Induction tomorrow - Not sure if I'm doing the right thing.

[blackhawk]

I'm getting induced tomorrow at 40+11, but I'm not sure I'm doing the right thing.

In my area they prefer to induce at 40+10, but they've told me that I can refuse the induction as long as I go in to get monitored but I need to be induced by 40+14 which is Christmas Day.

I'm feeling tired now and there are no signs yet that I will go naturally on my own. I've had two unsuccessful sweeps post 40 weeks and I am currently only 1cm dilated and hardly effaced at all.

However, I feel like my body is cheating me out of going into labour naturally. I also worry that I am forcing my baby out before she is ready.

I just thought that by this stage I would know what I want but I'm really nervous and unsure. I don't know what advice people can offer me though. Just feeling a bit lost.

is it your first baby? if not then how long were your previous pg's? i think some people do just have longer pregnancies, which is ok.

personally I wouldn't have an induction, but I would accept monitoring.
you don't HAVE to be induced by 40+14 if you don't want to.

right now how do you feel? because if you really don't feel that it is what you want then you don't have to do it.

All mine have been induced (I have longer pregnancies), the longer you wait the easier your labour & birth should be. Book in for boxing day? Is this your first baby adn how sure are you of your dates?

Thanks for the reply thisisyesterday.

Yes, this is my first baby.

Right now I'm flip flopping. On one hand I've had a very difficult pregnancy and part of me is worried that the longer I go over the more dangerous it might be for little one. (I've had 5 episodes of bleeding through the pregnancy and premature labour at 28 weeks) However I know deep down this is all in my head as my consultant is happy for me to go to 40+14 if I insist, but they prefer to do inductions across the board at 40+10.

On the other hand I've always wanted to go naturally into labour and part of me feels like if she's not ready to be born yet then I don't want to force my body into it. I know due dates aren't 100% accurate.

Pregnancy wise, I don't feel that anything is happening. I'm not getting any niggles, twinges, nothing. I had a MW check me over yesterday and that's when I was told I was only just 1cm.

SleighGirl, I'm very sure of my dates as I know when I conceived but I have been told that not every baby is bang on 40 weeks so that due dates aren't the be all and end all.

it's hard isn't it? i don't think there is a right or wrong answer. yesm, there are risks of leaving it too long, but then if you are being monitored then anything untoward ought to be picked up.

hopefully some midwives or something will come along with some better advice lol.

i do know a couple of people who have gone to 43 weeks and had no probs at all. but anecdotal evidence doesn't really help i don't suppose

i mean term is considered to be 37-42 weeks isn't it??
so, you're not even that yet

Its so hard when your body starts to deviate from the "perfect" pregnancy . DD was breech - the hardest thing was trying to deal with the conflicting advice and opinions and try and work out what the actual risks of each course of action were.

For one thing, they're not being strictly accurate. You don't have to be induced at all if you don't want to, and nor do you have to go in for monitoring (although you may want to for the peace of mind) - if you feel fine, your baby is moving and you want to sit and wait then there is absolutely nothing that they can do about it other than support you whenever you do go into labour. I'm a member of the homebirth yahoo group and there are ladies on there that have had 2 or 3 children, always gone into labour naturally and never done so before 43 weeks - that's just what's normal for them.

Term is anywhere between 37 and 42 weeks, and I also read that the average gestation for a 1st baby is 41+3 - so a fair few women must go beyond that.

If you haven't come across it, this page from the homebirth website discusses issues around post-dates babies. Starting with "what is a post-date baby?" Most of it is relevant wherever you're planning on giving birth.

Hope you can find information to make an informed decision you are happy with. Fingers crossed your LO decides carols and Xmas trees are worth arriving quickly (and soon) for

also, i was wondering. if you chose to wait until you were 40+14, and then changed your mind would they be ok with that?
ie, if you cancel it tomorrow but decide on tuesday that actyually you want the induction would they take you in>?>

if so, and you aren't 100% i would cancel it and just see how you feel

Being sure of dates, I lied about dd2 and as the scan date was only 3 days out they still went by the lmp I had said. So when induced at 42+1 I was really 42+3 or thereabouts.

