Very true, Judith!

     The hospital where I work differentiates between epidurals using a
numbing agent such as a novocaine-type medication and "INTRATHECALS"
which uses a narcotic such as morphine or Demoral.  With an epidural, the
woman is unable to get up and walk because her entire lower half of the
body is numb. With an intrathecal, using morphine or demoral, there is
pain relief but the woman still has use of lower extremeties, can still
feel the pressure of the contractions, and can still get up and walk
around if she wishes.
     Problem with intrathecals are, unfortunately, the side effects. We
have a handout that we give to our parents in our childbirth classes
which explain intrathecals and the side effects: itching, nausea and/or
vomiting, and urinary retention. I don’t know the percentage of women who
experience these side-effects but it must be enough for the handout to
have the side effects written out in BOLD LETTERS!

    Mary

Yes, recent studies have found that if the epidural is given before 4
cm. it greatly increases the risk of c-section, due mostly to stalled
labors. (Can’t remember where I saw that bit of info…)
Generally they are given somewhere between
4 and 7 cm. (Much past 7 and it probably isnt worth the trouble.)

Naomi

It was terrific!

Mary

This chain of events is what happened to me the first time, so I would
like to avoid a repeat.  The epidural, itself, was a wonderful thing for
me- painless and simple.  And it worked!  Ever since, however, I have
wondered whether it was partially responsible for the C-Section.  (I
also had a big baby with a very big head, so who knows?)

I would appreciate any information, theories, opinions,
whatever….Thanks.

I must be a weird case-during my induced labor, I didn’t progress for 7-8  
hours beyond 1 cm, then after the epidural, I progressed to 9 cm within  
1-2 hours.  I also relaxed significantly, if that is correlated with  
progressing.
Maria, mama to Alec and Austin, 5/1//95

: I know there are many studies out there that say epidurals slow labor but
: both of my ob’s said the same thing.  In their experience, epidurals
: actually speed up labor due to the woman relaxing more.  They also shut
: off the epidural when you are about 9-10 cm so the patient can help in
: pushing.   I don’t know from  personal experience, just a little anecdotal
: addition ( no hard studies here).  Judith  

This is what happened to me.  After being stuck at 8cm for about 5
hours, my doctor suggested an epidural.  I was physically and
emotionally exhausted at this point and once I got the epidural I
felt so good that I just keep repeating "I feel wonderful" over and
over.  Anyway, I dialated to 10cm in about 15 minutes.  The epidural
was then turned off and I pushed for another 45 minutes until my
baby was born.

BTW, I was given pitocin with my epidural to keep the contractions
going.

Melanie Gottwals
Mom to Andrew 5/4/93 and Sarah 2/7/95

    Off the top of my head (don’t have much time right now to look into
my nursing textbooks and articles)….NO..labor does NOT stop
progressing. Now, having said that, let me clarify…if an epidural is
given too soon, it can slow labor down to the point the woman is not
progressing.  When given at the correct dilation, it _may_ slow labor
down but usually not. Another major concern with epidurals is if it is
still in effect at the time mother needs to push.  Since it numbs all
sensation, mother may not be able to push correctly, thus increasing the
amount of time spent pushing and increasing the possibility of further
medical intervention (ie: forceps delivery).

    Epidurals are a wonderful pain relief for women who really have
difficulty handling the hard contractions of active labor. However, using
other, noninvasive, relief measures should be tried before epidurals are
considered.  Again, it should be the woman’s choice…an informed choice!

     mary

Naomi is right. I was told that after 5-6cm you can’t get an epidural. I
don’t remember it, but my husband said that after I’d been "stuck" at 8
for about an hour and a half, I was asking if they were SURE it was too
late!:-) The first time I had a baby, the nurse clarified that to me when
I got settled into the hospital bed. She said, "Just remember, if you
choose to have an epidural, you must get it by 5-6 cm or you can forget it."

Jamie

>nullv…@nyc.pipeline.com (Julia  Hendricks-Mueller) wrote:

>> Question: In the Bradley book I’ve been reading, they suggest that labor
>> stops progressing when you’re given the epidural, and only starts up again

>Most books says that epidurals slows the progress down but for me it
>was the opposite.  I went from a 1 to 3 in eight hours and the doctor
>ordered an epidural and I went from a 3 to 10 in 2 hours.  My friend
>had the same experience.  My epidural was a continuous until they cut
>the line after the birth.

Don’t be too sure it was the epidural.  In some cases, the relaxation
from an epidural can allow labor to progress better, but the uterine
muscles are also relaxed, which makes for less effective contractions.
This is why pitocin augmentation is often used with epidurals.

It is well known among childbirth professionals that the first 3cm
are the hardest in that they take longer.  Most women take the first
8-12 hours getting to 3 (YMMV  and the last 4 hours or so to get
to 10.  [this assumes an average 12-15 hour labor - no one woman is
an average!!]

-Sabrina