[...] Male Midwife: Good Moms Give Birth Without an Epidural [...]

I agree with your article but not on your comment “they were experiencing pain the human body wasn’t equipped to help them endure”
Hello~ how did all the women in the world throughout the centuries gave birth before epideral was used? I don’t think it’s ‘human body wasn’t equipped’, I think we are equipped and in the bible we are suposed to experience pain of birth due to sins of Adam and Eve..we just want to not experience pain if we dont’ have to and with epideral is available..why not use it..they made it to help us with it, but I don’t think the human body is natually ‘not equipped’

Sorry, Allison, if I wasn’t clear. The unendurable pain is an induction with Pitocin, which, as I’m sure you know, brings on hardcore contractions and inhibits the body’s own endorphins from being produced and helping mom cope as she does during contractions brought on by her oxytocin. PS: Pretty sure it’s all biology and the Bible has not a lot to do with having equipped us. Yay for evolution!

Further – my generation’s mums (I’m in my early 30s) gave birth sans epidural. Have the abuse and neglect rates gone up? Do they correlate with the increase in epidurals? What about my grandmother’s generation – who used “twilight” and whose babies were more often than not delivered by forceps. The scientist in me is completely offended by his lack of use of scientific methodology in creating this mockery of science.

The Pitocin, not allowed to move around, unsupportive nurses, etc. was me. I kept saying “no epidural, no epidural” until finally it became too much – for those exact reasons. And, um, I went through pain buddy – a LOT of it. And if I’d gone through absolutely none, I’d bet you my parenting would be exactly the same.

So, wait, I had 3 c-sections. I must be a off the charts kind of a horrible mom. Better go inform my kiddos they are doomed to a childhood of neglect, cause mommy is super lazy!! Seriously, who are these people that say crap like this?? For the record, I have had tons of labor with and without pit. They both hurt, the pit hurts in a much more intense, especially painful way if that’s possible. Those were all experiences with no epidural. But I think its all relative. Every situation is different, and every mother is different. All the focus on the details, and which way is “best” and “right” makes me crazy.

What I would really like is for everyone to stop worrying about the details of other people’s pain thresholds and instead start worrying about all mothers having access to a safe birth at home, in a hospital, a birth center, etc. Personally, I cannot imagine not having the epidural, was not interested in that option at all, and really don’t care if that means people think I’m a wimp. I have a friend for whom a more natural birth was very important. I happen to think we should both be able to have the kind of birth we want. Or at least to have access to those options (given that sometimes births don’t go as planned). It’s not a competition.

Oh, and out of curiosity, Dr. Walsh, what sort of painful right of passage should the fathers be putting themselves through to prepare for the responsibility of nurturing a child?

oh sorry Madeline, I thought you are talking about natural birth..didn’t realize you meant pain associated with induction with Pitocin…my water broke first and they admitted me to hospital and they gave me something to get dialated, is that what is called induction?

Hmmph…this is weird. I was just thinking the other day, after being out to dinner w a bunch of women recounting awful labor stories from the hospital of tearing, forceps, etc. that maybe this trauma possibly contributes to some of the slightly antagonistic behavior I witness from mother to toddler, the letting the cry it out, the lack of empathy. I was wondering if it is some subconscious holding of anger and resentment. But, not having to do with the pain being a “rite of passage”. I had a drug-free, medium pain labor that didn’t cause me to tear or anything and I just feel blessed that I was lucky and had good care.

oops…I was trying to say “blaming the victim and not the system.”

My first birth was completely non medicated until the end…when I was given pit so I would WANT to push. Never had the urge, even at 10 cms, and was making a deal with the nurse that I would start pushing after the next one. Three contractions later I was given pit, and while I still didn’t want to push, I did.

The difference between that birth and my second birth was the intensity of the contractions. With my first, they started out slow and mild, working up to longer and more intense. With the second birth, I was induced and the contractions started out being 30 seconds apart and ending up 10 seconds apart–for 8 hours, at which time I demanded an epidural. I ended up not being able to push him out anyway. I stalled at 8 and his heartrate was dropping. He ended up being fine, but he was born with the cord wrapped around his neck and head twice and around his arm once. The doctor told me I was lucky we got him out when we did. And he’s fine today.

I think this doctor is an idiot. Everyone experiences pain differently and everyone’s labor is different. My first labor lasted 8 hours (including 2 hours of pushing)—the second was closer to 12. And the only difference is that the epi wasn’t available to me for the first or I would have been all for it.

