is induction really that bad?

[Naomip88]

I'm 40 weeks today (official due date is tomorrow) and have been worried about induction, I've heard unpleasant things about it and I just wanted to hear peoples experiences both good and bad. The main reason I'm worried is that so many inductions end in emergency c sections (I've heard in some hospitals 1 in 2 inductions end in c sections) after a long, difficult labours which to me seems like the worst of both worlds. I have an appointment booked with a consultant next week to discuss having a planned c-section if things go on too long. Personally I'd rather let nature take its course but I know Drs don't like you to go over 2 weeks these days.

[Teaching123]

Morning. I was induced with dd1 and my birth was really good. Had about 24hrs after pessary with on and off contractions then it all started. I had a totally normal birth, no pain relief at all, no interventions & my daughter was born about 5hours after it all properly started.

I'd read lots of things about it being awful after being induced but can tell you that absolutely wasn't my experience so try not to worry about it too much.

[cosmicglittergirl]

Interested in this myself as I have heard horror stories of long, painful labours ending in intervention. Hoping for more positive stories like the PP!

[Hennightpanic]

I have been induced with dd 2 and ds, both times fairly quick births, no complications. It really isn't that bad.

[Trooperslane]

I was induced.

Pessary at 2ish on the Wed. Dd was born at 410am with 3 big pushes. 2nd stage labour 44 mins.

It was totally fine, except she was a bit blue and shocked, but they warned her up pretty fast and we were on the ward by about 8am.

the diamorphene was awesome

[MrsCakesPrecognition]

Mine was fine.
I was induced 2 weeks early, so it too a while to get going.
First pessary on the Wednesday night. Waters went spontaneously on Friday morning when I got up. Very mild contractions on Saturday night (had some paracetamol and went back to sleep). I was 3cm dilated by Sunday morning. So far lots of pottering around, chatting to people, I felt really calm and serene, no pain.
Sunday lunchtime went to the labour ward and was put on syntocin drip. Contractions were very intense so I had an epidural. Baby arrived less than 8 hours after I went on the drip. Very pleased to have pushed her out myself, the whole experience was not dissimilar to DC2's non-induced birth.

[weelamb123]

Hi there, I just wanted to share my experience. My labour was induced at 41 weeks due to pre eclampsia. I was given 2 peseries and second one finally started to work. The contractions were thick and fast, too fast in fact and wasn't dilating fast enough. In the end I ended up with emergency section due to fetel distress. Everything was fine wen ds was born and he is now almost 9 and fit and healthy. My best friend has just went thru a similar experience last week and I blame those peseries. I think the salien drip is much more controlled but cant personally comment. Not trying to worry u but peseries are the darnest things and have the potential to make labour and birth worse. Xxxx

[fortifiedwithtea]

Both mine were induced, no horror stories here.

DD1 pessary put in the morning and niggly contractions all day. DH send home, midwife confident nothing would happen and start again next day. Bingo as soon as he had gone I went into labour. DD born 6 hours later. DH did come back but midwife thought he could do with a couple of hours sleep before phoning him. Wtf.

DD2 had waters broken to get things moving in the morning. About 12 hours later had a drip to speed things up. Two hours after that I had DD2. A much easier birth than DD1 and all on a TENS machine.

[HazleNutt]

Drip and waters broken. It was really intense, basically no break between contractions. But over and done in 5 hours, couple of stitches only.

[Naomip88]

Great to hear your stories! I think at this stage the negative stories tend to stick in your head a lot more, Hopefully my little girl will arrive soon but good to know that if I have to be induced it wouldn't be the end of the world. I never thought I'd be more nervous about sweeps, pessaries, drips and epidurals than actually pushing a human out of my foof!

[dm86]

I've been induced both times due to going overdue.42 weeks both times. I've got nothing to compare it too but I found induction ok.

DD had a pessary Sat dinner time and another Sat night and waters then broken 11am Sunday. DD born 3pm on the Sunday.It was a long process and a lot of sitting about but otherwise fine.

DS pessary at 5pm and needed no more intervention. He was born at 1am only 1.5 hours active labour.

I'm due no3 in 2 weeks and although I won't mind another induction I would love a natural labour but I'm not holding my breath! The only thing about induction is the waiting around! Good luck

[Annarose2014]

Is it the intention to have a planned C section anyway?

Cos I'm puzzled as to why you'd need to have one otherwise?

I was scheduled for induction but I went spontaeneously on Day 10. Yes, its tedious in the extreme waiting that long over, but thats all. No one mentioned planned C sections to me, though obvs anything can happen on the day.

