Induction advice?

[firsttimemum111]

Hi all!

I'm currently 41+5 and scheduled to have an induction two days from now.

Can anyone who's had one before give me any advice or information from their experience?

Anything you wish you'd known before yours?

Is the pain really worse when induced? Should I expect to be in hospital for longer afterwards? How long did yours take to start labour?

First baby so no idea what to expect or how to prepare myself for childbirth without induction, especially not with one.

I know all pregnancies are different but just looking for any information from ladies who have been through it before.
Any advice is appreciated ❤️ thank you!

Expect to be in hospital for a few days. I was there 3 days before I had the baby but left 5 hours after birth. Take books, snacks, download programmes, and most of all don't be disheartened if there are delays and it takes longer to get going than you thought. Mine was "paused" twice because there were no beds available in the delivery suite.

Most of all - congrats in advance and try and make the most of it!

As above, expect that you might be in there longer BEFORE the baby arrives rather than after!
I was delayed for a few days as the delivery suites were all full. Pessaries didn't work for me, so they didn't want to break my waters or start the synto drip for me until they weren't as busy on labour ward as there's no "pausing" the labour after that point so I ended up waiting quite a long time. iPad with movies downloaded, books, snacks were a godsend, luckily they allowed my DH to come on and off the ward so that I wasn't alone all the time and he could also go home and sleep in a proper bed so he was ready to go when they finally called me down (at 3am 😱).
I found the drip very intense as they had to turn mine all the way up to max before I dilated enough, however, I was completely unresponsive to either the pessaries or gel which could be all you need to get going with yours! My DD was just very reluctant to leave 😂. I had an epidural in the end which wasn't part of my original plan, but needs must when you are in the moment and I have to say mine was great and I could still feel all my contractions but none of the pain.
Once I was dilated she was out in less than an hour, no interventions needed. Up on the postnatal ward about 5 hours later (9pm ish), stayed overnight and they did all their obs on her and I went home at 1pm the next day as we were both doing well (and I was sick of the hospital at that point!). I could have stayed in longer if I wanted but I just wanted to be at home at that point!
Good luck and congratulations!

Mine got going within minutes of me being on the drip - but my waters had already broken which was the reason for my induction, so I don’t know if that affected it. They also started me on a quite high dose as it had already been 48 hours of watchful waiting at home by that point and they wanted to get baby out ASAP due to infection risk. Baby was born 12 hours later, unassisted vaginal delivery. To be brutally honest I did find the pain more intense than I’d expected so I’d approach painkilling options with an open mind. I thought I’d just have gas and air but ended up asking for epidural and remifentanil.

I was in hospital from 6pm on a Thursday (although back and forth a couple of times that day and day before for checks after waters broke), they started the drip at 9pm and baby was born 9am Friday. We went home on the Sunday evening but that was only for monitoring due to infection risk. You could be home much sooner if there are no complications - although I actually loved staying in and having access to all the midwives’ advice and support.

Good luck and congratulations in advance x

Why do they want to induce you? If it's just for getting close to 42 weeks you can refuse, they might offer you monitoring every couple of days instead while you wait for baby to come naturally.

My #1 piece of advice would be to start with the least invasive methods (sweep, pessary/gel) and take some time to see if they work. And ask about outpatient induction. Induction doesn't have to mean being stuck straight on a drip and in hospital for days on end - I was induced with one pessary and went home to see if it would work. Then back into hospital the next morning once I'd been in active labour for a few hours. DS was born 13 hours after the induction started.

Also if you still have questions or aren't sure what to do you can see the induction appointment as a chance to get more info. I turned up for mine and told the midwife I hadn't made up my mind whether I wanted to get induced yet. She fetched the obs consultant and the consultant midwife who answered all my questions and talked me through the different options, risks & benefits.

Once you've made a decision stand up for yourself and don't be pushed around (unless there's a good medical reason to change the plan). I agreed to pessary induction and then this registrar who looked about 12 years old showed up and repeatedly tried to persuade me to let him break my waters instead, I had to politely but firmly refuse 3 times before he buggered off and let the midwife get on with her job 🙄

I found all the internals and pessary placement really painful and I wish someone had told me I should have been able to request gas and air for them. Everyone is different but if you find it painful don't be afraid to ask for pain relief. Agree with others that it can take a long time before baby arrives.

Only have one child, so I can't compare to a natural labour.

I was induced at 40+3 and was given a pessary around 12pm, had nothing all day. Woke at 7:30am the next day and felt quite intense back pain, baby was back to back. My waters went about 10 minutes later. I requested an epidural and was given one quickly once I was on the labour ward. Definitely do not rule out pain relief. I was adamant I wasn't going to have one, but it was the best thing I could've done. I was able to move around a little, doze, I felt so relaxed. Baby was born by 3pm with forceps. I had a few complications, not related to induction so I spent 4 nights on the postnatal ward, it would've been longer but I begged to be discharged. The only positive to being on the ward so long was help with breastfeeding if you wanted/needed it.

Best of luck to you!

I got induced on the 9th and he was born on the 12th with forceps, I wasn't dilating at all but after 3 gels the midwife was just about able to pop my waters and at 2pm, my baby was born at 4am the following morning.
Good luck, mine was tough but honestly still the best days of my life bringing him into the world, try to enjoy the experience you will forget the pain instantly