Curious About Epidurals...

Some people just don't want the severity of pain. Also, some people don't view labor as a beautiful, glorious situation. (Only what the get after labor, is beautiful!) Some woman think birth is painful, messy, and something they don't look forward to or enjoy one bit. It's fine for someone to think that,or to want pain relief. Everyone is different and that's OK.

This type of question has been asked previously, and I will give the same answer. There are no awards given out for women who are able to give birth "naturally". To each their own. It doesn't make anyone who does this any smarter, stronger, or better than a woman who chooses to have an assisted experience. When it's all said and done, who cares? Children don't meet at the sandbox and say "My mom had me naturally!- What about your mom?"

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I know you are not trying to preach but the previous answers are getting kind of preachy. Who really cares? Everyone needs to do what is right for them. All women should have all the information that is out there available to consider and then from there it is a personal choice.

It seems like a lot of women are proud of the 'natural' birth and naturally that sounds as if the rest of us should be ashamed. Well, I am completely proud of my two emergency c-sections and the third scheduled c-section that went off without any issues. Why? I am proud that I live in a time when safe c-sections exist. I also am proud that I know when to listen to my doctors and take their recommendations. But most of all, I am proud of my three fantastic children that came out of me into this world. How they came out of me does not change who they are and what they are growing up to be.

It does not make a women a better person/mother to go natural. I never ask that question to my mother friends...it dosnt make a difference to me. A beautiful baby is here either way.

I did go natural and I loved it! Yes it hurt, but really, tha pain was managable and the birth of my duaghter was the most empowering experience in my life. I would never do it differently!

To each their own... I liked my experience!

Dawn's experience was mine too. I was not progressing until I had an epidural, three times, and within the hour of the epidural, my babies were born. I guess though, it would have been better to hurt like hell until I had a c-section. All pregnancies have risks. If you want a non risk pregnancy, don't have one. I did have one high risk pregnancy, and the epidural that helped me deliver quickly was good for that.

Seriously, every woman has different experiences, and it is just a little preachy to say that you wanted to hurt like hell for what ever reason you did, if someone asks you how your natural birth was, tell them how you loved the expeirence, but be honest with them about the hurt like hell part. I wouldn't choose not to have pain releif to birth a baby, I wouldn't choose to have a mastectamy without anestitic either. I think that birth, no mater how it happens is natural, and the judgemental ranking of how you did it verses how I did it is just not at all helpful to the mothers that have not yet decided.

M.

It's sad you can't ask a simple question without someone taking the post as a personal attack. I do believe to each their own when it comes to this subject because some do progress better with pain relief and everyone has different pain tolerances. I however did decide to try for a natural birth and was successful. I wanted to endure the pain in exchange for the ability to feel what was going on and so I could move around to help progress the process, which probably prevented me from needing a c-section. That's why I made my decision and I would do it again.

Good luck and congratulations.

K.

I have two beautiful girls and I had them both naturally. Coming from a family of 5 girls, I am the only sister who did not get induced and did not get the epidural. The first time I labored at home for 9hrs and had my daughter within 30min. of arriving at the hospital. It was hard but a great experience. I decided to go for a home birth the second time because we were an hour away from the birthing center. It was the best, most amazing experience and much easier the second time then the first. I don't judge any women for being induced or getting the epidural, it just was important to both my hubby and I so that was the decision we made. If I have a third, I'll do it again.

I was going to go all natural and mainly becasue the woman who taught our birthing classes made all moms wanting an epidural feel like second class citizens and bad moms. When it came time to have my son, I had to be induced because my water broke but I had no contractions for 8 hours after the water broke. For those of us who have been induced you know that the contarctions come on like a mac truck and don't stop for a minute. I road it out for 8 hrs till my hubs said that's it you are getting an epiduarl, I was too weak and in too much pain to argue. I got the epidural and I could still feel the need to push and him passing, just not the ripping. If I could do it all over again, I would have pre ordered the epidural happily.

I was induced at 42 weeks with each of my boys. I had an epidural. I had them turn it on just enough to take the edge off because there is absolutely no reason for all the pain. I knew I would have one because my sister, after having her first 2 with no meds, and an epidural for her last, said that it was such a better experience with the meds, and that if she had only known she would have gotten the epidural with the others as well.
And no, my kids did not come out drugged, they both came out alert and went straight to the breast, no problems.

