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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

AIBU - to be really pissed off that epidurals are being restricted?

778 replies

christmasmum · 06/06/2009 13:20

Was just reading an article in Mother and Baby magazine saying that epidurals are classed as an 'abnormal birth' and that they should be restricted in the future to avoid women having caesareans.

What is this all about? Why should women not be free to make their own decision on pain relief, while being aware of the risks involved in every form of pain relief? And is it not the case that women having diffcult births in the first place are more likely to BOTH have an epidural AND end up having a c-section anyway??

Before giving birth to my DD I bought into all the information from the NCT, books and magazines etc and was determined to go for a 'natural' birth. I ended up being induced and despite being told by every woman I have ever spoken to who has been induced, that I should have an epidural the midwife advised me that I would not need one. After 10 hours of intense contractions and finding out I was a huge 2cm dilated I decided enough was enough and had an epidural.

I was instantly relaxed and started to actually enjoy the process, 2 1/2 hours later (despite the consultant arriving to prep me for a c-section) I found out I was fully dilated and delivered my wee girl after 5 minutes of pushing to a room that was full of people laughing and singing Christmas carols.

I obviously only have my own experience to go by but I am absolutely convinced that the relaxing effect of being out pain helped me deliver my baby naturally.

What is this pressure on women to be in pain and suffering to be 'real women'. And why is that every new Dad I've spoken to with wives who did not have pain releif seem so proud of them? Is this just another example of male oppression of women? Even subliminally??

AAGGGHHHHH. Rant over.

OP posts:
paisleyleaf · 06/06/2009 15:37

The NCT have been calling it making "normal" birth a reality"
And this was the NCT's press statement about it.
It's good they recognise the importance of one-to-one midwifery care

MIAonline · 06/06/2009 15:38

I agree with frazzledgirl, it is yet another stick to beat new mums with. If you have an epidural, you just didn't train yourself enough or prepare.

Perhaps you should run a boot camp KathyBrown and then all those women who 'chose' to have an epidural could see the error of their ways and you could 'train' them in how to give birth - your way.

MaggieBee · 06/06/2009 15:39

What doesn 'preparation' have to do with it????

I had gone to classes, I'd read the internet, I'd read magazines, I'd read books. My aunt was a midwife. My mum had 2 children. My friends had had children.

Preparation shmeparation!?

Unless your birth plan says "I'm ready for unbelievable pain like I could never have imagined" then 'preparation' is no preparation.

LovelyTinOfSpam · 06/06/2009 15:39

kathy you said that western women should take a leaf out of the way things are done in developing countries.

It reminded me of my favourite charity which I thought people might be interested in, given the content of the thread.

BTW fistula is one of the many complications that arise when women are just "left to get on with it" which is the method you seem to be advocating.

MIAonline · 06/06/2009 15:40

BTW, I am all for informed choice and more support for mothers in labour, but it is the negative judgements and sweeping generalisations that you make KathyBrown that make it an either or scenario, when it doesn't need to be.

KathyBrown · 06/06/2009 15:40

This is my point paisleyleaf maybe I'm putting it badly.
If the resources were not spent on filling mothers with drugs and the resulting interventions as a direct cause of epidurals then maybe there would be more money for more midwives, one to one support and after birth support as well. Don't the numbers for breast feeding drop dramatically following medical intervention too ?

KathyBrown · 06/06/2009 15:42

Lovelytinofspam you are completely misunderstanding me.
I do not propose that women are left to get on with it, I would suggest that less drugs would make women less likely to lie quietly on the bed doing as they are told and being less demanding.
We want more noisy demanding mums to be demanding a midwife to be with them, supporting them through the process.

Tortington · 06/06/2009 15:42

i found the whole thing traumatic. seriously nearly died first time round - and i wasn't giving birth to twins naturally.

epi - made it the best it could have been - which wasn't great.

