Having a baby is one of life’s happiest and most important moments. Whilst some mothers are able to give birth without pain relief, for many women it is an option they may wish to consider.
An epidural will make your labour less painful. A small plastic tube, called an epidural catheter, is inserted between the bones of your spine. Local anaesthetic is given down the tube, blocking pain in the nerves of the spine. This provides pain relief until the baby is born.
Benefits of Epidural:
- Superior pain relief. An epidural currently provides the best method of decreasing the pain of labour and vaginal delivery.
- Complex pregnancies. For those women whose pregnancy is more complex than normal (e.g. twins, breech presentation, previous Caesarian section) the presence of an epidural allows for a more controlled delivery as well as providing the back up of rapid conversion to Caesarian section if required.
- Painful labour can be a physically stressful experience for the mother with this stress passed to her baby. The presence of good pain relief can decrease this stress response.
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