Induction at 41 + 5

[wishuponastar24]

I am booked in for intervention tomorrow at 41 + 5. I feel very disappointed with the situation and my body. I had planned a water birth on the MLU. This will be my 1st and only baby.

I am having my waters broken as my cervix is open enough, I am being given 4 hours to go into natural labour, if not I have to choose between a c section or drip induction.

I know that no one can 'force' me to have an induction but I don't feel comfortable going over 42 weeks.

Please share your experiences and wisdom with me please :)

In a couple of days at most, you’ll be holding your baby :)
Don’t feel too disappointed that you body didn’t do what you feel it was supposed to. It probably would have given a few more days but on a population level, the risks of going over 42 weeks mean now we see more inductions. My body would be dead a couple of times over at least without modern medicine so I tried not to be too hard on myself when I was in the same position as you.
Ask about epidurals. The advantage of getting one when you’re on the drip is that if it doesn’t work and they need to do a c-section, they’ll likely be able to bolster the epidural rather than site another spinal anesthetic. And if the induction works and you need a few stitches then they won’t hurt at all.
I had an induction for going overdue. It took a while (think days not hours) but my cervix needed hormone gel first to get it to open enough to try other things. If they can jump straight to breaking your waters it should be quicker for you. It was fine. I avoided the C-Section that I wasn’t keen on and the delivery was fairly straightforward as was my recovery.

You don’t need to feel disappointed, so few people end up with the water birth on MLU. I had an induction, although mine was earlier at 38 weeks, it was quite a quick process for me and I didn’t need further interventions. You only hear the horror stories about inductions, so look up positive induction stories I think I found some on bump to baby.

Personally, I didn’t want to do the drip induction because I do t know anyone who has had a successful drip and not required further interventions. My cut off was the drip, at that point I would have asked for a c-section. You’re already a few cm dilated (I wasn’t and my cervix wasn’t favourable and mine still worked), they’re going to break your waters so hopefully labour will start quite quickly. If it doesn’t, I would ask for a scan before deciding on drip induction or c-section and check baby is in a good position for a drip induction.

You don’t have to agree to this. In France 42 weeks is full term. My third was born at 42 +2 and was a Waterbirth at home.

At this stage, it's only a matter of hours or days anyway! Inductions can last a week and end in a c section.

Unless there is a problem, I'd wait if I were you.

It's tough, I was very overdue too and had to go in for an induction. The pessary didn't work and I had to wait a couple of days in the induction ward for a bed to be freed up for the drip (lots of women going into active labour on the induction ward as well as outside of the hospital). I got the drip and it was very very slow going. My epidural didn't work properly either but that's another story. Anyways drip took 29hrs and ended in forceps and an episotomy. I did feel cheated/disappointed about not having a natural birth. My second child I opted for an elective C-section. It was much much better. However every single birth is different and it's impossible to know how it will go. You could get the drip and things could work quickly. Everyone will have different experiences. The important thing is that baby arrives safely and mum and baby are well. Best of luck with everything & congratulations.

I know that no one can 'force' me to have an induction but I don't feel comfortable going over 42 weeks.

Thats fine by the way. We all have our own personal risk levels. You don’t need to be comfortable going past a point because other people are. I had gestational diabetes and I was originally scheduled for a 39 week induction. I could have fought the initial 39 week induction and also not accepted the 38 week induction but I accepted it because the anxiety was greater than the risk of interventions and a c-section. You’ve reached your personal threshold, you’ve made your decision based on your needs. It might come at the expense of your water birth (you weren’t guaranteed) but you’ve still reached a point that you want to seek help to get your baby here safely.

Nope. In France 41 weeks is given as your due date and they start inductions at 41+5 just like OP

Hi OP, sorry to hear you're so disappointed, I can see why.

What I would say though, it's far better to be disappointed now and able to prepare for an alternative birth than to get surprised/shocked by one happening not the way you planned halfway through labour...

