I'm an anaesthetist and was convinced that I would never get through birth without an epidural. However when it came to labour the only position that I was comfortable in was on all fours, wiggling my bottom (clue: not possible to insert epidural in this postion, not an attractive sight either )& I didn't have one in the end. I managed fine with excellent midwife, "straightforward" labour and large whack of diamorphine.
I would agree with motherinferior that best plan is to remain flexible and see how you go.Not everybody needs or wants an epidural but they can be handy if labour is slow, needs augmented or the baby is in an awkward position
If you're worried you should ask to speak to an obstetric anaesthetist in the antenatal clinic.They should be able to give you more information and answer any questions you might have. Most are only too happy to do this in a calm environment (?) like the antenatal clinc rather than trying to discuss it with someone who is breakdancing round the delivery room.
The major disadvantages of epidurals are: your blood pressure may drop ( hence the need a drip and BP monitoring), you need CTG monitoring for short while after the epidural inserted ( to ensure the baby isn't affected by any drop in blood pressure), may get heavy legs ( minimised with a "mobile"epidural - even so you probably won't be able to walk around too much), 5% - 10% of epidurals don't work perfectly ( see above) and may need fiddling with or resited, 1% of people get a "dural tap" and bad headache afterwards - this may require another epidural at 48 hours to fix .They may delay the second stage a bit by relaxing pelvic floor and taking away the urge to push . Risk of infection and permanent nerve damage is extremely low ( 1 in 10 0000 or so).
Having said all that, when they work they do look bloody brilliant! Not ruling one out for next labour. Good Luck!