induction 9am tuesday - very scared

[alittlecloud]

Hey
i was told last week on thursday after a routine pregnancy that i will be induced on tuesday. I will be 40+3 then, and this is my first baby. I was very scared - too scared to have the sweep and stretch that they wanted me to have on monday; i couldnt let my body relax to move my legs and since then i have been in and out of tears, or anxiety and restlessness.
I have to sleep tonight, but tomorrow night i dont know how i am gonna do it, i cannot relax, how do you relax before you meet your little one and all the responsibilities that follow? My mother and partner will be with me, but i was wondering whether anyone has any advice how to keep calm, if i cannot sleep how to rest...
I havent been told anything about the induction, but i have read up on them, and its not reassuring me at all :(
any advice would be great

**thursday was when the stretch and sweep was scheduled

Did they tell you why they want to induce you when you're only just past your due date? It seems unusual if, as you said, you have had a routine pregnancy.

Try not to get too worked up, it will be wonderful when you finally meet that tiny person! Inductions aren't always a negative experience; I know someone who had a very straight forward induction.

Good luck!

They can advise you to be induced but cannot tell you to be induced. Whats their reasoning?

You arent really overdue til 42 weeks and even then you dont HAVE to be induced

I was induced with DD on her due date as they thought I had low amniotic fluid. First I was given a stretch and sweep, this is a little uncomfortable but not overly so. I was monitored and was either on the hospital bed or a birthing ball, that didn't work as much as they wanted so they attempted to break my waters ... Turns out I had tons, they use a little plastic hook to pop your waters again a little uncomfortable but otherwise ok.
My contractions progressed but not as fast as they wanted so after several hours they attached me to the drip to speed everything up.

Overall my labour wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be with induction.

Good luck

Firstly why are they inducing you?

I've had 4 inductions, 2 were quite lengthy in terms of getting me into established labour, I had epidurals for 3 of them. I didn't need any assistance to deliver and only 1 stitch (I had huge babies).

Please try not to worry they aren't "pleasant" but there are some positives, you are in the hospital, they will be very keen to monitor you, no panicking of am I, aren't I in labour.

Hugs, it's worth it

well thats the thing that is confusing me - his growth slowed in the last month but only by a fraction - its been a steady pattern of growth but not as they would like, but the midwives kept telling me it wasnt a problem... then the doctors would come in and say they were concerned. The midwife and sonographer told me that he was fine on thursday but the doctor said that as i was in so close to due date for growth monitoring they would book me in for an induction. I was so dazed i dont particularly remember being asked, they just booked me in without much explanation.
The only other thing i can think of is my deteriorating mental health - i am under constant review from psychiatric teams, and there were concerns over psychosis or episodes on my part :( maybe thats why they are speeding it up too or why they are being quiet about information. My mum seemed pretty annoyed that i wasnt offered a proper explanation or chance to think about it.
I think its a good idea but i am really confused.
They did say early on in pregnancy that they would induce if they were worried about babies health or my mental health. I said routine because baby has been pretty much fine for the whole thing, wriggly active, average weight average everything except slight slow in growth, but because of the confusion between antenatal staff saying everythings ok but still having me in weekly i really dont know.
I think i am starting with a pessery and staying in induction suite, i know i have private room in maternity ward so partner can stay at all times in case of head issues.
Its all getting to me, i tried my hardest to do this naturally, and for some reason i feel like i have messed up again - i am aware that my hormones are just running wild though, but even so, i feel embarrassed at my level of fear and confusion over it.
Consistant thought getting me through is baby cuddles and saying hello to him for the first time, and i think maybe induction is a good idea, because i can have a deadline for my panic
thank you for your feedback i really need it, i know medication for panic is not an option at this point so its a real test of willpower and trust x

I really think you need to speak to a consultant again before agreeing to the induction, it sounds like its not been explained properly and regardless of your mental health they have an obligation to discuss it and give you advice.

They cannot do anything unless you consent, so please do ask some questions before consenting. Maybe a friend or your mum could go with you to support you and ask questions?

You have not failed at all, please dont think that, you have carried the baby safely for this long!

I hope this doesn't sound brutal but they seem to be erring on the side of caution slowing growth should be taken seriously so it does sound like that is the reason but they don't want to alarm you.

Intervention has improved survival rates for Mums and babies over the last 60 odd years, I think sometimes we forget that and want a perfect birth.

