40+5 any tips?

[Spuddybean]

I've posted on here before about not wanting my baby out, about how much i love being pg and have i want to keep it in there forever...

So the baby has clearly heard this and is refusing to budge. What shall i do?

I've tried walking, sex, pineapple, don't know what else to do...

spuddy my contractions were on and off as well. Officially due tomorrow so I 'm not overdue yet, had some every 7 minutes on Tuesday 12am-3.30am, took some paracetamol to try to get some sleep, then nothing the next day. Last night there were some every 10 minutes, took some paracetamol to try to get some sleep, the pain woke me up at 3am, had more paracetamol and slept till 7am. Then it became irregular. Maybe I shouldn't take the paracetamol ...

any tips of how to get the contractions going and get into active labour please share!!

Macaroons - that was similar with me, i took paracetemol and had a bath and they stopped. But that's what the MW and hospital suggest. Also i don't really know how to ascertain the pain i should be in - I have always had brutal periods and had to have codeine for them, so i can't work out if my contractions are strong or not as they just feel like bad period pains. Maybe i have built up a pain threshold for that type of pain (i'm a complete baby if i cut my finger tho).

Peerie - I am booked into a nice birth centre but if i need to be induced or go past 12 days i need to have the baby in the labour ward of the local hospital :( . I really don't want that.

My MW is utter utter shite too and wont get back to me about a sweep. She keeps forgetting who i am too and saying things like you are only 28 weeks, er NO I"M NOT. Or texting me to say i missed an app an hour after i have seen her.

Jus to give you some hope, I had on and off contractions for 48 hours with my DS. All stopped completely for about 5 hours, then went into labour proper, which was 5.5 hours start to finish, 7cm on arrival at hospital and pushing an hour later. So frustrating and exhausting as it was having prelabour, my body clearly knew what it was doing and was just limbering up as it were. DS born at 40+13.
Hope it all starts properly soon. Best of luck.

thanks for the reassurance, marmite

spuddy I'll try not to take any paracetamol tonight in case that's what's stopping the contraction, hope that will help! Hope your baby will come out soon!

should we be lying down / walking around when there're contractions? would being active help?

Last night when i walked they were more painful but when i sat down the stopped. The hospital said try to rest as much as possible but the moment i rest the contractions stop aarrrrggh

Oh and stay away from the bath - nothing like it for stopping those contractions!!

Why do they tell you to have a bath then? GGRRRR Sorry just really angry now.

I understand some people get lots of pain relief from it, but also quite a lot of people find, like me, that it stops contractions all together. First bath I thought probably just coincidence, second time realised my mistake!
Hope your lovely DC arrives soon...the wait is soooo worth it!

Poor DP has had it in his birth plan. Every time he runs thru the 'routine' his main thing (from nct classes) is 'run you a bath'.

I have told him if it all kicks off again tonight then no baths!

I found the difference between latent and established labour was less to do with an increase in pain and more a case of entering a different state of consciousness (that makes me sound all woo ). The contractions all piled on top of one another and it felt quite spacey.

Hope things get moving for you soon.

I feel for you. I'm 40+9 and have tried everything! Booked in for induction on Tuesday, but hoping I go into labour before then!

How's everyone today?

I am raging. After another night of early labour which stopped at 8am. I can't get hold of my MW and have been leaving messages for 3 days now.

This is where the system massively falls down. There is no join up whatsover. So if one link in the chain is broken you are in a kafkaesque nightmare.

Basically everything has to go thru the community MW. SHe has to refer me, i cannot go to the labour ward or docs about my pregnancy. The docs surgery have nothing to do with pregnancy at all now. So I am supposed to have this close relationship with MW who is my advocate and always there on hand for advice and help. But she's not. She has never called me back in the whole pregnancy, she forgets who i am, and when my baby is due.

So now i am 9 days overdue and been in 'labour' for 4 days - she hasn't checked to see if i am okay and i have been calling and texting since weds morning about having a sweep. Now it's the weekend and if i don't have one this afternoon then i have to wait till Monday.

