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Were you induced?

Very interested in real-life inductions... Why were you induced? Were you sent home to wait for the onset of labour proper? Was the induction successful?

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  • Here's a link to my birth story which involved an induction: mumdrum.com/.../dumblespuds-positive-induction.aspx

  • Yup, but wasn't pessary. Waters went at 40+9, went to hospital to check was def waters, monitored for a bit, sent home to wait for contractions. Back at 40+10 for more monitoring (still no contractions) booked for induction 40+11. Went in 40+11, examined and given "a good sweep" was 3cm. Put on drip about 3:45pm, baby born 22:33

    Your sis still not delivered?

  • First time yes due to waters going. It was fine. Contractions started within an hr of the pessary being inserted and C was born 8hrs later. I choose to have an epidural due to the intensity of the contractions, but had they checked i wouldn't have needed it as i was already fully dilated and wanting to push. After pushing for over 1hr, C was delivered by ventouse. I had a natural labour with S which ended in a drip and forceps (it seems that i can't push them out) and my induction was a far more positive process.  

    Regarding being sent home, once you've had the pessary inserted i believe that you can't go home.

  • Thanks DS, I'll head there next.

    Weekender, thanks. No, sis was in early Weds to late Fri and sent home. C-section supposed to be tomorrow, we shall see.

    I'm also interested because I want a home birth and if I have to be induced it has to be in hospital. I have a real anxiety issue with the hospital I would be sent to and would do anything I could (if not a risk) to avoid going there! Just wondered whether being induced *then* going home would ever be likely. And inductions in general. Mine was fab, but on the course yesterday the general consensus from expectant mums was very anti-induction.

  • Can't you request a different hospital? Tbh my experience was fairly positive but they insisted on constant monitoring and being stuck on my back for hours was awful. Id rather avoid induction again but given the likelihood at the mo is that I'll need a section I'd much rather induction!

  • Yes, induction hasn't been looking very likely for you has it, bless ya x

    The hospital I want (and had Harry in) isn't our catchment area, we have only one hospital offered to us (20 mins away). If I was having non-emergency problems I'd just rock up at my preferred hospital with my notes (just 10 mins further) but if it's a planned induction I'm not sure how it would work and I don't want to start arguing with my MW about it yet. First goal is to agree the homebirth plan :)

    I read a couple of articles saying 'you may be sent home after a planned induction' but I had never heard of that happening. Well, until my sister had it happen this week! :)

  • DS - were you induced for over-dates or something else?

  • Little Welsh One

    First time yes due to waters going. It was fine. Contractions started within an hr of the pessary being inserted and C was born 8hrs later. I choose to have an epidural due to the intensity of the contractions, but had they checked i wouldn't have needed it as i was already fully dilated and wanting to push. After pushing for over 1hr, C was delivered by ventouse. I had a natural labour with S which ended in a drip and forceps (it seems that i can't push them out) and my induction was a far more positive process.  

    Regarding being sent home, once you've had the pessary inserted i believe that you can't go home.

    Thanks LWO. And that's my understanding too, re the pessary. 

  • HJL

    Here is a link to my story too...mumdrum.com/.../bexys-birth-story.aspx

    Aww. I guess stories like yours is why folk are so apprehensive about being induced. Glad you got there in the end but that was rotten and I know I would really struggle with being alone overnight at that stage like you were.

    Hubby made a point earlier... If induction doesn't appear to work, what's to stop me just leaving the hospital... And if I end up somewhere else so be it. Interesting perspective. I suspect, if we get to that stage, I'll be all meek and just do as I'm told!

  • My personal experience and anything I've heard is end unction would mean being under hospital arrest from then on in. For me an induction was bringing on something my body didn't seem to want to do and both ended in csections. I do think my body just wouldn't play ball though. You are keeping so active though that I hope it helps you along and induction won't be needed and you can get your home birth.

  • Here's mine too!

    mumdrum.com/.../estrellitas-birth-story.aspx

    I wanted a homebirth but was induced for post-dates, really positive experience but ended up with third degree tear.

  • I was induced for being 2 weeks overdue. Went in at 40+13 given first gel that evening and a sweep, given a second gel and sweep at midnight, H sent home and told to rest. Spent the night pacing the ward, taken to delivery in the morning waters broken at 10:30 taken for EMCS at 11 due to fetal distress. In my hospital leaflet about inductions it did say if you weren't at the 14 day overdue point you could go home if the 2 nd gel didn't put you into labour (not sure when this applies as I assumed induction only for overdue or medically needed)

  • I was induced due to gestational diabetes. It didn't work, I ended up with an emergency c-section. Whether I'd have needed the c-section under other circumstances I'll never know. If I'm ever pregnant again I'm planning an elective section. I found the whole failed induction thing quite stressful at the time and I don't want that again, particularly as there's a reasonably high chance of needing it again, if that makes sense.

  • Was induced with 1st due to being overdue. Went in at 40+12. After monitoring given first pessary, nothing so given 2nd 6hrs later. Had niggles all night but no further dilated in the morning. Then given 3rd - things started slowly and by 5pm I needed paracetamol (threw that back up not long after). Waters finally went at 8.30pm, with meconium in so monitored for rest of labour. Her heart rate dropped a few times but went back to normal when doctor came in. Fully dilated by 11.30pm and she was born at 12.27am on 40+14.

