Induction at 38+6

[BEO]

Hi all. I have been booked in for an induction for 38+6 because baby is on 97th centile measuring approx 8lb 9oz today at 38+1.

I am booked for an induction Monday using the balloon which I am aware will be inserted then I can go home and return 24 hours later.

Guess I am looking for some positive stories as I am petrified and can’t stop crying, induction scares me so much.

They have said that if my cervix is too closed for the balloon I will have a section and also if it doesn’t open enough for waters to be broken then they will do a section. I am more worried about the induction than the possibility of a section so just stories on that please 🙈

Also I am aware I could decline the induction and wait and see but as this is my first baby I am very anxious anyway and being told she is huge does not help.

I haven't had an induction, but I'm sure there'll be plenty of people along to tell you their experiences (positive and negative).

What I will say though it that my first baby was measuring big (was born at 38+0 at 8lb 14oz) and I was offered a choice of early induction or c-section section (I have other complications which meant I needed to deliver earlier). I felt similarly anxious about induction and the risks, and so in the end opted for a c-section. Is this something you can discuss with your midwife/obstetrician as you seem less worried about that option.

@cheesychips15 she was reluctant to let me have a section due to me having no other issues or risks and it being a first pregnancy because I would have preferred that too 😭 she has noted that threshold will be low for a section so if things don’t progress then I can have one . It is balloon induction too so if they cannot insert balloon or my cervix doesn’t dilate to let them break waters then I’ll have a section x

I had an induction. I personally wouldn't opt to have one again. A planned c section would have been better x

I was offered induction at 37 weeks because my baby was big too! I decided to wait as I was desperate to have things happen naturally but at 40+3 I developed high blood pressure. Still very keen to wait, I had medication for blood pressure and my doctor agreed to monitor me daily for a couple of days. Still no sign of baby so was induced at 40+5 and she was born at 40+6. From growth scans, we thought she'd be a 10+ pounder but she was only 8lbs 15oz (still a good size though!) so these estimations are not always accurate. My induction was fine - progressed at a good rate. Began at 3pm, progressed throughout the evening and by 6am I was ready to move through to labour ward. She was then born at 1.30pm, in the end with the help of rotational forceps (which were fine) because she was facing the wrong way. I had to be in hospital from the start due to high blood pressure so it's good you're getting to go home, as that was my only regret - not being able to take my time, have a bath, be in the comfort of my own home for the beginning part. Honestly please try not to panic. You will be surrounded by such knowledgeable people who are there to support you and baby, and you will just do what needs done to get the baby out safely. And then you're holding your precious little bundle of joy and all the stuff that came before won't matter. While I was in labour, I said to DH "I am not doing this again!" but I would in a heartbeat. Good luck. You'll be fine ❤️

Also to say, do your best to get as much sleep as you can in the 24 hours when you're home with the balloon. I didn't think to do that 🤦‍♀️ before I went in for my induction and I was exhausted. By the time she was born at 1.30pm, I'd been up for more than 30 hours and been through a very physically demanding ordeal! I wish someone had advised me to have a long lie that morning!

@Starrysky812 thanks you for this. All I hear are negative stories that end in sections which is why I would have liked one straight up.

how did you find the balloon? Was it painful? Did it drop out itself?

Hi there I am a labour ward midwife. I always tell women that how long someone's labour is going to last and whether it's going to be a vaginal birth or CS depends on the size AND position of the baby AND size and shape of the woman's pelvis. To complicate matters further babies move in labour all the time. Only a minorities of babies are back to front in early labour or at the induction of labour point, many are looking sideways, some are back to back it's no big deal early on. I am really surprised they offered balloon though, even though your cx is closed. They don't offer pessary or gel? Those are slightly more effective in my experience. I would go for the induction with an open mind and see what happens. Personally I wouldn't go for any surgery without trying ibuprofen and physio first. I hope it helps

@Kosenrufugirl yeah no pessary or gel offfered, guessing it must be my nhs trust? I have a midwife app this afternoon going to try see if we can have a stretch and sweep 🤞🏼 should be an indicator of whether the balloon will be able to be inserted I guess.

