https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Sun, 19 Apr 2026 20:37:36 +0000 https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/did-your-epidural-slow-down-labor#post-1727935 Fri, 27 Jun 2014 16:15:50 +0000 Mrs. Oatmeal 1727935@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Sped mine up for sure. I had swelled up and couldn't stay laying down to let the swelling go down, so the epidural helped with that. I was less than an hour from the epidural to pushing. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/did-your-epidural-slow-down-labor#post-1727448 Fri, 27 Jun 2014 13:49:40 +0000 Tidybee 1727448@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I voted unclear, but I don't think it had any effect on my labor. I didn't get an epi until I was in transition, probably around 8-9cm. 20 minutes later I was checked and I was fully dilated. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/did-your-epidural-slow-down-labor#post-1727446 Fri, 27 Jun 2014 13:48:09 +0000 Dandelion 1727446@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I needed an epi so they could up my pitocin, so my labor went faster after I had it. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/did-your-epidural-slow-down-labor#post-1727441 Fri, 27 Jun 2014 13:46:48 +0000 MamaMoose 1727441@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>It sped labor up for me because I was able to relax so my body could take care of business and progress without needing pitocin. For me labor started at 9pm, when I checked into the hospital at 12 I was only 1cm. When they finally admitted me and got me prepped for the epidural it was 4am and I was a 3. By 8am I was fully dilated. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/did-your-epidural-slow-down-labor#post-1727383 Fri, 27 Jun 2014 13:28:06 +0000 reverie 1727383@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>There is no way to truly know. My baby was stuck at negative 2 for a long time. I dilated pretty good I think (I was induced with cytotec and went from "maybe 1cm" to baby in 18 hours). I got the epidural around 5cm at 5am and things did lull for a while, but that could have been the normal course of labor for me. I did need pitocin eventually as well. </p> <p>I think if I have a second baby I would like to make it until 6 or 7cm before getting it. I have read that the epidural shouldn't affect the course of labor after 3 to 4cm but who knows! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/did-your-epidural-slow-down-labor#post-1727381 Fri, 27 Jun 2014 13:27:21 +0000 Mae 1727381@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I don't think so? But I was induced and had all sorts of interventions so it is unclear. </p> <p>10am- got 1st cervidil to start things, "almost 1 cm"<br /> 2pm- got 2nd cervidil, 1-2cm<br /> 4pm- water broke<br /> 6pm- got epidural<br /> 6:30pm- foley bulb placed, 2cm, amped up pitocin (they'd started it sometime before this but I don't remember when)<br /> 8:30pm - foley bulb fell out (which means I was 4cm)<br /> 10:30pm- 8cm </p> <p>Unfortunately by midnight LO had moved down at a crooked angle, putting pressure on my cervix unevenly and caused me to swell back to a 7, which I ultimately stayed at for the next 3 hours until they determined I was going to have to have a c-section for failure to progress, fetal distress, and my spiking a fever. But I don't think the epidural is to blame for that, everyone said it was LO's position. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/did-your-epidural-slow-down-labor#post-1727363 Fri, 27 Jun 2014 13:24:39 +0000 littlek 1727363@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>The epidural didn't affect my labor, I was at a 9 when I got it. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/did-your-epidural-slow-down-labor#post-1727350 Fri, 27 Jun 2014 13:20:50 +0000 KT326 1727350@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I got my epidural and when they checked me right after I was at 7cm. 90 minutes later I was fully dilated. It allowed me to labor down for awhile and rest which was great since I pushed for 3 hours (ended up needing a forceps delivery due to the cord being wrapped around his neck and having 2 knots in it). </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/did-your-epidural-slow-down-labor#post-1727305 Fri, 27 Jun 2014 13:00:37 +0000 bunnylove08 1727305@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>totally slowed it down. I was progressing quickly and asked for the epi, then everything stopped. My doctor said if things did not start again then I would have to get a dose of pitocin. Well nothing happened and I got the pitocin. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/did-your-epidural-slow-down-labor#post-1726985 Fri, 27 Jun 2014 10:57:26 +0000 nana87 1726985@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Def sped it up! I'd been on pit 12 hours and cervidil 12 hours before that and was still at a 3. I took a nap and was fully dilated within 5 hours after the epi </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/did-your-epidural-slow-down-labor#post-1726963 Fri, 27 Jun 2014 10:52:21 +0000 mdf106 1726963@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>It stalled my labor, and I needed pitocin. I was 6 cm, but was not really in pain. I got it then because I was progressing so quickly the OB thought I would not be able to get it if I waited. Everything turned out well in the end, though, so I can't say I regret it. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/did-your-epidural-slow-down-labor#post-1725877 Thu, 26 Jun 2014 22:51:48 +0000 Mrs. Bee 1725877@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>with charlie it greatly slowed it down, but they also gave me something else to slow labor down.</p> <p>with olive i don't think it affected my labor. i was only 3cm? when I got the epidural and I had her a couple hours later! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/did-your-epidural-slow-down-labor#post-1725859 Thu, 26 Jun 2014 22:41:34 +0000 cascademom 1725859@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Not sure. It helped labor. I got mine at 5 plus cm not long after breaking my water. It relaxed me to get to 10 cm by 7:30 am or so. Soon after, I pushed and had LO. It made my 14 hours of labor more comfortable. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/did-your-epidural-slow-down-labor#post-1725704 Thu, 26 Jun 2014 21:30:57 +0000 coopsmama 1725704@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>It definitely sped it up for me. It allowed my body to relax so that my contraction would do their job. I had been fighting them for 30 hours before and labor had been crawling. