How soon can they administer the epidural?
Please check with your own obstetrician or midwife, and anesthesiologist, to inquire about their individual practices, as there may be some variation from hospital to hospital. In general though, once active labor has begun, defined as regular painful contractions and some effacement and dilation of the cervix, then an epidural can be administered. In the past, some hospitals required a woman to be a certain number of centimeters dilated (usually 4 or 5) before giving an epidural, and some still do, but this is becoming less common of a requirement.
