Diamorphine

Diamorphine is medical-grade heroin, a super strong opiate painkiller. It’s similar to pethidine, and administered the same way, but less commonly used. It acts a sedative, and can cross the placenta into baby’s bloodstream, making them sleepy too. This is a particular problem if baby is still sleepy and woozy once born, as they may struggle to adjust to being earth-side and need some help or resuscitation.

As with all medical opiates, it’s a pain medication for when you needs something extra strong!

The side effects are the same as for pethidine:

Pros:

• Strong pain relief

• Can help you rest (make you sleepy/able to sleep through contractions) if you’ve had a long labour

Cons:

• It can make you feel “out of it”/woozy

• You may feel sick or be sick

• You may feel forgetful

• “If pethidine or diamorphine are given too close to the time of delivery, they may affect the baby's breathing – if this happens, another medicine to reverse the effect will [need to] be given” (NHS)

• Baby may be sleepy and this may interfere with initiating breastfeeding