Diamorphine or epidural?

I've got 4 weeks to go now and I can't decide whether to use diamorphine or epidural I will definitely start with gas and air though. I know pros and cons of both methods but its my first baby so am a bit undecided?has any mums on here used both in the past ?which one would you recommend ?x

[Hughesie1206]

Hiya I haven't used diamorphine so can't comment on that 1 but this is my 3rd baby on my 1st I had 2paracetamol and 5mins gas and air, the g+a was at the pushing stages as well so really didn't make any difference, once baby was born + all the after bits were done I had a cup of tea + was in the bath getting cleaned up and back in on the ward within 3hrs walking around from near enough straight after just feeling a bit tender. With my 2nd I had an epidural, (due to unforeseen circumstances I just didn't want 2 feel anything) I personally would never have one again, the labour was longer, I wasn't given enough so could actually still feel everything, because of having the epidural was stuck on the bed for the whole labour and for ages afterwards, it really wasn't for me at all, with this 1 I'm going back to my 1st birth, try and be as natural as possible, if I need something or the midwives think I do I'll trust mine/their judgement but would rather stay as mobile as I can.

Best advice I can offer, do your research, decide what kind of birth you would like and how active you would like to be but be prepared for those decisions to go out the window as no-one knows how well, fast or easily their labours going to go. Xxx

[Rachaellindseywalker]

I just gave birth on Tuesday morning and had gas and air and then had some diamorphine later on to help take the edge off as the midwife said my contractions were horrible. I've never really had gas and air and so that was magic in itself, but the diamorphine was amazing! I still felt the contractions but they weren't as sharp. I did have severe blood loss after his birth but the two weren't exclusively linked. Hope you have a great end to your pregnancy. Take care. Xx

[Allyemo1985]

Trust in yourself to go by gas and air only. You may surprise yourself and not need either of the above you mentioned. It really depends on how your coping if it scares the life out of you then go with epidural to totally numb the pain. Diamorph I've never had but I hear it can make you sick. I've 4 weeks left its not my first its my third. I'm just faced with trying to be natural for as long as I can cope then g&a keep an open mind xx

[Hidden]

I agree with "Allyemo1985" comment, where the best thing to do is listen to your body & trust yourself. Giving birth is quite a hectic, & emotional time for many mothers. Ive personally only used gas & air when i giving birth to my son (4yrs ago) but wished I had taken more. Im now 17wks pregnant with my 2nd child so I have a good amount of time to think & decide what I would like to be given but I'll definetely keep an open mind. xx

[Rachaellindseywalker in reply to Hidden]

Open mind was my plan. I went as long as possible with nothing, then had just gas and air for as long as possible, and in the end had a injection of diamorphine. But to be fair the plan for birth went right out the window for my delivery. Xx

[Hidden in reply to Rachaellindseywalker]

Oh dear, i think having a detailed birth plan these days is a waist of energy to be fair. I think it also has alot to do with the under-staffed, international state of the NHS too.

xx

[Carren]

This is a tricky one, as every labour is so different. Some people get hours and hours of contractions that are bearable without pain relief, while others get super strong contractions but quicker labours, and then of course you have to factor in the fact that everyone's pain threshold is different, and you don't really know what yours is until it's been put to the test. I'd advise that rather than deciding beforehand what kind of pain relief you definitely want, decide what kind you definitely DON'T want. Is there anything that you're just not comfortable with? Make sure everyone in the room knows. Otherwise, you can start out with gas and air, see what your labour is like, and then make a decision, perhaps even progressing from one to the other. The only caveat to consider with this approach is that deciding in favour of an epidural on the spot may or may not be simple, depending on your hospital's policy, so be sure to ask what would happen in that case. In my hospital asking for an epidural in the middle of labour would have involved switching from the midwife-led unit to the doctor-led unit, and the midwives tend to put up a fight when a patient who is not, medically speaking, in distress wants to leave their unit, so if you think that might be an option you'd consider, get your birthing partner ready to advocate strongly for you, so you get what you want.

