Because, contrary to what you may have heard, nearly every study conducted since the early 1990s has shown that, in and of themselves, epidurals do not raise your chances of a C-section.
Disadvantages and risks that apply to epidural analgesia for labor and delivery specifically include: You might lose feeling in your legs for a few hours. It might slow down the second stage of labor. You might not be able to push and need help to give birth.
An epidural provides anesthesia that creates a band of numbness from your bellybutton to your upper legs. It allows you to be awake and alert throughout labor, as well as to feel pressure. The ability to feel second-stage labor pressure enables you to push when it's time to give birth to your baby.
Although any drug given to the mother during labor also gets into the baby's system, the anesthetics used with epidurals do not cause any harm to the baby. The primary reason why getting an epidural creates a somewhat higher risk of a birth injury is that epidurals tend to slow down the birth process.
Epidurals are safe, but as with any medical procedure, there are small risks of side effects and complications. Serious risks—including blood clots inside the spine, infection (around the spine or brain), and nerve damage—are very rare. Other possible complications include low blood pressure, itchy skin, and headaches.
For most women, this is a personal decision that depends on two things: how worried you are about having pain and how important natural childbirth (labour without pain medicine) is to you. An epidural is considered the most effective and easily adjustable type of pain relief for childbirth. Epidurals are very common.
One of the main benefits of giving birth without an epidural – or with minimal medications in general – is potentially fewer side effects for both you and your baby.
An epidural can generally be performed at any stage; it is never too late. This is, however, not the case if baby's head is crowning (within the birth canal).
When can you get an epidural? Typically, you can receive an epidural as early as when you are 4 to 5 centimeters dilated and in active labor. Normally, it takes about 15 minutes to place the epidural catheter and for the pain to start subsiding and another 20 minutes to go into full effect.
The numbness and muscle weakness in your legs will probably wear off within 2 hours after the epidural medicine is stopped. You may find that it's hard to urinate until all the medicine has worn off. Your back may be sore.
Ultimately, a natural birth may be more painful than a cesarean section. However, the pain after your cesarean section combined with the heightened risks to you and your baby may outweigh the initial pain of childbirth. Make sure you consult with your doctors to get the best possible advice for you.
Answer: No, not everyone is required to have a urinary catheter during labor. Clarification: Depending on what you choose for pain relief and if you have a cesarean will affect whether or not you receive a catheter during labor. For example, most people who have an epidural during labor and birth will have a catheter.
Evidence and expert consensus are consistent on the message that C-sections, on average, come with greater risks than vaginal births: more blood loss, more chance of infection or blood clots, more complications in future pregnancies, a higher risk of death.
There's a blockage. A large fibroid blocking the birth canal, a pelvic fracture or a baby who has a condition that can cause the head to be unusually large (severe hydrocephalus) might be reasons for a C-section. You've had a previous C-section or other surgery on the uterus.
Con: People that have a c-section typically stay in the hospital longer. Con: Having a c-section means that there may be an increased risk for complications in later pregnancies and you may not have the option to have a vaginal birth in those following pregnancies.
It's normal to worry that you'll still feel some pain even after you've been given an epidural. Most women experience great pain relief with an epidural, but it won't be 100 percent pain-free.
Benefits of laboring in water
A positive birth experience: Women who have labored or given birth in water say they had less pain and a greater sense of control. Less pain medication: Some studies show that women who labor in water need less pain medication and may have a shorter first stage of labor.
Most of the time, you can walk within a half hour or so of your epidural injection. However, you will not necessarily be walking normally at this point. Most clinics and hospitals monitor you for 15 minutes to an hour after an epidural injection. During this time, they will likely ask how you feel.
While a handful of things might hurt worse than labor, the significance of the pain caused by giving birth should not be minimized. And though labor can be a painful process, certain things can contribute to or increase the discomfort felt.
What's the ring of fire in pregnancy? The ring of fire refers to the burning, stinging sensation you may feel when your baby's head presses on and stretches your vaginal opening. (You may not feel it if you have an epidural.) Though it's painful, the ring of fire lasts just a few minutes.
If you are 10cm, but you don't feel lots of pressure yet or an urge to push (you can still feel the urge even with an epidural sometimes!), it may be helpful to labor down. This is when you allow your body to passively push baby down for you so that when you actively push, there is a lot less effort on your part!
You won't feel any pain during the C-section, although you may feel sensations like pulling and pressure. Most women are awake and simply numbed from the waist down using regional anesthesia (an epidural and/or a spinal block) during a C-section. That way, they are awake to see and hear their baby being born.