How much can you feel the spinal for a section?

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Apologies as I have had a section before but it was an emergency and after 36 hours of labour a needle in my back barely registered!

I'm having a planned section in May and was wondering how painful it is when the injection goes in and you're compos mentis? Do they numb the area first?

I know this is slightly trivial but I'm the sort of person who likes to know what's going on in advance!

Thanks x

Hi, I didn't have a section but I had a spinal to have my placenta removed manually after having ds2. The worst bit was the cold antiseptic solution they put on first! They put local anaesthetic in before the spinal and just felt a 'sharp scratch' ( that phrase really irks me for some reason!) like you get when you go to the dentist. I didn't feel the spinal going in at all.

Hope all goes well for you and good luck!

Yes they put local in before. I've had three spinals. Local is like a normal injection. When they put the actual spinal needle in you feel some pushing but not sharp pain.

NOt at all. The local did sting, but the rest was blissfully pain free.
Like birnam mine was for a retianed placenta...and that was a bit freaky as I could feel them fishing about, but no pain, just pressure.
SIL informs me this is what her ELCS was like when I asked a while ago...she doesn't yet know my birth story as she's gong for a VBAC with DC2 and is already a bit anxious. I found it all very calm and measured, as did SIL, so I'm sure you'll have the same experience.

FX for you.

Oeisha, that was a very odd sensation wasn't it? I can't quite describe it accurately!

Yup, made me wonder if that's how cows/farm animals feel with interventions.
Had I thought about it, I might not have popped my other post up...but am frazzled. Please do not read my other post about spinals mouse
...the worst thing about the spinal was persuading them to take out the ruddy catheter...it took me accidentally disconnecting the cable and thus weeing allover the bed to get them to believe maybe I would just do a better job myself.

Ha, I did ask the dr if his name was James Herriott but I think it went over his head as he wasn't British. I did hear a snigger from the anaesthetist though :)

Sorry to hijack your thread, op :)

I had a spinal post-labour to stitch up my 3rd degree tear (thanks, DS) and it was absolute bliss after 29.5 hours of pain!! I don't remember anything painful about it (although that could just be in comparision to what had gone before).

I'll try to remember details: got into theatre, sat on edge of bed with shoulders slumped 'like a sulky teenager', some local anaesthetic was sprayed onto the small of my back and then presumably the needle went in. Lay on my back and waited for it to start working, a few minutes later toes started to go numb, several minutes after that the anaesthetist 'tested' me by pinching my thigh and working up to hip - he was pinching quite hard and I called him a sadist!! Didn't feel a thing lower down though, and I ended up with 50-odd stitches so presumably there would have been something to feel!! :)

All in all it felt like a lovely rest after a relatively uneventful yet wholly unenjoyable labour!

IIRC they do numb it. Can't remember whether it's with spray or a little jab.

I felt them pushing it in, but it didn't hurt.

Walking to the theatre before my ELCS was scary, my EMCS was easier as all I had to do was deal with contractions while the theatre staff prepped me.

I cried before my ELCS, but the midwife held my hand and explained what all the staff and machines were doing .

50odd stitches? Oh my goodness. I had an elcs and spinal beforehand and it's like the others above have described. Local went in first and that was like a normal injection and okay. I felt a push when the spinal went in but no pain or anything like that. Everyone was nice and calm and the whole elcs from entering the theatre to recovery was fantastic.

Thank you so much ladies! You've really reassured me. Phew!

Godd luck op, be sure to come back and let us know how it went :)

ive had 3 caesareans and the spinal really wasn't that bad at all, the local anaesthetic first stung a bit but all i felt after that was a lot of pushing but no pain. To be honest i think the canula in the back of my hand hurt more!

It is very different having an elcs rather than emcs (my first was emcs) On the positive side it is much calmer and relaxed but i did find the walk to theatre a little bit daunting and i was shocked at how cold the theatre was-something i did not notice with the emcs!

Once the spinal is all done though it seems to go so quickly and before you know it the baby is out-i barely remember the rest of it I know its meant to take a while to sew you all back up but the time just flies as you are too busy looking at your lovely newborn !

good luck

Ahem, good luck :)