Pressure from anaethetist and consultant

[Becciwoo]

I am 39 weeks into my second pregnancy. My first was problem free and my labour fairly quick first time - all over in 12 hours. I had entinox and pethidine only first time round. The midwife first time kept suggesting I have a epidural even though I was coping with the pain.

I am under the obstetrician as I am hypo-thyroid and they keep a close eye on me. My consultant has insisted I see the anaesthetist for an epidural assessement even though I didn't have one last time and DO NOT want one this time. After lengthy discussions with the anaethetist he is strongly advising I opt for an epidural as pain relief - but there is no medical reason for me to have one. I feel as though they are trying to make me have something I dont want and I feel totally out of control. I have already been told I cant have a water birth which I am just about getting over.

Any advice?

if you dont want one dont have one. i didnt and was pressured into it with ds2, it didnt work and i had back pain for months because of it. write it on your birth plan if you are sure. most of all make sure your birth partner will stand up for what you want

I am pretty sure that if you managed the first time without an epidural, you'll be able to do so again second time around. That was certainly my experience anyway.

I do sympathise as I was pressured to have a C-Section, and when I turned that down, continuous monitoring, second time around. But I stood my ground and it was fine.

Good luck!

My understanding is that most anaesthetists consider pain to be un-necessary. Your guy is purely following what he sees as best practice. However, not being a labour specialist (I presume), and also not being a woman and not having gone through labour, he probably can't see the positive aspects of coping with labour pain on your own terms. You know how you feel about this. You are more experienced than he is in this case! Nobody can force you to have an epidural if you don't want one.

If you are certain that there is no medical reason to have one, then you could write in your birth plan that you do not want to have an epidural offered to you at any time. That you are aware of the option to have one, and that you will ask for one if you decide that you need it.

I would agree that you shouldn't give in to the pressure. Just say NO! And why won't they let you have a water birth, btw? I wanted one last time and they wouldn't let me, but I was naive and a first timer last time, so I just agreed with everything they said. They told me it was cos they wanted to constantly monitor, but then they never even looked at the darned trace anyway! I don't see why I couldn't have been in the pool and let them monitor every 5-10 mins or so.

This time around I'm having a home birth so I can maximise control over what happens.

Stand your ground, do your research and make sure that what they are trying to make you do (or denying you) is really essential for yours and the baby's health, and not just to make their jobs easier.