If i get to 14 days over i will need to be induced - which is considered medicalisation. Where i am having the baby will not do a medicalised birth so i will have to have the baby in a hospital. So i want a sweep now to see if i can get the baby moving.

I have called the labour ward and they tell me my MW is on duty and 'should' respond and that even tho MW's work separately they are affiliated/attached to each doctors surgery. So according to them my surgery should intervene and get hold of her on my behalf. I have called the surgery and they have said they don't get involved and have nothing to do with her/pregnancies. I have explained the circs and they still have no recourse at all.

They also inform me they have had lots of complaints about her over this! GREAT! They have also suggested i put my concerns in writing - Brilliant! But what to i do NOW?

All they can do is try leaving a message for her too.

I have said no. If she doesn't call in an hour the Dr is to call the labour ward and TELL them they are to do a sweep this afternoon.

The last thing i actually want now is for the lazy cow to come round and give me an internal. I am so angry with the whole system.

dont do castor oil its really dangerous!!! you only have to google that to see how dangerous it is now!! im going to be unhelpful as i think the baby wont come till its ready sorry!! i took raspberry leaf tea from week 32 and i had a really short labour and i had a sweep at 40 + 5 days then went straight into labour. i tried curry sex pineapple bouncing on a ball but he just wasn't ready!

Spuddy I really feel for you, having been overdue twice before.

Can you try sex again? Sorry for tmi, but, er, fairly vigourously, and doggy position. Surely at this stage anything is worth a shot to avoid the MW, let alone get the baby out?!

Well the doctor where the MW is registered has tried getting hold of her, as have the labour ward. But she appears to be AWOL (quite common apparently). The sister at the labour ward has said she will try to get another MW out to me this avo, if not they will see me in the ward for a sweep in the morning.

No to sex - i am in so much pain now. Everything hurts.

Can you phone and speak to the supervisor of midwives at the hospital spuddy? Every midwife has a direct supervisor

Well i think that's what the doctor has done which is why they are trying to rally another MW. I am just so upset. She has really made my pregnancy much more stressful than need be.

Apparently they have had numerous complaints about her and had a meeting with her and her manager 3 weeks ago, where all these exact issues were addressed.

I understand people are overworked but her attitude has been appalling. This is my 1st pregnancy and i am scared and stressed and she has just been so dismissive. It's not like i have been demanding either. I feel totally unsupported or cared for. No one will step up and take any kind of initiative or responsibility.

They have all batted this situation back to me to contact the MW. The fact that i am now so stressed and never want to see her again is completely irrelevant. They have their bureaucratic process and that's that. There is no common sense where any of them can override this.

I had to get myself virtually hysterical before they would even consider doing anything.

It's very wrong. You should be heading in to this as relaxed as possible. Can you do something nice to try and relax? Go have your hair done or something?

At the moment i am housebound as we are waiting for the Labour ward to call about another MW coming to do the sweep.

DP went out a bit ago to get 'something for work' with a bit of a wink - so i thought he was getting me some flowers or a present. But he came back with a memory stick :(

Men! I know it's really really hard but please try and get in a positive place, you will meet your baby really soon. You can deal with this mw after

She's just called to say she is coming round to do the sweep. I don't have the energy to argue.

is constant pain normal? I am just in agony. Sporadic contractions but in between is a real deep ache. I can't bend or move.

Spuddy so sorry to hear what you are going through. I feel angry on your behalf just reading your posts. Sounds like things are getting underway for you though so you might be further along than you think or have a shorter active stage because of all the prep your body is doing now. Thinking of you and hoping you have a baby in your arms by this time tomorrow!

Deep ache sounds like things are really moving, did the mw say what your cervix is like ?

Just had the sweep. My cervix is soft but not dilated at all. Baby seems fine. MW recommends baths and paracetamol and has booked me in for induction on Monday. I am quite relieved - at least there is an end in sight.

If i have the induction it will be at the local hospital - which i didn't want - but i can still have a water birth which i am happy about.

What a horrible stressful day. DP taking me out for a drive now.

Thanks for all your support :)