Being 'late'/induction

[Eulalia]

As some of you will know I am pregnant, if not ?overly? pregnant now being over 41 weeks. I have the option of a cervical sweep tomorrow and a date for induction on the 15th when I will be 2 weeks late. (This was actually moved forward on my request from the 11th).

I wanted to hear others views on being late in general and experiences of a cervical sweep and/or induction.

Personally I feel the medical profession are somewhat obsessed with dates and seem keen to get the baby out of you as soon after the 40 week mark. This doesn?t take into account the differing lengths of ?monthly? cycles and the natural tendency for pregnancy to be longer than 40 weeks.

Also I am tired of people phoning me up asking if I?ve had the baby yet and feeling rather stupidly like a failure just because I?ve not produced. I feel that when the baby does come it will be less of a joyous occasion to others who will say things like ?at last?. Again I am sure I am being irrational here! I am starting to get a bit nervous too obviously about the birth feeling that something might be wrong (more irrationality). I?ve been very good about not dwelling on it but as time passes it is obviously ?hanging over me? and I do want to get it over with. I guess I will laugh about all of this later on.

Oh no Eulalia, you'll never guess what I just did? I wrote you a really long sympathetic reply and then erased it before I posted it. And you think you've got problems LOL!!!!!!! Will rewrite it and send it again later. In the meantime, thinking of you and sending you my best wishes x

hi Eulalia. I was induced at 40 weeks due to having gestational diabetes. I was given pessaries (i think i've spelt that right) and needed it twice before labour started (some people need more). I found labour very painful and have been told by others that with an induction the pain does seem to be stronger - but as this was my first pregnancy i can't confirm that. I gave birth in 6 hours and coped with gas and air and pethdine. I think different hospitals have different ways of inducing so it is best to check what your hospitals policy is. I am pregnant with my second baby - just 4 weeks to wait - and no diabetes - so I won't be induced - in some ways I'm relieved and pleased to let nature to take its course but on the other hand i am feeling really heavy and would like the waiting to be over. I can understand your irration of being asked all the time about the baby but I don't think it will make the babys arrival any less joyous.
Hope this helps and good luck.

eulalia - out of my nct class I think at 9 out of 10 were late. most of us were 10 - 12 days late, two of us giving birth on the induction date! I think the threat of induction makes you get on with it, in the end. I was 12 days late, and lobster finally did the trick for me. It was that or sex, as lobster and sperm bomannath have the same inducing hormone, and believe me, at my size neither me nor my husband fancied the sex good luck!

Eulalia- I am responding on 2 fronts here. As a mum I had a cervical sweep with my second baby and it certainly did the trick. I was actually due the following day but was being induced because of a problem with my pregnancy. It certainly was a bit uncomfortable but worth it because labour started that night about midnight (cervix swept at 3pm!).
As a midwife I would like to reassure you that going 2 weeks over your date is not unusual. You are spot on about lengths of cycles etc. If your pregnancy has been uncomplicated then there is no reason why you can't be left longer if that is what you wish. At my hospital we have consultants who have left women almost to 43 weeks.
Have you tried natural methods of induction? A bit of passion can do the trick but takes quite a bit of effort ( on reflection I think I preferred the cervical sweep!!)
My dad always used to say "when the apple is ripe it will drop"
Good luck. Hope something happens for you soon.

Eulalia, I've been induced twice. First time at 41wks+4. I had my waters ruptured and was given oral prostaglandin. Baby arrived four hours later after an easy labour. Second time was at my request at 41wks. I had one dose of prostaglandin gel, started labour 6hrs later and gave birth 9 hrs after that with no problems, although it was more painful.

Good luck - I'm looking forward to hearing your news, partly because I'm in your neck of the woods, near Aberdeen!

