EPIDURAL? Help me get it! can any hospital guarantee me one?

[ESEMEF63]

I've had 5 babies before, now with the 6th on the way I'm not prepared to go through birth without an epidural, I know birth and the pain for me is HORRENDOUS!
Problem is I've tried 2 hospitals in Manchester (where I live) and both have the same issue and 'hospital policies'' - wont give me an epidural till at least 5cm, and will only check me every 4hrs, so if I come in too early (as I dont want to miss the epidural either) then they find me 3.5cm open, they wont check me again for 4 hrs and by then i could miss the epidural which has happened past 2 times! I begged them to check again sooner but they wont. Another time, my labour wouldn't progress past 3.5cm for 12 hrs, I was in agony, (really bad back pain & contractions but only 10 mins apart) but they wouldn't even admit me onto the labour ward yet as i wasn't in 'established labour' so couldn't get any pain relief or Gas & Air which I begged for. when I did get onto labour ward the anaesthetist 'wasn't available''........
I'm panicking now, why cant I successfully get an epidural when needed?! Anyone know a hospital with high rates of Epidural given? Should i go PRIVATE? do they have enough experience with epidurals and will they give it earlier on? Maybe I should give birth in Belgium or some other country where I heard it is standard procedure to set you up for epidural soon after arrival!. HELP

Go private.

Have you discussed this with your Midwive? What are her recommendations? 4 hours is a long time.

Go private

Private would be the only way to guarantee it, even if you were in hospital at the point of being able to have an epidural an anaesthetist may not be free if they’re needed at an emergency - some units however may have more than 1.

Have you asked to speak to a consultant midwife or senior midwife to discuss your birth plan and your worries about having good pain relief? Might be an option to have a written plan in place, with other options depending on situation (ie if on antenatal ward give entonox etc).

Good luck to you!

I do think it’s horrendous that women are routinely denied epidurals. I think your options are either hupnobirthing, or as pp said, speaking to consultant midwife and ask for early epidural. Another option is to request a c section, on the grounds of being too anxious about the pain and lack of guaranteed epidural.

Ask for a consultant referral, and state you are having this major anxiety regarding pain and childbirth, to the point where it is causing you to consider going private to ensure your access to the pain relief you desire and/or requesting a c-section in order to avoid the scenario of giving birth without an epidural.

Most consultants I know would be happy to sign off an early epidural in big bloody letters in such cases. Christ, we practically force them on higher BMI women.

You should have the choice and it’s shocking it’s been denied previously.

Yes, Ive discussed with midwifes, consultants, all and everyone. No one can guarantee anything and just take each labour as it comes. Its not just the '4 hour' check issue, each time its another story and like a fight and rush to get the epidural. (first also need to get a blood test and that takes 2.5 hours to get results) If the conditions would be perfect it would help, but my labours tend to get stuck early on and then i'm left in pain for so long- its probably my nervousness keeping the labour from progressing as as soon as i did get onto an epidural the labour continued well and gave birth a few hours later. So I keep bumping into obstacles, too early, too late, no anaesthetist available, anaesthetist just changing over shifts (took an hour for the new shift to change over) you name it, just hard to get one in UK! Seems not enough staff for it- not enough people want it here....

Go private. Women are expected to suffer here.

I agree with a pp, you need to get a referral to a consultant, I had one as I have a theoretical risk with an epidural.

I understand the 'not examining'. Me: " I think I need to push". Them: "Well it isn't the 4 hrs but if you insist ....... Oh yes I can see a head"

It can't be guaranteed because it may not be medically appropriate.

Any chance you could have your baby at Wigan hospital? I had my little girl there and no quibble at all about the epidural! Obviously they ran me through all the risks etc and it wasn't too late in the labour to have one. They were great in general too!
Good luck!

Yes a guarentee would be a promise that can not be made. But it sounds like it,s being used more as a get out clause.

its probably my nervousness keeping the labour from progressing

I would agree that this is very likely playing a big part. A hypnobirthing teacher could help with that. Or go straight to c section.

