Is an epidural a safe form of pain relief in labor?
Posted on Wednesday, March 4, 2009 in Other - Pregnancy & Parenting
I am considering using an epidural. My previous children were all born with no pain relief at all. I am having my last and am considering avoiding the pain. I do not want to put myself or the child in harms way.
Wednesday, March 4 11:52 am
it is safe and it takes away the pain. it’s a needle in the back, but it’s worth it and it does harm you or the baby. both of mine were with the epidural
Friday, March 6 8:06 am
All three of my children were born with the aid of an epidural. My sister tried to have her first child natural, but opted for the epidural when the pain hit, both of her children were born with epidural….I think that it’s important for you as the mother to be as comfortable as possible, less pain less stress….happy mommys make happy babies.
Whatever you decide is best for you and your baby.
Congratulations!
Saturday, March 7 11:08 pm
I had an epidural when I gave birth to my twins and it was very safe and very helpful. I would not take any medication of any kind while I was pregnant until I had the epidural. The doctors assured me it was safe and it was. I had no ill effects from it and neither did my babies. We came out just fine.
Wednesday, March 11 6:13 am
IT IS VERY SAFE,AND IT WORKS WONDERFULY IF IT IS DONE BEFORE YOU START TO PUSH.IT IS A LITTLE PAINFUL WHEN YOU FIRST GET IT ,BUT THE PAIN GOES AWAY INSTANTLY . BUT NATURE BIRTHING IS THE BEST WAY TO GO .TRUST ME I’VE HAD FIVE BIRTHINGS AND ONLY TWO OF THEM WERE EPIDURALS.WITHOUT THE EPIDURAL YOU REMEMBER EVERYTHING .WITH IT YOU FORGET ALMOST ALL OF IT. SO IT’S REALLY COMES DOWN TO YOU DECIDEING IF YOU WANT TO REMEMBER IT ALL OR NOT.
Friday, March 13 2:38 am
it is amazing the way it instantly works numbing all the excrutiaingggg pain!
Saturday, March 14 4:02 pm
My sister had an epidural and so did my mom with the same sister. From what they say, Yes it is safe. I’m not sure. why don’t you ask a doctor? You do know that if you jump while given the shot that you may become paralized,right?
Tuesday, March 17 1:43 pm
Absolutely safe! I had one for the birth of my only child. It allowed me to be cognizant and participate in the birth. It does not block all sensation, I still felt my bigger contractions as a kind of pressure, instead of pain. I was able to control my lower body and push. One thing about the epidural I was not prepared for: the liquid they drip inside your spinal column is at room temperature, which feels quite icy inside your 96 degree core. The sensation was like someone was dripping icy cold water inside my spine and it was running down to my tailbone. Creepy, but not unpleasent.
Friday, March 20 2:43 pm
They are MOSTLY safe. I opted for an epidural when my daughter was born, and they had to place the needle twice (be forewarned that this isn’t uncommon if you’re overweight) which was NO fun. Getting the epidural was the worst part of my labor experience, although it did help with the pain relief. However, it also caused my baby’s heart rate to PLUMMET just minutes after the epidural was in. Thank God it came back up fairly quickly, but it gave the nurses a good scare (not to mention me!) So it’s not without its risks, but it is MOSTLY safe.
For what it’s worth, there are lots of natural methods of pain relief – massage, hypnotherapy, water, birthing ball, etc – that are also supposed to be great methods of pain relief during labor. Having been there and done that, I do plan to try for an unmedicated delivery next go round!
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