Forum home Pregnancy Labour & birth

Being induced: were you induced? Please come and tell us what it’s like here

Hello,

We’ve spotted in the MFM Birth Clubs, quite a few women are having inductions, and we were hoping if you were induced, would you come and tell us about your experience here?

We know like any birth, inductions vary from woman to woman, so we’re hoping this thread will give any woman who is due to be induced, loads of experiences to draw on. 

Please do let us know why you were induced and how it went for you, by posting a reply to this thread. Thank you.

image

Replies

  • Hi, I was induced 2 days early due to me having anticoagulant lupus. I went into hospital at 9pm on 11th October 2016 and had the gel at 12.05am on the 12th October. I kept very active going for walks with my partner and doing a lot of hip movements which was a great relief for back pain but I still didn't have any pain or niggles so I assumed it didn't work. I had a second gel at 7.45am on 12th October and a sweep and once again I went on a walk. I was checked at 12.30pm and put on a monitor to make sure baby was fine which she was. At 4.30pm I was told that I would be moving to delivery suite shortly and my waters will need breaking and I needed to go on a drip. At about 5.50pm my waters broke naturally and the pain followed shortly. I was examined at 6.03pm and I was 2 cm dilated, within minutes I was 5cm and moved to delivery suite and 39 minutes later at 6.42pm my miracle baby Grace was born. My experience was a lovely one and I feel blessed I had a perfect team of midwives and doctors looking after us 😊

  • I was induced on 27th April when I was 10 days overdue. I felt very anxious and tearful the night before, and I got very little sleep. But on the day of the induction I felt very calm. As our appointment wasn't till 3pm me and the hubby went to the shops to stock up the fridge and we made sure the house was clean and tidy, and everything was set up ready for baby. It was lovely to be able to do this as we knew when we came home from hospital everything would be ready for us. 

    I was put on a monitor to check baby and then an hour later I was examined and given a pessary. Within half an hour I had pains which very quickly intensified and were really close together. I had pain in my stomach, back and top of my legs. I was examined 6 hours after the pessary and was 2cm. I was offered the pool as having had only one pessary I was considered low risk. Around an hour after getting in the pool I was at 8cm! And baby arrived exactly 9 hours after i was given the pessary.

    I am very aware that being induced is often not so quick and straightforward as this, and I feel very lucky with the birth I had. But anyone feeling anxious about being induced, hopefully my story will give you some comfort that it's not always bad. I was sure that because I was being induced I wouldn't be allowed in the pool and I was really disappointed, but it's worth asking because they will still let you if you don't have a drip and have had no complications. Just be prepared for the contractions to be very intense and close together very quickly. I was not prepared for this, I expected long gaps to recover. Take whatever pain relief you feel you need, don't put too much pressure on yourself, and try not to worry too much about the induction as in my case it was nowhere near as bad as I expected. 

    Good luck!

  • I was induced on the 10th February at 40+12. I was told to ring at 9am to be given a time to go in. When I rang I was told to go straight in. I was put on the monitor for an hour and then was examined. my cervix was already open and very favourable and my waters were bulging (they couldnt believe he hadnt arrived before), so they just broke my waters. I was told they would examine me again in 2 hours but 15 minutes after having my waters broken the contractions came thick and fast and my little boy arrived 2 hours after my waters were broken.

    it was such a lovely experience and he was my second baby. It made me want to do it all over again. We home at home 5 hours after areiving at the hospital, it was fab x

  • I was induced this time for high bp. From 36w onwards I had high bp and was sent to triage various times for bloods and monitoring to check for ore eclampsia which was always fine. At 39w I had to see consultant for same thing and she decided to induce me. The consultant in the maternity unit that night disagreed and sent me home but as I had been given a sweep at clinic (39+2) told me to come back day before I was due for further sweep. At 39+6 went to be given sweep and my consultant arrives to say she was inducing me on my due date but as I was favourable I didn't need gel etc.