My first two were drug-free because it's safer. There's just no disputing that. For mom and baby. BUT I wouldn't call having a needle in my hand, agreeing to having my water broken when labor stalled, having my first vacuumed out, giving birth to both while sitting up instead of hands-and-knees or squatting, "natural". I've come to the conclusion that it's almost impossible to get a natural birth in the hospital. I'm having my 3rd at home:)

I didn't really opt in advance. My stance was "I'll take as much as I can without pain killers and when I cannot take it anymore, I ask for help". I ended up with 2 natural births. Of course, it somehow hurt but I was so scared about everybody telling how awful is the pain... that I felt it was not that bad after all. For me, the worse was not the pain itself but the exhaustion. It was easy taking my breath and following directions at the beginning but as the contractions are getting longer and closer, I didn't have time to recoup and this was the worse part for me. I remember telling jokingly to the midwife: can you give me something to stop it for 15 minutes or so, and then I promise I'll be back and ready to have this baby?

the first time i gave birth i was 21 and knew no better than to opt for an epi, the labor took 6 hours, not too bad. The second time i was 27 we went a totally different way, no epi, no drugs, nothing, i swear it took 15 minutes. Im more proud of my second choice, and without the epidural it seems like my body knew what to do. It was quite painful, but when i compare , pain to no pain ill take the pain. It just seemed much more natural and faster to do it this way. But thats just ME, if i ever have another baby i will probably do it at home with a midwife, squatting next to a bed, then put him/her in cloth diapers and spend the next two years breastfeeding and sleeping next to my baby.

but thats me, im a little old school now, i completely understand the urge to get an epidural, expecially after having experienced those "deep down crunching uterus in a vice" contractions that you never get to with an epidural.

I had my first in the hospital and hated it! I had my next 2 at home and it was wonderful!! Baby #3 was born this past April with her big sisters looking on. My daughters now view birth as a natural part of life that is not something to be feared, a view I wish our society had. I don't understand why mothers would want to drug their babies before they are even born. As mothers we would walk through fire for our children so we are for sure strong enough to endure some pain when bringing them into this world.

Lisa

I did it all natural!! I agree that it was by far the most painful experience I have ever had times a million, but I firmly believe that it should happen naturally. I also went into labor naturally, too, which I was very thankful for. My doctor wanted to induce me the week of my due date though there wasn't anything wrong.

I don't really understand it, but I don't judge people who choose both induction and epidural. Most of my friends have immediately opted for the epidural, some induction, and a few even had elective c-sections.

I agree it is remarkable how many women chose to have some sort of intervention these days, even if it is just pain killers. I don't personally know anyone else who has had an all natural birth, but I hope someday to meet another!

Congrats on your natural birth!! ^_^

This is such a great question. You have lots of answers to sift through. I will tell you I chose to have an epidural BEFORE going into labor. I guess a question for you would be

If you went to the dentist to get a cavity filled, would you pass on the numbing shot???

If you can do ANYTHING pain free and its safe, I believe you are crazy not to chose the pain free way. Its less stress on you, the baby, daddy and the doctors.

I want to tell you that the epidural does NOT hurt. They have you bend over, and they put a small shot in your back which does pinch. There is a slight burn for about 3 seconds...(its a long 3 seconds and its just an internal burn...not too bad) and that is it. I was worried about getting the epidural but it was the easiest thing about my day. :):)

I just had my second child totally natural and it was painful (DUH! IT'S CHILD BIRTH! Lol) but it was also amazing and one of the most empowering experiences I have ever had.
For me, personally, I will not have any type of medication during any of my L&D's unless I am in medical need of having a c-section (I.e. placental abruption) but again each L&" is different and I my change my mind (but I don't think so). That is the great thing, each woman has a CHOICE! And each woman should be aware of her choices and the side effects of each before she decides.
My biggest issue is 'to each their own', if you want me to respect you then you should be respectful to me.

I went all natural and am pregnant with my third and will go all natural again (God willing). My favourite part of being pregnant is giving birth. It does hurt - but I look at it as one bad day and there is a baby at the end. We all have lots of bad days with no baby as the reward!I felt very connected to the whole process and loved feeling it all. I felt strong and powerful.

