Fear of Needles

I really think I want to have an epidural, but I’m terrified of needles. Will that matter when I’m in labor?

Our Mommy MD Guide’s reply: A lot of women are scared of having an epidural, afraid of feeling a shot in the back. But I think that when  you are enough pain to want an epidural, the fear of getting a shot is eclipsed by the pain of labor. The issue becomes null and void. If you’re in that much pain, you most likely won’t be concerned in the least about a tiny needle going into your back. You will probably barely notice it. But you will notice the pain facing away about 5 minutes later.

—Lauren Hyman, MD, a mom of two and an ob-gyn at West Hills Hospital & Medical Center in West Hills, CA