Tuesday, January 17, 2012

One last post

Thanks to facebook, I learned that my relief society president read, The Truth About Epidurals.  Well I had to read it. This lady's youngest is 15, and oldest is not yet married, if she was reading it, I needed to.  That's not really true, epidurals and me have a love hate relationship.  The stupid natural people always made me feel guilty, but I really need an epidural after multiple hours on pitocin.  I stopped judging myself, so now I don't care one lick what big birthing hip women say.  After hours of using natural child bearing technics I appreciate what my epidurals bring, like a second child who I could hold sitting the next day. As I waited for the doctors to discharge us the day after my daughter was born, I sat in the visitors chairs in my room, I didn't lay in bed.  It was wonderful! Yes, I could sit the next day, and I totally blame that on my epidural, thank you.
I wanted to remember this part of the epidural article.
One study reported that women who request the drugs have smaller pelvises than women who do not, a characteristic that makes labor more of an ordeal and independently increases the chance that a doctor will have to operate. So just because epidurals are associated with C-sections does not mean that they cause them. Taking Excedrin is associated with crankiness, but last night’s open bar is your culprit, not your pain reliever.
One study reported women with smaller pelvises have more of an ordeal.  Yes, I think my skinny little self would agree with that.  My brother was in an anatomy class in college, when his professor said the idea of birthing hips is ridiculous, you can not tell the size of a woman's pelvis based on the size of her hips.  I said, I guaranteed that by looking at the size of my hips no one would ague I could have a large pelvis.  He agreed.  This all being said, I am thankful so far I have not had to have a Cesarean, but I feel no guilt at having two epidurals, because all that pitocin is brutal. Nor would I feel guilt for a cesarean whatever it takes to have me and a baby healthy. That being said, I hope I never have to deal with a longer recovery.
By the way I should specify I have never been induced, my body started labor both times, and both times it sat at a 2 while having steady contracts for more hours than most of my friends are in labor. Pitocin is necessary, and I think I will say epidurals have been too.