I chose to go natural because my mother had all three of us with no drugs. My grandmother had her six with no drugs. God gives us what we can handle. I figured I could handle it and that for thousands of years women had been handling it just fine.

That being said - medical intervention is sometimes necessary and in those cases you should take all the help you can get.

First delivery...no epidural (not by choice).
Second delivery...induction because I was overdue and i did have an epidural. The epidural didn't take very well and I still felt alot of pain.
Third delivery was an induction for an incomplete miscarriage (at 16 weeks) and I didn't have an epidural.
Fourth delivery....went into labor and had the most amazing epidural ever and delivery was entirely pain-free!!!! Best experience ever!!!

I'm going to try for a natural, but if it becomes too much for me to handle then I'm not completely against a form of pain relief.

I like the natural way myself. I have done two natural, as far as pain meds go, in the hospital and am planning on doing it at home if we have a third. I like feeling like I am running the show:) I have been induced both times bc my dr was nervous about the size of my boys, both were under eight pounds, hence the reason I don't want to go the medical route. I had perfect sized, healthy babies, no induction was necessary either time. I watched this awesome documentary called The Business of Being Born. I really related to it and it only solidified what I have been feeling, that being pregnant and having babies is not a sickness and does not have to be met with fear and intervention. So, I am not against anyone else's approach, but that is mine;)

I had an epidural birth, then a natural birth, then a water birth. So, here was MY reasoning for all of them. The first was the epidural birth. I did natural for as long as I could of the 16.5 hours of labor. Then, I got scared. All the "stories" you hear of how bad it is started to scare me because it hurt and I wasn't sure how much more it was GOING to hurt. Then, the second one came along and I went natural with her. Wow! What a difference. Yes, it hurt bad, but no it wasn't as bad as I had pictured from all the "stories" people tell you. But, the sense of accomplishment that I got from that birth was life changing! I believe that was because I had to work much harder to get to that same end. I wouldn't trade it for the world. The third was a water birth (of course, no meds) and I had the same sense of accomplishment, but not as much pain (regardless of the fact that that baby was my biggest by over 2 lbs additional weight). Now, I am 9 weeks away from my 4th delivery and working towards another water birth.

Some studies show epidurals as safe for the baby and others do not. So, it is important to ME to not take unnecessary risks where the baby is concerned, JUST IN CASE. And until you have tried a natural birth (all the way through), I don't think you have anything but "stories" to go by.

I did it natural, both times, once with pitocin. It was NO FUN whatsoever but I'm so glad now that I did. I went into both totally open-minded about the epi but once I got going I never really felt like I just HAD to have it. Well..until my second with the pitocin...after 4 hours of contractions every minute I actually had the epi guy in my room when the Good Lord gave me the urge to push. So I sent the guy away and delivered my daughter. Now I take great pride in the fact that I delivered both drug free.

That is a good question! In my own experience, I think its about 60 percent who get it and 40 percent who don't. Of that 40, I think 10 percent of those wanted too but it was too late by the time they got to the hospital. I had a scheduled c-section with my son who was breach. I went into labor a few hours before and could not get pain medication until they gave me a spinal before the c-section. Labor was horrible. I hated it. It was very messy, very painful (although they told me breach contactions hurt more than regular ones) and I was begging them to give me something. I was in labor a little more than 4 hours and I really can't understand how some women love the experience and reject pain medication. Before I knew I would have to have the c-section I was pretty sure I wanted an epidural. I don't love to suffer. I can see how after your first labor if it went well you want to go natural because you know what to expect but I get annoyed by these women who have everything planned out including NO pain meds. Ok, go for it and try it. If it works out great! Good for you!! But until you actually go into labor you don't know what to expect. If I could have handled it I would have but I was right, labor was very painful for me and if I had giving birth vaginally, I would have done the epidural as soon as humanly possible.

I might be giving an answer that you aren't looking for but here is my experience. When I was in labor with my son, I decided I would go as long as I could without an epidural. I caved and asked for one about 4 hours into my labor, but my son was born before the anesthesiologist ever made it to my room! Then with my daughter I knew when the pain got to that point that I was almost done!

Wow! I cannot believe the hostility from some of the responders. There is no need to b so defensive or to try to make the poster feel like an idiot for doing it naturally.

