Very simply, a natural birth occurs when a baby enters the world vaginally without any medical interventions -- no induction, no pitocin, no epidural, no C-section. Impossible? Not at all. Most women have the physical ability to birth their babies without any interventions. What many of them don't have is the knowledge, confidence and trust that they need to increase their chances of a natural birth. A thorough class, like Happy Birth Way, teaches women and their partners the information they need to lose their fears about labor while gaining knowledge and confidence at the same time.
One of the greatest tools available to a laboring woman is movement: walking, rocking, squatting, sitting, pelvic rocking on all-fours -- these are all ways a woman can move her body during labor to help the baby move down the birth canal and out into the world. When allowed to labor without interventions, a woman can move freely, and has all of her senses intact so she can take cues from her own body about which positions are the most effective at helping the baby to descend. She is also free to labor in a tub or shower, where warm water can soothe contractions.
When a woman chooses an epidural for pain relief, her greatest tool -- mobility -- is taken away. That's because a woman who chooses an epidural is confined to bed for several reasons: one, the medication is delivered through a catheter in her back; two, she has an IV to keep her hydrated; three, she is hooked up to a continuous electronic fetal monitor that records the baby's heart rate during and between contractions. Being connected to these machines, the mother can no longer change positions, take a shower or even go to the bathroom on her own.
Another disadvantage of an epidural for many women is the loss of sensation in the very areas of the pelvis that signal an otherwise non-medicated woman to begin pushing. If she can't feel the urge to push, she must do so simply when directed by a midwife or obstetrician, rather than when her body tells her to do so. The epidural can prolong the pushing phase, and for some moms, that can lead to an unexpected and unplanned cesarean birth.
Many women believe that the medications used in an epidural are safe for the mother and baby. As with all medications, there are side effects to epidural medications that every couple should know when deciding whether to choose an epidural. Please click here to read the epidural patient education pamphlet put out by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists for more information about how an epidural is performed, and its risks and side effects. An epidural can be a positive option for a laboring mother in certain situations, but every pregnant woman should learn non-medical comfort measures to use either during her whole labor, or at least until an epidural is given.
Often, women will ask for an epidural to relieve pain in the late stages of active labor, which for many women, is the most intense pain but can also be the shortest phase of active labor. With the right coping techniques, encouragement and support, a woman can get through that last phase of labor without medications and without potentially harming herself or her baby.
--Heather Giles 