It's also worth bearing in mind that sometimes labour progresses unexpectedly quickly, and there just isn't time for the good stuff. Rest assured though, that if, like me, you end up in this position, the pain, no matter how awful, won't last much longer. Also, if the option is available, I'd urge you to condsider the birthing pool. If your hospital has one in every room, then you can try it out, and if it's not for you, just get out again without worrying that you've kept another mother from using it. It doesn't relieve the pain, but I found that water made it easy for me to writhe around with reckless abandon, despite having injured my ribcage shortly before delivering, which is how I personally dealt with the pain. And I suppose if, unlike me, you actually arrive at the hospital before you're ready to pop, the warm water might actually be soothing...

[Hidden in reply to Carren]

I LOVE: ''writhe around with reckless abandon'' x

[Hidden]

see how you go , don't rule out either . u might get on just fine with gas and air !

I had dia morphine and ended up with a section so had a spinal block but didnt labour on it so cant really tell u much about it ,

I was against epidural b4 labour with my 1st (although I don't really know y) in labour my baby was back to back and I when asked if I wanted epidural at that time I said yes ! after having 2 shots of dia morphine already. my mum knew I had said I didnt want 1 and was telling them I didnt really want it ! so I was then trying to convince her at the time I really really did , after speaking over me to the midwife who said she advised it as they were planning on doing oxygen level tests on baby and it can b quite uncomfortable procedure is when she accepted the advice of having it , she was only trying to respect my wishes but it was annoying at the time .

ended up at this point being rushed for emergency section so was taken out of our hands anyway .

u can try dia morphine and stil have the epidural afterwards if u want.

[Hidden]

Thanks a lot ladies for sharing with your experiences.all I think about these days is labour!! i will start with gas and air and see how it goes from there.i am keeping all options open.xxxx

[Megzey]

I had Pethadine with my first and thought it was amazing, cant really remember that much of what happened at the birth (but it was nearly 5 years ago) but I know i felt fine afterwards apart from abit sore. I had paracetomol & gas & air with my 2nd but wish I had had more drugs as unfortuantly I can remember every single minute I was in labour and the severe pain I was in when he was shoulder dystocia. Just put in your birth plan that you wont refuse drugs if you want them as you dont know how you will handle the pain.

[mumofone2009]

I gave birth last thursday I was in labour for 14hours I started off with gas and air and later on I had diamorphine then I ended up having to have an epidural as couldnt bare the pain much longer. My advice is go what you feel is best for you and what you think will help you through the birth I never wanted to have an epidural but I had to I was intending just to use gas and air like I did with my first .

[Hidden]

Thank you x

[bmcd]

You need to have an open mind and see how your labour goes and how you cope with the contractions. With it being your first you don't know how you'll cope. Also you don't know how labour will go.

I am a midwife, work on labour ward, have looked after hundreds of women in labour and delivered so many babies i've lost count. I was prepared with aromatherapy oils, a tens machine, an open mind with regards to entonox, diamorphine and an epidural and was then induced. The syntocinon drip after my waters were broken made the contractions so intense i needed an epidural. I was still able to move on bed, push and after baby was born i could stand and pretty quickly. No matter how prepared you are or what you plan things may need to change. Go with the flow. The moment your baby is placed in your arms you forget it all because it is so worth it. I

[Hidden]

Just got to go with the flow every labour is different, u can't plan the unexpected but amazing experience xx

[DrFluffy]

Diamorphine is pharmaceutical grade heroin. It is going nowhere near my Flump!!

[Hidden in reply to DrFluffy]

Hi dr fluffy...I saw diamorphine on obem.....we don't have that at our hospital, looks well strong! We have pethedine...what is ur view on that?... ive only had it once,interesting to know x

[Hidden in reply to Hidden]

Pethidine is an opioid. It has a number of contraindications (should not be given in certain conditions) but your medical notes should warn your carer accordingly. My personal reservation with pethidine is that it may put you in a confusing state and then not remember much about your birth experience!