@BEO I didn't have the balloon, I had prostaglandin pessary, so can't comment on that I'm afraid. When it's all underway, I'm sure you'll just go with the flow and not worry. It's the anticipation and build up that can often be the most anxious time. Focus on the amazing thing you are doing and keep your eyes on the prize - your wonderful little baby xx

Are there any other hospitals nearby? You can request a transfer of care if you insist on pessary or gell (they are called Propess and Prostin respectively). Or ask you hospital to provide, they are not exotic medicines. You will be staying on the antenatal ward for the induction in either hospital. And you and your baby will be seen by your regular community midwife once you are discharged from hospital. Just a thought...

I'd have a listen to this podcast OP

open.spotify.com/episode/1S52SSNWKwdejR9T7Mdht4?si=0vbH8Pr4SjCZBlVmwBk3QA

The whole series is great but this one and their one on induction of labour would be good for you right now.

Yeah but all the hospitals in my area are the same trust. To be honest to me an induction is an induction; I’ll go with what the consultant has in mind for me and see what happens .

Sounds good to me. Have you got a TENS machine? You can rent them from Boots in my area. Otherwise they are about £30 from Amazon. Early stages of Induction could take a long time, I have seen women making great use of TENS machines in our unit. Good luck

I always feel hesitant Shari my experiences of induction. I had one at 37 weeks and was contracting on a communal ward with other peoples children peeping round the curtains to giggle at me. Moved to a side room am I had the baby head out before they would come and believe I was on labour. The care was fucking disgusting BUT out of 3 labours it was the fasted and least painful (thankfully because I didn't even get gas and air because they refused to believe I was in labour). My second induction "didn't progress" so ended up on the drip despite me have strong regular contractions they are just obsessed with how dialated you are- I dialate very late and then very fast (which they knew from my previous 2 labours ffs) so again I'm given absolutely no pain relief for hours. Finally they give me an epidural because I was screaming and making a scene (something felt wrong) then they decided it's obstructed labour I need emergency c section and turned the epidural off. Left me screaming in agony for 3 hours before we could get a theatre and now I live with the perminant bladder damage done from that labour.

With the state of maternity services today I would never consent to another induction. Both min were terrible because the staff were too busy with other women and wouldn't believe I was in established labour. In your situation I'd insist on a c section if it were my local hospital

I Hope i haven't scared you! I labour weird that's why I get such shit care. If you labour as expected you will likely be fine xx

You can request a caesarean. Google NICE guidelines for maternal request. I'm hesitant sharing my story too but after 23 hours I ended up with an emergency section and wish I'd pushed harder for an elective section. Ive seen a recent post about liklihood of it being successful based on various things but cant remember the name now. Good luck

Refuse the induction or request a section. You have every right to do either.

It’s also worth remembering that the weight estimates are just that, you hear so many stories of people being told they are having a big baby then they don’t.

I told my midwife I don’t want an induction under any circumstances and she just noted it down and said it was absolutely fine. If baby needs to come out early I’ll be booked in for a section, if I go too far over due I’ll get a section.

My friend at work had her baby in January and they were rail roading her in to an induction because the baby was apparently big. She declined and went in to labour naturally a couple of days before her due date anyway, baby was 9lb so not technically within the range of “big” baby anyway.

My pregnancy yoga instructor is also a midwife and she encourages us all to take control of the birth that we want and not feel pressured in to something we don’t want.

I got induced at 37 weeks as my baby was a bit sleepy and stopped growing. My body obviously was nowhere near ready to give birth but I had an extremely positive experience.

I chose to listen to the Dr's and midwives around me who deal with this all on a daily basis and took their advice at every stage. I had the balloon, it was very painful and I ended up getting it removed a few hours later. It took me to maybe 3 or 4cm.
I then had a pessary for 24hrs which was enough to soften my cervix to break my waters. I then did have contractions and they let me wait and see for 2hrs but from the monitoring they could see the contractions weren't strong enough so said they would need to start the drip.

The midwife strongly recommended I have an epidural with the drip, I listened and wow so glad I did. Once that kicked in I went to sleep for about 5 hours while the drip did its job and woke up feeling pressure from the baby bearing down. They turned the drugs down and let the baby drop for a couple of hours and then I had 2 hours pushing and baby was born with no intervention safe and sound. I was so glad I had slept the night so I had the energy to push!

You'll always get the horror stories where it didnt work, as people who have a mundane story tend not to comment on these things.

