Hi Lily,

Emla is great when used correctly. It does need to be applied an hour before the injection but it doesn't have a long half life meaning it doesn't last all that long. So you need to get your timing right. You will have about 2 hours from the time it is applied.
I just bought patches for DD's next lot of immunisations and it cost me about $17. If you are really worried about it, talk to your anethetist soon because it is something they should have within the hospital and can be sourced from the hospital pharmacy saving you some $!!!!
I had an epidural when I had DD (I had a section) and don't recall feeling the local at all. I felt nothing when the epidural went in (well, until they hit calcified ligament because I have a screwy back). It took my anethetist close to an hour to get my epidural in and he tried numerous spots to get it in. So it is worth keeping in mind that it *may* take more than one attempt to get the epidural in... so you might need more than one patch or to place the cream in more than one spot.
At the Children's, we put a dollop of cream (about the size f a 20c piece) on the spot and then a piece of tegaderm over that. You can buy tegaderm at the pharmacy.

HTH and try not to stress about the process. The local is great and very effective.

MG