Some women have very efficient labors. They push well and deliver their babies within a few hours. They may do well with a variety of supportive techniques we've found to be helpful such as massage, showers, birthing balls and intradermal injections of saline to help back pain. Other women have prolonged, painful, exhausting labors. They may choose to have pain medication.
Epidurals are currently the most frequently administered form of pain relief.
It is a very individual decision. Epidurals not what they used to be In the 25 years I've been delivering babies, I have witnessed an increase in the number of patients requesting epidurals. Between 50 and 60 percent of my patients have epidurals. What's important to note is these pain medications bear little resemblance to those administered in previous decades. Earlier, heavier doses of anesthesia used to control the pain of childbirth did cause potentially harmful side effects.