Epidural and urinary catheter

[Anonymous]

Has anyone been successful in avoiding a urinary catheter during an epidural? I know most women say it is not a big deal, but I am prone to urinary tract infections, and want to avoid a catheter if possible.

[Anonymous]

I don't see any way you could avoid one, OP. You are numb and cannot tell if you have to urinate. The epidural does not wear off for at least 8 hours.

[Anonymous]

I am prone too, but it was totally fine. Don't worry about it at all.

[Anonymous]

Another person who is prone to UTIs who had no issues with the catheter. I actually ended up with a c/s, so couldn't get out of bed for 24 hours after delivery - obviously the catheter was a must during that time.

[Anonymous]

Most all women who get epidurals wind up with the catheter. However, if you delay the epidural until you are 6, 7, or 8cm, there is a chance you could get by without the catheter. You can also request that they give you a chance to pee in a bedpan; some women are able to control their bladder even with an epidural. If your labor progresses quickly to the end, or if you are able to pee in the bed, then you can refuse the catheter. Make sure to tell the nurse what you want. She might not like it, but hey, it's your body.

You could also try to go without an epidural at all, which gives you the freedom to just use the toilet throughout labor.

[Anonymous]

That's why I thought. I wonder if sometimes they just give you the catheter because it's inconvenient for the nurses if you try to use a bedpan.

[Anonymous]

"That's why I thought. I wonder if sometimes they just give you the catheter because it's inconvenient for the nurses if you try to use a bedpan. "

Very true. I was on magnesium sulfate for a few days and could not walk to the bathroom. The nurse wanted to do a catheter but I asked the doctor if I could use a bedpan. He said, of course and she glared at him.

[Anonymous]

I am also very prone to UTIs and it was completely fine.

[Anonymous]

I had an epidural and no one even suggested I be catheterized. The nurse asked if I felt like I could go, and I tried and could - so no need for the catheter at all. That said, I wouldn't have minded if they'd catheterized me immediately before I began pushing - because with all that effort, well, I peed all over my doctor. (Sorry, doc.)

[Anonymous]

That was a really knowledgeable post. I often find that this topic is complicated to get your head round but you have summed it up really well.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EyuUyN5RVTI

[Anonymous]

Has anyone ever tried to pee in a bedpan? Not easy. For one, the nurse HAS to leave to give you the privacy and the time to relax enough so that you can go. That could take awhile - long enough to where the nurse has been called in by another patient. So, you go and if the thing isn't positioned properly, you pee on yourself, the bed, your clothes. So, that requires a bed change. so you call the nurse. Well, by this time, she's been called in by that other patient and it's going to be awhile. Hopefully there's a tech who can help you - but with the staffing in hospitals these days, you can't rely on that. So you wait - either in a wet cold mess from the bedpan not catching it all, or you sitting, uncomfortably with that bedpan under your butt.

see if you can go on your own - I was able to with my epidural. But, not everyone is. also, a UTI is a very real complication with urinary catheters. I know everyone here has said, 'no no, not me' but they are the number one nosocomial (hospital acquired) infection. BUT, sometimes they are just necessary.

[Anonymous]

As someone who has almost had her bladder burst after surgery from not being able to pee (complications from anesthesia), I was wayyy happy to get the catheter. Besides, you can drink a lot of cranberry juice afterwards. It should be fine, the catheter isn't in that long in the scheme of things.

[Anonymous]

I had the same issue after anesthesia for an outpatient surgery. I ended up in the ER to have my bladder drained, which was a load of fun after having abdominal surgery earlier in the day.

I had an epidural and catheter with baby #1. I have a latex allergy and they had to use a less flexible plastic. It was incredibly uncomfortable for hours. I kept begging for another option. No epidural with baby #2. The catheter was one of the many reasons I decided to skip the epi.

[Anonymous]

i am really prone to UTIs too, and I ended up with a c and a catheter. I just told them to check for UTI and then made sure to get samples before I left the hospital to make sure all was well. I also was checked at my 2 week pp appt and was fine.

[Anonymous]

Well many women get antibiotics in labor, and you definitely get them with a c/s, so that might factor into why some of you who had catheters didn't wind up with a UTI.