Epidural

[Pregnant123456]

I wanted to know if it is safe to get an epidural during labor? I have heard mixed things and am scared of paralysis from the needle going into your spine. One doctor has told me that the risk is slim to none and am anesthesiologist told me its a myth that you can get paralyzed and that only happened in the 80s before everything was perfected. I have no pain tolerance but am really scared to get an epidural.

[jwilliams81]

There is currently a post in 18-24 pregnant forum talking about this issue. Very good information someone linked. Not trying to scare anyone but there are complications and possible side effects. Just be informed

[ape_roll]

I also have lots of back problems and I don't have any pain from where the epidural was and I can't even tell exactly where it was now

[ape_roll]

My epidural didn't hurt at all. It wasn't a needle it was a tube they put in my back. It was so worth it

[smybax]

Does having the epidural put in hurt? i imagine it being a really big needle

[kiki_lu]

Ok i was 17 when i had my lil boy and i had an epidural i get alot of back pain in the winter but that wasnt the worst thing for me. it didnt work till 20 mins after he was born i wasnt aloud to hold him till he was about 2 hours old as i had no feeling in my legs and i was very sick as i got feeling back just make sure if you want one done they do it at the right time !! good luck xx

[egroat]

I had the epidural with my first baby and plan to get it again with this one. I had no side effects and it was the best decision I made in my delivery. I was so tense from the pain that I wasn't dilating, after I go it the epidural I relaxed and dilated and delivered about 2 hours after I got it.

[AHP84]

There are risks with every medical procedure involving anesthesia, but paralysis from and epidural is basically unheard of today. It's a catheter placed between your vertebrae and spinal cord, in a pocket of spinal fluid. A needle does not actually stay in place in your back, it only inserts a flexible catheter that delivers the anesthesia to numb you from that point down.
The biggest and most common risks you'll face from an epidural are back ache upon removal and regaining feeling, epidural headache (where the spinal fluid has a small leak where the catheter was placed and it takes pressure off your brain, causing a headache, which a blood patch can fix if your doctors and you decide to use that treatment method if pain killers don't work), failure of the epidural to numb one side of your body, and potentially longer time spent pushing because of the lack of feeling you have to determine how hard you push and how much progress each push can make to get the baby out.
But when you consider these as the most common problems you MIGHT have, that comes nowhere near paralysis! :-) So relax and try to enjoy your labor experience. The anesthesiologists are very skilled these days and extreme complications from epidurals are very, very rare.

[tarrah87]

dnt be scared they go through a lot of schooling for this and they place a few places BELOW where your actual spinal cord is. its fine and no need to worry.

[Pregnant123456]

So good to hear you all loved it for pain management! Does this mean the whole paralysis issue is an urban legend? Has it even happened In the last 15-20 years? I'm very neurotic when it comes to medical stuff so am try scared to death

[searra]

Ive had five and im going to get another this time.  I love it! It makes labor so much easier . I have no problems at all.

[Kelz72312]

you can get it while in labor it is safe to get it while in labo tho

[jwilliams81]

You can only get the epidural while in labor. It's not a myth but its very rare to be paralyzed. Most common issue I've heard is back pain where it was. I never got one don't want the needle and I liked being able to move around. Once you have it you're stuck on bed