First off, I had a very quick active labor and for those of you that don't know that means when you go from 4cm to 10cm. Active labor is the phase that hurts the most and going from 8cm to 10cm is not a walk in the park. Honestly my active labor phase went so quickly I really didn't even have the time to think about getting an epidural.
Secondly, if I had received an epidural I would not of been able to push Lincoln out 'sunny-side' up and I probably would of had to have a c-section according to my doctor and nurses. I say no way to those. That is some major surgery.
Now I am going to get on my soapbox here a bit and just discuss some of the things I have noticed about epidural use and how I believe society sees a low-medicated/non-medicated birth.
When I told my group of girlfriends that I would be trying to have a non-epidural birth I got one comment from all of them, "Are you crazy?" That was it, end of conversation. I also got told, "Oh don't worry about it, just get the epidural and you will be fine." Trying to find support from a group of women my age was really hard to find, and in fact I couldn't find one! It seemed like everybody in their 20's who were having children were getting an epidural with out even thinking about it! It was like the miracle drug for women to have 'pain-free' child birth. When I even told my nurse practitioner about my plans she even said to me, "ooohh you need to have a high pain tolerance to be able to do it." Well no shit, Sherlock. Like I didn't know this was going to hurt. I then turned to my friends who were out of their 20's and they were much more supportive. That is how my mom became my labor coach. She had done this before with all 3 kids with no pain meds except the minor IV drugs they can give, so I figured she was the best I could have in there with me.
I have found through this experience that the medical community just expects women to get epidurals and in return women are not even told the risks that come with an epidural, or even given the chance to question natural child birth. I find this somewhat detrimental to women's health and I think that it doesn't empower women to make an educated choice. The idea that you can't trust your body to do what it was born to do naturally is crazy to me, not the idea of choosing a low-medicated/non-medicated birth.
Through watching films, attending birthing classes, and doing my own what I like to call 'google' research I have come up with some reasons why I think that natural/low-medicated birth is the best option if you can.
1. Epidural use is directly related to higher c-section rates. A c-section is no minor surgery! It takes at least 6-weeks to recover and have you actually watched a c-section video? Well, I have and let me say it looks like no fun. Yes you can't feel anything, but man it is not an easy thing to do. Just check out the links below for a lot of information! Doctors who used EA (epidural analegesia) 40 percent or less only had a 14.8% rate of c-section compared to those who used it 71-100% of the time had a 23.4% increase in c-sections. Yikes! (This is in Canada but the US shows similar rates). According to WHO a c-section rate of 15% is ideal in countries but the US is hovering around 30%. Now the American College of Gynecology says that there is no related increase in c-section rates to EA use, but looking at all the European nations and the fact that the US has such a high c-section rate I tend to really question this, but I would be a bad researcher and fact teller if I didn't let you know that the ACOG does not believe that there is a direct relation. I just don't quite believe it, yet. I think more research needs to be done to prove the opposite.
I know from my birth and talking to my doctors and nurses, that most likely a c-section would of been inevitable in my case because there was no way I would of been able to get Lincoln out had I not been able to feel.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1481670/
http://harvardmagazine.com/2012/11/labor-interrupted
2. If you get an epidural, you will most likely get a catheter to help you go pee.
I just say if I can avoid it, I will. This is a personal choice though, but most women don't know this little fact when the ask for the EA.
3. It can cause low blood pressure.
Well that just means more medication injected into you. Personal choice again, but if I can avoid it I will.
4. Most hospitals when they give the EA will not allow walking or moving until it has worn off because of liability issues.
I loved the fact that I could move through my labor. It made it so much easier and I didn't feel chained to a bed for 4-5 hours.
5. Women who use EA have a higher chance of getting 3-4 degree tears during birth.
OUCH! I believe this to be directly related to the fact that you can't feel that baby coming out. When a doctor tells you to push slowly, how do you know what that feels like if you have no feeling down there. Fact is you don't. I'm really cool with only my 2nd degree tear. I'll take just 5-10 stitches over 20+ and getting my anal sphincter torn up a bit.
6. Easy recovery when you birth naturally.
I didn't have to wait at all to walk. I was up and walking the second they transported me to my recovery room. I could of walked in the labor room, but I just wanted to hold Lincoln. I was not in severe pain and I was only taking 600 milligrams of ibuprofen for my painkillers for my recovery Much better than a narcotic which honestly, they knock me out and with a newborn not quite a good idea.
7. Women should just trust their bodies.
Yes, this shit is going to hurt. Yes, it's hard work. Yes, contractions are a son of a bitch. Yes, you can trust your body to do work.
This was just my experience and I am still not anti-EA use. If you need it get it! I just think if your labor is progressing normally/quickly, like mine did, then I think its a good idea to just be open to the idea that you can do it without. Just be open to it. There will be moments you think 'Oh I can't do this!' but you can! I had those moments, but once the contraction passed and I had my fantastic labor coaches there I was ok. Try getting some minor painkillers in your IV first before you make the decision to go completely numb down there. Have a support person. I suggest a woman or a doula who has done this before. Yes my husband was great, but he was so worried/scared as well that its just good to have another lady present. If you really want to use your husband though I say more power to you! It will be an even better birthing experience and how special!
Now if you are in active labor for a while, like 8+ hours or more, I say get the drugs! No point in having hard contractions for that long with little progression. Remember natural/normal progression is 1cm an hour. Going from 3-10 should take somewhere around 7 hours. Luckily for me Lincoln was completely born under 5 hours from when I got admitted, so a bit easier to not have to make the epidural decision.
It was the most rewarding experience of my life to be able to actual feel my son being born, and I don't think you can really explain this to some one until they have experienced it themselves.
Yes, you can all call me a hippie now too....
Lincoln is doing well and as a family we are doing great. He only gets up once during the night, score! He is still being a great baby who just hangs out. He loves, loves, loves music. We play music and he is quiet immediately. We also play the good stuff like Mumford, Adele, Etta James, Earth, Wind and Fire, The Beatles and many more. We are staying away from baby tunes, so as not to go insane. We are going to try to step up our game and play some classical this week, but he really seems to like songs that have a strong beat present.
.JPG)
.JPG) |
| Went for a walk in the Baby Bjorn with dad and mom. |
~Julia
No comments:
Post a Comment