Midwives - The paracetamol thing is just a test isn't it?

[StarlightMcKenzie]

It must be!

And if the woman swears at you for suggesting it then she can be allowed to make her way into hospital right!?

I'm going to get shouted at, I can tell, but actually for some people, it is a good option, even in active labour. Pain is a funny thing and there is a huge mental and emotional component to people's experience of it. Paracetamol is a pain reliever, it carries almost no risks and for some people will do a decent job for a long enough period to make it worth it. You'll no doubt have heard wildly different accounts of how painful labour is, obviously significantly down to how straightforward the delivery was, but also down to the individual concerned. And the fact that it's cheap and as safe as any drug can possibly be makes it worth offering.

But let's be honest, they're never that surprised when we treat the suggestion with complete contempt are they!

Accordin to a survey performed by the NHS, paracetamol is effective against pain across the board. according to my mum who works in a pharmacy.
And, it's cheap.

I was told to take paracetamol when I was in labour with DS1. I swore at the midwife who then told me I must be in labour and to come in. Apparently they tell everyone to take paracetamol and then see what the response is.

My mum gave birth to my sister on just 2 paracetamol. Granted, that was mostly because she had a 25 minute labour and didn't have time for anything else, though...

If a MW told me to take paracetamol when my contractions always start strong and 5 minutes apart, I'd tell her to shove them up her backside. Yes, I do think it's a test to see what the response is :o

I took paracetamol and it took the edge of the 'bad period pain' stage of labour (ie the early bit), getting in the bath helped too. I them progressed so quickly it was too late to take anything else - so on the end it was all I took.

My problem was I was calm, so the midwives dismissed my progression. For No2 I called from home to say I was coming in and was told I had a way to go. I said I had progressed fast the last time and would be coming in anywaykj. The midwife at the hospital said I could only get in the pool if I was more than 4cm - I said I was considerably more and when she checked I was 8cm... too late to have painkillers again. Thank goodness for the paracetamol I took just before we left....

I think it can help in the very early stages, and with ds1 it definitely did for the first hour, because he was OP and it did help a bit with the backache (but only from about 0-2 cm.). After that, (I was on the induction ward, with a student mw looking after me), I buzzed her, said 'I would like to go to the delivery suite now for better pain relief', she said 'oh no, you're MUCH better here, we give you much more 1:1 until you really need to go to delivery'. I said 'but I really want to go now', she said 'but you're not in labour' I said 'yes I am, I was before I got here, you've speeded it up with induction' (long story), she said 'oh no, you'd be in MUCH more pain if you were in labour' I said 'but I am in LOTS of pain', she said 'oh no you're not....'

etc

She then said 'Well I'll phone them'....phoned them, then said 'they're VERY busy down there, I think you're MUCH better off staying here'. But we'll just see how you're getting on......'

1 examination later we were on a wheelchair SPRINTING to delivery, as I was about 8cm.

Not in labour????

It was then some time, because ds1 was OP, I had an epidural, because I was totally shocked at how badly it hurt (having not been allowed anything except paracetamol up till 8cm), ds1 got into distress and we nearly had a CS, but fortunately I managed to push him out).

My next 3 were born at home with no pain relief at all.

I found paracetamol a more effective form of pain relief than morphine when I broke my leg, seriously, it really works on me.
However, yet to give birth (30 weeks) so I have no idea about how it works in labour.

I was given paracetamol 7 hours after induction also, as it would 'get rid of all my pain'

After being sick and begging DP to get me more pain relief, I had an examination done... 2cms. So they gave me a shot of pethedine after I convinced them the paracetamol had done nothing and may not have even entered my blood stream.

20 minutes later, my waters had gone, 10cms and pushing on the antenatal ward (they had to wait to prep the room and I couldn't help it). I'm sure they thought I was being dramatic (whilst I was convincing them I wasn't) and it was only thanks to DP being persistent with them I got any examinations.

Paracetamol. I think of it as a children's painkiller. I'm 38+2 and wondering if the codeine I have left over from tonsillitis would be a MUCH better option I know it bloody works!

I was offered paracetemol with my first,12 years ago, I'd been in hospital for 7 hours after my waters broke, was quietly having contractions and when I eventually thought I'd better let the midwife know they were getting pretty sore (she hadn't been near me since initial booking in) that's what she offered, which would have been fine had she came over to time a contraction length or examined me and decided that it was too soon, but she hadn't. I asked for a hand to put my tens machine on and she said I should wait til nearer the time (again yet to be examined to see how dilated I was). It wasn't until the next midwife came in an hour later and actually paid attention that we discovered I was 8cm dilated. I had done almost my whole labour on two paracetemol and no tens machine because my midwife obviously felt i wasn't making enough fuss to actually be in pain! the paractemol may have been more useful at the beginning.

They said at my ante-natal class that paracetamol at maximum dose (every 4 hours) if really effective, but surely to work your way up to maximum dose in time to be useful, you'd have to start taking it about 8 hours before you go into labour, which is clearly impossible?!

My SIL had her baby recently. She went in, was only 2cm (although sounded like the contractions felt a hell of a lot worse than that) and got sent home with codeine until she came back in again, so you might be onto something there stargirl.

With my last I gave birth with no pharmaceutical pain relief, not even gas air which I'd requested but the mw forgot to bring the pipe for.

Even then I still wouldn't have contemplated paracetamol, even as a just in case!

I am definitely in favour of the tens machine.

i wasn't offered paracetamol (except afterwards when my fanjo hurt so much i couldn't even stand up straight. )

Paracetamol, does work for women in Labour. I've given it lots of times on delivery suite and it did work for many of them, unfortunatley it didn't work for all of them. It is a good starting point for pain relief and I don't see why so many people would be offended enough to be rude to the person offering it to you.
Also with regard to examinations, an internal is supposed to be one of the last things that we would do to determine progress in labour. Each internal examination carries out a risk of infection, especially if waters have gone. Yes the health care professional washes their hands and uses sealed gloves but your still introducing foreign things to the vagina.
If you're coping well enough with the contractions that paracetamol is all thast required, surely thats better all round? Unlike other drugs it has little side effects if any for mother and baby.

But why have paracetamol when water is just as good, with even less side effects?

Not everyonr can use water tho - I tested +ve for Strep so was advised against a water birth.

Starlight
I had my last with nothing too
Having learned that paracetamol did nothing, not having had time to get my tens but I did have a fantastic midwife that time.

Theres only 2 baths on our labour ward but we have boxes and boxes of pararcetamol.

I want a bath filled with paracetamol.

The midwife sent my OH to the local pharmacy for co-codamol when I was in early labour and said that that was what they gave in early stages at the MLU. Can't say it did a huge amount and the bath slowed things right down.

DolomitesDonkey Genuinely nearly snorted out my lunch at: "I told her to stick it up her arse. Imagine my surprise when she stuck it up mine." Made my day

Gnocchi, I meant to DRINK!

I've found that it does help in the early stages.

I also had IV paracetamol when I had meningitis and that was unbelievably fantastic, that stuff is like magic when taken IV, I now wonder why they don't offer that in labour.

Haha, oh right.

I had never thought about the paracetamol suggestion being used as a sort of pacifying 'test' but it makes sense.

I was sent away from the hospital with paracetamol and sleeping tablets as they believed I was not in labour. I returned about an hour and a half later, fully dilated. At the time, I wished I'd been more insistent that I must be in labour and that the paracetamol were not going to help, but in retrospect I'm quite glad it went the way it did as it may have helped me avoid intervention, this being a very epidural-friendly, intervention-heavy hospital.