Before delivery, every pregnant woman and her partner should inform themselves about the types of medical interventions that will be offered to them, and be empowered to truly make educated, informed choices. Here is some information about the common use of epidural anesthesia:
“Epidural anesthesia is effective at pain cessation during labor, and may help a woman get through an exhausting and long labor by allowing her to rest. But other well-known and documented outcomes of epidural anesthesia include the following: It slows labor, leading to augmentation with Pitocin; it promotes ineffective pushing, leading to the use of vacuum extraction, forceps and excessive pulling by the birth provider; it often causes a significant drop in blood pressure, leading to the use of electronic fetal monitoring (EFM) for fetal distress; and it requires intravenous fluids for precautionary measures, which often restrict a woman to laboring on her back.”
Furthermore, “from a chiropractic standpoint, epidural anesthesia can lead to serious consequences for a delicate spine.” As always, if you are pregnant or planning pregnancy, see your chiropractor on a regular basis.
