How long would you be willing to go overdue? **Content warning - title edited by MNHQ**

[rachiro]

41+5 and since baby is doing well I'll be waiting for another few days at least. My baby just doesn't seem ready yet. I wonder why some babies just don't come on their own/why some of our bodies do this 🙄

@HeyBlaby yep. google it

@daisyjgrey

I'd wait until 42 weeks. I wouldn't be induced though, if the baby was being stubborn at 42 weeks I'd want an elective c-section.

Absolutely this!

Yeah, it’s not like the baby can die, cause sepsis in the mother almost killing her, and it definitely won’t come out already well into decomposition.

Nope. Never seen that in my job —multiple times—

@PinkWaferBiscuit

I don't understand the rush to get the baby out either 🤷🏻‍♀️ As long as the baby is moving as usual and NST/scan etc are all normal, I don't get the hurry.

Honestly I was the opposite I don't get the desire to stay pregnant for so much longer than you need to. Why prolong the discomfort, meeting your new baby and all the other frustrating things that may come with pregnancy such as GD, swollen ankles, sickness etc.

I couldn't wait for the pregnancy to be over, it wasn't enjoyable at all, it was just a means to the end of having a lovely squishy new baby.

That's not true for all I was very comfortable all the way to the end. On top of that I had family history of long pregnancies. Had 3 babies at nearly 42 weeks, all healthy, term and average size

www.aims.org.uk/journal/item/induction-at-term

facts without scaremongering

I went to 42+2 with my son. Waters broke & admitted to hospital, I was induced the next day as I had no contractions (first via pessary, then full on drip and epidural). Very short labour at 2hrs from 1st contraction - brutal but the epidural was amazing - then he shot out like a cannonball.

Nearly 30 years later, I still use the 50+ stitches from a 2nd degree tear as leverage to make me a cuppa lol!

To be fair, I was due to induced on the day he popped out anyway, so my then partner & I went to the theatre I was working in to visit some mates in the Youth Theatre the night my waters broke. Cue panic from my friends I was chatting to when I went for a wee…and didn’t stop! I had visions of giving birth in the crew room at work 😂

I didn't even want to get to 40 weeks so had a sweep at 39 baby born at 39+1, after a high risk pregnancy the last thing I wanted was to lose a baby at very end, I will never understand why people risk it, everything is ok until it isn't, even with daily monitoring

My local hospital used to let you go to 43 weeks with extra monitoring and did not routinely induce before 42 weeks - a friend of mine went to 43 weeks and gave birth to a 13lb 4oz baby girl.

The hospital no longer does this. They were part of a clinical study of overdue pregnancy and the optimal time to induce. But they had to abandon the study because of the abnormal number of babies that died after 42 weeks.

Completely baffled by the people who are happy to remain pregnant seemingly for ever. By 40 weeks I was enormous, knackered and sick of my life. Induced at 38 weeks with my last child for medical reasons and the labour and delivery was just perfect.

@Elnetthairnet

Completely baffled by the people who are happy to remain pregnant seemingly for ever. By 40 weeks I was enormous, knackered and sick of my life. Induced at 38 weeks with my last child for medical reasons and the labour and delivery was just perfect.

Well you're lucky aren't you? Not everyone has a "perfect" labour and delivery after induction (or indeed if going into labour naturally). That's probably why so many of us were/are happy to wait for nature to take its course. No woman has remained pregnant forever 🙄🤦🏻‍♀️

I wouldn't want to go many days past a due date, due to the risk of complications from placental deterioration. Everyone's clinical circumstances will vary, but there is evidence that the placenta deteriorates when pregnancies go overdue, which increases the risk of stillbirth. While the total risk of stillbirth can still be mitigated somewhat by monitoring, it's statistically and clinically significantly increased by waiting longer periods. My feeling is that I wouldn't want to take that risk - I'd never be able to forgive myself if that happened when it could have been avoided by giving birth sooner.

My preference would be for an elective section over induction, though.

In France the due date is 41 weeks. Anything between 37 and 42 weeks is considered normal by the WHO. So we shouldn't really see over 40 weeks as "late"

I would go to 41 weeks if all looked well. I never felt miserable heavily pregnant so that wouldn't come into my decisions, I'd want to avoid induction if possible but I'd be very mindful of the downsides of waiting too long.

All depends on your history, age, pregnancy, how things are looking of course

@boymum88

I didn't even want to get to 40 weeks so had a sweep at 39 baby born at 39+1, after a high risk pregnancy the last thing I wanted was to lose a baby at very end, I will never understand why people risk it, everything is ok until it isn't, even with daily monitoring

Sweeps don't work. I lost count how many I had your child chose to come early, mine didn't. Like I said, it runs in the family

I'd be guided by the medical professionals

I wanted to leave things to nature but I knew the risks so was induced at 40 weeks. I don't think induction is very nice so in retrospect I wish I had waited a couple of days, at least. My husband's grandfather was a month overdue (no they didn't get the dates wrong) and he was a HUGE baby. All was fine but I expect this was an exception.

Can I ask, everyone who’s quoting how many weeks they were, is this number of weeks based on when you know you conceived, or weeks based on the first day of your last period?

I really struggled with this part. Surely which way you were dated makes a massive difference to how far over you’d be willing to go?

Privately a friend who is a consultant obstetrician told me not to go over 40 weeks at all as it was just heartbreaking delivering stillborn babies who would have survived if they had been born at term.

I went 13 days over before going into labour. Turns out he was arm first which caused the late onset of labour, my next two were head first and came at 2 and 3 days over.

My placenta was fine even at 13 days, it’s not a given.

I wouldn't have gone past 40 weeks

I went to 42+1 with my first. I had been in labour for days by then. He was fine definitely not over cooked and the placenta was absolutely fine. Babies generally on both sides of the family arrived late and well. My second arrived early at 38 weeks.

Went into labour naturally with my first at 40+10 and he was born 2 days later, not particularly big and no issues with placenta.
Gave birth to dc2 a week ago and I was induced at 40+12 as per the hospital policy and all fine.
I really didn’t enjoy being overdue either time but I'm convinced I just have longer gestation periods, especially as my sister is the same.
Basically I would always follow the advice of the professionals who are familiar with my history and know way better than me!

I think NCT/ hypnobirthing/ Instagram has a lot to answer for with this and spreading fear of induction/ ‘medical’ births. By 40 weeks I’ve just been desperate to get the babe out as soon and safely as possible… just feels like there is a point they become safer out than still in.

I was induced at 40 + 10 which was what my dr recommended. Actually it was plus 7 but the induction took 3 days. Baby was born with a lot of meconium.

Genuine question for those who wouldn't have gone past 40 weeks, would you have kicked up a fuss until you got an induction or ELCS? The hospitals I'v given birth at have been very strict about not inducing before 42 weeks unless there were known issues.