In labour - need urgent advice!

[Ineedadvicee]

Well.. kinda in labour, kinda not!

Waters broke 27 hours ago, arrived at the hospital shortly after they broke but contractions failed to start. The hospital said that if nothing happens in 24 hours (24 hours after works breaking), they will start the oxytocin drip to get things moving. Apparently they can only allow 24 hours as you are more prone to infection once waters have gone.

Problem is… the 24 hours are up but there are no beds on labour ward so they want to take me in for a c section. I’m gutted because I haven’t even been given the chance to try for a vaginal birth… of course I need to follow their advice but it seems so unfair that the reason for the c section is purely down to lack of beds, not because of anything medical?

I don’t know what to do…

You do what will give you most contentment in this moment OP. If you'd rather the section, absolutely fine. But if you don't, please know that you are allowed to decline at this point. Or to insist on waiting until a bed is ready and having the drip.

When I was failing to progress they insisted I needed the drip as otherwise it might be labouring at shift handover and they'd prefer for me to have finished by then. When the head midwife was asked to come and discuss options directly with me, options suddenly appeared.

Don’t be too frightened of a CS; I had an emergency C section with my twins, and my recovery was better than from my previous vaginal delivery (this even though the EMCS was during Covid, so aftercare was lacking).

Major surgery for their convenience?

Absolutely fucking not.

I had a somewhat similar experience. Slightly different as my waters broke first but then I did go into labour naturally, but it wasn’t progressing and I stayed at 2cm for 48 hours. They wanted to take me to be induced via the drip but had no rooms available where they could do the drip. Eventually one became free but that was after 55 hours. For me the drip still didn’t progress anything and I did eventually develop sepsis (which was caught and handled immediately but meant both me and baby were on antibiotics). After 63 hours of labour I still didn’t get beyond 3-4cm and with the sepsis and baby’s heart rate began to fluctuate I needed an emergency c section.
But even with my experience which ended in sepsis and an emergency c section I still wouldn’t be happy about having to go straight to a c section due to a lack of beds. No advice either way really but just wanted to share my similar experience.

There are other ways of inducing- can they give you a pessary and send you home and try again in the morning? They work slower than a drip in getting things moving.

I know about the 24 hours gets more risky thing but my waters broke late evening on a Monday, got checked over Tuesday with nothing happening and told to come back on the Wednesday to be induced, so I went over. My daughter was fine.

My first vocation was nurse.

On one hand that’s insane! On the other hand, if labour isnt happening properly and you need the drip then you have a high chance of needing an instrumental birth (which is no better than c section) or an emergency c section anyway.

This is one of the most appalling things I have read. There is no clinical reasoning for a c/aection.

they should transfer you. Ask to speak to whoever is in charge and keep focussed on your baby who will be here soon. Stress isn’t helpful for starting labour, so you’ll have to work hard at zen.

Edit as double posted!

I'd bite their hand off tbh. Your waters have gone but nothing else has happened - this isn't a baby that's desperate to see the world. And a c section is a lot easier to recover from if you're not knackered to start with!

Is this your first baby op? My waters broke for my second on Friday at 00.30am, I went into hospital to start the drip at 8pm later that day but they had no beds so had to wait on antenatal ward and said they wouldn't need to start the anti biotics process until it had been 48 hours. I started getting contractions at 2am on the Saturday and he was born at 4am. Have they done any monitoring and seen any uterine activity?

It's completely outrageous what they are doing.
You are not selfish to question it.

There are women who choose to wait for labour longer than 24 hours. The risk (which is low) increases but it's not like 25 or 27 hours is massively different to 24.

You might want to refuse examinations as they increase chances of infection.

OP I've not read everyone's replies to you but i would say get the baby out. My son was left 48hrs after my waters broke. The hospitals were so busy I didn't get induced until the Sunday morning. My waters broke on Friday.He was in special care for 9 days with suspected sepsis. We thought he was going to die at one point. We couldn't establish breast feeding and I got PND due to traumatic birth and special care events. Please take their advice. They don't give it out for no reason. I know it isn't what you wanted but we all know when it comes to birth plans they never happen how you want them to. Sending you lots of love and luck. 🩷

A vaginal birth is still preferable all other things being equal. Why have major surgery?

I've had 4 babies OP, and would say that if you're not in labour there's very likely to be a reason why. I had 2 failed inductions (waters going but not going into labour) and there were reasons why for both.

Don't risk your babies health or your own for the experience you want to have - the reality is often very very different.

I'd be asking to go to a hospital that does have a bed if it was me. I don't think them not having a bed is a good enough reason to be cut open.

@Ineedadvicee have the CS sweetheart it's too much of a risk for you to wait longer to go into labour naturally or with induction. Wishing you the very best of luck .

You need to do what’s best for the baby, not what’s best for the birth you wanted.

I had a c section with my first so they tried to encourage it with my second. I pushed for a vaginal birth… wish I hadn’t. The recovery was so much quicker, easier and less painful with the c section. My waters broke early and it led to complication.

Whatever you choose I hope it goes well. I just wanted to let you know that if it is a c section then it isn’t necessarily a terrible thing.

I can see why you’re upset and I know I would have been too. Sounds like the hospital is very busy, even if they found you a bed, care may be compromised and i’d just want a safe delivery. Maybe I see it differently as seen the outcome of similar scenario of busy hospital and standards of care not as expected, won’t go into it, but I’d be upset, but i’d take the C section now. Good luck

They left me for 48 hours with waters broken but give me antibiotics as a precaution. If you want a virginal birth I would push for one. Good luck

Follow the medical advise of the professionals who are looking after you.

Do inductions ever work? I know so many friends who had ‘failed’ inductions followed by a C-section. Has your hospital got published success rates ?

I wouldn’t agree to major surgery without good reason - but is this a good reason?

and fwiw OP, my c-section recovery was gorgeous compared to my other birth (won’t give you the details).

good luck, OP, focus on meeting your baby very soon.

This is insane, I understand they can't magic beds out of nowhere but they need to have a decent conversation with you and explain all the pros and cons of waiting for a bed to be available Vs transfer elsewhere Vs c section so you can make an informed choice.
Obviously you have to make a decision best for you and your baby but bare in mind that if you have a c section this does change things for future pregnancies e.g puts you under consultant led care, risks for future vaginal births so I would consider it carefully.
Also keep active, lots of hip rotations on a ball etc see if you can bring baby down and get yourself into labour naturally - goodnluck

Not necessarily actually. A good vaginal birth is great but that is unlikely now. C sections are amazing these days. I would know, Ive had two and personally recovery was great.