an epidural.

When/if I ever have another child I will again try to have a natural birth, but I am not against the use of medically administered drugs should I need them.

[FaerieGothMommy]

i'd be proud too! it sound easy, but it's just not. lol. i can handle pain better than most.. but childbirth? no way. :lol:

:lol: what she said!!!
It's HARD!!!!!!!!!!!!

[FaerieGothMommy]

I have had two children; labor both times was about 24 hours and I wouldn't have made it without something. I had an epidural both times. I weighed about 110 then and am very narrow hipped, both babies were 7 1/2 lbs and apparently weren't too keen on trying to fit the provided birth canal. Aside from the 'natural' factor, the condition of both mother and child have to be taken into account. A long labor is hard on both mother and child.

Maggie

Yours sounds exactly like my experiences. I am tiny too & my son got stuck. My son was 8lb 11.5oz!! I am 4ft11 and 112lb pre preg.

[Maggie]

good point! fact: hospital births result in LONGER labours than home births in all stages save the pushing phase which appears to last longer because forceps are very rarely used and the mother isnt rushed to push before she has an urge after she is fully dialated.

Well, maybe, maybe not. What's your source? In any case, home birth or hospital wouldn't have made any difference in my case. I'm not built for having babies that large in proportion to my build. Also remember--any statistics comparing the two may be skewed simply because those mothers expecting complications are going to be in the hospital to begin with, and including those numbers in the hospital 'side' when they're absent in the home birth 'side' will render a direct comparison void.


Maggie

[Ben Trismegistus]

good point! fact: hospital births result in LONGER labours than home births in all stages save the pushing phase which appears to last longer because forceps are very rarely used and the mother isnt rushed to push before she has an urge after she is fully dialated.True. However, I'm a strong proponent of hospital births just in case anything goes wrong. There are lots of *wonderful* birthing centers around the country that are connected to hospitals, so that if anything goes wrong, the appropriate people can be there immediately. Home birth was simply a risk we weren't willing to take. The center we were at was warm, relaxing, comforting, everything we could have wished for. And after Joey was born, they left us alone with him in the room for like 4 hours before moving us to a semi-private room.

I do agree, however, that it's important not to go to the hospital too early. The last thing you want to do is lay in a hospital bed for hours waiting for your contractions to get closer together. My wife's water broke around 8 am on a Saturday morning, and we went out to breakfast, went grocery shopping, and my wife had a bath before we finally left for the hospital about 1:30 pm.

Edited to add: How do I always end up in these girly threads? ;)

[FaerieGothMommy]

good point! fact: hospital births result in LONGER labours than home births in all stages save the pushing phase which appears to last longer because forceps are very rarely used and the mother isnt rushed to push before she has an urge after she is fully dialated.

hmm, ive never heard of hospitals forcing you to push when you are fully dilated but dont have the urge. Hospitals here let you push when you want to, obviously they wont if you are still like 7cms. And also, i pushed about 20mins with both (that was the easiest part), and my son even got stuck & they still didnt use forceps!

[zehava]

hmm, ive never heard of hospitals forcing you to push when you are fully dilated but dont have the urge

they did that to me with my son. i was fully dilated and *really* didn't feel like pushing yet. it was really only a few minutes after getting to 10cm that they started to put the pressure on for me to push. i think if they had just left me alone i would have felt like pushing within a few more minutes.

-z

[FaerieGothMommy]

they did that to me with my son. i was fully dilated and *really* didn't feel like pushing yet. it was really only a few minutes after getting to 10cm that they started to put the pressure on for me to push. i think if they had just left me alone i would have felt like pushing within a few more minutes.

-z

That sucks! I don't believe a mother should be pushed into anything like that, not unless neccesary!
I had epi with both of mine, and the midwives just told me to push when i wanted (i felt the urges to push VERY strongly... and needed no assitance as to when to push) they let me do that part completely on my own!

