Epidural Question

[Sunkissed19]

I gave birth 16 days ago and i had an epidural ...well technically i had two because after a while we took the first one out and replaced it to see if it could get some of its initial strength back because it wasnt working as good as it had been in the beginning...replacing it helped a lot. Anyway, everything has been fine and i havent had any side effects or anything ...until today...My back hurts really bad where the epidural was placed...i looked at it in the mirror and nothing looks swollen or anything..it looks like my normal back...no bruising or anything weird. but it hurts real bad...like immense pressure in that spot...it makes it painful to walk around and it hurts to pick up my son. is this normal after an epi and if it is why did it take so long to crop up? and when will it get better?

I still dont regret getting the epidural...it made my birth a very enjoyable experience and even with the back pain i would do it again so please dont give me a bunch of "this is why epidurals are so bad ..they arent safe blah blah blah's" i just wanna know if this is normal or if i should call a doc...
thanks in advance hope all of u are well :)

[Sunkissed19]

The funny thing is...the guy did a fantastic job with both of the ones he put in me...i had no pain or discomfort and it just slid right in...no digging or wiggling necessary! im just weirded out because i had zero discomfort with the area up until yesterday...the pain just came out of nowhere! has that happened to any of you? i expected to probably feel some pain following the birth but it didnt hurt at all where the epidural was placed...until yesterday...i got outta bed and upon walking it was like major OUCH! feels like someone kicked me!

[LosingMyMindInGA]

It does have a LOT to do with the person who places the epidural and well they do it.  This last time the idiot kept poking around in my back becuaes he kept missing the epidural space (dip****) so I had some pretty intense pain in the area for several days.  Nothing like with my others.  

[Limonada]

I didn't have this the first time, but did this last time - well, it didn't hurt that bad, but I could feel the odd "twinge" here and there.  It went away within a month of having Gil.  I have no idea why I had it this time and not last....I'm guessing it depends on where exactly the needle is placed.

[LosingMyMindInGA]

from my experience (4 epidurals) it is completely normal.  I had mild-moderate back pain in the area for several weeks afterwards.  Ibuprofen should help some with the pain and discomfort and help keep inflammation down.

[julz034]

Yeah, it a lot of times take a few days for it to start becoming sore. It can last up to 2-3 weeks after birth so no worries, just try and take it easy, well as easy as you can with a new baby!! =)

[Sunkissed19]

Thanks ladies...i figured it was probably fairly normal i was just concerned because i hadnt had any pain immediately following the birth or after i got home...it just started hurting today which i thought was a bit odd so it freaked me out a little bit! thanks for the reassurance!

[julz034]

That is completely normal. I've had 4 babies and with all four this happened. I am a soon to be nurse, and currently completing my OB classes, and we have learned this is normal. You can take OTC pain med to help with the pain. Congrats on the new baby!! =)

[Raerae336]

I had this with both my kids that's why i'm going to try for a pain relief free delivery HA we'll see.. but mine started pretty much right away and stayed for 2-3 weeks and they also had an extremely hard time putting it in with both my kids because of my long torso.. dunno if that helps or not but i would advice you to maybe just call and ask a nurse if that's normal.