Has anyone had an epidural left in after a c-section?
My doctor says he leaves it in place for about 24 hours but lowers the dose. He says that it helps with pain and decreases the need for narcotics. I thought narcotics were used in an epidural itself? The idea of having it left in that long is kind of intimidating.
Were you able to move your legs at all? What is in the epidural- numbing medication? Any issues from having it in so long? Can you lie on your back with it in?
I had 3 and I don't remember them leaving it in..If so they removed it in the recovery room. They kept coming in asking if i could feel my feet or move them. So IDK.
I had a c-section in Nov. I had a spinal block for the surgery itself and then my doctor left a bag with pain medicine attached directly to my incision for 24 hours. I think it's called an infusion pump, so the medicine goes directly to the incision site. One of the nurses told me that this is a new procedure and my doctor was the only one at that hospital who uses it. As far a s pain goes, I didn't really notice it being any different than my first c-section. (I really didn't have any pain for either). The only thing I didn't like about it was having the have the bag with the medicine around my neck. I would take it off and lay it next to me on the bed. Then I would forget about it so when I got up to go to the bathroom it would fall on the floor and I'd have to bend down to pick it up. Not a big fan of bending down right after a c-section.
Yep, left it in for 24 hours with all of my c-sections
Yes, I've had two c-sections and this is standard. It's great. You get to pump more meds in as you need it. An epidural does not prevent you from moving around after delivery-the dose is not as high after as it will be during surgery.
I had my son by scheduled c-section in 2005; I had him on morning by 7:30am and the next day about mid-morning they removed the epidural. I didn't have any issues with it at all and no side effects; you can and do lay in bed on your back with it in. I missed it when it was gone because then they make you start walking and it's painful! I cannot recall what was in the epidural medication...Good luck!
I didn't have a c-section, but one of my friends had 3 and the doctor left it in for 24 hours on all of them.
I don't know the name of the drug that does it but it isn't a narcotic. Both epidurals and nerve blocks can be adjusted by the amount of the drug. Both stop the pain receptors at a specific point. Nerve blocks block everything from that point down so you would not be able to walk until it wears off. I had never blocks for my knee surgery they didn't wear off for over 24 hours, no fun. The reason for the length of time was I wouldn't have to use heavy narcotics and I think the doctor figured it would force me to not walk on it for 24 hours, I am not a good patient. :p
Epidurals on the other hand are short acting regular doses so you can have total dead from the point down or just pain regulation with the ability to move around. The biggest risk with an epidural is insertion so once you are over that hump you can leave them in forever, okay maybe not forever. When you consider how long some women are in labor they stay in for a pretty long time.
Anyway I had all my kids vaginally and all but one with an epidural. Of course you can lay on your back, can you just imagine everyone trying to push out a baby on their sides? :) When I first got them I could walk around if I wanted to drag the machine with me. It wasn't until I actually started pushing that the dose went high enough that I couldn't really move my legs. Come to think of it that was only my first, the other two I always had control of my legs, just couldn't feel them.
I've had a low dose epidural, and could stand/walk on it after about 20 minutes.
((it was originally set high -total numbness from waist down- and then lowered, so that I could stand and walk with aid))
My dr left mine in for 24 hours. It was actually helpful with the pain.
I had no problems once they removed it.
Good luck. Congrats
I am not sure if this is the same thing or not. I had a spinal block for the c-section and the Dr also gave me morphine at the same time as the spinal block. The morphine lasted 24 hours. The spinal block did not. It only lasted a few hours, which was just right. Then the morphine took the pain away for the next 16-20 hours.
All that worked great and I has a speedy recovery. I was able to move my legs a few hours later after the birth. I think they had me walking 8 hours afterward and I was fine. Good luck!
No way! I've had two c-sections, 2 and 5 years ago, and there is no way they would have left the epidural in. A little bit of narcotic is way better than that. With the epidural out, you can regain feeling in your legs really soon and be up and walking way sooner ( which is strongly encouraged). I had my last c-sec in the morning and was getting out of bed and going to the bathroom by myself (catheter out) by that evening. My nurse thought that was great. I had easy recoveries with both, too.
You may have a somewhat old-school ob.
Epidural for a scheduled c-section? Seems odd. The standard is a spinal block. Now it is up and walking within 6 hours of surgery. Getting up sooner makes for an easier recovery. Trust me did them both ways. You wnat to get up.
Flat in the back for 24 hours is out of fashion for at least 15 years now. Check another hospital near by,
I had a c section, but it was six yrs ago and they didn't keep the epidural in me, it was removed in recovery and I was on administered narcotics via IV for the first 24 and then intramusc every 6 hrs as needed.
