Pain + Amanda = NO!!!!!

I've said for a long time... pain and me do NOT mix. Well, I just got off the phone with the Anesthesiologist, and she said that there may be complications, but it looks as though I may be eligible to recieve an epidural.

Usually, for most women, this would not be an issue. But they seem to have issues with people who have "Hardware" in their back. I have rods and screws and springs but it's only from my L1 to my L3! (Lower back. 3 discs. No Biggie) There is a risk of infection and the possibility that it may be hard to place. Which means instead of the going through the 10 seconds of OW!, I might have to go through that 10 seconds, and then if it doesn't work, try again.. and again... and again. It's not fun to think about, but it's an option.

Secondly, once they place it, with people who have curves in their spine, there are certain issues and a higher risk of complication. The issues are that the nerves that are supposed to be evenly spread out, are weird on once side. She at times I might have a higher level of numbness on one side than the other, or tingles down one leg, etc. But they can try to compensate that by having you lie down on the side that is not very numb to try and distribute the medication evenly.

The risk of complication is that, with a normal epidural, there is a risk of damage to the spinal cord. My higher risk is that my spine is curved, and that means placement of the needle will have to be very careful. She told me that I'll need to be very open as to what feels weird, or not normal. (As everything feels NORMAL for a first pregnancy! LOL.) But I'll basically have to be in constant communication with the doctors and nurses. If anything feels wrong, to let them know ASAP.

So all in all, I have a possibility of an epidural. The benefits for me outweigh the risks at the moment. I've never had an issue with Kaiser or their doctors/nurses and I think that everything should go OK. But at the moment, I still don't know if it's a definite. They will be looking over my X-rays and surgery results and judging whether the risks are too high, or the placement would be too difficult. Pray that everything is OK! I'm getting nervous!