MaggieBee · 06/06/2009 15:42

But Kathy, you need to respect the right of people like me who don't have the same LOVE of natural birth doulas yadda yadda yadda...... I wanted the hse to spend 500 euro on an epidrual for me. that is what I wanted. But because of the way things are going, because your sort of thinking has become 'fashionable' the hse or the nhs or whatever, wherever, they have a get out clause. They can leave me in agony and then tell me it was for my own good really. Now I knwo about pain! well boy I sure do. Fabulous ey! wey hey.

LeninGrad · 06/06/2009 15:42

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

ScaredOfEverything · 06/06/2009 15:44

KathyB - are you being deliberately as offensive as possible? I had an epi after 41 hours of labour, I think it PREVENTED me being so exhausted I needed a c-section frankly. You have no idea how other women experience pain, and this statement from you:

"Medical intervention in an emergency situation is entirely different from some daft cow in harpenden being scarred of a perfect normal baby coming out of a perfectly normal fanjo. "

is very fecking uncalled for.

LeninGrad · 06/06/2009 15:45

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

MIAonline · 06/06/2009 15:46

Your facts are correct KathyBrown, and what you are saying makes sense, but it is mixed in with an awful lot of personal judgements against those that have used epidurals.

I suggest you re-read your posts to see why you have offended people, and as a result your main message was not conveyed.

MaggieBee · 06/06/2009 15:46

"Medical intervention in an emergency situation is entirely different from some daft cow in harpenden being scarred of a perfect normal baby coming out of a perfectly normal fanjo. "

Wow. No way should the woman who said this have anything to do with childbirth.

The michael o'leary of midwifery.

LovelyTinOfSpam · 06/06/2009 15:48

In the link from the Times article:

"The use of epidurals has long been controversial and is condemned by the more radical proponents of ?natural? childbirth as an easy option. "

Could've been written by one of our friends on this thread i think!

FWIW I have had a lot of pain in my life but nothing like what happened after I was induced. I was just going over to knock myself unconscious against the wall when they came in to prep me for my section. Is it better to give birth unconscious I wonder? Maybe that would have been a top move on my part and i could have avoided teh section

Tortington · 06/06/2009 15:48

and if i could have opted to be knocked out and woken up after it was all over - i would have done - i am not enamoured with giving birth, labour, being demanding or anything of the sort.

now options should be available for those that do want to do that - but i was scared witless, i am hopeless with pain and i wasn't particularly in a situation i wanted to be in in the first place.

there should be options for frightened wimps like me.

i don't want to go through pain - i dont want mans hands up my fanjo - i don't want forcepts up there - and i didn't want a babies head coming out

but considering i did have to go through that stuff an epi was the best option for me

and it wasn't pain free - at least in 1993 is wasn't. but it was better n nowt.

gas and air not being an option to me

MIAonline · 06/06/2009 15:49

Oh and I didn't even see the daft cow in harpenden statement, and I still thought you were offensive

LeninGrad · 06/06/2009 15:49

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

KathyBrown · 06/06/2009 15:50

Induction is entirely different again from natural childbirth, I would suggest if there's good enough reason for induction then there's a good argument for the epidural going in at the same time, again completely different from normal births.

MaggieBee · 06/06/2009 15:52

Tell me you're not a midwife please

LeninGrad · 06/06/2009 15:52

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

LovelyTinOfSpam · 06/06/2009 15:54

So it's all or nothing.

You can be a normal low risk pg and have to do it with breathing.

Or you can be elevated to a riskier person and enjoy all the benefits that modern medical science has to offer.

I think I'd be hoping to be classed as high risk!

Kathy do you also disagree with pain relief on the NHS for other natural things?

MaggieBee · 06/06/2009 15:55

How about a filling?! I'd love to give you a filling with no anaesthetic.

LeninGrad · 06/06/2009 15:56

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

laweaselmys · 06/06/2009 15:57

I knew plenty about childbirth. That was probably why I was so farkin' terrified. I was in pain and I didn't see how a baby could fit out of my bits (perfectly normally sized or not) pain relief meant I could calm down and push - if I hadn't had it I would have panicked and probably needed intervention.

I also asked for a epi and it was delayed until it was too late. Bit of a theme hey?