I had an induction at 38 weeks, although it was pessary not a balloon induction. They attempted a sweep two days before, which was unsuccessful as they couldn’t reach my cervix. I had the pessary and had to ask for it be removed as contractions had started and were regular as soon as they started. When they removed the pessary, they said my cervix was still back and I hadn’t started to dilate. 4 hours later I was on labour ward and I was 8cm. I had a vaginal birth, with no further interventions and gas and air only. The only downside of my induction was midwives not believing that I was struggling and I was actually further along than they thought. All signs pointed it to being a failure to progress.

I was induced for GD and reduced movements. They were also telling me DC would be big. When born they were smaller than the scans had estimated, they were long which was picked up on the scans and I think threw some of the weights off. I wouldn’t induce just for being a bigger baby. However, if you’re ready, that’s fine. I could have pushed my induction back but I was anxious and ready for them to be earth-side. For me that accepting that it could be a long induction process that could end with a c-section. But I was at peace with the decision and actually relieved to be getting going.

I was induced at 42 weeks (this is quite a few years ago) and eventually baby was born 9lbs7oz. I initially went into hospital on a Sunday to be induced and my son was finally born on Tuesday morning, although it was very long and I was completely exhausted it was still a good experience. The midwives were amazing! I didn’t have the balloon but the pessary but when things didn’t progress I went on the drip eventually, from memory I was on the highest dose in the end and if it hadn’t worked I would’ve had the c section but in the end it wasn’t needed. I had an epidural somewhere along the way (I was so tired) but because there were some concerns towards the end I chose for it to be stopped and the actual birth was without it, the active stage was quite quick in the end.

I’m currently 21+3 with my second baby and while I definitely wouldn’t want to go that far with this baby (my son was meant to be average size but I think the extra 2+ weeks meant he got so big) the first birth despite the induction was a really positive experience. Throughout the induction I was guided by the professionals and I felt I was listened to and had a say in decisions.

I hope everything goes well for you OP.

Thanks for your stories , especially the positive ones they are helping my nerves abit. I know I can push for a section but medically there is no reason and I didn’t have the energy to argue with the consultant. She’s right in saying I could be fine and could have no issue birthing a baby naturally and we won’t know unless we try. I also know I can ignore the measurements however we’ve had 3 growth scans since I was 31 weeks and she has been consistently big and so I think I will trust the professionals. I am in the mind set I want her here next week now too instead of going over and potentially birthing a 10lb baby 😭

It’s just really hard to know what to do for the best. I had a sweep today and although she couldn’t get her finger in the cervix she could reach the cervix and said the first opening is open? If that makes sense? And I have had cramps and some spotting since so 🤞🏼🤞🏼 I am booked in for another before the induction too.

I was induced at 39 weeks due to age, size of baby, excess fluid etc. they estimated her to be 9.5lbs. I had the pessary which started working straight away in that I had contractions. Was examined due to them being back to back and was only 2cm, they took the pessary out as was overstimulated and everything just stopped.... I then sat for 4.5 days waiting for a bed on the labour ward to have my waters broken. Only went round in the end due to problems with her heart rate. So take stuff to keep you entertained just in case you end up in for the long wait.

Once they broke my waters and put me on the drip, it all escalated quickly (3cm to 10cm in 5 mins), and she arrived 5 hours after they broke my waters weighing 7lbs 9oz. The drip is not something I would personally want to experience again, it was intense, and more painful than my spontaneous labour with DD1.

Hope all goes well for you

I had a balloon induction. In many trusts, they try the balloon before the pessary or drip. The balloon induction is seen as "mechanically" trying to induce labour (for want a f a better word!!) whereas the drip or pessary hormonally induce you into labour.

My balloon didn't work, the pessary eventually did.

One thing I would recommend is a birthing ball, and just bounce on it constantly.

Good luck !!

Yes, would definitely recommend an epidural on board before the drip goes in! Hindsight is a wonderful thing 🤣 and also remember that even without a (slightly early) induction, the best laid plans get ripped up. The main thing is you both stay safe.

I had the balloon induction. It was bloody horrific, and one of the main reasons I am one and done. I might have been very unlucky though, the midwife 'overinflated' it and put me into full blown labour, we got home, turned the car around and went straight back to the hospital... and 27 hours of labour ensued...