Thanks everyone! Yes I have been thinking to get a C-section rather than going through birth without an epidural but isn't it stupid really, for a C-section you need an epidural too, why go through the CUT when you can have baby out without it! its insane really! So angry!
I've had it written in birth plan to get early epidural, but they dont take any notice. I wasn't in ''established labour'' so no plan to help me at all.
I was actually thinking of calling 999 and complaining I need pain relief and no-ones is giving it! believe me I find contractions really un-cope-able even at 3cm open, I get back labour and my contractions last almost 2mins even early on.

It seems you are a victim of lack of resources, and a medical system that has standardised everything via procedures and guidelines, to the point where individual differences in need are ignored. If you find the pain unbearable at 3, why can’t you have proper pain relief then? Why the need to wait till the arbitrary 4cm?

I can completely see why you are so angry.

I would agree that this is very likely playing a big part. A hypnobirthing teacher could help with that. Or go straight to c section

Id be worried to let my labours go 'quick' too! then could easily be to late for epidural... I just dont want to go through all the pain- been there done that !

Yes, that’s a concern. The hypnobirthing could really help with the pain, though, even if it were quick.

I don’t know if insisting on a c section, and explaining why (ie they won’t guarantee you an epidural for a vb) might concentratevtheir minds. Hospitals are usually desperate to get their c section stats down.

its hard to see from your post if you have had other forms of pain relief during childbirth?

I went in for an epidural with my 1st but ended up doing it just on the morphine and i didnt feel anything.

then for my second it was a 24 hour labour and i was also just on morphine and then some gas and air at the end to help me relax because i was so mad that it was taking so long haha

Calling an ambulance because the labour ward won’t give you an epidural isn’t a solution that will work - they have no insight or power to make someone give you one, and their only offering of pain relief for you would be entonox and/or paracetamol.

Have you had a discussion about other alternatives you could use if an epidural isn’t available? As I said above you could arrive in labour at the perfect time but I’ve worked in units where there is 1 anaesthetist and if s/he is needed where someone is having an eclamptic fit or a post-partum haemorrhage then they couldn’t give you your epidural. So another form of analgesia on the cards you’re aware of and happy with as plan B could be helpful?

There’s a very disturbing attitude that fetishises the pain of childbirth for women in the UK. As though it is something we are “supposed to experience”. Pretty fucking biblical, really.

I’d ask for a c-section.

If you find the pain unbearable at 3, why can’t you have proper pain relief then? Why the need to wait till the arbitrary 4cm?

That's it! that's the medical system standardised. They are worried labour wont progress further (like stop and you can go home..) or that they they will need to 'intervene' and help progress labour which i wouldn't care, its safe enough too! Just hospital policies in UK ! cant bend them! so maybe private is my only option. i'm just worrying who said they have much experience? i'm sure they dont have that many births going on per week. Plus i'm 38, and have a 'risk factor' because had more than 5 kids, so I really haven't heard from anyone personally how experienced they are privately?? Maybe rather pay for a public hospital in Belgium (where I have 2 friends who know the hospital is good, and epidural is standard around 80% ladies have it) .....though it is further, Anyway, definitely not going to UK standard hospital now!

Wow that is horrendous, I really feel for you.
I managed to get an epidural on demand back in 1983 when they were not regularly offered.
But I made a HUGE fuss, threatened to sue and told them my mental health was seriously under threat as I was phobic about giving birth so they just gave me one to shut me up I think.
Would it help talking to your midwife/GP/consultant about this and laying it on thick?
Otherwise I'd just go private, no way am I ever giving birth without one.

I was induced and they tried to force an epidural on me the minute they started the drugs. I refused, 9 hours later I asked for one. It took two hours but I got it. I don’t know if being induced made it more available to me? They did say at the start it was recommended I had one due to the pain intensity of induction.

My Labour didn’t progress either. I had a c-section in the end.

Why do you keep having children? 😏

entonox and/or paracetamol.

Fucking hell, what the hell good is paracetemol in full on childbirth - chocolate teapot comes to mind.