[Ceres]

hehe i got everyone's dander up :D
statistically hospital birth IS safer. and those stats includes ALL births out of hospital i.e. druggies giving birth in alley ways, teens hiding their pregnancies and unplanned births in homes and at the side of highways. i think that negates the differences in mothers who choose to birth in hosp because of underlying problems. my source is a study conducted, admittedly a while ago, in the 1970s, but i am sure when horsecrow finds this thread she can update it since she is a midwife with access to such studies. it was published int he book "silent knife" by nancy cohen. in holland, as recently as 2001, 50% of births took place in a home setting and their birth outcome was FAR better than the united states. they ranked, for infant mortaily in the top ten and the untited states was 26th! TWENTY SIXTH! right there with the third world countries. WHO (world health oragnization) is the source for that stat.
there is always the fear of SOMETHING (insert onimous music) going wrong. good. then go ahead, find out what those somethings are and find out how they are dealt with at home. the canadian govt did this in a huge study undertaken to find out if midwives should be funded by the provincial health care system and they discovered home was a safe alternative for low risk mothers (the majority of births!) they realized not only was it safe - it was cheaper in the long run because less complications that cost money to fix were arising!
things do go wrong in birth, its true, but the extent that they go wrong in north america is a direct result of physician meddling and hospital procedures. the things that do go wrong can be transported to hospital. they pose no greater risk for the wait (emergency c/cections even have to wait for the OR to be prepped and yet you increase your risk of complications by starting out in hospital.
zehara: in that study i mentioned earlier in this post, conducted in the 70s, it was found hemmorage was much more likely to occur in a hospital birth, but no definitive reason was given for this, tho there has been much speculation. pitocin increases your risk of post partum hemmorage as well as your risk of uterine rupture, but i dont think u had "the drip" in that birth.

[Aleigh]

My first was presenting posterior...the spine towards my spine thing. It was HORRIBLE. I had a half dose of Nubane that made me groggy and stupid but did nothing for the pain. By the time I asked for an epidural it turned out I was completely dialated anyway and didn't need it. With my second I told myself I'd ask for an epidural if at any point I thought it was going to get unbearable, but it never did. I didn't have any pain medication with him at all. My labor and delivery with #2 were much easier than #1, as was the recovery.

I've always thought if you really need medication, just get it. Every birth and every woman is different and the pain really is unbearable in some cases. That said, I tried non-medical pain relief first for both of my deliveries. With both of them I labored in a whirlpool tub for most of the "hard part" and used heat packs and walking and different positions to ease the pain as much as possible before I would consider medication. I never actually did consider medication with the second because it never got that bad.

[FlyingBear]

IMHonestO....

I think that sometimes attitude has a bigger effect on pregnancy/birth than just about anything else. So many people are brought up with the women in the hospital bed, bug-eyed and screaming her head off. And here comes the drugs to save the day! :rolleyes:

While it's every woman's choice to decide what she wants done for the event, I don't believe that hospitals give us the *full* story about the drugs and the effects it has on the baby. And I don't think that many women are as informed about their choices as perhaps they should be. Being empowered, especially about something as awesome as pregnancy and birth, is really important for women. It always shocks me how ignorant people are about the life cycle. There's alot of money to be had for keeping women in the dark.

I had a home birth. 13 hours, with back labour and no drugs. I would do it all again in a heartbeat.

[BethieRose]

I agree, Flying Bear, it is attitude and expectations that make a big difference. Being informed and prepared also make a difference. I also think proper support, such as doulas, make a big difference during labor. Medications and interventions have their place, though, when it means a life or lives can be saved.

I had nubane with all three of my births. Each time I went in wanting no drugs, but changed my mind mid labor. I had back labor with all three and became overwhelmed by the intensity of the contractions. I'd say my second was the hardest on my body, and likely on my son. He was born very blue, with a knot in his umbilical cord. He later had severe health problems and we have no way of knowing what triggered them. My third was by far the easiest. I had the fewest interventions with his birth, was the most informed regarding pregnancy and delivery with his, and had taken steps to assure the fewest interventions possible (including hiring a doula and writing a birth plan which I shared with my doctor). I was also up and "recovered" the fastest after his delivery.

