A "show" before induction

[beka277]

I was due on 8th January, its now the 16th of January and I am booked in for induction on the 19th. I had a show on the 14th and then again on the 15th of January. I am so scared of being induced ... so please dont tell me any really negative stories (ive heard enough!!!!) but for the reason ive had a show....will that mean labour may be ok for me even though i will be induced (for the reason that ive had a sign that my body is preparing itself and cervix is softening.....). My midwife told me because i had the show they may b able to break my waters (instead of using the gel) and it may be a more natural labour for me. Anyone had experience with this? Again, preferably positive stories..its my first baby and im a little scared!!! Thanks!

I can't help I'm afraid (being induced myself on 23rd - 2nd baby) but I just wanted to say - don't be scared - talk to your mw again to see if she can allay your fears as I'm sure this will give you a much better labour experience if you do have to be induced. If you've had a show then there's every likelihood that you'll go into labour spontaneously before your induction date anyway - you've still a few days yet! Think positive and good luck!

I had a show with DS and still ended up being induced (but I had other complications including high blood pressure) but being induced really wasn't that bad!

Good luck though.

I had a show 2 days before induction, but I don't think it made any difference. I still had to be induced and I don't think it made any difference to the outcome. On the positive side, a show is definitely a sign your body is getting ready, but it can take over a week after a show for labour to start naturally. Good luck! Take lots of magazines to read, as induction can be a slow process.

i've not been induced but a friend of mine was. everything went fine, no problems. she was like you, had a show, when she went in she was already 3cm without realising, so they were able to break her waters which made it all start more or less straight away. sounds like you are, as they say 'favourible' for induction!, good luck

My induction with ds2 was great - had 1 pessary, a few hours later labour started and i needed no other augmentation at all - established labour only 4 hours. Dont worry - you will be fine!

Well, with my DD i went 13 days over. The morning i was due in hospital for an induction i had a show.

When i got to the hospital they did all the monitoring etc as usual and discovered i was already in labour. I wont tell you the rest.....

Also, with my next, my DS, i was in and out of hospital with mild pre eclampsia. After having a check on the Friday to see if cervix was favourable i had a show on the Saturday and Sunday. On the Monday they monitored again and decided to keep me in to induce - that night i had strong BH's or so i thought, the next day when they took me down to do prostin - did the usual monitoring and hey - guess what - i was already in labour. Again, they broke my waters for me. And then contractions were nice and regular and DS was born 6 hours later in a straight forward, gas and air based delivery.

Well, with my DD i went 13 days over. The morning i was due in hospital for an induction i had a show.

When i got to the hospital they did all the monitoring etc as usual and discovered i was already in labour. I wont tell you the rest.....

Also, with my next, my DS, i was in and out of hospital with mild pre eclampsia. After having a check on the Friday to see if cervix was favourable i had a show on the Saturday and Sunday. On the Monday they monitored again and decided to keep me in to induce - that night i had strong BH's or so i thought, the next day when they took me down to do prostin - did the usual monitoring and hey - guess what - i was already in labour. Again, they broke my waters for me. And then contractions were nice and regular and DS was born 6 hours later in a straight forward, gas and air based delivery.

oops

thankyou all so much for your stories and advice. Its Monday night now (induction - thursday) and still no contractions. A lot of pressure though. Im trying my hardest to be positive abt being induced and you guys do help! Heres to hoping.....

pressure is a good sign that baby's head is in the right place.

I hope things go well for you but induction isnt always so terrible. People who arent induced can have a bad time the same as people who are induced can have a good birth IYKWIM.

sounds to me like you could go into labour b4 then! Menu for the day... vindaloo followed by fresh pineapple and some raspberry leaf tea!

And try and get on your DP's good side

ooh yes - that too!

haha, the sex thing doesnt seem to be working for us!! i think im actually tiring my poor hubby out, he denied me of it last night! i ate half a pineapple yesterday but im still not sure how it gets the whole labour thing going...??!

i was booked in for induction with dd3. when they examined me i was already 3-4cm dilated, so they broke my waters. i had her 3hours later. was fab!

misdee - that sounds too good to b true! lucky girl!

my 1st was "induced" but because I had a show the night before I was dilated enough (a cm or so) just to have my waters broken. they did that at around 11am, I started contracting pretty quickly, they tried to tell me it wasn't happening fast enough at about 3pm and wanted to put me on a drip to speed me up but I told them to bugger off, it felt fast enough to me, and dd was born at 10pm. Which for a first labour was certainly fast enough.

So my advice is if you've had a show your cervix may be softening, if you want it as natural as possible then let them break your waters but don't rush to the next stage, listen to your body and see if that is enough to get things moving at a natural pace. Best of luck!!

Beka277 - I've been induced 3 times (1 quick, 1 slow, 1 failure - but I'm going to be positive here!) I was induced with my 3rd (dd) and I had a show that morning - when I went in, as you probably will be - I was found to be favourable - make sure you ask them your 'bishop's score' - it will be in your notes - if you are over 6 - you are classed as 'favourable' and a little dilated (2cm+) they should be able to break your waters but they will probably still try the gel first - give it a go because it's gentler than a drip. Anyway by the time they had finished monitoring me (an hour later) I was 5cm and off like the clappers!

All the best!

I had a show with with dd2 and was induced as she was 14 days over cooked.

It was a brilliant birth. I was induced with dd1 also for the same reason, I won't tell u that story but compared to the labour I had with dd1 it was fantastic. I was in labour for 16 hours with dd2 yes I had lots of pain but doesn't everyone. I had an epidural half way through which wore off in time so I could feel when I had to push and was in complete control. It was lovely.