Personally I found having an induction date booked in the diary really helped me mentally because it was definite thing in a very uncertain process!

I wish you all the best, births are all different but so very worthwhile. Well done for getting through the pregnancy un=medicated x

thank you for your replies
i have spoken to my mum again, and she agrees that they would have had a reason, but i need it confirmed for my peace of mind, so will ask either tomorrow or on the day what the reasons for induction were so i can balance them with the risks. If its just a pessary then i dont feel so bad, but the potential for invasive procedures, forceps, increased risk of c-section scares me blind. I am not the kind of person that just wants natural for naturals sake - due to the nature of babies conception, and the c-PTSD i suffer from, i desperately want to come out of this without further scarring or damage, both physically or mentally
i know that sounds selfish, but i dont want to physically break even if my head feels like it already has. Having said that though, i carried this baby all this time, not for my benefit but for his, and now i love him, if they say that a procedure is best for him and me then i will do it... i just need to know it is needed, and not a matter of convenience for the ward.
Despite this the idea of postponing it now will probably make me have a tantrum as it means more nights of feeling like a pink whale, and just waiting anxiously.
I guess my biggest fear is that i will go in for induction that isn't entirely necessary and end up needing intervention if it doesn't go well and have scarring or worse as a result of failed induction, when i could have waited till the 42 week mark for natural and maybe have none of these... I just don't trust hospitals and their motives behind decisions. I spent 7+ months in a psychiatric ward under a wrong diagnosis and it was corrupt, neglectful and retraumatising, coupled with my experiences of A+E and how they just used to kick me out or think i was struggling just for meds or attention (they couldn't have been more wrong) - i have seen how they will make a diagnosis and procedure (or none) for more funding, convenience or not looking at notes.
The midwives here are lovely though, so i am trusting them... But will have my partner and mum to advocate for me and find information out every step of the way and make sure i actively consent to everything as consent is so important to me
thank you again for your support - it means the world to me

You sound very brave op. I am 40 + 5 and all of the feelings you have about induction I have too. It hasnt been mentioned to me yet but I know it will. I just wanted to let you know that your not alone in the feelings about it.

I would second what other people have said though and ask for the reasons why exactly they want to induce you and tell them what your worried about. It's a very uncertain time and I feel like I'm in limbo at the moment waiting for any sign for this baby to come.

I hope all goes well for you and perhaps you can reassure me when you've done it! Haha

Hey littlecloud! I'm also on my first baby; we're now 40+6 and will be induced on Monday at 40+8. I'm looking at it as the best of all worlds - a great supervised safe chance to have a crack at it on my own, and instant assistance if it's needed.
I'm not entirely trusting of the hospital; the C section rate here is somewhere between 80 and 90%, my consultant is very waffly and asks me my most basic details repeatedly (how old are you? when are you due? etc) so I do very much feel as if I will be working against the clock once the induction commences, but I reckon we'll all get through it all the same.

My second child was induced and it wasn't nearly as bad as I'd feared. and. once dd2 was here I forgot all of it. And now she's home I couldn't care less how she got here. I'm her mum and that's it. I do realise that you have MH background problems and soy experience isn't necessarily the same as yours, but I wanted to share a reasonably positive induction story.

I was overdue and worried as I've had two cousins with late still births, also DD had stopped growing (measured 38 at 38 weeks, measured 36 at 40 weeks) and I was nearly 40 years old. They induce you at 40 weeks if you're 40 round here as placentas deteriorate more quickly as you get older.

anyway, the decision was made but there wasn't a space til 3pm. in I went, they broke my waters (painful but bare able, like standing on a plug). Then DH and I went off to walk around for a couple of hours to see if things would start. They didn't. much faffing and changing of teams. Then they wanted to start the drip. I insisted on an epidural at this point because I felt that I needed artificial painkillers to counteract the artificial hormones and last time I'd had to wait four hours for an epidural. Anyway they sited it but didn't put drugs in til a bit later when I needed it.

The drip got turned up, and up, and up some more. It took forever. But then I went from 3cm to 10cm in about an hour, pushed for 20 mins and our popped dd2. No forceps. No ventouse. That was at 430am. So about 12 hours from them breaking the waters to hello baby.

in fact the duration of inductions can be one of the hardest bits so perhaps work on expectations and bring lots to do and then you won't be bored or frustrated when it takes a few days. I was lucky that they were able to break my waters and so I skipped the pessary stage.