Why I Was Hesitant on Getting an Epidural?

Why I Was Hesitant on Getting an Epidural?

There are so many blog posts about why you shouldn’t get an epidural. They actually seem to be even a little judgmental for those of us debating on whether or not we want to get an epidural.

Other People’s Opinions

I heavily debated on getting an epidural. My mother and grandmother said I should go through the pain of childbirth, but I am a person who doesn’t handle pain very well. The thought of pushing out a baby has always scared me. My entire family thought if I didn’t have an epidural I would pass out in the middle of childbirth due to all of the pain.

I wanted to have more information before I made a decision. These were the three main concerns I had after doing my research online.

My Concerns:

1. I would have horrible back pain

My mother used to claim up and down that my sister’s back problems were caused by her epidural, while my sister claims it was the military not the epidural. My doctor said that sometimes even years later her back may get a little uncomfortable, but it is nothing that stops her every day or even anything that she has to take medicine for.

2. An unexperienced nurse doing the epidural

I was worried about a regular nurse doing my epidural. You have your not so experienced nurses and your more experienced nurses. Every time I go to get an IV or give blood they end up having to stick me twice. The first nurse never gets it done correctly. That was a huge concern because if the nurse puts the epidural in wrong, that can definitely lead to back pain. My doctor told me to ask for the attending doctor when I got to the hospital or for the charge nurse to administer the epidural. She said, either way, they both have enough experience.

3. My son wouldn’t breastfeed immediately after giving birth

There are many posts out there that say your baby won’t breastfeed immediately because they will still have the medicine in their system. My doctor said it could take up to 24 hours for the baby to feed if I had an epidural and that it was okay. It’s okay for your baby to not eat immediately after giving birth. I loved it when she told me that because not one post gave me that information.

4. I would feel pain in half of my body during delivery

I have heard a lot of my friends say that they felt pain in half of their bodies during childbirth. The doctor said that I would have to alternate laying on my sides to make sure the medicine is evenly distributed on both sides. The pain on one side happens, when you aren’t alternating.

The outcome of all my worries.

In the end, the worry about having back pain was nothing at all to worry about. I ended up not asking for the attending and asked for the most seasoned nurses they had because after thinking about the attending really doesn’t do that many epidurals while seasoned nurses do several a day.

As soon as my son came out, he was immediately breastfeeding. The nurses wasted no time putting him on my breast. I was lucky enough for him to have had no issues physically to latch on. He has eaten fine ever since then, with some minor latch issues that were resolved.

I also did what my doctor told me to do and alternated on my sides. When it came time to push I didn’t feel a thing. It was literally the best decision I had ever made! If I have more children in the future, I will definitely be getting another epidural.

Your Thoughts

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1 Comment
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