I had a really bad experience with my c-section. They put in the epidural and started the medication and I was completely numb for the procedure, but then they wheeled me into the recovery room and removed the tube very quickly after the surgery and it felt like I was on no pain control at all. I was told that the medication they give you lasts a long time so you won't be feeling much pain. I was screaming because I was hurting so bad and they gave me some IV pain medicine, but it wasn't even touching the pain. It was excruciating, I've never experienced anything like that in my life.
Since then I've done some research and it said that they often leave the epidural in for 24 hours. Is that the norm? I feel like there was an error made my my care. I suppose it's possible that I just react weird to the medicine they gave me, but I have a feeling it's malpractice. I'm in the process of getting my medical records so I can go over them. What was your experience with your c-section? Did they remove the epidural right away?
Ali: I'm so sorry for what you went through :-(
Ethel
I had a spinal block, there was no pain after the surgery other then sore muscles from laboring for 28 hours.
Many folks have strange reactions to pain meds, and women experience it more often then men due to their more efficient livers.
pipi08_2000
My daughter had an epidural. They gave it to her because the Potosis magnified contraction pain. They put hers in around noon and had to deliver by C-section around 1:30 the next morning. Her epidural didn't come out until later that morning to afternoon.
Brass Monkey
I had a spinal block which is just a single injection. By the time they were stitching me up, it was starting to wear off and by the time I was in the recovery room, only my knees to my toes was still numb (it wears off from the chest down). I had nothing but ibuprofen for pain killers. I have actually never heard of anyone having an epidural for a c-section, only spinal blocks which are designed to wear off as soon as the surgery is done.
Robyn S
Epidural is pretty standard for c-sections that are planned in advance. It's not uncommon to have a spinal block, but epidural is more standard of care because they can continue to deliver the pain medication directly into the epidural space. They usually do leave it in for several hours afterwards, even up to a day but that's less common.
Sourkandy19
I had an epidural (b/c I wasn't supposed to have a c sect, I was in labor, but due to complications needed a csect) Any who....They removed my epidural catheter in the recovery room too...I didn't have any problems...I was completly numb and it lasted for about 2 hours after the c sect, by the time my epidural wore off I had a morphine drip with a pump, so I was happy happy happy!!! Yes, people do react very differently to epidruals and spinals...thats why some women need general anestesia for a c sect...A friend of mine had an epidural and it only numbed her right side, even after they rolled her onto her left to allow the medication to absorb into the left nerves she still felt everything on her left side!!
PS....Even if your hospital/dr/or nurse didn't follow proper protocol, unless you have permant damage from the mistake, no lawyer will ever touch your case....I had a dr perform unnessary surgery on me several years ago, and because there was no damage done for long term effects, they won't touch it!
Hope this helped!
Ali
Honestly I cannot remember if they removed the epidural or not. I do remember being in a lot of pain though. I wouldn't stop bleeding so they were literally beating the crap out of my abdomen so that the bleeding would stop (don't know how that is supposed to work but ok). I was literally begging them to stop I was in so much pain. All they did was hold me down and keep going. I almost died from loss of blood that night.
Five days later they released me from the hospital after removing the staples that were holding my incision together. Not even 24 hours later I was in the ER because my incision had split open while I was sitting down feeding my baby. My doctor told me it was my fault. I spent the next three months recovering. The first month I couldn't sit up, walk or even use the restroom by myself. I had to have a visiting nurse come every day to pack my wound full of bandages. Nothing hurts worse than having a wad of bandages shoved in and out of a hole in your stomach. Then they told me I was lying about the fact that I had a urinary tract infection and I had to go to the ER on Thanksgiving to get treated because my doctor didn't believe me and my visiting nurse and wouldn't just write me a prescription.
I was literally in a haze of pain, suffering and emotional trauma for three months all while trying to care for a new infant and battling postpartum depression.
Labor is painful, after the c-section is worse... but nothing in my mind will ever compare to the three months afterward. But I would do it over and over and over for my son.
If you think you have a case then go for it. I could probably file and win too, but I just don't have the energy for that. I'm still not 100% 10 months later...
pinkpony
They removed mine shortly after the surgery. In fact they wanted me to be able to move at least my toes before they wheeled me to my regular room. I laid in recovery for an hour or so waiting for it to wear off which it did, enough to wiggle my toes, then they moved me to my room. I stayed pretty numb the rest of the evening, but during that first night the pain started in and they were giving me tylenol with codeine, which did absolutely nothing for it, so they switched to hydrocodone. That worked like a charm, and I was up moving around the next morning. Thats when they took my catheter out. And it was just a recovery process after that!
Dee
I passed out right after my c-section but when I woke up not even 2 hours later it had been removed. I was still quite numb. The nurses put me on an IV drip of morphine.
Honestly it does not seem like malpractice at all. I've heard in some cases they can leave the epidural in for up to 24 hours but it is standard for it to be immediately removed and to place the patient on pain meds. You told them you were in pain and they gave you medicine so it's not like they messed up or forgot.
I'm so sorry you had that much pain. I remember laughing when the nurse told me they were taking me off the morphine and would give me 2 lortabs that were only 5mg each for my pain. I've taken them off n on for pain from car wreck and they weren't crap compared to the morphine. It was a very painful recovery for me.
Baby Evan Born July 30th!
no, they didn't do anything wrong. i had my epidural taken out about 1 hour after my c-section and was just put on ibuprofen.
dmg
I had a spinal block. I experienced some anxiety during my surgery, so after the baby was out they gave me something - Demoral perhaps? So I was totally high after the surgery. But it was mostly to calm me down, not as pain relief.
After the spinal block was removed (before I left the OR) and the feeling came back into my body (a while later), they gave me Percosets and Ibruprofen.
It does hurt a great deal in the first few hours after the pain meds wear off, but I was not "screaming in pain", definitely not. But in my experience, yes they take you off the drip pretty much as soon as they are done sewing you up.
Orignal From: Tips: c-section moms, what did they do for your anesthesia?
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