I had two natural births. I wouldn't want it any other way. Sure, it hurt like hell but it was definitely not as bad as I had myself hyped up for. The thought of an epidural going into my spine makes me want to vomit...it is frightening. It has nothing to do with being a martyr or proving myself. It is about knowing and trusting my body and mind to do what it has to do. For me, just because a medical intervention is there doesn't mean it has to be used. I see it this way...getting a cavity filled or a root canal done is NOT a naturally occurring event in the life of a woman...birth is a completely natural process so there is no comparing the two. Our bodies are made to withstand the process of pregnancy and birth (the only natural "medical procedure" humans experience in life).

Ummm....because I didn't want to feel my vagina ripping in two! Had pain free deliveries with both babies, and thats the way I wanted it. :)

I started my induction at 41w+2d. Started the pit the next morning and rode til about 4 cm when I caved and tood the epidural. Even though I had planned on going au natural, it is a choice I'd make again. Of course, I had then planned to let it wear off until I felt myself tearing- started hitting that button like crazy and good choice- I had a 2nd degree tear that I didn't feel (TG!) and didn't have to get lidocaine or anything for the stitches afterward.

It's definitely a personal choice and if you do decide to get it- don't feel bad!

I chose an epidural right off the bat for both my pregnancies because its safe and I didn't want to be in pain for hours and hours on end (yes I"m a wuss) so my feeling was, why not? As for early induction I never even realized that was an option (it wasn't an option given to me) but I would not have chosen that, I'd rather go into labor on my own. I liked not knowing what day my baby would be born.

I like to schedule inductions so I can easily schedule child care, get to the hospital, and be prepared. While I do hold off on the epidural until I feel I absolutely need it (usually around 7 cm), I just don't feel the need to go through horrible pain when there are pain free options available.

I had three children by epidural, and one natural. The last one was natural, but only because I went too fast to get the epidural. With my first two, I planned on going as long as I could without anything, and when the pain got too intense, opted for the epidural. With my third, I planned on getting the epidural as soon as I got a little uncomfortable, which was great because it had started to wear off when I delivered. I could feel the contractions, and him slip out, but I didn't realize how much epidural I had until I didn't have one with my 4th. I couldn't believe how much it hurt, although that might have been because his head was hitting on my hemorrhoid. Anyway, I felt quite traumatized after he was born, I couldnt' believe how much he had hurt me. I would take an epidural birth over natural any day. I figure anyone can do pain, I prefer no pain. None of my children came out drugged.

As for induction, I was induced with pitocin with my first and third babies, and had my water broken with my second, which induced labor. My first was 9 days late, my second 5 days. We induced then because I know too long in the uterus increases the risk of complications. My second was 10 lbs, and barely fit coming out. She was over a pound bigger than her sister, and born 4 days earlier. We induced 2 weeks early with my 3rd because we didn't want him to get too big and potentially have a c-section. He was 9 lbs 4 oz, the u/s at 37 weeks said 8lb 10 oz, so it was right on. He just fit coming out. My last was 9 lb 3 oz born at 38+6 weeks. I just have big babies.

It is hard to understand when you believe in something so strongly that others wouldn't agree. I think this is an issue that will always have two camps, the the two will probably never meet. Reminds me of the career mom vs. stay at home argument. All it does is separate us as women. I agree we just have to respect the choices of others and remember we all make the best choice we can under the circumstances we are under.

I am not a fan of pain! I knew from the time I heard the word I would be getting one when I had a child.

I throughly enjoyed the whole birthing process and I know that I would not have if I would have tried to do it the natural way. For the few minutes that I was in serious pain, I wanted to die. But maybe I'm just a baby. I loved that I could still feel everything happening, but no pain just a little pressure. When my parents and sisters came back into the room after my daughter was born they all comented on how relaxed I looked and how it didn't seem like I just had a baby. I wasn't sweaty or hurting at all.
I was also induced for hypertension and thought it was a very stress free experience.
I just found out I am preggo again and I will be epidural all the way!!

I decided to induce 6 days before my due date. I have a bad back anyway and the pain in my back was so bad, it was painful to move. I was also 4 cm, when I was induced and the doctor couldn't believe that I wasn't already in labor. I held off on getting the epidural until I absolutely needed it, but I knew I was going to get it before I went in. I know there are studies and opinions about the epidural, but I decided that it would be safe for the baby and make delivery easier for me. I ended up having to have an emergency c-section and it was determined that I couldn't deliver vaginally, but if I could I would choose an epidural, and especially now that I have another child, I would induce if the pain got to be so bad I couldn't move and take care of my daughter. For what it's worth, my daughter was a healthy 7 lbs 8 oz.

