Epidurals in Childbirth

Childbirth has always been a difficult and painful event for most mothers who've been through the process before. The Times has published an article commenting on how women are discouraged from requesting epidurals to provide adequate pain relief during delivery. Epidurals are basically injections of local anesthetic into the spine and is an effective form of analgesia.
The modern adoption of epidurals have helped transform people's experience and views of labor. Certain opponents especially midwives are now advocating natural deliveries without any form of pain relief, arguing that the use of epidurals prolong delivery and increase the chance of complications. I definitely disagree with this view, having witnessed how epidurals have largely benefited women undergoing long deliveries. Other forms of pain relief such as oral painkillers or gas mixtures are usually inadequate. Often, their requests for epidurals are ignored or delayed until it is too late. They should not be left to suffer unnecessarily and midwives should know best being the experts in this field.