2 days over ,baby not engaged prop ,cervix not ripe? ahhhhhhhhh!!!!

[helenhull]

Is there anything i can do to ripen my cervix? and what does it actually mean anyway? any suggestions or info would b appreciated , i'm soooo fat and fed up ,the thought of another 12 days is scarey.

[helenhull]

oooops forgot to add:- i'm only 4/5 engaged too .

[midden]

can you face sex? progesterone in semen can help this. have you considered a sweep? wondering if this is your first - my first did not engage until established labour I was still 4/5 the night before I gave birth (at 11 am)

[midden]

ripe cervix means to be soft and ready for birth, midwife may also use term "effaced".

[midden]

helenhull thinking you have either gone to be or in to labour! You will get through the next 12 days (if it takes that long - probably not) although I know its hard.

Both mine were 12 days over but a sweep helped get things moving for my first and for my second after a week of on/off mild but annoying contractions a glass of oj with a couple of teaspoons of castor oil did the trick. (worked but not recommended!)

[Egypt]

hi helen,, just wondering how you are? i am/was due on 17th and do feel q like you do. i think you posted on the back to back thread - has the baby turned now?

i can find you a rather 'interesting' link on natural methods of inducing labour! was looking at it today.

natural induction

I guess you could try some of them!

[helenhull]

Hi midden and egypt , midden i had an internal yesturday,it hurt like mad MW said it hurt so much coz my cervix was high? is that a sweep i had or just a usual internal?The consultant hasnt offerd me a sweep she just said a pessary to ripen my cervix.This is my first baby and last the way i feel at moment.
How old r ur children now? And i will definately try sex anything is worth a go wen i feel so damn fat and exhausted x.

Egypt i was also wondering how u were doing?I'm still plodding along.And yes she has turned sligtly, apparently shes not totally posterior. Although i am still feeling her limbs at the front.How are you getting on? wonder which one of us will pop first? please keep me posted GOOD LUCK!!!!! X.

[midden]

Hi helenhull not sure what a high cervix means - you can ask for a sweep if you feel you want one - a midwife will do this for you I would think rather than your consultant and mine was not painful at all. A pessary sounds like a good option as long as they are offering you this to do yourself at home or to be done and then for you to go home and go into labour naturally.

If done in hospital envoironment and want to keep you in then this is technically induction and I would want to avoid that until you are at least 42 weeks - most labours become hi-tec after this and I personally didnt want that - not sure how you feel though.

Sex will provide you with roughly the same effect as hormones will probably be similar to pessary but more natural - that is assuming you feel like it (or can bear a quickie) and that you have a dp or dh (apologies if you dont.

My kids are nearly 4 and 18 months - both times we tried sex as a method of natural induction, who knows maybe that was what worked rather than sweep/caster oil?!!!

best of luck with your birth and new babe though, are you having a hospital or home birth?
midden XXX

[californiagirl]

Your cervix being high is either a) it hasn't started moving around (i.e. just another way of saying nothing's going on) or b) the midwife's excuse for clumsiness since if your cervix were in a funny place all your internals would always have felt like that.

As for a sweep, I didn't think you could do them until after there was at least some dilation (you have to reach through the cervix). At least that's what they told me when I was 14 days overdue, and not effaced, dilated, or engaged.

[pupuce]

Helen.... you don't sound like labour is near.... average gestational age is 41 weeks.... and a lot of 1st time mum go past that too! A High cervix, unripe and an un-engaged baby are all sign that you should wait!
Having a sweep or a pessary when your body is not ready is ASKING for trouble... can't you find something to do to keep your mind off this upcoming labour ? 2 days overdue (or 4 as it is now) is nothing.....
I don't think you can have a pessary at home - it's a pharmacological induction and needs to be monitored.
BTW - as you know if you go down the induction route (pessary) then you are very likley to be fully monitored and in effect on bed..... then if you can't bear it the epidural comes in.... and for a first time mum..,.... chances of instrumental delivery is over 50%. There is a reason why many MWs really do not encourage induction before 42 weeks.... it leads to trouble.

HANG IN THERE

[midden]

totally agree pupuce that a sweep or pessary if body is not ready for it would not be a good idea - best to let things happen naturally helenhull this increases your chances of an easier and quicker delivery.

Did you know 70% of first time mums go past their due date? You are not alone!

I thought it was the end of the world when I was over my date with my ds - I checked my notes, I was 2cm dilated when I had my sweep (but no other signs of labour) and had a very quick and almost enjoyable intervention free delivery.

I was on a high for months afterwards - felt like I was sitting on top of the world. When it came to dd I knew I would be in for a wait but didn't expect the on/off contractions hence the DIY method! My body felt ready though - you will feel this moment too very soon I am sure!

Can you take your mind off things a bit with something? I went mad cleaning and had lots of long walks to help the baby move down and into position.

Pupuce - interesting to hear you say most m/w don't recommend induction till 42 weeks. Here in edinburgh they want to book you in for prostglandin gel on the 9th day over due and if that hasn't worked overnight they want to start the chemicals the next day! I had to fight this with my first baby as I didnt want to give birth in hospital. Nowhere near 42 wks especially for those with a longer cycle!

[pupuce]

Midden - it does vary from hospital to hospital but it does goes to show that some hospitals do not see a BENEFIT in inducing before 42 weeks.
St George's in London currently refuses inductions before 42 weeks and they are seeing their ceasarean rate drop! Not a surprise....

