Induction and partner being sent home

[Waggamamma]

I'm due to.be induced next week. I've been told to go to the antenatal/postnatal ward for 3pm, if I'm not in established labour and moved to labour ward by 9pm my partner will be asked to go home and return after 11am the next day. They will call him I go into established labour in that time.

This is making me really anxious, I do not want to stay overnight or go through early labour by myself. I don't expect the rules to be changed just for me I'm just really stressing about how I will cope alone, it's not how I had imagined things. We live 20-30min drive from hospital.

I had a sweep two days ago, she said my cervix is high but she could feel waters bulging under babies head and they would likely skip pessary and go straight to the gel.

Can anyone share their experiences of induction? Was your dp sent home? did you need to labour alone? How long was labour from having the gel?

This is dc2. Hoping i go into labour myself over the weekend.

Two inductions. Both one pessary, then ARM and drip, then quick vaginal delivery.
Both times involved long waits (over 48hrs) on antenatal for a bed on delivery suite to become free. But I wasn't actually in labour at this point, just dilated enough from te pessary for them to break my waters.
I actually sent dh back to work both times because it was so boring. I passed my time between monitorings walking up and down stairs, bouncing on a ball, trying to get some last minute sleep and looking at a baby names book. Compared to being at home with a toddler, my second induction in a single bed room was actually quite a nice break.

Both inductions my partner was sent home. Until youre in eatablished laboir its quite boring and they can come back if labour gets going!! Induction can take a few days if they try the pessary for a day first... take books/dvd player/etc.

Anxiety will just maje you clam up so try to tell yourself he'll be back as soon as it gets exciting and take things to occupy youraelf I the meantime xx

Mmmmm, not to worry you further, but I was induced earlier this year. Had some gel at about 8pm when apparently cervix was high, closed, posterior and not favourable. DH went home. Nothing happened until 1am when I felt a bit strange. DS born 45mins later. DH missed it completely (hadn't even chance to phone him and say I was in labour). This was second baby.

Wow rubberstamp! That was a quick labour!

Yes, too quick. Was the most painful thing I've ever experienced (for those 45mins). Just one big contraction that didn't end and no time for any pain relief. They did say it was very unusual to go from 2cm (they examined me at 1am) to delivery in 45mins.

One induction. Went in Fri eve, DH sent home, Sat eve DH sent home, Sun eve DH sent home, Mon eve ELCS late that evening DH stayed.

That sounds like the end of my second labour. 4-10cm in about 15-20mins. I had just been examined because I asked for an epidural, then bad contraction started, then blacked out and panicked the midwife, room filled with doctors, came to and was ready to push immediately and only took a few pushes. I think quick labours can be more painful.
Sorry all of this detail on your thread OP, hope it's ok because it's your second and, well, you know it hurts.

Thanks everyone for your replies. Confirms what I'm scared of really, labouring alone and dp missing it .

I've looked at my notes from my sweep thia week, it gave me a score of 5, said I'm 1-2cm dilated and cervix is soft. I'm thinking this means induction is likely to work quickly?

I had terrible back and stomach cramps last night for a couple of hours, thought things were getting ready to get going but turned out I just needed a poo . Come on baby get out my uterus!

My hospital had the same policy and unfortunately my early labour kicked off at 9pm after one dose of the prostaglandin. I was officially in established labour at 11pm (4cm dilated). The mw told me that I could ask to move to delivery and my husband would be allowed to stay with me but she recommended staying on the antenatal ward as I'd be monitored continuously in delivery and my waters wouldn't be broken til the morning. I spent a pretty uncomfortable night bouncing on a ball and trying not to wake the other patients (one mum and baby, and one second trimester woman with complications). It was a bit lonely admittedly, but the pain was bearable (tens machine helped loads) and my husband got a proper sleep at home. Early labour can be so drawn out that even if we'd been at home I would have told him to sleep anyway.

