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Do you have a baby on the way? Congratulations!
I’m sure you’ve put a lot of time and consideration into your pain management strategy for your labor and delivery. I’m here to reassure you that if you want to have an epidural-free labor and delivery, you absolutely can do it! It is not for the faint of heart, but if your heart and mind are saying, “Let’s see just how miraculous my body is!”, please read on!
This post is for anyone who wants an inside peek at what an epidural-free labor and delivery is like, especially when it’s induced. I’m not a health expert by any means, so please consult your trusted healthcare professionals.
I’m also not claiming that any other means of bringing life into this world is less-than or wrong. You are a true champion, no matter how you get it done, Mama! I’m simply sharing my experience so that other Mama’s who are considering this option feel encouraged.
Side note: I always feel like I have to put in disclaimers like what’s above because #1 people-be-crazy and #2 we live in a world of easily offended individuals, unfortunately. So, just read the post and take from it what you will… and then move on if it’s not your jam. Please and Thank You!
I’m not sure why, but it was a goal of mine to have as natural a delivery as possible with both of my babies. Mostly, I wanted to avoid an epidural so that I could move throughout delivery and let my body “do it’s thing”.
I am definitely of the opinion that a woman’s body was created specifically to birth babies. I wanted to be able to feel and experience that as much as possible. If it got to be too much, I was open-minded enough to throw in the towel and manage my pain by other means.
I know that is not everyone’s mentality, especially when there are alternatives that may lessen your pain, but I am all about experiencing what my body was created to do. And believe me, I verbally questioned my decision multiple times during each labor!
This is important
If there is one thing I’ve learned from birthing babies, it’s that you can choose to learn and be knowledgeable about what to expect when it comes to labor and delivery. But even when you’ve read every book on the subject, nothing is going to totally prepare you for your birthing experience. Everyone is different. And each birth will be different.
I also think it’s very important (and the one thing you should take away from this post!) to note that having goals, preferences, and your Birth Plan laid out is a great way to help you plan and visualize. It’s also very helpful for your nurses and birth partner/s. However, please do yourself, and everyone in the room with you, a huge favor and keep an open mind. Be flexible. Work your plan, but don’t be afraid to segway into an alternate path to get the same result – your beautiful little baby!
birth #1
I did not have a completely drug free delivery with either child. My water broke with Myles (and he was four weeks early!). And because I wasn’t having regular contractions and things weren’t “moving along”, I was given Pitocin to get things going. Essentially, I was induced. Then, as it turns out, not all of my waters had broke. Once that was taken care of (in hour ???) things moved into high gear rather quickly, especially since they’d been jacking up my Pitocin levels that entire time. It was intense, to say the least.
I did question myself and my body quite a few times and even considered an epidural. But, I opted for fentanyl instead to get me through… and boy did it ever! Wheeeewwww… that stuff really chills a girl out! LOL
My first dose of that was amazing, and then I had one more dose before Mr. Myles arrived! Thank the Dear Lord! It was a rather long labor… My water broke just after 11pm. We got t0 the hospital around 1 am. Remember, he was four weeks early, so we had some packing and preparing to do before venturing off to the hospital (insert: eye roll). Then it was easy-breezy all night because I wasn’t feeling any contractions; I was having them, but didn’t feel them. It was strange.
They broke the rest of my water around 9 am or so, and then I was in active labor from about 10 am – 4 pm. I pushed for two long hours and had him at 4:06 pm. He was a healthy little guy, considering he was a month early.
Birth #2
With Gracelyn, I was five days over-due and was scheduled to be induced the day I had her. Except, I was on the wait-list and never got a call because the hospital was swamped with deliveries. Go figure, December 31st is a BIG day for deliveries! haha
I had been trying a few tactics to get things moving along. I started having contractions in the afternoon around 2 pm. We decided to go to the hospital to get monitored to see if it was real labor (and maybe they’d just admit us and squeeze us in?!).
We were in triage from about 3:30pm – 5pm when the shift change occurred and the new Doc coming on was (luckily) the one I’d seen for my check-ups the past couple weeks. My contractions had diminished quite a bit by this point. She figured we ought to be admitted anyway and have a baby (again, I was five days over-due and was supposed to be induced that day anyway, and it was December 31st)!
We were admitted, but before we got taken to our room I had Eric run out and get us a nice, good meal knowing the work that was in front of me. I chose McDonald’s, naturally. haha! It was the closest, quickest option, and they were kind of rushing us around to get into a room. We got into our room around 5:30pm. They started me on Pitocin to get my contractions going again around 7 pm. And Doc came in to break my waters at 9pm.
I thought for sure we’d be there overnight based on how things went with Myles. Nope. Baby was ready to come out. I pushed for four contractions and she arrived at 10:50pm. It was a very intense, but fast, labor and delivery.
What about the drugs?
Now, you’re probably wondering when I had my fentanyl. Well… it was on my Birth Plan and I had discussed it with my nurse! But, I was progressing so quickly and the baby was so low that by the time I asked begged for it, she told me she couldn’t give me any. UH, WHAT?!?! No. Flipping. Way.