[helenhull]

Cheers for good advice ladys x
I've been told now to see consultant on monday i will b 8 days over by that point. They will give me an inducememt date then.
Apparently taking into consideration my blood pressure being strange it varies from bottom number being between 62-100 going up and down all the time.
It does go down wen the midwife checks me at home or wen i have an overnight stay in hospital for bloodpressure checks.
Also i think they panic coz i keep having protein + in urine.
But every time i have bloods taken they come back ok.
Anyway what i'm getting at is .....i think they are gonna try induce me soon after monday even tho my cervix isnt ripe because i'm symptomatic of pre eclampsia.Even tho i feel ok in myself and my bloods are allways ok,just fed up and tired.
I dont really wanna b induced at all the more i read about it the more put off the idea i get.
They said if nothing has happened by the time i am 14 days over they will give me a C- cection.
It all seems so out of my hands i didnt even want an epidural in the first place , now they tell me i might b perswaded coz of my bloodpressure even if i do go into labour naturally.
Apparently it lowers bloodpressure and stops fits?
All the way through this pregnancy i have had midwifes and doc being overcautious about things, it's nice to know they are keeping a close eye on me.But at the same time i have known that i am ok in myself.And all the fretting on their behalf has made me more stressed out.For eg i had monitoring yesturday ,midwife said she wasnt happy with the reading baby wasnt active enough she asked for bloods to b done,took bloodpresure straight away,it was high ,bottom number 90. then after being sat there nearly 2 hours baby woke up and starteed kicking and squirming,she was just having a sleep b4.The doc came said i had to stay in overnight to keep an eye on me while they waited for blood results .I begged her to let me go if they came back ok and if my bloodpressure came down . I knew it would come down a bit after i had stopped stressing about the fact baby wasnt active enough on the monitor.They took my bloodpressure reading straight after i was told they had concerns about her activity,it was bound to b high at that point coz of stress.
Luckily bloods did come back ok , pressure came down and i came home.
OOOOPS.......Sorry ,too much detail about it all and i will stop ranting on now.Thanx for advice anyway x

[midden]

helenhull I really feel for you. At the end of the day a stressed mum will mean a stressed baby during labour, so what ever happens try to stay calm. I am not up on blood pressures and their consequences during birth but I do get the impression from you that they are being over cautious.

I have every respect for the medical profession, their training and knowledge but at the end of the day only you are inside your body and if you feel ok you most likely will be!! Keep telling yourself that, let them do their tests and whatever they need to do to satisfy their concerns but remember - you are not ill you are just having a baby.

The medical staff are looking out for you but from my own experience I know that they (especially men I am afraid to say)can sometimes lose sight of the woman and her feelings, and can often behave in a way that makes a woman feel even more vulnerable than she already does!

Will your birth partner be your dh? Will be able to help you through this and reinforce your birth plan? If not is it too late for you to find a doula or some other female friend or relative to be with you? It sounds like you need somone strong beside you (as most women do!) but to be there for you and you only!!

Sorry to rant back at you! btw, think it sounds pretty harsh to saying c-section at your 42 week mark. can you get a second opinion? Unless you or baby are showing signs of illness I can't see why they would do this.

lots of love

midden

[helenhull]

Hi midden , i'm gonna have a real good chat with my consultant on monday regarding c cection at 42 weeks,also ask them to put off pessarys for as long as poss ,unless my cervix is defo ripe .maybe i haven't been assertive enough. I have just let them tell me whats what,and not questioned.
I really am usually a chilled out person,this pregnancy has sent me daft,lol.
I will try b relaxed in labour,my bf is strong and supportive and he is gonna b my birth partner .As long as baby is healthy and happy and i'm not pregnant too much longer i will b ok. Thanx X

[californiagirl]

Please note that at 42 weeks I was not effaced, dilated, or engaged. I had had trace protein in my urine for the entire pregnancy, and my blood pressure was mildly high. I was induced that day, went into labor with just the pessary, and delivered a perfectly healthy 7 lb 4 oz baby vaginally 28 hours later with no unusual problems. The hospital wanted to do a C-section several times, but my Dr. mostly thought it was unneccessary and agreed to delay some even at the end when he was for it. My blood pressure was bothersomely high at one point during the labor, when the nurses were being particularly obnoxious, but went down when they left me alone.

I think you're right, and people are being over-conservative. My Dr. religiously follows the recommendation of the FACOG (the US professional organization of ob-gyns) which turns out to be wildly more liberal than a lot of Dr's and the hospital, despite the fact that it's a conservative establishment group, nothing hippy-dippy about it. Their recommendation is not to induce until 42 weeks (but to do it immediately then) unless there's an immediate medical reason.

[pupuce]

Californiagirl - just for what its worth there are women who carry on being pregnant to 44 weeks and if one does not wish to be un-necessarily induce a scan every other day will establish the state of the placenta and aminiotic fluid. My hospital who is not at all very liberal did allow me to go to 43 weeks without ANY discussion if I was scanned every other day... I only went to 42 weeks so didn't get to test that ! Labour will usually start on its own... sometimes there are issues (in one's subconscious) that really delay labour too.

[Piffleoffagus]

is this your first baby?
If it is then do not panic
I went 10 days over with an unripe cervix on day 9 , 2 days later he engaged and came out 3 hours later!!!!
Bizarre but true, with 2nd babies they tend not to engage fully until they head out!
Not sure about the cervix but the prostaglandins in semem can help ripen or soften the cervix as can long walks...
Great ideas at 40wks preggers huh!

[Piffleoffagus]

nad rather than agree to induction, tell them you want daily monitoring to prove that your baby is fine... I know some women who have gone to 44 weeks and baby came out not looking overdue in the least...