My waters broke but I didn't go into active labour and ended up spending two nights in hospital before having DS. It wasn't great but not nearly as bad as I imagined it would be.

One induction. Got to hospital for 8am, pessary in at 9.45. Nothing happened all day til 7pm ish. DH went at 8ish to relieve GP's of looking after DC1 and I was having contractions as he went but mw was adamant just little tightenings nothing big! DH called back at 11.45pm after I was examined and 4-5cm. We only live 10 mins from hospital though so not too much of an inconvenience

As long as you don't live too far from hospital it shouldn't be a big deal. I went to delivery suite during my induction about an hour before DH would've had to go home. But my friends who have had inductions where DH went home were called immediately when they went to delivery, and were back at hospital within half an hour

I wanted DH to fuck off home and the midwife to give me some pethidine so I could sleep (fucking prostin pains) and then my waters went and I was immediately in full labour!

Wagga my cervix/bishops score was similar and it took 2 doses of prostin and about 12 hours for me to go into labour. But then it went very very fast after that.

Nothing much/some period pains after first dose, quite nasty prostin pains after the second which required TENS.

Don't walk endlessly round the hospital or you will just tire yourself out. Bounce on ball and watch movies with headphones on, I reckon!

I'm not sure how feasible it would be but could your partner stay in a B&B closer to the hospital if you're worried about him being a long drive away? If he was a few minutes walk away the expense might be worth it for your peace of mind?

As an aside, I am an utter convert to the nipple stroking approach to inducing labour... was induced with my first and when overdue with my second sat down and read mumsnet while stroking nipples gently (was mainly trying to distract myself as it just felt like such a strange thing to be doing at 1am when I couldn't sleep)... an hour later contractions started.

Good luck!

My labour was similar to Tarka and Otter's .... Very very very fast when it did get going.

Actually (sorry to hijack) have either of you had a natural labour after that? Was it similarly fast and intense? Am due in 5 weeks and bricking myself about going into labour like that at home if that's the way my body labours, rather than the prostin doing that...

Sorry I meant Tarka and Rubberstamp

I wasn't induced but had to spend three days in early labour on hospital after my waters went.

dp was sent home each night which was fine, until the third night when my contractions suddenly ramped up and the hospital decided they had nowhere for me to give birth so they ambulanced me to a different hospital in another town . I had to phone dp in the middle of the night and tell him to get his arse there asap.

When I was induced they told us that DH would be sent home at 9pm if I wasn't in established labour but in the end he stayed the whole night with me and noone mentioned it. It may well depend on the hospital and how busy it is because the maternity ward I was on was quite empty so we had a room (with 5 beds) to ourselves. Not that we got much sleep as I was walking and walking and walking to try to help things along.

msbug!!! How awful!

zara no, my inductions were both for gd and I expect the same for any future pregnancies sadly.

Yes it was, ambulance rides in labour are no fun and dp cant drive so he had to phone someone else to give him a lift. If i had been thinking straight i would have made them pick him up in the ambulance on the way

Mine was for high BP Tarka so I will have to wait a few more weeks to see if I can expect the same thing. Just one giant contraction is fucking grim, isn't it? Was very grateful I got an epidural quickly. probably because I was terrifying the other women with my screams

Bloody hell MrsBug I would've been like WTF?! A new hospital?!

Yup. my local hospital is famous for sending women away because they are full, but i am the only person i know who was sent away during labour .

This happened to me, my OH was sent away at night and waters went at 3am, rang OH at 3:20am, gave birth at 3:34am If we didn't live 3 minutes away from the hospital he would have missed it! He managed to stay till 11 at night by us just pulling the curtains round and keeping quiet!
In the morning after my birth when we went back down to maternity ward there was one arsey midwife who insisted my OH had to go home, it was about half four, I told her she was being ridiculous and to leave us alone and that I would like a different midwife. That solved the problem, next midwife said he could stay!
Be firm with them if you want him to stay!