Does the syntocinon drip make contractions a lot more painful?

[sunndydays]

Do most people who have this have an epidural?

I had a managed induced labour (started with a drip and went right through) The labour was 8 hours in total and pretty much all of that (certainly after the first hour) was constant contractions. They did build in intensity though in that at first I managed with a tens machine then eventually I went on to GandA.

I did feel very out of control though and wanted to push from much earlier than I should because I wasn't fully dilated

I agree re the devils work but I did have an active labour. So much so that they had to replace the monitor a couple of times as my moving around made it fall out.

I had music, walked around a bit, was on all fours for a bit and difinitely had the option to move quite a bit. However this was mostly I think because I had been adamant I wanted to move around regardless of any wires/drips and I had a great doula who helped make sure I had all that.

It was stil pretty traumatic though and ds was born distressed (blue and not breathing) and I ended up with a torn cervix that needed a spinal for me to be repaired so although I avoided an epidural before the birth I had to have one after!

I only have the one dc though so have no idea what a "normal" delivery is like. Mine felt pretty painful and intense but then I suppose that is often true regardless

I've had two IOLs

1st - awful finally got epi after 6 hours of agony with synto - not to be repeated

2nd - agreed to IOL so long as had epi first- had epi then synto then went to sleep and 4 hours later told was fully dilated and had perfect delivery. Was a pain free and truly positive experience so can be done you just need to be firm.

Wow, there are so many different experiences. I started this topic because I was just so sad that I had this stupid drip and no one ever told me anything about it (even though I had a consultant led pregnancy and they knew I would be induced right from the beginning). Then I wasn't allowed an epi because of other medical conditions and I was stuck on the stupid bed for ages, having always though I would have an active labour, dd was back to back though and I don feel a lot better after having my debrief

Don't think its always the case that they make them more painful, although I have only had one baby so nothing to compare it too. I had the drip started at 10pm, it was gradually increased until I felt contractions at 4am. DD was born at 8am with no pain relief or much discomfort at all! (she was a small baby so didn't need much pushing)

I was induced with the drip because DS had to come out due to no amniotic fluid.

Sorry to say I was begging for an epidural after about 2 hours. Contractions went from 0 to full on very quickly with no break inbetween. Getting an epidural put in was the worst bit as trying to sit still in a bent position for the needle to go in was almost impossible - I had to be held in position. Labour was quick and over in just a few hours with no serious complications, though it was a ventous as DS was in distress.

Epidural was the best thing ever!

Bit of advice - get the epidural BEFORE they crank up the drip!

It's all a bit hazy now thankfully, though DH remembers every second...

Seems I go against the grain here as I found the drip fantastic!

I had a very straightforward 1st labour of 3 hours with just gas and air (no drip) and then was induced at 37 weeks with my 2nd labour (twins and I begged to have them evicted as I was exhausted lol)
They broke my waters and 3 hours later nothing had happened so they started me on the drip, it didnt take effect till it was as high as they could put it but once it took effect I went from 1st contraction to both babies in 47 minutes and it was easier than my 1st labour! The contractions were more intense but I wasnt in any more pain than the 1st time.

The worst part for me was the fact that they had to let the drip run its course so I was hooked up to it for a few hours after birth which made getting to the toilet difficult lol

I had syntocin when 5cm as my contractions were still too random and I'd been in labour for a very long time. I opted for an epidural as I had read that the synto makes contractions more painful and it was set up before the synto went in. The epidural did not work first time but a small adjustment made it work. I was strapped up to a monitor but it was a telemetric monitor which meant I could move. The monitor was on before the epidural and I was active. After the epidural I could move my legs and lie on my side. The mw helped me to move and made sure the monitor was still picking up DD's heartbeat and my contraction strength. Unfortunately the synto did nothing to help the randomness of the contractions- it just made them ridiculously forceful.

Eventually after over a couple of hours of pushing I had a forceps delivery. I was pleased that the epidural was in place as it made having a spinal block easier. What I would say is, if you can get the epidural before the synto- don't see if you want to be able to cope!! I was lucky that the anaesthetist was available.

The synto and epidural did not cause my requirement for an instrumental delivery- DD's head was always at a funny angle- it just was not apparent until I was fully dilated and the consultant obstetrician had a feel. It explained the random contractions throughout and the incredibly long and knackering latent labour.

Yes - my mother had warned me of this and when they said I needed the drip I said not before the epidural. They tried to talk me round, saying they would sort the epidural after but I knew it would never happen.

I was induced with syntocin (first sign of labour was waters going, had meconium in them so they wanted labour to get started quickly).

This was my first labour so I have nothing else to compare it to.

When it was decided that I was to have syntocin the midwives immediately started discussing pain relief but I just said that i'd like to see how it goes.

I found the whole thing manageable. Never felt that I needed an epidural and managed on gas & air + meptid.

I'm 10 wks pregnant at the mo so can't have been that bad!

I'm glad I read through this thread on syntocinon. I thought I was a complete wimp regarding labour on this drug as sheer torture. I had been in labour for 30 hours and only got to 5cm dilated when my contractions slowed to 10 mins and in spite of my birth plan saying no to the drug the midwife and my DH talked me round. The drug was administered with no discussion of extra pain relief to the G&A I had been on and I was consigned to the bed because of a swelling on one side of my cervix. The syntocinon made it feel as though the contractions never stopped, just got stronger and less strong every minute and a half accompanied by searing pain. 3 1/2 hours later I begged to be told if I had made any progress as I couldn't continue unless baby was going to come. Alas I was still at 5cm and the swelling had become so severe it wasn't possible to deliver. I had an emergency c-section and the Obstetric Registrar who performed the surgery mistakenly incised my bladder and delivered baby out through it. The spinal block wore off and I felt surgeons hands inside me. I was then given a GA and remember nothing else for a day and a half - my DS's first day of life, I never got to hold him skin to skin or give him his first feed. I was a pincushion of cannulas, drains and catheters and needed 24 hour pain relief (which was often so inadequate I was screaming in my hospital bed)for a month. I'll never have another child, I'm too messed up inside. I really believe that the syntocinon given at that stage of labour with complications already setting in was nothing more than cruel. I agree with others who say it shouldn't be allowed to be used without epidural relief.

yes and yes

also you cant moce freely, so cant move and manage pain

If labour slows down or stops, shouldn't that be seen as sign that the baby or the mother isn't ready for the birth? Surely the body stops labour when something is going wrong, such as the baby is in a bad position for example, and forcing the body to start labour again is just a very bad idea? It just strikes me that so many women seem to go on and have a CS or an instrumental delivery after syntocin and that maybe this should be seen a sign that syntocin isn't a good idea. Perhaps if labour does slow down or stop a much more thorough investigation should be done to see if anything is wrong with the baby's position or the mother's cervix before the body is forced to continue?

I know syntocin works well in some cases but given that other cases end so badly why is it used at all? Why are mums expected to put up with so much pain and fear?

Just to give the other side of the coin, I was induced using the drip (this time last week as it happens!) Having experienced 2 previous labours on the drip I was fully expecting another horrendous experience. However... drip was started and I was able to move onto the birthing ball at the side of the bed. Cx intensity built up gradually and totally manageable by concentrating on my breathing alone. Asked for g&a after about 1 hour and DD born in 2 pushes 1/2 an hour later
I don't know why I coped so much better this time but just wanted to offer a glimmer of hope that it doesn't have to be hideous.