Experiences of refusing / delaying induction once you?ve gone overdue?

[naomilpeb]

I?m 32 weeks with DC2 at the moment, and am starting to think about whether there are things I?d like to do differently this time round with the birth. To try and be brief: last time the intention was to go to the midwife-led centre attached to our local hospital and try for a drug-free birth. Things ? needless to say! ? didn?t go as planned and I went two weeks overdue, was admitted for an induction, but didn?t get one till three days later (it was over New Year so they were short-staffed). Anyway, I was dilated to the extent that there was no point giving me a pessary (it fell out!), and although I was having contractions they were very very faint and completely irregular. My waters broke themselves but it didn?t start labour properly. A midwife later suggested that they may have broken ?before they were ready? because of all the internal exams I was having (nice!). I then had the full induction drip, epidural, strapped up to monitors etc, and although DD had to be ventoused out when her heartbeat went funny, it was all ok in the end. Not a particularly pleasant experience though, DD was in a lot of pain from the ventouse battle, and still has a little scar on her head 18 months on .

Part of me wonders whether if I had been encouraged to wait longer before going in for the induction, and spent three or four days at home doing useful things like bouncing on a ball, going for long walks and running up and down stairs, instead of moping around the ante-natal ward grumpy and bored, DD would have decided to come out of her own accord. I know that nothing can be said for certain, but I wonder whether the way things went didn?t help. And whether my babies just need/like that bit longer to cook?

So, my question is ? do any of you have experience of asking not to be induced as soon as the two weeks overdue are up? I?d be happy to go to the hospital everyday for the baby to be monitored. How long did they ?let? you go overdue? Do you think it?d be really risky?

Thanks for any thoughts!

The only person I know to refuse induction was my cousin. She had a similar experience to yours with her first, and decided with number two, to go against the midwives advice, and wait til she went into labour.

She was nearly 43 weeks when she went into labour, as soon as she had monitors put on her at hospital, it was found that the baby was in distress, and she had to have an EMCS. The baby was really poorly, and spent his first week in SCBU. There was a name for what had happened, but I can't remember what it was, but basically meant he had been in there too long, and the placenta had started to fail.

Sorry this isn't a very positive story. Hopefully someone will come along with better news!

I was induced in much the same way as you with DD1 and ended up with a bruised and battered baby from a forceps delivery. I am determined that I don't want it to happen again so am starting by seeing the senior hospital midwife tomorrow to talk through DD's birth and where it went wrong / what can be done differently this time. I have no idea if it will be helpful or make any difference but I figured I had to start somewhere!

I refused to be induced when DS1 was two weeks overdue. My mother had died a month before and I just wanted to be left alone really. I was asked to go in for a daily scan, which I did happily as St Mary's Hospital was just a five minute drive away and was told that they could leave the induction another week unless problems were picked up on one of the scans.

On the day of induction my waters broke as I got out of the car. No need for the induction but I was in labour for two days and then ended up with heart failure. It was an undetected condition (Sudden Arrhythmic Death Syndrome) which was a time bomb waiting to go off really but the long pregnancy and then difficult labour triggered it. With hindsight I was incredibly lucky to have gone overdue as it meant my heart failure happened in hospital rather than when I was running for a bus or whatever.

In your position I'd explain what happened last time and that you are not prepared to take up a hospital bed unnecessarily again but that you'd be happy to come into the hospital every day and be scanned or monitored.

Hi there, here is a link in birth stories of post dates pregnancy and refusal of induction of labour www.homebirth.org.uk/overdue.htm#bs

Thank you all very much, I appreciate the different perspectives! Sorry about your cousin's baby PauloNutella, I hope he's ok now.