I choose to induce because I was absolutely miserable. The baby was sitting in position that made my stomach feel like my skin was on fire everything I shifted let alone walking. It took me 30 minutes to make it to the bathroom from the living room (its about 15 ft away) I had to support my babies head when I walked otherwise I thought I would pass out from the pain. i choose an epidural because there was no reason not to. I didnt see any reason to go through that kind of pain if I didnt have to, after all I trusted my doctor when she said it wouldnt hurt my baby. unfortunatly my epidural wore off about 2 hrs before I delievered my son and I was dialating to fast for a second to work

I didn't induce (baby came day before due date), but did have an epidural and had planned to from the start. I went to eight centimeters laboring at home, and was grateful that I still had time to get the epidural when I arrived at the hospital. I saw no advantage to me or the baby to going natural - and when I have number two, the only thing I'll probably change is getting to the hospital sooner and the epidural earlier!

Hi there,
I too went all natural for my first, for my second, I had back labor and it was horrendous! I finally got an epidural at 8 am because the only thing that eased the pain of contractions was my husband digging his fists in my back...after doing this for about 5 hours through the night after working all day, he could no longer lift his arms...LOL I had my boy at 8:12am and he was 9lbs 3oz!! I am currently almost 36 weeks with my third and I think I am going to get an epidural this time...I am going to kinda feel it out first, but if it is anything like my last, then I think I am going to get it...My docs are talking induction though which I am pretty much against...I have chronic hypertension which I have been on meds for since I was 20. My blood pressure is really good and unless there is a problem, I will not go for an induction, in which case, if there is a problem they will probably want to do a c-section, which I am not wanting at all! Good luck and any decision you make, will be the appropriate one for you ;)

The reason why I chose and epidural was because I was going to give my baby up for adoption. I didn't want to feel a thing. Just pop him out and sign the papers. . . well that didn't happen. But I'm kind of wishing that I would have waited to get the epidural to see if I could have handled it. It did move about 5 hours in, so i felt everything and quick. So that was a shock. I'm sure it would haven't been so bad if I wasn't numb. For my next baby I will attempt to go natural with a mid wife, but if I can't handle then I'll get a epidural.

I can say with my first, she came fast and furious! It was an intense labor and since she was my first I had no idea what to expect – so by the time I asked for SOMETHING, it was already too late! 

So- several years later when I was pregnant with #2, I knew that I was going to ask for the epidural much sooner. I opted to go for the epidural because I had SEVERAL friends deliver babies after I had my oldest and they seemed to almost ALL have an epi and they all had a good experience with it. SO, I thought to myself, why go through all of that, especially once the labor started and then you automatically remember fully what that feels like, especially hard labor when so many people seemed to have a much less dramatic experience with the epi. So, I went for it with #2, it did slow down the labor but I don’t regret that decision.

BTW – I know that my mother didn’t agree with my choice, but she managed to bite her tongue! 

I opted to go natural, but was robbed of that when the dr. decided I needed to be induced...sadly that is the way most "clinic" type dr.'s go these days..you have til the date they say you are due to show signs of delivery then it is off to be induced. Babies come when they are ready, i am a prime example of this as I was "due" to be born on July 4th and hung out in the womb til July 30th...In today's society my mom would have been forced to be induced by July 8th.
I also did not want the epidural, and it took twelve hours of hard back labor with no option to get up and move around ( they strap monitors on you when you are induced) and having been up for 24 hours straight did I finally break ( and only because they were talking about bringing in Petocin which would increase the pain of the already full on labor contractions and if that didn't work they were prepping a room for C-section...) I finally allowed the epidural (which only cut the contraction pain in half since it only really effected the right side of my body) to be administered. I slept for 4 hours, and when I woke up my sons head was getting close to crowning...then they have the nerve to tell me not to push until the doctor arrives and says I can..really...my body is screaming push you silly ninny and the nurse is saying wait til the dr. arrives..good grief!
I had my baby as naturally as I was allowed and am grateful it didn't end up as a forced C-Section, but firmly believe if they would have let me go into labor on my own ,my son would have still been born healthy and fine on the same day or one day later than he was because of the induction.
Btw, The reason I was put on "high risk" was because I had "too much" amniotic fluid...a genetic trait passed on from my mother and grandmother and great grandmother....something my doctor scoffed at when I tried to explain that my mom and grandma both had what in there day was referred to as a very wet birth of their children.