[Naomip88]

No I dont have a c section planned, but I was feeling very anxious about induction so my very lovely midwife arranged for me to see a consultant about my options. Ideally I want a water birth with as little intervention as possible but I know that things don't always go to plan, especially with baby number 1 . Feeling a lot more relaxed about everything now (I blame people telling heavily pregnant ladies birth horror stories!) and I think if I get to 42 weeks I will want to meet my little girl by any means possible!

[Due2015]

Following as I'm due to be induced this week x

[LonnyVonnyWilsonFrickett]

I think if you end up being induced the hardest thing is to shift from 'I don't want any intervention' to 'I am now having a birth with intervention'. So while you don't have to scrap your birth plan, you have to move to a different starting position, iyswim?

If someone had helped me understand that, I don't think I would have felt so out of control with the whole thing. For eg in my hospital if they put you on a drip then you have to be monitored, which means being on a bed - but I didn't know that till it happened.* Now as it turns out, being on a bed isn't terrible, but it immediately made me feel out of control because I didn't know that was what would happen.

I'm rambling, but what I mean is, if you go for an induction, get an understanding of what that would mean for all the things you want from your birth plan, so you can readjust your thinking ahead of time.

Does that even make sense?

*Disclaimer, DS is 9 and I think some places now offer drips where you can move around more easily

[LonnyVonnyWilsonFrickett]

Oh and take snacks. It isn't quick!

[Namelesswonder]

Sorry, I'm a horror story BUT was induced rapidly with drip only as baby overdue and waters had gone. Went from no pain to full on contractions 1 min apart. Induced at 8pm and DD1 born by section at 3pm next day. DD2 birth started itself and was much more bearable.

[Naomip88]

thats really good advice LonnyVonny . I'm very much from the ''Don't like to make a fuss'' camp but I think it'll be important for me to know whats happening, especially when feeling more vulnerable and out of control.

[LonnyVonnyWilsonFrickett]

You basically need to have two plans, and the ability to switch seamlessly between them.

No-one told me that a drip would mean I couldn't go into the water - I mean, it's obvious now I've typed it out, but I didn't know at the time so I felt on the back foot and upset all the way through. If I'd walked in knowing I couldn't have x but I could have y, I would have felt much, much better.

[jingscrivvens]

Lonny you are so right, I was really upset that I couldn't go into the water too after being induced.

I had 3 pessaries, after the 3rd I went from zero to HELLO PAIN very quickly, DS was back to back (he turned 2 days before I got induced the beggar!) and I found the pain pretty bad. The drugs help, take them!

My birth plan was all about water and aromatherapy so to go to bed, constant monitoring, drugs and eventual c section (contractions stopped at pushing stage and head got stuck) was difficult to get my head round and I felt at the time that I had failed at childbirth. Of course I hadn't and know that now.

[Sorelip]

I had two pessaries with DS1 and all went well with labour mostly. I had an emergency c section but that was because he had such a massive head and wasn't in a good position to be born.

[Hobby2014]

I was induced but it didn't do anything to make labour start. I asked for a section after 3 days of people shoving everything but the kitchen sink up there. I was so sore, literally crying every time they were fiddling up there and labour hadn't even started yet.
C-section was a really positive experience. Wouldn't hesitate to have another. Would opt for section rather than induction again.

[Hobby2014]

But DS was 11lb7oz so he was never coming that way, induction or not.

[tinymeteor]

I was induced via the drip (no pessaries as waters had already gone). Tried to style it out with no epidural but after 2 hours of that and some very intense contractions I went for the epi and never looked back. Thank god I did - turned out I was only 2cms dilated at that point so had a long way to go. It took about 8 more hours and lots of cranking up the syntocin before I was fully dilated and cleared for takeoff. So far, not at all the natural birth I'd been hoping for - hooked up to machines all day, floppy legs, far from active labour, having to take my cues from the midwife rather than my body...

However, the final stage of actually pushing was amazing and made up for all the rest. Took about 15mins of turn-yourself-inside-out effort and there she was. Magic. Felt amazing and like I'd done it myself, even if the build up had been more medicalised than I'd hoped. And no stitches! I was a right smug cow when the NCT group got back together

[MrsCakesPrecognition]

I agree with Lonnie. I also think that if you can put some things in your birth plan that are almost 100% certain to happen how you want, then you can also feel more in control so... skin to skin wanted; if I cannot hold baby for any reason then DP to be handed baby for skin to skin; vitamin K etc.
I did this when I found out I was going to have an induction. I had a birth plan with lots of "I would prefer not to...but if necessary I will do...." so that instead of feeling that I was failing, I felt that we had just moved to an alternative set of options.

I'm not sure if that makes sense. Sorry.

[MrsCakesPrecognition]

I think I even had a comment that if baby and I were separated after the birth then DP should go with the baby - just so that I'd got all possible bases covered and I'd thought through in advance what might happen.