Hi LoveActually,
Good idea getting your DP to read the thread! I was induced for my first child last August, I'll try and keep it brief but this might be a bit of a book...
I had pre eclampsia, and was also quite overdue, by hospital standards anyway: 8 or 9 days I think. I was admitted on the Tuesday evening and given a prostin pessary. Here they only give you one, and you keep it in for 24 hours I think and then if nothing happening then they put you on the drip. After a sleepless night and long days wait, nothing had changed. My body was pretty closed and didn't seem to want to give birth. I was also very tired after a sleepless night, so they offered me the chance to have a sleep overnight in a private room, DP could stay too. Then Thursday morning we would proceed with induction. I agreed, I was shattered. Though later I wondered why I couldn't just do all that waiting around at home...
We spent hours waiting to go up to delivery suite the first time, then had a room and a bit of a sleep. Thursday morning they said delivery was 'heaving' so we hung around til lunchtime. Just as I was having lunch the midwife appeared to collect me.
The drip went in about 2pm I think, and it didn't seem to work well as I'd had the canuala thing in my hand since the previous night. (It was quite painful and irritating). I kept forgetting to bend my hand and allow the syntocinon to flow. I seemed to be coping 'really well' according to MW, who kept turning the drip up and up til it was on max. About 3pm I started to feel contractions, and by 4pm they were getting quite intense. By 5pm they were coming back to back with no break between them, very strong and intense. I kept my eyes closed all the time, and didn't want to be talked to or touched. When there were still breaks in between them, I would think "Oh god here's another, help I need an epidural!' and it would fade and I'd be fine. But once there was no break, I asked for an epidural. MW told me they were in theatre and I'd have to wait. I was glad I asked for it as soon as I began to lose the plot, because by the time I got it at about 7, 7.30, I was feeling like I'd have to throw myself out the window if he didn't arrive soon. MW said I needed at last 10 mins of good monitoring before I could have it. I had been moving about on all fours on the bed trying to rock and monitors had detrached a bit, so they wanted to make sure the baby was ok.
Midwife 'stretched me to 3cm' and broke my waters before the epidural, which was bloody horrible. When I had the epi I got really dizzy and the babys heart rate dropped. MW pressed the buzzer and the room was full of consultants. I explained I was just really hungry and faint, as I hadn't eaten for a while; they won't let you have anything but plain water once the drip goes in. Consultant laughed and said they should 'make me a big sandwich' of course they didn't. Bah.
The epi was bloody fantastic, but I had a really good anesthetist. He was great. DS didn't cope well with the epi and his heart rate was dropping, so when I was finally fully dilated at 4.30am on Friday morning, the rushed me into theatre and delivered him with vontuse. Had to sign a form ok-ing a c section if the vontouse or forceps didn't work. The cord was around his neck twice I think. They thought he coped badly with the drop in my blood pressure, because he had been so used to me having high BP as a resulte of pre eclampsia.
He was great though, they whisked him away but soon brought him back, and I held him while they stitched me; had to have episiotomy because of vontouse.
Bad bits: The antenatal and postnatal wards (not restful!). I would prefer to avoid induction next time, because of the waiting around, and the stupid drip and monitor restricting my movement. If I had to be induced again because of medical concerns, I would have an epidural. Then at least you can get some sleep, which you might need after all the waiting about in noisy wards!
Good bits: He's sitting on my lap right now, playing with his cuddy giraffe . Also the myths about hospital food are wrong, its wonderful!
Good luck, I hope everything goes well, however you have your baby