As soon as the they give u the ok get it!! I believe u have to be at least 5 cm before u can get one jus ask the staff once ur at L&D theyll let u kno trust me they have no problem giving epidurals if u want one :)
I think I had to be a certain point dilated, but my memory serves that I had to be fully dilated. Maybe not, though. Ask your doctor.
I was told if I wanted an epidural I could have it once I reached 4 cm, but I forget what the cutoff was, if it was too close to delivery they wouldn't give one.
I asked what the cut off was at my birthing class cuz I thought it was 7 but they said that you can have it up til like 8 or 9 I think
I was 9cm with my 4yr old when I got to the hospital I ask for one they said it was to late so I had no chose but to go natural
I had one at 4 cm and had it for hours ..I could still feel the pain when I got to 9 cm and when I was pushing and I even had a boost which is when they give u a little more ...good luck!