Drugs vs. no drugs during birth

[marymamma]

This is my first baby, and I am trying to decide whether to plan for a birth with no drugs or epidural. I have heard that having these can slow down or stop your labor and that the baby is not as alert after the birth. I have also heard that everything is fine and many women wouldn't do it any other way.

I am going to have a hospital birth, but am going to have a dula there to make sure everyhting is done the way I want.

What to ya'll think?

[pinky]

One of my favorite books on this topic is "Birthing From Within" by Pam England. She is an advocate of natural childbirth but has a very balanced perspective on the appropriate use of interventions, I think.

Although my first labor ended in a c-section, I labored unmedicated for about 60 hours. It was a very hard but very powerful experience. I wouldn't trade it for anything.

I think that the decision about use of drugs doing labor is a very personal one. The important thing is to be very well informed about your choices so you can make good decisions.

congratulations and good luck!

[Tanibani]

To cope with the pain, I took a HypnoBirthing class. I succeeded in having a painFREE 18 hour hospital labor.

If you do a search online for Epidural risks, you'll find a list of cons. True, some women have problems, some don't. I'd just rather not risk that and avoid it entirely.

Pinky is right... it's a personal choice, but you need to know all the facts.

You can read my birth story on this thread:

Tell me more about HypnoBirthing

Other good books to read are:

Gentle Birth Choices

(Some women who have epidurals end up needing Vacuum extraction (ouch - for baby or both mom TEARS)
Birth Without Violence

Ina May's Guide to Childbirth

[lauraess]

i had two labors- one with meds that were pushed on me--- which was possibly affected adversely by the epidural and pitocin since my blood pressure and babys heart rate dropped and the second was drug free except for a tiny bit of pit after many hrs of labor 12+.
With the second i labored for 32 hr. and although i ended up with a section again due to heart rate decelerations again and other serious possibilities(placenta abruption-hrt decel can be and indicator, plus my water was broke for over the usual 24 hr limit) I was happy to have labored as long as i did w/0 drugs.
I learned about my own strengths and the power of childbirth.
I also did not feel comfortable putting my baby in the position that the drugs put them.
Laura

[mamasboys4me]

I have two different takes for ya. With my first I was younger and inexperienced on what I could do, etc. I just did what was expected of me. They broke my water, and gave me an epi. I remember not being able to feel my legs, so it was really hard when they told me to push, b/c I couldn't feel much. Afterward I had to have help getting up and going to the bathroom. I felt like crap!

on another note, I didn't know if I wanted to b/feed. I thought I was going to have to go back to work, and I was afraid of getting to attached, pumping, etc. (like I said I didn't know much). No one told me other wise So, here I was giving the baby a bottle, and then trying to b/feed. Again, no one told me!


Fastforward to baby #2, I had a friend that told me she had a natural labor and she felt amazing afterward. I was very suprised about that. I also was heck-bend on b/feeding. I was afraid an epi could make the baby drowsy, and I wouldn't be able to try and nurse him right from the start. Those were my only two concerns with going natural. I didn't feel I needed to prove anything, I just wanted to feel good. lol

When I was in labor with my second, I realized (for me) that my contractions weren't anymore painful at 10 cm, than at 4 cm. It They were just longer. I labored in the jet tub for about an hour and that helped ALOT! I really felt amazing, as crazy as that sounds. I haven't ever taken birthing classes, but my method of just slow breathing really worked for me. After Preston was born (we didn't know what we were having!), I felt amazing. I got up, went to the bathroom, cleaned up the room, while my dh slept in my hospital bed with the baby!

So I plan on no meds this time too, just b/c my body feels so much better w/o them. (it's also amazing to actually feel the baby come out )

sorry so long winded!

[Tanibani]

You might want to check out this thread: Epidurals don't affect the baby?

[gonnabeamom]

I've decided to have a homebirth, and that means no drugs of course. This is also my first so everything I'm gonna say comes from lots of reading, and talking to people, but not from personal experience.

I agree with everyone that this is a very personal decision. There seems to be a lot of evidence that women's expectations of labor influence how much pain they have. I watched A Baby Story on TLC like an addict of over a year, and I saw this play out again and again. So one thing you have to do is sit yourself down and be very honest-do you have and idea of what labor will be like? Are you scared of the pain? Do you think of it as an ordeal? Do You have any fixed ideas at all? If you do and you decide you want a natural birth, then you need to address these ideas, and fears.

The second thing I would say is get your hands on a book called Sense and Sensibility in Childbirth. It really opened my eyes that many of the interventions in hospitals are related to each other. It looks like it's a cafeteria menu or birthing positions, epidurals, episiotomies, fetal montoring, etc. But really all these decisions are linked. Birth on the back is more painful than traditional birth positions (nobody outside the developed world births on their back) These leads to an increased use of drugs. The use of drugs means you can't eat, so you are more exhausted during labor. Also the risks of drugs lead to fetal monitoring which means in many in many cases the inability to walk around and do any of the things that speed or comfort women in labor.

Not all hospitals insist on every part of this constellation. Some are quite friendly towards more women centered childbirth offer L&D in one room, and birth tubs etc. But it's really good to educate yourself about what YOU want so the birth is not simply run by the doctors. If you already have your doula talk to her about the skills she has and her experiences with your hospital.

Good luck with whatever you decide

[happyblessedmama]

Hi Mary,

I've done it both ways; first baby I had an epidural, vacuum extraction, etc. and 2nd baby was totally unmedicated, no interventions. Barring major complications necessitating a c-section, I will not be having drugs with this baby.

However, I want to caution you against setting your hopes on one particular type of birth. No matter HOW well we plan there are things that can go wrong and throw all of our carefully orchestrated plans out the window, and that can be really depressing.

It's great to prepare and hope for an unmed birth; I certainly do being informed of your rights and the effects of choices you make is really the best.

L&D is different for every woman so while my last delivery was very easy for me to do without drugs I have heard women tell of being in great pain at 2cms when I didn't get uncomfortable til I reached 8cms.

All things being equal, I think unmedicated is better for everyone and puts you at less risk of other interventions (epidurals can cause maternal fever, BP problems, etc. and can lead you to not be able to push, causing vacuum extractions, forceps, c-sections, etc.) but until it comes down to it it's very hard to say *I'm doing it this way* because you don't know what will happen during the labor or birth that may cause you to have to change your mind.

Best of luck to you!

[momsgotmilk4two]

I've had two natural births and wouldn't do it any other way unless it became medically necessary. Personally, I feel that people should shoot for a natural childbirth since it is the safest for both mother and baby and then move on from there- if you don't feel that you can cope, then get the epi.

I think there are things you can do to increase your odds of a natural childbirth too. I think many women are just scared and unprepared for the pain, which is normal, given how our culture views birth. I second the Birthing From Within book, along with Giving Birth the Bradley Way. We used the Bradley Method for ds #2 and it was great. We coupled the Bradley Method with a program called hyp birth actually, which was a godsend. Hyp birth can be found at www.thebirthconnection.com. We'll definatly be using it again. Better than any epi, imo

[Megamama]

I agree with a lot of what is being said above. For everyone this is a personal choice and I especially agree with Pinky, read/take a class of Birthing from Within. Not only does it empower you to be able to say what you want/need from your birth, but it gives you realistic perspectives on the use of intervention methods. I've had to have pitocin for all three of my labors and with the last one, a temporary epidural..(lasted an hour to give me a rest after pitocin labor ugh). I didn't want to do it, but my water breaks early so I end up with no choice..I'm hoping this time will be different!!