Epidurals -- do they slow down or speed up labor?

Under.the.Rose

I also posted this on the Natural Birth board... sorry for the xp:

I was under the impression that getting an epidural usually slows down labor significantly, causing the hospital to give you pitocin to keep things going.

My prenatal instructor told my prenatal class that, in her experience, epi's speed up labor for her patients because it allowed them to relax -- even epi's given as early as possible during labor.

Is there a straight answer on this??

NSL

You'll find that there are very few absolute "this is true for everyone" examples when it comes to childbirth.  FWIW, my epidural slowed my labor down a bit, but it also gave me time to rest which likely helped me maintain energy when I was pushing. 

Ljojo

It definately slowed my labor down and I was also given pitocin to speed the contractions back up. 

Mommyoftwo2310

It didnt slow down my labor at all, it made it go faster! its probably different for everyone though!

g8orell

When I did my OB rotation, I saw about 30 vaginal births...most with epidurals. From my experience, if they got it too early (before 4cm) it usually slowed labor down, but after 4cm, it seemed to speed it up. When you are in pain, you tend to tense up and "fight" the natural progress...so once relaxed, you usually progress faster. I've seen plenty of woman (including my sister and BFF) go from 4cm to almost complete in about an hour after getting the epidural. I don't have personal experience...I got my epi 15 hours into labor and I was 0cm the whole time...DD was too big to fit through my pelvis, so I wound up with a c-section.

AngelaL

Mine took me from 4cm to 10cm in about an hour.

MommaEm

I've always heard slower, but from post above I see it works differently for different people/how far along into labor they are.

I did not have one and was thinking about doing another natural birth this time, but love seeing the information on epis incase I can't do it again!

jkaplan84

I've been reading the Birth Book by Dr. Sears.  The book says that epidurals can do both.  It depends on when the person gets it, however it is unpredictable.  I think it is different for everyone, but it will definitely slow down your labor if you get it too early.

jaejaevee

NSL:

You'll find that there are very few absolute "this is true for everyone" examples when it comes to childbirth.  FWIW, my epidural slowed my labor down a bit, but it also gave me time to rest which likely helped me maintain energy when I was pushing. 

This was my experience, too.

plumerialost

Once I got my epi, they broke my water and I went from 5 to 10 in no time.  In fact DD broke the internal monitoring with how fast she came down!  I think it's different for everyone and how far along you are when you get it. I was at the hospital less than 6 hours before I gave birth with DD, so I'm worried it will go faster this time.

mlc92404

No, there is no straight answer.  If you've been laboring for awhile and are wearing down it could help you to relax and in return speed things up.  But if you get it too soon it could slow things down.  Now remember I did say COULD for both of those.

For me, I planned on getting one all along.  My water broke on its own but contractions didnt start for another 5 or 6 hours.  Because my water broke they never checked my progress.  About 12 hours after my water broke I got my epi and an hour after that I was at 8 cm.  I delivered 3 hours after getting my epi

eowynmn

Of course it all depends on the mom, but overall they definitely slow down and stall labor more than help it and lead to a higher rate of c-section.

 

I personally was induced with cervadil/pitocin and had no epi, and the actual hard labor part went pretty fast without it (4 hours from water break to baby in arms)

Ceefome

It depends on the person, and when it is administered.  I was a tight 5cm when I got my epi after laboring on my own for 10 hrs and with pitocin for 3 hours.  1.5 hours after I got my epi, I was 10cm.  The epi allowed me to relax and stop fighting the piggyback pitocin cntrxns and actually dialate.

Winter*Mommy

It usually depends on when you get it.  Some doctors won't allow it until around 3cm because it can stall labor.  I got it with DS when I was 2cm, and it took me another 12 hours to get to 10cm.  I got it with DD when I had been at 5cm for a few hours, and as soon as I got it, I went from 5cm to 10cm in 30 minutes.

It really just depends on how far along in labor you are, how far engaged the baby is, how much you've dilated, etc. 

kyrastapp

Mine took me from 6-10 in 45 mins!  It was very relaxing and totally worth it. Just make sure you try not to get it to early.

Mrs.M317

Read this book:

Easy Labor

It gives you all the pain management options along with scientific study information, personal information, and advice from dr's, midwives, and doulas in each section.  I thought it was great because it eliminates all the judgy stuff that you see out there and gives you facts, so you can make a decision

 

LittleApple

My epi defiantly didn't slow it down at all.  I went in at 6cm dilated (I walked around for two weeks at 3 cm, 100% effaced) and I started pushing 5 hours after they gave me an epi.  I was relaxed and still dilating at a normal pace.

katana

Mine definitely sped things up, I was at 4cm for many many hours and I got the epi, napped one hour, and woke up 10cm. I will probably get one again but I will wait as long as I can.

Soap1

I was induced, started at 2cm, went natural for about 7 hours and was dilated to 5cm, got the epidural and was at 10cm in an hour!  Baby came out in 15 minutes.

For me, it helped my body relax.  I had a doula and she told me that if you are going to get an epidural, you should just hold out as long as you can and then get the epi.

Also, Richard's cord was wrapped around his neck so I had to lie perfectly still on my right side during contractions to keep his heartrate up.  That was probably keeping me SUPER tense, so the epidural allowed me to relax.

JoannaJes

NSL:

You'll find that there are very few absolute "this is true for everyone" examples when it comes to childbirth.  FWIW, my epidural slowed my labor down a bit, but it also gave me time to rest which likely helped me maintain energy when I was pushing. 

This. I was already on pitocin as I was induced.

DR&RN04

I had to be induced, and got mine at 2 cm.  I went from 0-2 (and ridiculous constant pain/contractions from the cervix softening prostaglandins...not even pitocin yet) in 8 hours, and then from 2-10, w/ pitocin and an epi (and SLEEP) in 6 hours. 

It is different for everyone, but for me, it seemed to let my body relax and not fight what the drugs were doing.

AgrippaRidesAgain

I'm sure it's different for each person.  In my case, it sped up labor.  I was being induced and was on pitocin though.  It definitely helped me relax.