Negative reaction to epidurals in past? What labor pain alternatives are you considering?
How many of you have had negative reactions to previous epidurals? How did you deal with the side effects, and did you have any long term effects from your epidural? If so, what alternative labor pain management options are you considering?
I was involved in a pretty bad wreck a few years ago, and I had a neck injury for which I was directed to get an epidural to relieve the pain. Considering the few weeks of chronic, unrelenting pain, I decided to go ahead with the procedure. As soon as the medicine hit me, I knew something was wrong. Unfortunately, I am a part of that small percentage that has a negative reaction to epidurals. Instead of relieving pain, I was in more pain afterward than I had been beforehand, and after the doctor removed the needle from my spine, I spent the next several minutes throwing up. Never once was I numb in the area, and I spent the next week with a mild fever, unable to move my back or neck, and highly nauseated. The doctor who did the shot did a follow up, and he told me that I would probably have the same "allergic type" reaction during labor if I chose to have an epidural, so I might want to consider other options for birthing pain management.
I have done much research, and I am leaning toward requesting nitrous oxide gas - hopefully it becomes available at my local hospital. (This option is starting to make a come back in America; the United Kingdom and Canada have the same thing under the name of Entonox.) Otherwise, I am considering an IV, although I really do not like the idea of how the medicine might affect the baby.
What are everyone else's experiences and opinions?
I was involved in a pretty bad wreck a few years ago, and I had a neck injury for which I was directed to get an epidural to relieve the pain. Considering the few weeks of chronic, unrelenting pain, I decided to go ahead with the procedure. As soon as the medicine hit me, I knew something was wrong. Unfortunately, I am a part of that small percentage that has a negative reaction to epidurals. Instead of relieving pain, I was in more pain afterward than I had been beforehand, and after the doctor removed the needle from my spine, I spent the next several minutes throwing up. Never once was I numb in the area, and I spent the next week with a mild fever, unable to move my back or neck, and highly nauseated. The doctor who did the shot did a follow up, and he told me that I would probably have the same "allergic type" reaction during labor if I chose to have an epidural, so I might want to consider other options for birthing pain management.
I have done much research, and I am leaning toward requesting nitrous oxide gas - hopefully it becomes available at my local hospital. (This option is starting to make a come back in America; the United Kingdom and Canada have the same thing under the name of Entonox.) Otherwise, I am considering an IV, although I really do not like the idea of how the medicine might affect the baby.
What are everyone else's experiences and opinions?
Comments
@pretty_princess_1 I had something similar to the TENS machine during physical therapy after my wreck, and it was a-maz-ing. It did so much more than the epidural I had!
@Proudmomma That is my concern, since the epidural I had in the past definitely did anything but what they promised it would! Shutter. Thankfully, as a Nursing student, I have starting to become exposed to the many different types of pain management alternatives for labor, but I really want to hear other people's experiences of them, too, to best make my decision in the future.