Inducing or not?

[VixxieRae]

So I'm 40+6 with my 4th and still not a sign of labour. I've had a sweep and I'm 2cm but no contractions I'll have braxton hicks every now and again but they aren't strong and not frequent at all. I'm booked in to be induced monday if baby hasnt made an appearance before then. I havent had to be induced before so I'm quite nervous at to how it works has anyone else been through this and what was it like? Would I need to bring anything extra in my bag? Has anyone opted not to induce and let their body go naturally? I was 2 weeks over with my second daughter and not a hint of being booked in for inducing but the rules seem to have changed since and only allowed to go 10 days over now.

I was induced with the pessary. Once I had got to 2cm they broke my waters. Fortunately I went into labour myself so didn't need the drip and was allowed to have a water birth. It was a really positive experience! The only downside is the process stated on the Thursday but they didn't break my waters until Saturday because labour ward was so busy.

I did refuse induction but that was when you could go to 42 weeks. All mine came naturally before then. I don’t know what I would have done in your shoes with new +10 rule. If you really don’t want to induce, you could ask about stress tests and whether if you had that done at +10 and baby was alright if you could go to 42 weeks given you have a history of late but perfectly healthy babies?

I really want my body to do it by itself and considering I have started spontaneously 3 times before I'm a little annoyed at myself for things not going that way. I'm in two minds whether to postpone and see if my body can do it itself, I'll be +10 on the tuesday and midwife said the whole reason the rules changed is because of placenta function after 42 weeks tends to decrease and they really wouldnt recommend me going over. I cant talk to family or my partner about my worries because they are all so impatient for baby to be here now, they just want me to get on with it which is putting more pressure on me and I feel worse every day things dont happen. I understand my partner as this baby has been planned for a few years and we lost our last to an ectopic so hes worrying if I go over I'll be potentially putting the baby at risk.

@latheritup ah so if labour ward is busy they'll delay you? How did you find the pessary?

@PlanDeRaccordement I did ask the midwife about refusing and I can do but still go to my appt have a monitor of baby and speak to the dr to take the next steps only issue I'm seeing is she said they'd probably ask for daily monitoring which I couldn't do, we live almost an hour away from the hospital and currently dont drive nor can get anyone to look after my other 3 when I'd need to go in 😕 did you feel utterly confident In your decision to no induction?

Induction is totally your choice but there is evidence the longer you stay pregnant the more chance your placenta can fail.

Yes it's because you're not in active labour yet. If someone walks in and they are then they have the rights to the bed, which makes sense. Unfortunately in my case it seemed every woman in the village decided to give birth on Thursday & Friday

It was worth the wait for me as there was one pool room available and I was eager to have it!

Daily monitoring!
Maybe if it uses a machine, they have one in a Surgery or unit more local to you so that someone there can do test? Or can send a paramedic/midwife out to your home? Maybe they have a version you can do at home and then call it in? I did these fetal movement counts for my midwife. Not sure what the rules are today or where you are though.

Yes, I was confident because there is lots of scientific evidence to back up the dangers of going past 42 weeks. Not sure why it’s now 4 days shorter? I did always have one booked in at 42 weeks when I had my first appt a few day after the due dates. (I have 4 DC like you). Maybe if you commit to the 42 week induction date, they’ll let you go the extra 4 days?

OP
I found this NHS 22page “leaflet” that has information on risks of inducing or not. It also says if you go past 41 weeks you should be “offered” additional monitoring.
It implies “frequent” monitoring is required only if you go past 42 weeks.
Anyway, hope this helps. It has a bit at the end you can fill out with questions to ask your doctor and midwife.
assets.nhs.uk/prod/documents/IOL-leaflet-40plus-weeks_vTDF3v5.pdf

@latheritup ah yes that makes sense 😁 how did you find the pool? I've always wanted a water birth but never allowed as I'm classed as higher risk, I will make do with my bath 😂