People need to get over this stuff. Women need to be offered the opportunity to have the birth THEY want, and that’s it. They also need to understand the whole process and what could happen.

The number one cause of death for women between 16-30 in the world is childbirth or infection afterwards. It aint so easy even today. I guess dying in childbirth is natural so we should just let that happen too.

I agree that the key point here is not that women are not “naturally designed” to withstand labor and delivery, but that hospital/birthing center policy oftentimes creates MORE discomfort than strictly necessary, resulting in an increased “need” for pain relief. I am expecting my son any day now, and have been contracting (mildly) for several days. Just yesterday, I got in a “test run” to the hospital where I will be delivering to be checked out for an elevated blood pressure. Now, this was not in any way REAL labor…I was just being monitored for a couple of hours. Between the uterine monitor, the fetal heart monitor, and the blood pressure monitor, I was essentially strapped to the bed, unable to move comfortably. In fact, the baby was being uncooperative with the fetal monitor (he was very active, and kept moving away from it)…so the nurse on staff instructed me to lie back in a certain position and then STAY PUT, so they could get a good trace on my son. They made it clear that even sitting up (more comfortable for me, by far), or rolling to one side was out of the question. I noticed that my mild contractions became more uncomfortable the longer I laid there. I have no doubt that I would have been far more comfortable had I been able to move freely – even just around the BED. Mind you, this was just a routine check…I can only imagine what it will be like when the actual labor hits. I have been staunchly against an epidural since early pregnancy, and still plan on going without one. However, I can completely see how a woman might change her mind during labor when there are procedures in place which don’t allow her to labor in a way that is most comfortable for her. I think many women would be only too happy to listen to their bodies, and labor in positions which are best for them – if only they were “allowed!” When those choices are taken away, labor is bound to become more of an ordeal.

Totally ridiculous. In fact, children who were born in a difficult delivery are statistically slightly more likely to be abused/neglected (less than 5%, but still). And it is fair to assume that “difficult” means “painful” because these statistics rely on interviews with parents receiving services from Child Protective Services.

Incidentally, one of my favorite affirmations in preparation for birth was “My body and my baby know what to do.” I felt that my son and I (and his father) were part of a team — when we pulled that off, I felt ready for nursing and all the other challenges. Surely, that is a better attitude than a paralyzing fear of birth, and the hope that the anesthesiologist will “rescue” you from the terrible thing the baby will do to you? Just saying. There’s something to be said for women taking back our birthing power.

If you get an epidural you are a puss, a little bitch. I had 5 children (all grown now), 2 doctors, 2 lawyers and 1 priest. Not one of them was had with an epidural. The doctor couldn’t believe I was able to withstand the pain since I have an extremely small vaginal cavity and tiny hips. Stop being a puss and have your children the way people have been having them for the last 6000 years.

I had Pitocin and an epidural, I wanted them both and was very happy with the result: a nearly pain-free labor. I’m a big believer in avoiding pain if possible. But I definatly have not neglected my child, he’s barely ever out of my sight.

I had 3 babies in the late 80s — all were nearly 9 lbs, all w/o any drugs whatsoever…and the second one was Pit-induced (my water had broken and then labor didn’t progress). I had nurse-midwives for all 3 pregnancies and births, and highly recommend them — they are the true experts in birth as nature intended. They listened to me, supported me, made excellent suggestions, and made me feel safe, secure and in control, doing what women have done for centuries — I had trust in them, and trust in the natural process of birth, and therefore i was able to have 3 large babies with no pain medication, and no episiotomies either..not a single stitch! I am so glad I was able to birth my children without subjecting their delicate systems to potentially-dangerous drugs..sorry, ladies, but any medication that can numb you from the waist down and eliminate the sensation of contractions is having an effect on your child, too — that’s your choice, but don’t kid yourself, you’re both getting drugs!! As a Kindergarten teacher, I also wonder about whether or not all these epidurals are somehow connected to learning disabilities……why take chances with your most precious gift: your baby?

With my daughter I was induced, and I attempted to go drug free. After 8 hrs and 8 cm I begged for the epidural. With my second child I refused to go through the pain again and received the drugs soon after they broke my water. With my last child I got a dry cath (an epidural without a constant stream of medicine) and made it to 8cm again, which is when they broke my water. When you are induced they break your water early, so you have to go through all the stages of labor without that cushion, which is much more painful. By the way, I was induced with all three because they were large babies and I did not go into labor by myself. (8’8″, 8’8″, and 9’12)