How long does an epidural take to kick in?
Most epidurals begin to provide some pain relief within 5 to 10 minutes, with full effect usually kicking in at about 15-20 minutes. Usually the first thing that is experienced is the contractions will seem shorter as the woman feels only the very peak of the contraction as the epidural begins to kick in. Many epidurals do not take away every sensation, and the woman will often still feel some small degree of tightening or achy sensations with contractions, but not nearly as painful as before the epidural. Another variant of the epidural, called the combined spinal-epidural or CSE (used at some but not all hospitals) kicks in much faster, usually providing excellent pain relief within 5 minutes after the injection.
