Induction: scrap the birth plan?

[runlolarun10]

I'm 41+10 and have resigned myself to being induced on Friday I made the rookie error of thinking that because I've had a good pregnancy I would just breathe and bathe the baby out at the birthing centre and be home within a few hours
I now have a lovely 'natural' birth plan printed out and stapled into the back of my notes that will be of little use when I'm strapped to a bed and attached to a drip.
The thing I'm scared most about is that I feel like the control will be taken away from me once the birth becomes a medical procedure and I will have no choices about anything. Are there choices to be made or will it just be that I have to follow the hospital's protocol for what I have to have to start labour and when? In short, can I do anything to help 'plan' my induction or do I need to just 'go with the flow'?What would you have wanted to know before you were induced?
Thanks

I was induced because waters broke but no contractions so infection risk.

I felt I had lots of choices but all of them made themselves. Eg 'your baby's heartbeat is dropping can we monitor it to check it's ok?' - um, yes you can.

I also felt all the disadvantages of an epidural were there anyway once induced eg being monitored and on drip and in bed, so you may as well take the epidural from the beginning and be comfortable and compus mentis.

I was induced with my 3rd, only got on the bed to deliver (upright on my knees). My movement was only limited to the length of cable on the heart monitor as the drip was on a wheely thing. That said I didn't have an epidural.

You'll have a say re: painkillers, so I said no pethidine or meptid. I think a lot depends on your midwife (although that must be true of any birth!), mine was very good so got the epidural topped up when I needed it, and recommended what to do rather than instructing me. Towards the end the consultant said I should have a ventouse, the midwife and I/DP agreed to try pushing for another half hour. So don't expect to follow your birth plan, but you can still have some control :)

PS and you may not need a drip, pessaries may work and if they start the contractions off you might not need anything else!

I was induced with my second and it was a very positive experience

I felt like you initially but got some great advice from my nct teacher which changed my mindset.

The key points were:

You can still have lots of control. Even with continuous monitoring you can be upright and mobile, just not walk quite as far! Some hospitals even have wireless monitors - worth asking.

Remember all the birth position, breathing and relaxation techniques as they still apply.

Make sure you walk around as much as possible after having the pessary and having your waters broken - it helps to get things started and you may not even need the drip.

All the usual pain relief options apart from waterbirth are available to you. I used a tens machine and and air.

Finally I found it really useful to search for positive induction stories on mumsnet - there are quite a few threads.

Good luck

Ps. Like woolyjo I only got on the bed to deliver, on my hands and knees. Midwife wanted me on my back but I refused

Another positive experience here I was on my feet walking around the room with the drip attached (for hydration) up until I had my epidural it doesn't necessarily mean you will be strapped to the bed even when you're being monitored. I had the pessary at 8pm which worked first time, was 4cms by the time I was examined at 8am the next morning. The contractions were nothing like I thought it would be more discomfort than pain I chose an epidural because I wimped out when we got 8 cm although at that point it still wasn't what I would consider painful. After that I was very glad I have it as ended up with the forceps delivery because I got a temperature they weren't sure if from the interventions or the fact when they went to break my waters they had already gone and we didn't know .

Although my labour was what some people would consider highly medicalised I am completely positive about the whole experience I was taken care of really well and to be honest my birth plan was only written in the first place because I felt I needed to have one and it never left the Bag.

Good luck

positive experience here, i was induced for all 5 of mine and still had the labours i wanted, natural, upright, moving around, gas and air and actually had ds4 in the birth pool. even with no 5 when i needed the drip (didnt with the others) i stayed mobile and coped with gas and air and delivered in an upright position.

great to have a birth plan but yes be prepared for every eventuality.

oh and how overdue will you be when they want to induce you? most places now do it at term plus 14 but you dont have to be induced if you dont want to be, you can ask for expectant management if you like, so they will check you and check baby etc, there is plenty of info on that on mnet, might be worth having a look, but if you are happy to be induced then that is fine and good luck, fingers crossed it all goes smoothly for you :)

even iwth the drip and moniter you dont need to be on the bed btw, they might prefer it but holdyour ground, you can sit on a birth ball etc and still stand up and move about, its more swkward but it can be done!

Sorry, I should have said I'm 40+10, not 41+10! I will be 40+14 when induced on Friday.
Thanks for your advice and experiences so far. It's reassuring to know that I won't necessarily be strapped to a bed and can still stay mobile.
One of the things I'm most worried about though is that I'll scream for an epidural at the first opportunity. At the birth centre it wouldn't have been a possibility, but obviously in the hospital I'm more likely to opt for one as it's readily available and I'm more likely to need one from what I've read as the whole experience is faster/more intense. I know you don't get a badge for not having an epidural: it's more that I fear it will lead to further interventions and more time spent in hospital when I wanted to get out of there as fast as I could.
5madthings I would actually go for the expectant management route, but I feel there is so much pressure and expectation from friends and family expecting their first grandchild that I couldn't disappoint them even more!

get hoovering and mopping! you have plenty of time to avoid induction ;-)

I was induced with DC2 and it was really no different to the birth of DC1, just the way it was started off. I had a sweep and then the pessary and that was all that was needed, so after that point(and the monitoring equipment had been removed) I was free to go for a walk, get in the bath and do whatever I pleased. I had G&A as requested and was never dictated to as to how I had to do things. My birth plan was kept to as much as it can be with any birth (there will alway be minor alterations) and DH got to announce the sex of the baby, cut the cord and I got skin to skin, fed straight away and had a lovely bath an hour later!

Hopefully you will go into labour naturally between now and Friday, but if you are induced, then it needn't be a negative experience. Good luck!

I was induced with DS2 after my waters went and was only contracting irregularly. I was expecting gel, pessaries, drip etc. The reality was one dose of the gel at 10.30am and 5 hours later I was holding a newborn! No pain relief at all, no intervention.

runlola get that feeling out of your head, you arent disappointing them the baby WILL be born, its just a matter of when, by all means go ahead and get induced on fir if you are HAPPY to do so BUT if you want to wait a bit then go for exepectant management, i did it andyes family moaned a bit, but ultimately what a few more days, the baby will be born. all 5 of mine were overdue and they are the only grandchildren on one side of the family and there was lots of 'havent you had that baby yet' etc etc i just smiled and ignored and said they will turn up when they turn up.

yes it can be faster and more intense but not necessarily and that doesnt mean you will need an epidural. make sure your dh knows to support you and speak to the midwife and say 'encourage me to do without an epidural' if you want them to do that, most midwives can tell if you can be encouraged along or if you really need one and if you do then it doesnt matter. i can understand the concern about cascade of interventions etc, yes that is a risk but it doesnt happen to everyone. unfortunately you cant predict birth, but fingers crossed yours goes well.

have your plan, discuss it well with your dh and midwife etc, and you can always change your mind depending on how things go.

good luck :)