Really have to agree with Mears, Eulalia. At our hospital too, women are usually induced between 12 - 14 days post dates. However, if all is well, there really is no immediate rush, and ladies can be left a bit longer (as Mears suggested, to nearly 3 wks post dates), with some monitoring of you and babe between times.
Don't be afraid to push for what you want Eulalia - its your body and your baby. I'd also like to say how refreshing it is to hear from a lady who does not want to be induced! At my clinics at the moment, all I seem to be doing is explaining to women why they cannot be induced at 37/38/39 weeks because they are 'fed up'. You'd be amazed!
On a positive note, should you get to the induction stage, you'll probably respond well to the process, having laboured before. Hopefully tho', it won't be necessary.
Oh, and take the phone off the hook - either that or record an answer machine message - "Hi, this is Eulalia, and no, I haven't delivered, and I'm not at the hospital!" Good Luck!

I have been induced , although I was 4 weeks early not late, but it was less hassle than i was expecting. Gel pessary in the mornig and when they examined me a few hours later i was 4 cm so they broke my waters and then i delivered in 22minutes. Don't know if that is a normal rate or not though as I do have precipitous labours. Ds and me were fine, no stitches , and i was up and about as usual.

Eulalia, I was induced with my second. The doctor gave me the gel and things progressed from there. It was pretty easy, but I couldn't tell you about the relative pain as I had epidurals both births.

The one thing I remember from the "How to Induce Yourself" thread or whatever it was called (and this has to be wrong) was the suggestion of having sex with fresh pineapple curry to get things going. I'm not sure that would work, or, truthfully, even how that would work.

Eulalia - I know just what you mean about the phone calls. I got to the stage of wanting to answer the phone, say "No I haven't had it yet" and hang up! I was induced 15 days after my due date and dd was born 36 hours later. I had pessaries (if you get to having these and they're on a string, make sure they tape it to your leg - they can fall out and you won't notice - mine did!) which got things moving overnight, but then everything stopped after 12 hours. I had my waters broken, then ended up on a oxytocin (?) drip with an epidural - apparently the drip can kick things off quite quickly and is usually more than your body is ready for so suddenly!!

I dilated very very slowly so spent a very dull 16 hours attached to drips, epidurals and monitors with not a lot happening. Dd turned out to be a large baby (9lb 12 oz) and in a difficult positions so, eventually after forceps etc, dd was born by emergency caesarian.

The birth was an "experience" but I guess that wasn't entirely due to the induction - I could have had a slow labour naturally, or could have been induced and popped her out in the birthing pool following induction (so much for birth plans)!

A few people I know have gone into labour spontaneously on the day of being induced. Amazing isn't it the things that are meant to start labour off - someone told me fresh pineapple was a definite winner, so I nearly emptied Tesco's stock, but to no avail!

One way or another your baby is going to come into the world, even if it does need a bit of encouragement. Hope it all goes smoothly and painlessly - good luck!

My experience of having no.1 was similar to mears. Went to hosp for 41 wk overdue appt, cervical sweep performed about 10.30am, felt mild contractions about 5pm and baby born 5am next morning. Found the sweep painful, but then compared to the pain of the actual childbirth bit, it was more like stubbing your toe! Good Luck for tomorrow

Hi Eulalia, I have v much sympathy with you at the moment, I was 15 days overdue with dd. My waters broke on the 20th and I didn't have her til the 23rd!

I was going as mad as a hatter, trying everything to bring on labour (apart from my dear old Nana's suggestion of jumpng hard off a dining chair - oh, to have lived in the good old days!) But to no avail. When my waters did break they had to keep me in the labour ward as there was a risk of infection and I felt as though I'd moved in by the end of it. I got to know every individual midwife and what rota they were working!

I had been booked in for an induction on the morning of my waters breaking so when I got there they told me they wouldn't induce as I would probably go into labour on my own - WRONG! I had v slight twinges that weren't turning into anything so eventually the doctor decided (after the midwife kindly mentioned to her that my waters broke a couple of days before) to induce and so I was given the gel. 10 hours later still nothing so they gave me some more....still nothing! My dd was quite happy where she was thankyouverymuch! Eventually was hooked up to drip of oxytocin (? at least I THINK that's what you call it, correct me if I'm wrong) Basically it gives you contractions like it or not. This meant I had to be hooked up to monitor to make sure baby wasn't distressed so couldn't walk around which annoyed me but really was pleased things were finally starting - talk about a performance!

