Opt for a sweep or wait another week?

[biscuit13]

Im a FTM and Ive been getting a few niggles, such as really bad braxton hicks with sharp period pains. Lots of lightening crotch, boobs are leaking loads! Which is new for during the day. Had loose stools for about a week now.

My next midwife appointment is this Friday and I'll be 39+2, midwife said last time they can do a sweep from 39 weeks so im wondering whether to go for it or wait until the following week if nothings happened.

Im wondering if it might encourage things along but I dont want to do it if baby isn't ready or if it could lead to a bad labour.

Any thoughts or opinions?

In my experience, if the baby isn’t ready the sweep won’t be successful. I had 3 unsuccessful sweeps before having 1 that may have sped things along but then again, maybe complete coincidence! If your cervix is not getting ready for labour and you are not at all dilated they won’t be able to do it. It may speed things along if your body is already getting ready though.

@SacramentoQueen would you try it? I suppose they can always say im not ready yet? Or would you wait?
Im not really in a rush apart from feeling normal end of pregnancy discomfort, and wanting to meet baby so badly.

Will they try again in a weeks time if you try it on Friday and it fails? I am incredibly impatient so I would, but that doesn’t mean it’s right for everyone! I also found it quite helpful just to know that I wasn’t at all close, one of my failed sweeps was on a Friday and the midwife told me she was very confident she would see me for my appointment the following week so it made me feel like I could make plans for the weekend!

Since a baby in a normal low risk pregnancy is ideally born anywhere between 38-42 weeks, I really don’t understand the obsession with hurrying them out early?

A sweep is pretty invasive and can be painful - and known only to make a difference if your body is already prepping for labour anyway?!

So no I definitely wouldn’t want to get one, unless I was right up to 42 weeks and it was a last try before induction by hormones.

My last baby came at 41+1 and was perfect, plus I had a great spontaneous labour, so I’m patiently waiting For a similar time frame this time!

@SacramentoQueen I assume so, I am also feeling quite impatient. And yeah I think even if they can't do it, atleast I might stop looking for signs 🙈

Sweeps are not completely without risk so do ask your midwife for a breakdown of the risks (very small but still there) and benefits. Hint, there are no proven benefits. Having said that I had sweeps from 36+6 with DD2 in an attempted to avoid a c section at 39 weeks.

@Gerdticker yeah see thats the other side, I dont want to rush baby out if they're not ready just because I cant wait. I know its going to happen at some point soon. Maybe I'll just wait it out a bit longer

Honestly, I wouldn’t. I had a sweep on my due date and I had a really poor Bishops Score (from memory it was 2 or 3?) I started getting contractions the next day 15/20 mins apart, which went on for 48 hours - I didn’t get any sleep and was exhausted. By the time I went into active labour I hadn’t slept in nearly 3 days and was already exhausted. Wound up with an epidural and forceps, which was actually fine (I’m 10 weeks post partum today and honestly I feel completely normal like I never gave birth!), but part of me wonders if the long latent phase was due to me trying to get things moving before DD was ready. Next time around I’d wait until I was a bit more overdue before requesting one (40 + 7 onwards maybe). That said it could all have been coincidence and like I say all was well in the end. I was just desperate to give birth!

Find out what the situation is with inductions at your hospital so you know what the situation is if you don't have a sweep and baby shows no signs of coming.

The hospital has all its inductions booked during visiting hours so if you aren't lucky enough to get one of the earlier slots, it means possibly being in hospital at night alone until I got to that magic 4cm which I m finding the thought of really stressful so I ve booked a sweep for Wednesday as it least then I feel I ve tried everything I could to get baby out.

I meant my hospital not the hospital

I had sweeps with DC1 and DC2 and all it succeeded in doing was niggly on off early labour which dragged on for days. I won't be having one this time.