For my next child, provided I am not in a situation where my medical insurance allows for the dr. to decide for me, I plan to have my child completely natural! ( I don't think it could ever hurt as bad as something chemically induced does...that is just and insane amount of pain and the induction reduces a womans options of finding ways to naturally cope with the pain as well)

I tried for natural childbirth but it didn't work out for me either time. First kid tried an epidural after 14 hours of labor but eventually had a failure to progress c-section after 18+ hours. I was also sick at the time. Epidural was good for pain relief but I wanted to skip the pitocin and was told it was a both or neither deal so that sucked.

Second time I tried for a VBAC. After my water broke I had pitocin to start the contractions that weren't starting on their own. I got almost to the point of pushing but then the baby's stats were going up and down so I had a (really painful) emergency c-section, a good call since the cord was around her neck (baby was fine though). The most helpful things were having an experienced doula with me and using electrical stimulation for pain relief (you have to order them from another country to use in labor but they are not too expensive, physical therapists here use them often).

I'm amazed at how many women responded in an offensive manner to this. I don't see what is wrong either way. I actually feel like the odd one out when I say I wanted to go natural.
I attempted to go natural, even with being induced. I was a high risk pregnancy but had the ok to try natural. I was induced early because of the risk on my own health I would have had to carry to full term.
I ended up in emergency c-section, gratefuly had enough time to get a spinal in but almost got put under. Totally unrelated to having meds or not having meds.
I would like to go without induction next time...although I have thought about elective c-section. It will depend on how I feel if the time ever comes.

Well I was pregnant with twins so I had been told C-section from the get-go but my doctors also knew that I wanted vaginal if possible. Well I lucked out and was able to deliver vaginal at 36 weeks gestation. There is no way in hell I would have done that "all natural". Why put yourself through such pain when there are meds out there that can take that away.....however they ended up having to do the epidural twice on me because the first one didn't take. Then when it came time to push they took the epidural away from me because I couldn't feel the contractions to push.....that hurt like HELL! I still had to of had some "meds" in me so I can't even imagine the pain had I had nothing but then I think well maybe the pain was legitimate and if I did it once before and survived then why not go about it natural next time? I also felt like I had no leverage when I was laid back onto the delivery table as well. I felt like if I could have squatted then the delivery would have come alot faster if that makes any sense at all. A cousin of mine suggested I might have a tilted uterus....???? I dunno but I would be scared to go about it all natural until I talked to my doctor about my experience last time. If that is all the pain involved-then I could do it....but if its more pain then NO WAY-drugs it is!

I wanted an epidural before I even knew I was pregnant. Seriously, I am not into pain at all. I always figured that if I would have my mouth numbed to fill a tooth...I sure as hell was going to have my vajayjay numb to give birth.

I did my research and read all the bad things that could happen and wondered if I could do it natural...I thought about just seeing how far I could go with out one...but I ended up having to be induced due to Gestational Diabetes, and once they start the pictocin (sp)...you are having contractions off the charts from the very first one and I had my epidural as soon as the doctor could get to my room.

With my daughter no reason to induce and I went into labor on my own. I was a 4.5 when I reached the hospital. I had to wait 30 minutes to get an epidural...IV fluids and all...I didn't realize it at the time but by the time I received the epidural I was well into transition. They checked me right after I got it and the baby was crowning. So, I almost had her "natural' if the doctor had drug his feet getting to me.

IF I have a third...I might not make it in time for one...but if I did get there in time I would ask for it...because it just made it so much easier. Like I said, I don't want to hurt if I don't have to.

I had both epidural and induction for my first. Reason for the induction was that my water broke and 3 hours later when I finally arrived at the hospital (had to shower and get lunch before going to hospital :) ) I still had not gone into labor. They were concerned about infection, especially since I tested positive for Group Beta strep bacteria. The epidural was because I could get it!! My feeling is, if I don't have to have the pain and baby still comes out healthy, then why refuse it?
My second was an elective c-section, but that was because my 1st got stuck (shoulder dystocia) with fear that he fractured his clavicle on the way out. So it was not worth that risk the second time around.