Eventually dd flew into world (midwife had to literally catch her as she came out!) after 5 hours on drip - not bad really, just wish they had been my 'own' contractions as they had to turn drip down because I wasn't coping with the strength at one point.

I'm convinced that I'll go over with any more I have (my mum had 2 inductions but her one natural labour was 14 days over) but I'll try and hang on longer before intervention I think (easy for me to say now I know.) But I agree completely with your views on the medical profession's obsession with dates - and so does my midwife mother
Really excited for you, can't believe its gone so fast. Good luck and best wishes X

I can't believe though that they let women go over by up to 3 weeks...I thought there was a risk to the baby as the placenta becomes less effective after a time? I could be wrong, and I would be interested to get a midwifes/gp's pov on this...

I was induced with number two only 5 days overdue (I think the doctor wanted to go away for Easter ) and actually found it "better" than my first birth experience, where I felt horribly out of control and it seemed to take forever. I had the drip in the morning at about 9am, nothing much happened til they turned it up and whammo I was in labour, it was fast and strong, but before I knew it I was pushing, and he was born around 1pm.

So for me being induced was a positive experience. Whether that is due to my first one being less than ideal, or whether it's because there is just less "fear of the unknown" with second/third births, I'm not sure.

Thinking of you Eulalia, hope it all happens for you soon!

My story is the same as Jinna's, I was induced on my EDD due to diabetes (insulin dependent). I had 2 goes with the pessaries (overnight then again i the morning) but no drip. I dilated very quickly and labour was 4hrs 29mins! Not overly painful, just gas & air required although I was seriously lacking in the stamina to push. For that reason I was glad I was induced and labour didn't go on longer.

Eulalia, I really do feel for you. I was sick to death of people phoning me before DD was born to see if she'd arrived yet. She was 9 days late. It's so silly. Do they not think they'll hear from you as and when it happens ! I actually gave up answering the phone and just left it on ans machine.
My dd was 10 days late. I was due to go in for induction on the Wednesday evening and she came naturally on the Tuesday evening. I think it was because I finally resigned myself to being induced and the fact that I had to wait till Weds night whereas before I was constantly thinking about when it might happen and was sort of obsessed with it. As soon as I relaxed and thought there's nothing I can do about the whole thing she came.
Once she came I realised how I'd wished I hadn't wished my last few days of peace, quite and total self indulgence, not to mention sleep, away !
Hope you feel better. Baby will come when it's good and ready.

Most people I speak to are more often late than early. Ds arrived on his due date so I dont have any experiance of induction but with no2 I have had 3 dates so far, the one I worked out, the midwifes and now from the scan 2nd October instead of 18/9, so I just feel your edd is just that and the baby will arrive when ready. I would definately put a message on the answer machine.
Good luck with what ever you decide to do and I look forward to hearing your announcement soon.

Thanks very much for your responses, they have been really helpful. I do have a vague dull pain this morning but it may just be wind (lol!). I had a really bad pain a couple of weeks ago and that?s all it turned out to be. Got the midwife at 2pm and still swithering about the sweep. I was told that if it didn?t work within 48 hours then it wouldn?t at all. I may ask if I can get another appointment for it to be done on Friday and that gives me the weekend for it to work (or not) and then I?ve got the induction on Monday.

Indeed there is no medial reason for intervention. I was 8 days late with my son and as it turned out it was probably nature?s way of saying he should stay in there to mature and grow as he turned out to be only 6lbs 2oz. My placenta was quite ?skinny? though but was obviously functioning OK.

After reading these messages I am feeling more reassured about things not going wrong and I am concentrating on holding a little baby very soon. Will keep you posted!

PS I don't have an answering machine!