I highly recommend reading The Thinking Woman's Guide to a better birth by Henci Goer for a wealth of information about common interventions and their affects on mothers, babies and labor and delivery.

edited to fix typo.

[Muireannach]

My Mom had all six of us, with full medication, and we're all healthy as can be. my five neices and nephews had full drug births as well and are healthy :)

[Mòrag Elasaid Ní Dhòmhnaill]

My water broke at 5 AM. I went to the hospital at around 8, they checked me out and allowed me to go back home until the labor was further along which I greatly appreciated. I didn't return to the hospital until 10 PM that night.

I went into with the plan to have no drugs unless absolutely necessary, which my husband, doula, and midwife were all aware of. I did have back labor, but for the most part I didn't find it to be unbearably painful (then again I've had kidney stones 5 times and my mom is convinced after four natural births and passing stones once that the pain of the stones is far worse, I wouldn't argue) and did not feel the drugs were necessary for the pain at all. I spent my labor split fairly evenly between the jacuzzi/shower, walking the hospital corridors and garden, and on the birthing ball (which I adore!).

However about 24 hours after my water broke I still had not dialated past 4 cm, at which point they (the doula and midwife) did suggest that it would be in my best interest to get the meds (light Pitocin drip and epidural) in order to help it along because it was getting to a stage where they no longer felt it was safe for me with my labor progressing as slowly as it was. They were greatly concerned I would get an infection. I did agree to this. I was finally able to sleep, which is something I had not done for literally three days and nights before my water broke). At 7:00 AM I woke up and they checked, I was fully dialated and ready to push at that point. Unfortunately, and I do think this is because of the epidural and being numb, it took 3 hours and 20 minutes of pushing before Nikolas finally popped out.

I don't regret the choices I made, but if I have any more kids the plan is still to have a drug free birth unless we decide as a group that it's necessary.

[FaerieGothMommy]

Morag,

I've never met anyone else who had the same experience as me. I also got stuck at a certain stage. With my daughter it was 4cms, with my son 5cms. I desperatly wanted a drug free birth, but it just couldn't happen. I'd have ended up having a c-section if i didn't have those epi's.

[Mòrag Elasaid Ní Dhòmhnaill]

The terrible part about it all was my contraction were actually stopping. They were getting further and further apart, instead of closer. I couldn't imagine going through all that just to have it stop. I didn't think there was much of a choice. It would have been one thing if my water hadn't broke, but it had naturally before the whole thing started. :geez:

[Ceres]

fairie, i was stuck at four cms too....it was my first home birth and really didnt want to have to transfer to hospital. i had found a doctor who would attend a home birth (he had trained in holland and i chose him despite his terrible bedside manner, because he really knew how to deal with emergencies and such) anyway, my labour started in the middle of the night and when he arrived, his terrible bedside manner made me nervous. i didnt progress all night long. when he checked me in the morning, i was still four cms.
he left to attend to his office patients saying it would be a while and to call when my contractions were closer together. as SOON as he left, i could feel the contractions change. feeling comfortable in my own home again, my labour progressed from 4 cms to ten cms and i pushed my son into his father's hands a mere HOUR after the doctor left. he didnt make it back in time. to me this story really illustrates the affect of external stress on mothers in labour. nor is it an unusual story. many women talk about THAT NURSE they were saddled with who made their labours miserable.
Muireannach: yes many of us are healthy despite much worse things than drugs for pain in labour. that doesnt mean the drugs are perfectly safeor without side effects, nor does it mean they never cause permanent injury. ask the women wearing diapers for the rest of their lives, or the babies with CP.