  • I was induced at 40+13 for being post dates (supposed to be 40+12 but no beds at the hospital). I only had the first pessary which did nothing over the 24 hours it was supposed to take effect. They were all for just keeping me in overnight and giving the next gel the following morning and were about to send H home for the night when they suddenly said there was a bed available to go to labour ward that evening. I never got as far as having the 2nd gel as baby went into fetal distres whilst they were just settling me onto the ward and were doing the initial monitoring. I ended up having a category 1 section there and then. If we'd had to wait until the following morning it would have been a very different story for us. We were so lucky to be in the right place at the right time.

    My hospital wouldn't allow you to go home once the induction had begun and given what happened to me, I would never advise anyone to go home. You just don't know what might happen but I would have never wanted a home birth either.  Next time I think I will go for an elective CS as I didn't find the recovery process too bad (I'm back running again at 10 weeks and could easily have driven at 3 weeks) and to me I would do anything to avoid that feeling of being wheeled into theatre thinking that I was going to have either a dead baby or one that was going to be severely disabled. I count my blessings everyday that we had an amazing medical team and even though there were obviously lots of staffing and capacity issues and I spent ages just languishing at home waiting for them to have enough beds to be induced and then on the ward feeling bored and my H had to go home overnight , when the s**t hit the fan, they were truly fantastic.

  • My induction sounds similar to weekenders. Was 39+6 when waters went, went in to be checked and monitored. Confirmed that it was my waters, baby was happy so went home. Had a few contractions but nothing proper so went in at 40+1 to be induced (so disappointed to not have a due date baby!) At 8:30am I was 3-4cm so given a sweep and told I didn't need pessary etc. At 3pm was hooked up to drip and had him at 1:53am the next morning so it wasn't too drawn out. The labour was good and as much as possible the midwives were hugely supportive of my birth plan. I had wanted a water birth with as little pain relief as possible and to stay as active as possible. I couldn't have the water birth obviously because of monitoring but I was encouraged not to lay on my back and spent most of my labour on my birthing ball and was encouraged to just have gas and air which I did. S was delivered by forceps in the end as I was shattered after my waters having broken 60 hours previously.

    I had a difficult time after as I had a large pph which was as a result of the unlucky combination of prolonged rupture of membranes, long 2nd stage, induction and instrumental delivery - basically they said I had a 'tired uterus'. I  don't mean to tell you this to scare you as I don't believe that the induction alone would have caused this, it's just a factor. I was terrified of induction and thought it would be the worst thing ever but my opinion of it has changed, it definitely wasn't as awful as I'd been led to believe from my antenatal classes. The midwives were so positive and helpful, really left me to get on with things which is what I wanted. I was worried that I'd be constantly interfered with and poked and prodded but that wasn't the case at all.

  • O was overdue so I was induced at 40+11 and he was born on 40+12.

  • I was induced after my 2nd sweep at 40+10. A routine trace showed a tiny drop in his heart rate - only for a couple of seconds, but being overdue, they didn't want to take any chances.

    Once I got over the initial (pretty crushing, tbh) disappointment of not having a natural water birth, the actual process of induction wasn't that bad. I wasn't allowed home once the decision had been made, which was annoying as I really hadn't expected to be admitted, I just thought I would have the sweep and go home again!

    I had an epidural to cope with the sudden onset of labour from the drip. I was only 2cm dilated but my cervix was ripe so I could avoid the pessary and gel, and they went straight to breaking my waters and hooked me up to the drip. Then it was just a waiting game - but with the epidural, I could doze through the first part of labour. (I was induced in the evening and gave birth in the morning). We had the radio on and kept the atmosphere very chilled until I was fully dilated. I let the epidural wear off for that stage so that I could feel when to push.

    Although I was constantly attached to the fetal monitor I don't really remember whether it bothered me or not. If anything I think I was reassured by it as I knew that my baby was being taken care of every second, in a situation he probably didn't feel ready to be in,  I think I would have worried more if he wasn't being monitored. Being induced also meant that I had constant one-to-one midwife care, which again, was quite reassuring in the circumstances.  The actual process of induction itself was not so bad and the whole labour only took 10.5 hours end to end - most of which I couldn't feel pain for, although I could still feel pressure when he pushed downwards. Obviously its not ideal, but its a means to an end, and you still get to deliver vaginally so long as there are no further complications.

    The staff were all very caring and took the time to explain what was happening and try to reduce my anxiety. They know that no-one wants to be induced. Hopefully the staff at your hospital would be the same?

    I had septic shock during the second half of my labour which made it a horrible experience for me towards the end, and wasn't good for S either.  I won't lie, that was related to being induced, but was apparently a very rare thing to happen and I was just reeeaally unlucky. :-(

  • I was induced with #1 - waters broke at 39+5, was told to wait for contractions but by 40+1 nothing had happened. I was induced with a syntocinon drip at around 10am, had an epidural at about 3pm and was still only 3cm by 10pm with baby becoming a little distressed, so he was born by C-section at 11.35pm. My subsequent two were both born by elective section.

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