Epidural is a form of pain relief which allows a mother to remain awake during the process of childbirth and affects your baby in no way. More and more females are opting for epidural and it is a fact that every one in five females are opting for this method of pain relief.
There are many woman still do not know much about epidural and for them, we have a list of 10 important things that can help.
- The first thing to know is what exactly happens when one chooses to go for epidural. In this process, you will be asked to lie sideward or sit leaning in the forward direction. After being cleaned with a cold liquid, a hollow special needle will be inserted in your lower back region, in between the vertebrae. Then a thin tube is passed through the needle and this tube shall remain in place while the needle is taken away. This anesthetic will be given to you and thus you won’t feel the contractions.
- Another thing to know is that epidural almost always works. It is known to provide pain relief during childbirth to 90% females. There are very rare cases when epidural doesn’t work at all.
- Some side effects of epidural include headache, shivering, nausea and low blood pressure.
- It is important to know that not all hospitals offer epidural. So if you want this treatment, you will need to check in advance.
- Epidural can result in a longer labor as it tends to slow down the contractions and may sometimes even stop them.
- One of the things with epidural is that it results in less chances of having normal birth. Because of the numbness, you might not be able to push so well and this means that you will need assistance. Thus this means that opting for epidural may mean more chances of delivering the baby through caesarean or ventouse delivery.
- There is a term called ‘Mobile epidural’ but this term is often very misleading. Opting for mobile epidural does not mean that you can move around. This only means that you will be able to move your legs but won’t be allowed to walk.
- In the case of epidural, there is a certain numbness which won’t allow you to know when your bladder gets full. Thus for going to the loo, you will need the assistance of a mid-wife. The mid wife will insert a catheter to drain the urine.
- Epidural can cause backache. Yes, due to the numbness, you might want to lay in awkward positions which might result in backache. This backache goes away some time after labor.
- Epidural is not suitable for all females. It is important to know that if you have certain medical conditions, your doctor won’t allow epidural and hence you must always tell the doctor about any medical issues you have or have had in the past. In fact, in the case of short labors too, epidural is not the best choice.
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