When it's your first baby I think it's harder to be more confident about the whole leave it past 42weeks thing. However 1cm is actually something for your first!!! I was 1cm 6 hours after induction with my 4th baby at 42 weeks!!!! Of course I was 1cm before I even got pregnant so zero had hapened!

Complete pain it being christmas this week, hang on until boxing day?

There is no "right" answer but from bitter experience being very relaxed and laid back about it does help IMHO. If you perhaps accept you will be induced on boxing day then it may actually relax you enough to help go into labour on your own?

Acupuncture?
Get your dh to give you lots of orgasms?
Get on your hands & knees and do some cleaning?

also, and this is just me wondering, not based on anything...
if your body is not ready to go into labour, and you are induced does it not make the induction process longer/harder?

just heard stories of people have X number of pessaries, then being put on drip and so on and so forth and this lasting a couple of days before anything happens. and of course it kind of begins the cascade of intervention
in which case I think i'd rather have been at home for a few days waiting patiently, iyswim?

i have no oidea if there is a correlation though

Thanks so much for all the replies, it really means a lot. I've tried talking to family about this, but I feel like no one knows where I'm coming from. I really appreciate people on here taking the time to reply to me and give advice.

TIY, I don't know about being able to change my mind. I'll make sure to ask them that tomorrow, thanks. They did offer to do a third sweep tomorrow in place of an induction plus monitoring. You're right that term is 37-42 weeks. I don't know why they induce at 40+10. They tell me it's due to health risks, but I haven't found any information to support that 40+14 is a significantly increased risk over 40+10.

Tangle, you're right. Sorting through the information is the hardest bit. Especially when not only are you feeling totally conflicting but people around you like family have their own opinions about what you should do. My husband thinks I should get induced because he sees it as giving baby a push in the right direction, and it's still a natural labour whereas I don't see it the same way. I feel it's more forcing labour to come on when the baby isn't ready. Thanks very much for that link too, it's very interesting and useful! I'm reading through it all just now.

TIY, I have been told similar, that being induced can lead to a harder labour as you're body doesn't have the build up of early labour and contractions so doesn't produce as much endorphins.

Thanks SleighGirl. When I spoke to a couple of people about how my sweep went they all made it sound like 1cm was bugger all, so actually hearing a different viewpoint makes me feel better. I'm just starting to feel like a failure for not being able to bring her into this world on my own which i know is not how I should think about induction, I think it's just hard because this is my first.

I've tried all of these 'natural' induction methods too! I've lost a lot of faith in them, as they've not even brought on braxton hicks! lol

I've had my inductions (in order of birth)

40+7 (they insisted I was 40+14 because of my lmp even though I def conceived about day 30 of my cycle, I had very long cycles - no early dating scans then)
It was a long & drawn out affair!
40+17 - same day
40 - at my insistance, again a long & drawn out affair that was a near failed induction!
40+14, absolutely fab, after the 2nd pessary it all got going she was born 4 hours later with an official 2 minute labour!

So IME the longer you wait the shorter the labour because everything is more ready.

Any info on your Mum's births as my Mum went really overdue too and they do reckon their is a correlation.

what i found really hard with my first especially was that once you get to 37/38 weeks you DO start thinking, hmmm it could start any day now.

then, there you are 4 weeks later still waiting and it just feels like an eternity.
and agree with 1cm being good! i was only 3cm when I was admitted with ds1 and that was after a good 6 hours or more of "proper" labour lol

I think if I was in your position I would go for the sweep tomorrow and then ask if you can be booked in for after christmas or something for induction (if that;s what you want)

blackhawk i was induced with ds m first and dd my 3rd but had naturallabour with my 2nd.
DD2 induction was much the same as dd1 labour just minus the one lot of gel.

I think 2 of my lo's just needed an extra push that dd1 didn't. I was 40+14 with no3!!

Good luck don't try and focus on the end result rather than feeling cheated and if you go in tom likely you will have your lo at home by xmas day! If not maybe ask for boxing day.

You can imagine my reaction when my bishops score was still 1 after 6 hours of pain. It was at this point 6pm, I'd been booked in for induction on that date since I was 15 weeks pregnant. I was like but it has to be born today I don't like the date 19th, I want an even number - I hadn't even started on the gas & air at this point.

I also think my body shape stops the baby sitting on my cervix which is why it is so reluctant to dilate. With my last one it dilated from nothing to crowning in about 6 contractions, just a shame it never started off on its own.

