I had pethadine when I had my first angel and then when I had DD. My birth with DD was induced and was 23hours long from getting the synto to her coming out. At about the 16hr mark I was begging for pethadine (cause the hospital doesn't do routine epidurals for birth) even though I remembered with my first angel it made me violently sick. I had it and it did seem to take some pain away, but I was vomiting and heaving for hours after. Luckily I was on the drip anyway becuase I was vomiting so much I had nothing left to come out. Each time I drank or ate ice, I would vomit it up. When DD was born, I'm not sure if it was just exhaustion, but I was sooo groggy and out of it and sleepy, I didn't care what they did with my baby, I just wanted to sleep. DD was preety out of it too and slept for aaages after she was born. I only noticed the difference when I had DS with a totally natural birth, and realised how out of it I really was and how sleepy and out of it DD was. I was on such a high after I had DS it took me hours to finally get to sleep, and DS suckled at the breast for about an hour after he was born. DD wouldn't even take a bottle properly for about 24hrs after birth. I truely think the pethadine hugely contributed to the horrible trouble I had trying to bf DD.