Epidurals...are they as bad as they sound?

[Kitty30]

Hi,

let me first tell you that I hate needles! And I had a dream that I couldnt cope with having an epidural, although I needed one.

Just wanted to ask mums out there who have had epi's... are they really painful? Does the doc usually give you a small injection first to numb the area before inserting the big epi injection?

Epidurals are great. I had one with my first child and it took away all the pain. It made the birth experience bearable. I had a really long labour and I was very tired.

The epidural was no more painful than any other injection. The area is numbed with local anthestic first. The important thing (whihc is difficult) is to stay as still as possible when the needle is inserted.

With my second child I had nothing but TENS. It was a quick and easy birth. I didn't need any pain relief.

Many women do not understand that labour can be very different experiences. For a difficult labour an epidural makes life a lot better. There are no medals for suffering.

Lets hope you have a quick and easy labour and not need strong pain relief.

I thought I wouldn't have wanted one, but quite frankly by the point it came to it I would have danced naked through the hospital for one.

It was brilliant, they numbed my back and I didn't see any needles. It just felt like cold water going down my back which was a bit odd but was something different to focus on rather than the contractions.

I hope you have a quick and easy time of it though.

It also helped the the guy giving it to me was very very handsome (this could be my drug hazed memory, but there you go).