I've never had braxton hicks either.

blackhawk there are newer statistical analyses that say 40+10 is where the risk starts to increase (and not 40+14 as previously calculated). On that basis I think the NICE guidelines were changed (or at least it was recommended they were changed, I don't know if it was actually done)

I found all this info after I lost my DD - was desperate for an induction at 41 weeks because my mum lost a baby at 42 weeks but was told I had to wait till 42 weeks and my DD was stillborn. I know this is anecdotal and many women do do fine at 42 weeks and beyond, but these threads do make me feel queasy. TBH. if it were me I'd feel that things can get overlooked at Xmas time owing to staff leave etc. and I personally would prefer to have an induction booked, because in a very overstretched ward, you might not be able to get an induction date exactly when you want. What if you decide you'll wait a bit longer and they say they can't fit you in for a few days. This does happen, though it's a scandal and shouldn't. How far over would you be prepared to go?

mrsgboring. I do agree there is a risk with waiting. I thought long and hard with my last pregnancy about whether to go to 43 weeks. My consultant said she would let me especially with my history but they have all had to deal with stillbirths at post 42 weeks, I just didn't want to risk being the one. The issue with monitoring is that things can go downhill in 24 hours in between monitoring, babies can die that quickly.

Again focus on having a healthy baby not that induction is failure.

Certianly with any history of stillbirth in my family I'd have been down there sooner. I know too many friends who've had stillbirths at 37+ weeks, one at 42+5

The mortality rate of babies (and mums) used to be much much higher, it is intervention in part that has brought these death rates down.

hard choice I know.

Its so hard and there is no right answer - you need to factor in your personal circumstances and family history to try and find the best answer for you. Having a healthy baby is obviously important - but so is your peace of mind, and fundamental to that is being reconcilled with what happens and understanding the decisions that have been made.

mrsgboring - I'm sorry you have the pain of losing your DD . Do you have any refs for the statistical analyses you mention? I've just had a look at the current NICE guidelines (updated July 2008). I haven't read them through in detail, but from what I can see they've considered a number of studies done over the last 10 years and have found that whilst risks for the baby do increase past 40 weeks gestation, they increase gradually with no distinct point where risks increase faster. It would be interesting to know whether they considered the studies you're referring to.

I think I personally would keep the induction booked for now - you can always cancel (even on the day) if you decide its not right, but it gives you more options.

I went to 40 + 14. Midwife was convinced I was about to go, but didn't. The induction was swift and painless. Three pessaries did the trick. My waters were broken, but labour was underway by this point. 5hr labour, large baby 8lb 11oz, ventouse delivery and cut as DS head was big! I, like you wanted to go naturally, but it wasn't happening. DS healthy.

Tangle, sorry I have no idea where I found them, now. That period is all a bit blurry in my memory (and it was 2004 so things may have moved on since then too)

Sorry. Try looking at the Cochrane Collaboration - that's one of the highest quality sources of info on allthings medical.

Good luck Blackhawk... thinking of you - and hope it works out ok for you whatever you decide. Nothing really to add, except know how you are feeling as I'm now 6 days overdue and getting really fed up of waiting. The whole Christmas thing just seems to put an extra pressure on the whole situation, which doesn't help... if it wasn't for that, I'm sure I'd feel a lot more relaxed about when things might happen etc - silly really... but there you go!

ps - there was another thread last week about ideas for overdue babies - a lot of people raving about acupuncture - might be worth a go???

Blackhawk hope your baby is in your arms very soon indeed x

Thanks for all the replies, I appreciate it.

I've decided to go for the induction, so will be leaving here to go to the hospital at 6pm. I did a lot of talking with my husband and my midwife and although I feel like I am almost giving up at the end my husband reminded me that I have carried her safely (which was sometimes hard to do!) for the last 41 weeks and just because I need help at the end doesn't mean I've somehow failed.

My midwife also spoke about the new guidelines that mrsgboring mentioned above and as it's my first baby I've come to the decision that I should listen to my midwife.

I'm still not 100% sold on the idea, but I feel better about it after talking to you ladies and my husband and midwife, so thank you so much.

Good luck Blackhawk. Of course you haven't failed. It's all about having the baby - however that happens.