@PlanDeRaccordement oh now thats an idea to ask, hopefully they'd have something closer as that would be a lot more manageable! Or would be willing to let me got to 42 weeks just to see if things will start on there own. At least then I know I've tried it all before needing intervention! The midwife had said it changed because the induction process especially for first time mums tends to be a lot longer so they moved it for safety of the babies. Think it depends on where you are though as different hospitals have different rules, I wasnt booked for induction even at 2 weeks with my second and I'm sure they would have let me go longer too 🤷‍♀️

It was so good, I'd always recommend if someone is given the chance. I didn't think I'd be able to use it as they wanted me on constant monitoring during labour as I was induced for reduced movements but they managed to get a wireless monitor for me.

The bath made labour feel like a bad period cramp... I was so relaxed, I ate a bag of Chipsticks between contractions. I wish I got a picture!

@PlanDeRaccordementhank you for the link!! That's really helpful and I'll definitely be printing that out to fill out and take with me on the day!

@latheritup aww sounds like a dream! I've always turned to water for pain relief so can imagine just how relaxing it would be you so should of!

Hope your appointment goes well.
Sending you labour vibes (_)

@latheritup just a thought is it the antenatal ward you get induced on if it's not labour ward?

@PlanDeRaccordement Thank you

You're on the induction ward which is a part of the post-natal ward so you're sitting there waiting for your turn and occasionally see mums and their new babies wheeled in - makes it all worth the wait I think it may vary hospital to hospital!

@latheritup thank you 😁

I was induced and loved it.. would want same again if I could.. good luck x

@shazzz1xx I'm glad to hear you had a good experience! Im hoping it's just my nerves getting the better of me. Still no signs apart from the odd twinge so definitely looks like I'll be going in on monday!

I had my second 2 weeks ago at 42+2. I looked into the evidence and my personal risks and decided that the risks were minimal and I was happy to wait it out. Induction is a great option for some people but I believe it should be your choice whether to accept or not.

I was induced for medical reasons with my first and for various reasons it wasn't a great experience. I had an extra scan and daily monitoring from 42w this time, I agreed to an examination at 42+1 where I was told my cervix was long, posterior and totally closed so induction could take days....I went into labour spontaneously 24 hours later and had a lovely straightforward 3 hour labour.

I'm really glad I made the decision I did, midwives were mainly supportive however I did get a lot of pressure from doctors. My only advice would be to read up on the evidence and make whatever the right decision is for you and your family. Good luck!

As far as I remember, the risk of stillbirth decreases the more children you have. I was over 40 years old with my 3rd and they were trying to induce me at 38 weeks! I managed to convince them to let me go to 40 and luckily went into labour the day before. A midwife recommended this book.. www.sarawickham.com/iol/

Might be worth a read to help you decide. I had a sweep a couple of days before and used clary sage (which made me feel a bit weird, so don’t think I’d recommend that)

Just an update I had my little girl on the 26th July at 17:43pm i went into spontaneous labour on Saturday, all natural delivery I couldn't be more pleased!! And relieved I didnt have to go down the inducing route! Thank you for all your help&advice ladies

congratulations 👶🎀

Amazing news, huge congratulations!! 🥰

That’s lovely @VixxieRae.

Your story is also heartening @Cakeandslippers. I’m currently (allegedly) 41+4 and have declined induction twice. It’s my 3rd baby and the other two were late and perfectly healthy. DS2 was 42 weeks. (My sister’s children were also very late, and I was 42 weeks too). There appears to be no medical reason whatsoever to require an induction but I am getting pressure from all sorts of places to just acquiesce to the system and do as I’m told.

I’ve been given a scan appointment for Friday and to see a doctor. So we’ll see what happens there. Or if I manage to go into labour before then.

I do have a big problem with the language of rules and being allowed that surrounds all this. There are standard guidelines or individual unit policies, but they aren’t laws.