[Mòrag Elasaid Ní Dhòmhnaill]

I don't know that for me it was discomfort when I got stuck at 4 cm. I do remember at one point telling my husband that I wanted everyone to just go away and leave me alone. Which they did. It didn't make the labor progress any at all though. I think with me it was more the stress of being so far beyond exhaustion that my body just couldn't do it anymore. Once I was able to sleep I was much more ready and able to continue on with the process.

[FaerieGothMommy]

i think what made it worse for me being stuck at 4cms, is the pains carried on getting worse & closer together. I was frightened! I wouldnt dilate, but that didnt stop the contractions getting worse & more frequant. My son was also postierier, but as hes head was coming out it twisted round real fast, my mom & bf said it looked like summat out a horror movie lol

[Mòrag Elasaid Ní Dhòmhnaill]

Ewww, freaky. Niko just wouldn't come out. Three hours of pushing....

[FaerieGothMommy]

Ewww, freaky. Niko just wouldn't come out. Three hours of pushing....

I dunno if i'd have coped with 3 hours of pushing!
I found 25 mins very hard... I HATED the pushing part, the feeling of intense urges to push was horrible, i kept saying "hes not gona come out" :lol:

[Mòrag Elasaid Ní Dhòmhnaill]

Heh, after 26 previous hours of labor, the three was like nothing. I actually didn't even realize that I was pushing that long until after it was done.

[FaerieGothMommy]

Heh, after 26 previous hours of labor, the three was like nothing. I actually didn't even realize that I was pushing that long until after it was done.
mine was the other way round, at the time it seemed forever & afterwards it seemed like 2 mins! lol

[Lady Jade]

Epidural, please...first baby, they gave me demerol and I was really out of it, but the pain was still there. They said it was so I could rest between contractions. The epidural was relatively pain free and we had a wonderful experience with the second child's birth using this method. Screw Lamaze, it didn't work for me. Show me the pain killers! No more babies for me, though, the pain was too great both times to willingly bear again.

[Amethyst Rose]

I had originally planned on using drugs, but once I was in labour, it didn't hurt bad enough for me to need them. It was only right at the very end, when I was in transition that it hurt bad enough for me to ask for them. They gave me morphine, but it did absolutely nothing. So when people ask I say I didn't use drugs, because I really felt like I hadn't.

[Autumn]

I didn't use drugs and had two natural births during which I yelled my head off through pushing...:holycow:

Stress and fear are among a number of factors that'll hold up progress. Part of the reason to stay out of the hospital for as long as you can is not getting freaked by the process.

In my very unscientific opinion the babies of mothers who were medicated have a much tougher time learning to nurse. If the baby goes to breast immediately after delivery it is somewhat less of an issue, but the long post birth nap seems to be longer in these babies and by the time they decide to wake up and eat the nursry nurses are having a conniption fit over it. And it's three times worse in women wo've never nursed before.

With respect to IVs...Where I work they want you to get an IV if you are having an epidural, a VBAC or you cultured positive for beta strep. (so you can have IV antibiotics) If you are none of these things but people are hyper because you had a hemmorage in the past try to get a saline (heparin) lock, that way they have IV access if they need it while you are not stuck with the IV itself. If you have needle issues and a little time ask for some emla, like they sometimes use for circs. don't settle for the lidocaine injection, it hurts worse than the darn IV needle! This emla they will put on a couple likely looking veins and put a bandage on it, in a half hour they can start the IV and as long as you don't watch it shouldn't bother you.

In the days before my second was born I had a couple of false starts, one included a bout of back labor, I went with 15mg morphine IM(shot in the backside) and slept the night, I knew it'd be gone in 4 hours so I wasn't real worried. Going into labor rested is EXTREMELY important if you want to skip the meds. Who can cope with pain while exausted?

What the heck kind of gas are they giving you, Nitros Oxide? _cloud9_

[WingedTigerChild]

I think I heard on "A Baby story" that water births are the best way to give birth? Has anyone had a water birth?

