If you get induced with pitocin, do you still have to wait until you're 3-4 cm dilated or can you get one sooner since it probably hurts more than a regular birth quicker?
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My (evil) midwife said i couldn't have one until I was 4cm dilated and then it all went too quick and I got to 10 before I got my epi..... but I've heard subsequently that she should have let me have one straight away because, with pit, there's no risk of labour stalling anyway.
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@Cherrybee: ooh that does sound evil! That must have...hurt!
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The first time I got it before they even started the pitocin because my platelets were low and there would be a risk of bleeding if they dropped further. The second time they told me they wanted me in a "good contraction pattern" before the epidural was placed. When I asked for more clarification they said to tell them when I had two contractions in a row that really hurt. As it turned out they didn't get very painful and my OB wanted to break my water (I started at 3cm) so they placed it before they broke my water.
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I wasn't in any pain before 3-4 cm
I would be really worried about stalling labor getting it that early.
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I'm not sure, actually.....they asked me pretty early on if I wanted one and I didn't feel at all like I needed it. I wanted one around a 6 dilation, before transition. I was at a 9 before I got it. Oops.
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I was induced for both kiddos and my doc said I could have the epi anytime, no worries about labor stalling since pitocin would take care of the contractions. I think I had it around 3-4cm with both.
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Just remember that depending on how favorable your cervix is, an induction can take a long time! Getting an epidural too early could leave to a long time stuck in bed, more times needing a urine catheter (increasing your risk of infection), not being able to get into different positions....
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I was induced with a midwife practice and was told (both by the midwife and also the anesthesiologist who came in to answer my questions) that I could get an epi at any time I felt I needed it. I asked about stalling labor and was told that even if my labor did go a little slower, I wouldn't be in any pain so who cares. I was really resistant to getting an epidural "too early" but ended up getting it at just 2cm because my water had broken and I was having back labor and in a ton of pain with contractions every 2 minutes for 1+ min. It took me a long time to get to 2 cm and then I stayed there for hours and they wanted to place a foley bulb to help dilate me and said that was pretty painful and they recommended I get the epi before that anyways. So I did. Got the epi at 630pm and the foley went in right after. Foley came out at 8pm and I was already dilated to 4cm and by 10pm I was at 8cm. So for me I feel like the epidural either helped me dilate faster or at least didn't stall me out at all. (full disclosure--- i DID end up getting a c-section but that was because I got stuck at 8cm when LO's head got stuck in my pelvis. When they pulled her out they said she was sunny side up and had her head tilted to the side and they said she was pretty much never coming out on her own regardless).
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To speak to what @sapphire: said.. when I was induced I had to be on a fetal monitor and contraction monitor and I was strapped to bed anyways. I couldn't even turn side to side because every time I did they lost LO's heartbeat and had to rush in and move the monitors. So yea, the epidural did kill my legs, but I didn't care bc at least I wasn't in pain. The catheter thing is true though, that sort of sucks. I peed right before they did the epidural at 630, they did the catheter thing at 1030, 230 (they said they do every 4 hrs), and then I had to have a catheter that stayed in before my c section at 4am (came out at like 4pm the next day). I was worried about UTIs so I drank tonnnns of water the few days after birth (good idea anyways) and peed every 2 hrs (at least). Extra bonus was it was an excuse to get up and out of bed and moving around the evening of my c-section and thereafter and the nurses were thrilled that I was up so much (and peeing so much. weird to be praised for, but whatevs).
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I was induced twice, they said I could have the epi whenever. With my second they gave it to me when I wasn't even in any pain yet because the doctor was going to sweep my membranes and break my water anyways because he wanted me to have that baby asap. i had inductions and Epidurals with both babies and had vaginal births.
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I was on Pitocin for 12 hours (with zero dilation ever occurring, but don't let that freak you out because I had extenuating circumstances) and I was told multiples times that I could have an epi anytime I wanted. Even though I was having contractions the whole time, they never got super painful, so I didn't ever request one.
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@HappyBaker: I was same as @Mrs. Blue: I was on Pit from 7am to 5 or 6pm, all with good, regular contractions. The pain was never so overwhelming that I needed the epidural, and I'm a chicken about pain. So I think everyone is different. I ended up caving for it because I thought it would help me progress. (Didn't work!)
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Thanks so much for sharing your experiences! I didn't' realize there was even a chance it wouldn't be completely unbearable right away so that is definitely good to know / gives me hope.
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They broke my water at 2cm and it wasn't very long after that I requested the epidural. I wasn't even checked again until after I got the epidural and was at 6cm. I think the midwife said I could've had the epidural at any point.
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I had a similar experience to @Mae:. I wanted to labor without the epi as much as possible. My plan was to walk, use the laboring tub, etc. But I had to be monitored since I was on pit and they kept losing the baby's heartbeat. I had to choose to lay perfectly still or get an internal monitor. So for a couple hours I laid perfectly still. All plans of laboring in the tub were out the window. I had a nurse in my room every few minutes and I couldn't use any of the laboring pain management techniques I'd learned. So when I was offered the epi, I went for it.
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