40 weeks and thought process shifting!

[Strawberry06]

Today is my due date (first time mum) and no signs of baby coming anytime soon. Well, I possibly have a bit of back pain but not sure it's just wishful thinking!

So now that I've made it to due date I'm now just wishing for him to come!

I have an induction booked for next Friday which I really hope to avoid. I really don't want to be induced.

The more days that pass between now and next Friday I can feel myself becoming more anxious. I know first babies are usually late and hoping he'll come over the weekend.

No point in the post really other than just to rant!

I’m in similar boat although I’m 38+2 however have induction booked for Monday due to baby girl measuring 97th centile and having a massive spurt between last growth scans. I really really didn’t want to be induced but cannot see myself going into Labour naturally this early.

I did have a sweep yesterday and although she couldn’t get her fingers completely in she said the first opening was open? Booked in for another on sat! Until then I’m just bouncing on my ball, bathing in clarey sage and pumping colostrum to try to bring it on but nothing yet 🙈

Good luck mama you’ve got this 🤞🏼🤞🏼🤞🏼

Can I ask why you don't want to be induced 😊? Being a FTM you won't have personal experience of induction so please try not to let the negative stories out there scare you! It's absolutely your choice and your body, but if it's based off other horror stories alone, please don't let that stop you. People tend to shout louder about bad experience than good. Myself and many of my friends have been induced with positive vaginal births. My labor was actually less than two hours and I was induced 2 weeks early as a FTM.

I didn't make it to ,40 weeks but imagine the suspense and anticipation is getting to you now, I can imagine how fed up with it all you are.I hope you have a safe and healthy birth whatever route you decide to go down. Try to keep as active as possible and on a birthing ball if you can, I think that's what helped me labour so quickly, my body was pretty ready itself it seemed!

Omg @YolandaDavies i know this isn’t my post but I really needed to hear this. So many people are scaring me with horror stories and saying go straight for a section. I really needed to hear this 💖

@YolandaDavies unfortunately I have the absolute opposite experience - which is why it’s so important to make decisions based on evidence @Strawberry06, not on anecdotes. Inductions are usually longer, and usually more painful. You are more likely to have an epidural, less likely to be able to be mobile, and more likely to need a caesarean. This is all evidence-based factual info. Now, if you need an induction for medical reasons, obviously all of these risks are balanced by the risks posed by your pregnancy continuing. If you don’t need an induction, then it’s really worth considering whether it’s the right option for you.

There are loads of good, reliable resources online to help you decide, look at Sara Wickham, Rachel Reed (both midwives), and AIMS - this is a helpful article that breaks down the research around post-dates induction and the risks of going past your estimated due date. Also important to see this as an ongoing conversation with your care provider - you can decide to say no to an induction on Friday, and see how you feel the following day, for example. You can change your mind at any time, the most important thing is that you’re able to make an informed decision and do what is right for you.

Sorry forgot to link the AIMS article

Aww I'm glad @BEO! I'm sure there are some bad experience out there, but alot of people have very traumatic natural births as well! I think the drip can be quite intense, but that's what epidurals are for 😂 I was lucky and found the whole experience so calm and well done, informed so well at every point and everything was my choice and at my pace. Good luck to you as well on your birth 😊

If you don't want an induction, don't have one. Simple. There are alternatives, ie in the unlikely event you haven't gone into labour by 42 weeks, can you agree to regular monitoring instead? The impending 'deadline' is causing you anxiety which is hardly an ideal place to be for encouraging labour to start. There is no requirement to be booked for induction just because it's process. Personally I also found this stressful. I declined and went naturally at 41+2 anyway.