I heard somewhere that elsewhere in Europe, full term is assumed to be 42wks...so most women deliver either on time or before EDD. Is this correct? I was given a sweep (ouch) a week after EDD which did the trick that night, but I would have been induced at ten days over if that didn't work. I feel rather uneasy about the number of inductions that take place....surely the number of people who go over indicate that perhaps the little buns need more cooking??!
(I was quite relieved to be over...another week of freedom lolling on the sofa reading trashy novels!!)

Having a baby in Spain, full term was worked out at 40 weeks, but I was actually 2half weeks overdue when I had ds.

Luckily the technology is so good now that I went for a check every two days, to check placenta, amount of fluid, movement of baby etc. after my due date.

As there were no problems I went on to have ds naturally. He wasnt too big (which was my concern!) so obviuosly just wasnt ready to come before.

Tjhis seems to be the norm over here, rather than being induced. And can someone tell me - what is a sweep?

Im sure everything will be fine Eulalia - I remember that impatient feeling when all my friends had been through their births and I was still waiting.

Let us know when you have some news, Art

I was induced at 40wks +10 days. I have to say that it wasn't a particularly pleasant experience as it didn't really seem to have effect at first.They were using protoglandin gel. I went in to the hospital on the Saturday and had 2 doses on the Saturday, sent to the ward to sleep, a further 2 doses on the Sunday, back to the ward to sleep, Monday - day of rest since it hadn't worked - kept in hospital though. Tuesday 2 more doses - sent to ward to sleep - labour finally beginning to kick in in night - 9 am Wed still only 3cm dilated so waters broken and oxytocin drip given.
I have to say that next time (assuming I do have another) I will try my utmost to avoid induction unless they can actually find some way of showing me that it is necessary.
I know that this is not the usual experience - but I'm told that protoglandin gel rarely works the first time and several doses are often needed.
Good luck woth everything - and hold out for what feels right to you

My experience is much like Craftycat's. By the time dd was born by emergency c section, I felt like I had been at it for days. I am dreading having to be induced with no 2, so i was quite cheered that it has been an easier process for others.

A cervical sweep was attempted but as I was a)nowhere near ready and b) it bloody hurt. It was stopped.

My nan got the prize for being most annoying (though she meant well), she seemed to phone every day and recommend castor oil. I never got quite that desperate!

Good luck Eulalia, indulge yourself with the peace you have and the little one will be with you before you know it.

whats a cervical sweep? Sounds dreadful!

I think I tried everything with DD, Rasperry leaf tea by the gallon, nipple tweaking, sex, nothing worked !!

DON'T try Castor Oil! My mum did this with one of my brothers. It bloody works but it works elsewhere as well, if you get my drift.

I had a very hot chilli when I was 7 days over - she was born the next day. However, that could have been due to the sweep - very ouch! After saying I didn't want to be induced my doctor asked, very rhetorically, 'Would I like an internal?' Since the midwife was nodding to me in a conspiratorial way, I agreed. Was told I was then 2cm dilated but not sure if that was before or after sweep!

A cervical sweep is where the cervical membranes are 'swept' I think just with the fingers to stimulate the cervix. Apparently (according to the clinic here) it can work in many cases and thus prevent the possibly more interventive methods such as induction.

Saw midwife this afternoon. I am having Braxton-Hicks contractions which may not mean anything in itself but is a good sign. Baby is still well down, good heartbeat, moving around a lot etc. She thinks it will happen in the next day or two. Otherwise she is coming on Saturday morning to give me the cervical sweep. This allows 48 hours for it to work (or not) and the last resort is the induction on Monday 10am.

I don't know how I am manging to keep my spirits up - probably the time of year as I am usually at my most cheerful in spring/early summer.

Some of these suggestions here of how to get baby going are quite amusing. I guess I should try eating a hot curry with fresh pineapple while having sex driving over cobbles!

Have had the curry this evening and maybe the sex later although DH is currently looking very knackered lying on the sofa!