Do I need a labor support specialist if I'm planning to use pain medication/an epidural?

Even if you plan to use pain medication or get an epidural, having a labor support specialist can still be helpful because:

• Women and their partners need information and emotional support. After all, even if pain is removed, you might have other questions and concerns.
• Even with pain medications, few women are completely pain-free during labor so they still benefit from comfort measures and strategies to help ease their pain.
• If you use an epidural, you might not experience some of the feelings and sensations in your pelvis that help you push your baby out, and your labor support specialist can help you push effectively.
• Epidurals involve or increase the likelihood of using many other interventions to monitor, prevent or treat adverse effects during labor. A labor support specialist can help you cope with those experiences.
• If you want, your labor support specialist can also help you avoid or delay medication, or use a smaller amount, which may help you avoid or limit some potential adverse effects.