[gurlygurl2004]

I haven't had a child yet, but if drugs would help in some situation I might consider them.

[Maggie]

At one time I believe the water birth was called the "LeBoyer Method".

Maggie

[Autumn]

At one time I believe the water birth was called the "LeBoyer Method".

Maggie
Leboyer was a french OB who said that it was very traumatic for a baby to come into the very bright cold delivery rooms of the era and that they should be delivered in a dimly lit room and immediately given a warm bath...

Water Birth is where the mother delivers in a pool of water.

My babies were both delivered in dimly lit rooms. but that was as far as it went...

[charmedkisses1]

I think it really depends on the person. My mom used a ton of painkiller (morphine?) during birth. I don't think any drugs are good though so *shrug*

[FaerieGothMommy]

I think I heard on "A Baby story" that water births are the best way to give birth? Has anyone had a water birth?

Thats what i wanted both times.... first time, with my daughter i started off in the water birth & could glide over the pains easily, but unfortunatly her heart rate started to race so i had to get out the pool, that ruined my technique & i lost the control over the pains.
With my son, the pool wasn't free :(
If i have another, i think i'll hire one.

[rain_fallen_tears]

I've never had a baby, and would not(knowing myself), say NO DRUGS!....if there was no real danger to the baby or I, I might take the drugs, especially....with the pain!:)

[Ceres]

leboyer's book is fascinating! it is done entirely fromt he baby's perspective of what its like to be born. at times it seemed extreme - assuming being pushed out of our other's body's would be a claustrophobic experience (its been shown this is actually helpful in stimulating the baby to breathe after the birth).
a friend of mine had her baby in december. it was a home birth and she lives out on a farm. when her labour started she went out for a walk in the snow at around supper, came home and called the doctor, lit candles and paced her own floor. the doctor arrived just before she was ready to give birth and was born gently and quietly into a dark candle lit room, with the snow falling outside. she has six children, but she said that birth (her second) was the most beautiful birth ever.

[Sasha318]

In my very unscientific opinion the babies of mothers who were medicated have a much tougher time learning to nurse. If the baby goes to breast immediately after delivery it is somewhat less of an issue, but the long post birth nap seems to be longer in these babies and by the time they decide to wake up and eat the nursry nurses are having a conniption fit over it. And it's three times worse in women wo've never nursed before.

I'm a breastfeeding peer counselor, and that's my experience as well.

I'm not a fan of unneccesary intervention, and feel that one intervention leads to another, so homebirth was a good choice for me.

ETA: If anyone wishes to read a great book regarding homebirth, check out Spiritual Midwifery by Ina May Gaskin. Amazing read.

[soilsigh aingeal]

I had an epidural with both of my kids. My first labor was over 26hrs long and I'd labored at home for 20 of those hours, by the time the finally admitted me, my contractions were five seconds apart and I was only 4cm dialated, I needed rest if I was going to give birth. The only thing I didn't like was the fact that my whole body was numb, I don't know what they did but I could barely move my arms. My daughter did go in to distress and I almost ended up with a c-section, I'm not sure if it was the drugs or what, I've heard that pitocin has that effect and they did give me pitocin to speed up the process.
With my son, I was only in labor for about 14 hours and again, they were seconds apart by the time my doctor got to the hospital, they broke my water, gave me the fluids and I said yes to the drugs as I was so tired having not slept at all. Only this time, it didn't take all the way. I could still feel the contractions but when I gave birth to him, it was painless, I'm not sure what was up with that but I felt him coming out of me, I didn't feel that when I had my daughter.

If I ever have a third, I'm going to do it w/out drugs.