I was feeling so good about getting that far and just needed something to take the edge off for a few moments, but it was too late. I was also confused, thinking I had hours left before delivery. She assured me that it wasn’t going to take much longer. And then I freaked out inside a bit. She ended up giving me a 1/2 dose of fentanyl. It helped, but I was really hoping for a full dose (again, go with the flow…work your plan but stay flexible and focused).
In the end, I survived (obvi). But I was a little freaked out that I’d gotten past the point of “no drugs allowed” and hadn’t given birth yet. It was intense. That’s the best word I have for describing the experience. And yes, I did have my moments of questioning – my decision of not getting an epidural, my strength, my ability to push through.
WAtch birth video for #2
You can watch our birth video with Gracelyn, here:
Now, I need to mention that this video doesn’t share a lot of the “real-life” of labor. Trust me, I did my fair share of working through contractions, the breathing, the yelling, the grunting, the moaning, the cussing, etc.
I cannot stress enough that if you choose to do an epidural-free labor you will be in pain and it will get very intense. And with your firstborn, it will likely be a very long process. But, I can promise that if you do this, you will feel so empowered and proud of what you’ve just accomplished. You’ll also feel sweet, sweet relief and you’ll be so dang happy to have your fresh new baby with you.
postpartum hemorrhage
With both babies, I hemorrhaged after delivery. I’m not sure what the cause of this is, but my uterus apparently doesn’t like to contract appropriately after birth. The reason I wanted to bring this up is two-fold.
#1. Postpartum hemorrhage was, in my experience, worse than the labor itself. It is a very intense and painful experience. And with both of mine, I was pretty much drug-free by the time it happened. Not. Fun. It was also really difficult because I had my brand new baby on my chest the whole time, both times. I couldn’t just enjoy their presence because… well, I’ll spare you the gory details.
#2. If I have any more children, I will strongly be considering using an epidural specifically so that I don’t feel the Doc working to get my bleeding under control (I’m just assuming I’d hemorrhage again). It was awful both times, and the second time was worse. This extended my birth experience by about a half-hour.
So again, go into your labor with an open mind and take each step as it comes. Trust that your doctors are well-equipped to handle all situations that may arise, and keep calm with baby in mind. I definitely hadn’t expected to hemorrhage after birth. In fact, it wasn’t even on our radar. It was a bit scary (probably more so for Eric), but I trusted that my doctors knew how to handle it. I tried to focus as much of my energy as possible on skin-to-skin time with the baby.
Postpartum hemorrhage happens in roughly 1 in 100 to 5 in 100 women (source), so please be aware of this complication, among others, that may be thrown your way. Labor and delivery aren’t always smooth sailing.
recovery
Another reason you might consider an epidural-free labor would be because of the benefits in recovery. With an epidural, you can’t get up and walk around for a certain amount of time after delivery until your epidural wears off. Or you at least have to have assistance when walking. Without the epidural, I was up and walking with no issues about an hour after delivery.
Because you feel everything without an epidural, I believe that you can control your body a bit better in the final stages of labor. You are able to feel all of the pressure – know when to push and how hard, but also (and more importantly) when to stop or slow down.
I didn’t tear with either delivery, so my recovery from that standpoint was very easy. I think that because I could feel my body working through it all, I took my time a bit more and allowed things to stretch naturally instead of moving too quickly and tearing. I’m not saying this happens with everyone, or that you won’t tear if you have a natural delivery. I’m simply stating my experience and theory.
Also, if you choose to bypass an epidural, you’ll save lots of dough ($$$). Though my comfort and well-being were of utmost importance with both deliveries, not having that added expense was also a nice little perk.
other thoughts
Another reason you might consider going without an epidural is that it can slow down the progression of labor and make contractions weaker. There is a lot of science and strategy behind when an epidural is placed. It ideally happens when you are 4-5 cm dilated and in true, active labor. Again, this may or may not happen to you, so I wouldn’t avoid an epidural for this reason alone.
There is also research being done on the side effects of epidurals (really all forms of pain relief during delivery) for both mother and baby. I don’t get too caught up in this part of the topic. There are just so many variables to consider and so much more research to be done. My advice is to take what you read and learn with a grain of salt. And don’t be afraid to discuss things with your doctor at your visits to get their perspective.
My final thought – this is a mental game more than anything. You’re going to have so much adrenaline rushing through your body that it will be able to handle the physical side of things. Please don’t forget about your mental attitude and strength. Your mentality throughout the whole process is vital for achieving your goals and working through the rough parts.
If you are interested in good resources for natural delivery and breastfeeding, I read both of these books and thought they were excellent:
The Ultimate goal
At the end of the day, you and your support team need to decide what is best for you and your baby. There are countless ways to bring a baby into this world. What matters most is that you and your child are healthy and happy after delivery – whatever way that may be!
If you have more specific questions about our birth experiences, please reach out to me! I could talk about this stuff all day. It is so fascinating to me! I’d also love to hear your birth experiences and what your pain management strategy is/was.
And if you are an expecting Mama, I wish you the best of luck in working your plan throughout labor. If you are hoping to try the epidural-free route, please know I am encouraging you from afar and I know you can do it. Please let me know how it goes!
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