I had planned on going natural for as long as I could handle. My son progressed really fast. I was 7cm and asked for an epidural. the Dr said yes but by the time I got it and it kicked in, my son had been born for 10 minutes! So I ended up feeling everything. Granted I had to only push 3 times, but I think the reason I pushed so hard and got him out so fast, was because the pain. I knew the only way to make the pain stop was to give it my all! I am planning on trying to go natural with my 2nd baby. I figure I did it once, I can do it again.

With my first I made it to 6 before asking :)..... baby number 2 I went in for my routine exam and was 5 cm and my labor after I hit 6 first time went SUPER fast...so they sent me to the hospital when I was dialited to 5 with 2nd baby in fear I wouldn't make it to hospital. They had to give me some pitocin so I opted for the epi not knowing if that would slow things down ( which it did). I enjoyed fully not being in pain while giving birth and the hours after..... Baby 3....when that happens...I will probably do an epi again.

For me the only advantage of being induced was that the delivery was scheduled. I needed a sitter for my older child and didn't have family closer than an hour away so I didn't want to be rushed into a delivery room in the middle of the night without anyone to take care of my son. Other than that, I am not happy that I was induced. The second delivery was much harder than the first. Both of my children were small, but I just feel that my body did not have the time to prepare for what was going to happen. Instead of my body having a day (or however long it takes to get ready), a drug was pumped into my system to force the labor. Both pregnancies/labors were normal. No complications and I didn't have any stitches afterwoods, it was just different. I did have an epidural with both deliveries. I did not decide in advance if I would or would not have the epidurals. I waited until the big day in both cases and decided. My doctor gave me the facts without any pressure and let me decide. She said she had chosen to have epidurals in the past because she wanted to remember the miracle/beauty of the day without associating it with pain. I thought she had a good point and since as I stated did not have a risky pregnancy/delivery I decided to have the epidural also.

I had no medication with my first. After almost 24 hours of labor and pain, I opted for iv meds with my second, and i was induced and had an epidural for my third. With the third she was flipping upside down and they worried she'd be breech when i went into labor, so we induced when she was in the proper position and hoped for the best. The epidural i would have had to have anyways, I had my tubes tied after delivery.

However, I am 25 weeks pregnant and HATED my induction, took two tries, and they had to break my water, and i was still in labor over 12 hours and felt everything through the medication, so while I won't opt to do it again, I won't pretend to be super woman either, if I need the medication I will take it. This little guy is already big, and I have big babies (8lbs 13 oz, being the biggest) so I won't torture myself just to do it naturally. While natural is the goal, we'll see what happens.

I gave birth to my son almost a year ago and I opted for epidural because I don't think I can endure the pain and didn't want to go through with it. Kudos to those that did it the all natural way. I was induced per doctor's advice because I was two days past my due date and the doctor said that there is no advantage to having my baby staying in there any longer. My doc is also afraid my amnionic fluid might get too low if I wait too long.

So I was induced (not early but after due date) and I had an epidural and my delivery was a breeze, took all of about 28 minutes to push my son out. Though my labor was long because it took me a long time to dilate.

I got an epidural for both of my deliveries and would do it again in a heart beat. For me, I don't want it to hurt like hell, and if there is a way for it not to hurt like hell...then sign me up!

I was induced with my second son because they estimated that he would be over 10 lbs if I went to term. He was born at 8lbs 7oz at 39 weeks, so that u/s estimate was off. If I ever have another baby I would not do another elective induction. Don't get me wrong, everything went well, it was very easy to plan the day and arrange care for our first son. I just really missed all of the excitement of labor starting on its own. Who knows...talk to me when I am 38 weeks pregnant, huge, uncomfortable and scared to death of delivering a huge baby, I may change my mind ;-)

I wanted to do natural all the way but my cardiologist didnt want me to. I'm a high risk heart patient and pregancy. i had to have one for both my babies. What I did get was I got to ask them just to give as minimal as they could so that i could feel everything. I felt the contractions and the birth and all that jazz!! But if I was able to i wouldnt have gotten one.