Anyone had a bad experience with an epidural?

[satinandsilk]

Is the only significant downside the risk that it will slow labour down and make it harder to push effectively? Would be interested if anyone who's had one would not want one again...

I had two with my first, both botched. The first did absolutely nothing, the second punctured my dura and I had the headache from hell for days afterwards and needed a blood patch to repair it.

i swore I'd never have another and didn't for my second... But my third was a horrendous labour which went on as a failure to progress despite huge contractions so when they said I needed a drip to get me the last few CM's to fully dialated I demanded an epidural. That one worked fine.

I didn't have one with my fourth and would avoid one if absolutely necessary in the future.

I posted this on your other thread...

^DD1 was OP and slow progress, so I was advised to have synoticinon. So I said I wanted an epidural. Problem was, although in theory it 'worked', once it was in I couldn't let it wear off even a teensy bit because the back pain was so excruciating lying on my back, and I would have had to get through that pain barrier to get to the point where I was mobile enough that I could get vertical again. When it came to pushing, I would feel nowt, nothing happened and I had forceps. Oh and I was also in pain at the end because (even though my legs were so numb feeling didn't return to one for about 6 hours) DD was pressing on some internal nerve or something and my back hurt like hell.

As I said, I am not personally a fan these days! DD2 was nothing (not even gas and air) in the pool. Probably same positioning, but I think the overall pain was less than having an epidural!^

What I forgot to also say is that getting it in was very traumatic for me and for DH. They couldn't get it in and started muttering to one another, freaking us out that there was a real problem and then, when she did, there was an enormous fountain of blood across the room and DH nearly passed out.

Me and epidurals are no longer on speaking terms .

Another dural puncture here. Threw up constantly, couldn't sit up to push and needed a blood patch. Hoping to avoid this time...

I had one first time and did not want one for the second.

First time was induction in hospital with synto, and then had epidural, crappy positioning, forceps, episiotomy and third degree tear (followed by PPH and MROP)

Second time was planned to be water and G&A, which I had until I transferred to hospital for a possible CS (crappy positioning, huge head) where I was given a spinal anaesthetic (no CS though, just forceps)

Preferred the second labour!