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/did-your-epidural-slow-down-labor#post-1725560 Thu, 26 Jun 2014 20:54:30 +0000 LemonLong 1725560@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I was induced (without pictocin) and got the epi at the first sign of pain. The nurse checked me and told my husband to go get some food because it would be awhile, 15-20 minutes later I was frantically calling his cell to get him to come back because the baby was coming! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/did-your-epidural-slow-down-labor#post-1725543 Thu, 26 Jun 2014 20:50:12 +0000 MrsKoala 1725543@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I'm guessing neither. I got to the hospital at a 5. Got my epi an hour later at a 7. I was a 10 in another 45 minutes. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/did-your-epidural-slow-down-labor#post-1725539 Thu, 26 Jun 2014 20:49:07 +0000 Charm54 1725539@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Sped it up for sure. 20 hours pre-epi and I couldn't get past a 3. After the epi, I slept, relaxed and was fully dilated just 4 hours later! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/did-your-epidural-slow-down-labor#post-1725496 Thu, 26 Jun 2014 20:38:35 +0000 Weagle 1725496@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I got my epi at 10 (labor was really fast, I couldn't stop pushing but needed to so I wouldn't rupture my cervix), and my contractions pretty much stopped. That's the main reason that I hope #2 comes fast enough that I don't have time to think about it. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/did-your-epidural-slow-down-labor#post-1725490 Thu, 26 Jun 2014 20:35:40 +0000 shopaholic 1725490@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I only had an epi. Got it at 8cm dilated. Went from 1cm to 8cm in the span of 2 hrs. After the epidural, I think they let me sleep about 6-7 hours before waking me up to push. I'm pretty sure I would have had DD within another 1-2 hours if I didn't get the epi. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/did-your-epidural-slow-down-labor#post-1725437 Thu, 26 Jun 2014 20:21:11 +0000 blackbird 1725437@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I had pitocin first so....I'm gonna say no. I was able to progress quickly </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/did-your-epidural-slow-down-labor#post-1725432 Thu, 26 Jun 2014 20:19:57 +0000 DillonLion 1725432@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Unsure. Labor proceeded at a steady pace the entire time, both before and after the epidural. I was induced. I progressed about half a centimeter every hour </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/did-your-epidural-slow-down-labor#post-1725368 Thu, 26 Jun 2014 20:07:52 +0000 keepcalmcarrie 1725368@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I think it sped it up. I had 12 or 13 hours of labor before I got the epidural at 5 cm, and only 3 hours of labor after that (much of which was spent dozing off and on, the epidural was a beautiful thing). Once they checked me at 10 cm and said it was time to push, I actually asked to wait a bit longer because I still didn't feel pressure and wanted my body to labor down to make the pushing as short as possible. I got my wish - 30 minutes later, I felt pressure, and 10 minutes (3 pushes) after that, my LO arrived. My doctor said afterward that for some women who sort of "fight through the pain" of natural contractions, the epidural helps them relax so much that it speeds things way up. I definitely plan on getting it again! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/did-your-epidural-slow-down-labor#post-1725351 Thu, 26 Jun 2014 20:05:27 +0000 twodoghouse 1725351@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I was induced and barely progressed at all over the course of 20 hours until I got the epidural. My epidural was in around midnight and I went from 3-10 in 4 hours. I actually went from 5-10 in an hour. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/did-your-epidural-slow-down-labor#post-1725326 Thu, 26 Jun 2014 20:00:25 +0000 Smurfette 1725326@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Not sure. I was at 5 for a while before they got it and then stayed there for awhile till they started pitocin. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/did-your-epidural-slow-down-labor#post-1725317 Thu, 26 Jun 2014 19:58:19 +0000 kml636 1725317@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Silva: @ILoveLettie: This is what i hear, over and over, from friends... that the epi sped up labor. I hope this can be the case for me! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/did-your-epidural-slow-down-labor#post-1725299 Thu, 26 Jun 2014 19:52:55 +0000 ILoveLettie 1725299@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Mine sped it up for sure! The doc checked me and I was 6.5 when I requested the epidural. Took about half an hour for the doc to get there from the time I requested it, then maybe 45 minutes to put it in? They checked me about 15 minutes after the epidural was in and I was already 9 cm!! I spent the next hour intensely wanting to push until finally the doctor came in and she was out in 3 pushes. My only regret is not getting the epidural earlier: though I'm not actually sure if it REALLY sped things up or was just luck. I didn't get any time to actually have any relief from the epidural because as soon as it was in I was having all sorts of pressure-feelings from wanting to push! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/did-your-epidural-slow-down-labor#post-1725290 Thu, 26 Jun 2014 19:50:40 +0000 Silva 1725290@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>After 50 hours I was at 4 cm. got the epi, and was at 10 within 4 hours. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/did-your-epidural-slow-down-labor#post-1725289 Thu, 26 Jun 2014 19:50:19 +0000 mkp17 1725289@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Not sure if it sped it up but it for sure did not slow it down at all. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/did-your-epidural-slow-down-labor#post-1725286 Thu, 26 Jun 2014 19:49:34 +0000 catlady 1725286@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I voted Unclear although it may have sped mine up. I was having contractions 1-3 minutes apart for several hours but was only 4 cm. Got the epidural and the next time they checked (I think 2 hrs later), they told me it was time to push. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/did-your-epidural-slow-down-labor#post-1725259 Thu, 26 Jun 2014 19:41:47 +0000 Ocean girl 1725259@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I'm not sure. I was 6 cm when I was admitted after labouring all night at home. Laboured all day in the hospital only to get to 8cm. Got the epidural around 5pm, slept for 2 hrs and woke up at 10cm... Who knows whether it sped things up or not.<br /> Next time, if I'm not awake the whole night before, I will probably try to skip the epidural. </p>