If I were you I would ask for a CS, then it's all planned in and recovery can be easier. Inductions can be more of an ordeal. But my recommendation is of course without knowing your circumstances. If you are a lone parent CS can be tricky with the recovery and not being able to drive for a bit.

Hi there it's a labour ward midwife. How long the woman's labour is going to last and how the baby is going to be born depends on a size and position of the baby and size and shape of the woman's pelvis. Annoyingly babies often turn throughout labour! So obstetricians and midwives often don't know until the last 10 minutes how the baby is going to be born. My advice would be to go with an open mind and to mobilise for as long as you can. You can definitely request certain things- lights, scents, music of your choice. If not sure ask for time to consider your options. Usually there is plenty of time, don't let anyone rush you along. Good luck!

I chose to have an induction at term (40 weeks) twice over because of my professional experiences - I did not want to go overdue. Both were really positive experiences resulting in non instrumental vaginal deliveries and I remain very happy with my decision.

There is some evidence (ARRIVE study) that induction from 39/40 for low risk first time mothers is actually very slightly less likely to result in emergency caesarian section than waiting for labour to start naturally and having a longer pregnancy. Whilst of course you may end up with an emergency section (about 1/5 I think) I think this kind of evidence can help you to feel more confident that you haven't increased that risk by choosing induction.

I hope things will go well for you whatever way your baby is born. Feeling empowered to make your own decisions before and during labour is the most important thing, imo, to how you will feel about the birth - not necessarily the mechanics of how the baby is born which you may ultimately not have as much control over. I would recommend trying to feel open to all possibilities and recognising all possibilities as valid and special ways of having a baby.

Thank you for all your replies.

I have a supportive husband, regardless of how I birth baby I will be well looked after.

The c section would be a cat 3, so a non emergency, emergency due to having had my waters broken.

I really, really wanted a vaginal birth and hopefully fingers crossed I will labour naturally after the ARM. However, I'm scared of the drip due to reading lots of horror stories!

My baby is head down and back to my belly at the mo and has been for many weeks which hopefully will help them make their exit! In saying this, I am having a scan at 9am to look at the placenta, position and updated growth of baby as they were estimated to be 7lb 13oz 3 weeks ago!

As long as my baby arrives safely that is what matters.

Hi there it's a labour ward midwife again. I do appreciate you have read lots of horror stories about the hormonal drip. For some reason, women mostly post horror stories. As a labour ward midwife I use the oxytocin drip practically every shift I come to work. That's because I work in the obstetrician-led unit so most of the women are on the induction of labour pathway- for high blood pressure, gestational diabetes, reduced fetal movements, post dates, delays in labour- the list goes on. It's a safe medicine as you will have a midwife all to yourself. It doesn't change the mode of birth - that's decided by the baby's size and position and the size and shape of the woman's pelvis. If you are really scared of the pain you can insist on epidural before going on the hormonal drip. You don't have a large baby and the baby is back to front- these are the positives in my opinion. Good luck with whatever you decide!

Further to the earlier message- even if you baby isn't front to back at 9 am scan - it doesn't matter much. They change position in labour all the time. Both my labours started with a back to back baby and both were PROM (but not PROM and post dates)

Thank you for your replies.

After my scan, baby is now estimated to be 9lb 6oz and the fluid levels were not as expected. I am off to be tested to see if waters have already broken (I have certainly not noticed).

Baby is ok! And hopefully by the end of the day I will meet them. I would much prefer a vaginal birth and recovery so I am willing to give the drip a go I think!

Best of luck! I’d be tempted for a epidural if you go down the drip route and it’s deffo different to a natural onset labour (I’ve had both) and whatever happens you will have a beautiful baby!

Thank you for the update. Scans aren't always accurate especially after 36 weeks. So I am taking 9 pounds with a pinch of salt. Good luck!

Baby had significantly pooed and after a failure to progress at ARM. The decision was made to do a cat 2 c section. My whole birth plan different. Still very emotional about it all. I had a beautiful son, 8lb 12oz of loveliness at 41+6!

Congratulations and thank you for updating us! What a lovely big boy. I hope you are recovering well 💝