[FaerieGothMommy]

I had an epidural with both of my kids. My first labor was over 26hrs long and I'd labored at home for 20 of those hours, by the time the finally admitted me, my contractions were five seconds apart and I was only 4cm dialated, I needed rest if I was going to give birth. The only thing I didn't like was the fact that my whole body was numb, I don't know what they did but I could barely move my arms. My daughter did go in to distress and I almost ended up with a c-section, I'm not sure if it was the drugs or what, I've heard that pitocin has that effect and they did give me pitocin to speed up the process.
With my son, I was only in labor for about 14 hours and again, they were seconds apart by the time my doctor got to the hospital, they broke my water, gave me the fluids and I said yes to the drugs as I was so tired having not slept at all. Only this time, it didn't take all the way. I could still feel the contractions but when I gave birth to him, it was painless, I'm not sure what was up with that but I felt him coming out of me, I didn't feel that when I had my daughter.

If I ever have a third, I'm going to do it w/out drugs.

Wow, reading that was like reading my own labours!!
I went for about 17 hours with my daughter and was still 4cms... thats when i had an epidural, and was in labour for another 4 hours, the epi took the pain away but started to wear off when pushing, so i could do it on my own.
With my son, i was in labour for about 15 hours, i had an epi with him as the same thing happened and i got stuck at 5 cms, with contractions very close together & getting worse. The epi didn't work very well though & the aneathsatist was a b*tch lol...

If i have another, like you said, i would love a natural birth, in water. But i'd be scared that i'd need to be induced again & that i'll get stuck at a certain dilation again.

[Ceres]

if u ladies really want to have a natural birth.....try reading immaculate deception by suzanne arms.

[evie_mun]

My mom was drugged during both my own and both of my brothers' births, and we all turned out relatively normal (depending on your definition of normal.) I can't stand pain too well, so I plan on being VERY heavily drugged during birth (I have trouble pulling a tampon out! I can't think of trying to give birth to a baby.)

[Tullip Troll]

I think you have to do whats right with you...but you should have read up on all the facts long before you went into labour.

If you are helped too much I feel often this leads to a more likely C-section as you have interferred too much..ie an epideral can make it almost impossible for you to push...your body will push on it's own but not as well as if you were helping it.

Demerol does go to the Baby...etc...

I think you really should know all the possiblities and never assume it won't happen to you.

Mhera

[Kalika]

Personally, I plan to TRY to get through it without... but I don't know how likely that is to happen, especially if the little one takes a long time to get here. (Keep your fingers crossed that he doesn't!!) But I want to try to have him without medication - but I've let the doctors know already that if I'm in a lot of pain, I want an epidural. :p

[Yvonne Belisle]

My first was with painkillers and they didn't help so my next three were without. For me I prefer without I didn't notice pain except with my daughter who got stuck but a ten pound baby would hurt anyone. My fourth was one push I don't have time for pain killers to take effect anyway from the first real contraction that I know isn't brackston hicks I have 15 minutes to delivery tops. My kids make up for the lack of pain later with the creative things they try.

[fahawk]

Mine were homebirths and pain-meds werent an option.. encouragement..and having someone say "things" that gave me heart and kept me focused were a huge help..just being reminded I was doing it, and could...
( had several falls - hard falls off horses..and my tail-bone is abit weird..so that was the hardest..when the baby moved down and around the tailbone area..)
but by then ..no time for regrets..and the midwives didnt use pain meds at home anyway..
my friend had 2 homebirths- but both were back-labor and ..very uncomfortable for her... so I think each situation is different, and in some instances the pain relief may actually be a blessing...

[Kalika]

My first was with painkillers and they didn't help so my next three were without. For me I prefer without I didn't notice pain except with my daughter who got stuck but a ten pound baby would hurt anyone. My fourth was one push I don't have time for pain killers to take effect anyway from the first real contraction that I know isn't brackston hicks I have 15 minutes to delivery tops. My kids make up for the lack of pain later with the creative things they try.

:lol:

That's an interesting way to look at it.

Wow, 15 minutes is fast!! :D Lucky you!