    Arrived at 8am on due date (16th may). Examined and was 4cm so had to wait on delivery suite to begin induction. Got room at 11. Hookes up to monitor and had waters broken at 11.30. Not much happened so drip put on at 12.30 and gradually increased dose. My midwife went for lunch at 2pm with me having contractions every 4-6 mins and the one who took over said I looked too comfortable and relaxed so she cranked the drip dose up again. My cobtractions then became continuous and I'm sure under the influence of gas and air I told my partner what I thought of this temp midwife 😂 my midwife arrices back at 2.30 just in time for me to declare I didn't want to give birth anymore and I needed a poo (gas and air makes us so classy 😂). She said this was a good sogn and went and got me paracetamol. Whilst she got ready to examine me I started pushing as I couldn't stop. The head was there and 1 push the head was out causing my midwife to bang her head on lamp in shock 😂 and at 15:02 she arrived. With only minutes of pushing. No tips or tears.

    Very quick and very intense but all in all good experience. From waters breaking it was3.5 hours but from proper contractions to arrival it was 1 hour. 

  • I have small babies and was being monitor every 2 weeks at 38 weeks the consultant told me I had extra fluid around baby and to go for stretch and sweep at any time so I went for one at 38+5.  My plug went at 39 and my waters at 39+2 they told me as my waters went I'd need inducing in 24 hour if nothing had happened I wasn't getting contraction or anything that day but my eaters leaked slowly all day next morning i rang and I was in at 9 monitored and recieved the 6 hour pessary. My partner left to look after our eldest 2 we were only 5 mins away from the hospital so I wasn't worried after the 6 hours I was examined and was 3cm so was given another sweep by a very experienced midwife who got things moving after her sweep I was contracting but very irregular so my partner went home again to feed the kids. A 7 I was put on the drip and contractions were coming thick and fast but baby stayed put until 3:43am being induced was by far my worse labour as my others came so quickly but I can't even remember the pain now so completely worth it my 3 and finally baby is amazing 

  • I was induced at 40+12 as the baby just didn't want to shift. I was adamant I'd go into labour naturally so spent the entire night before sleepless and analysing every twinge. It wasn't to be though - I rang up at half 7 in the morning as requested and they told me to go straight in as the ward was literally empty of other patients. One piece of good news on arrival was that I was already having mild contractions. In hindsight I wish I'd said at that point that I'd go home and wait for things to happen naturally, but hindsight is a brilliant thing! They examined me - my cervix was very unfavourable so they decided to insert the 24 hour pessary. That was 11am. I walked around the hospital with my husband for a bit and started to feel period-style cramps early evening but nothing too bad. They gradually turned into contractions through the night, but very irregular - they were coming between 5 minutes and 11 minutes. By about 7am they were almost too painful to bear with just paracetamol and TENS machine alone. I'm not sure why but whenever they hooked me up to the monitor they said there were no contractions and I must be feeling something else?! So they wouldn't take me up to the labour ward. At 9am my husband insisted they examine me again as I was in so much pain but they still refused, saying I was having no contractions. However, they did monitor the baby, who wasn't moving as much as they would like. Based on this, they called a consultant to examine me, who said that I was 3cm dilated, in active labour and should go up to the ward. Finally! I also had a show around this time.

    On the labour ward, they hooked me up to a monitor and said that I was actually having very strong contractions and that the machine downstairs must have been set up wrong (brilliant!). So I finally got my gas and air. At this point they also broke my waters to hurry things along - I'm a symptomatic haemophilia carrier and so they didn't want to let labour carry on too long due to my increased risk of bleeding. The contractions kept coming thick and fast but I didn't dilate past 6cm. The baby's heart rate wasn't as variable as they'd like during contractions. This scared me - it probably sounds stupid but I was worried my pain would cause further distress to the baby and so at this point I decided to have an epidural even though I really hadn't wanted one. They also decided to give me the hormone drip. At first, this seemed to help but after a while the baby kept going into distress every time I had a contraction. Multiple alarm calls later they decided to turn the drip off and wait. Nothing happened. I seemed to be stuck at 6cm. At 9:30pm, 34 hours after having the pessary inserted, they decided I should have a caesarean, which we were taken for at 10:30pm.

    The caesarean itself was fraught with difficulties (namely my epidural failed so they had to give me a spinal block instead, which also went wrong and I ended up completely numb from the neck down. I also haemorrhaged but this wasn't particularly surprising given my risk) but my daughter was finally here at 11:27pm, completely healthy and absolutely starving. 

    The consultant came to see me the next day and said it turned out the baby had been back-to-back and that's probably why labour didn't start naturally (her head was in the wrong position and so not exerting enough pressure on the cervix). Similarly that's probably why the induction failed and she kept going into distress. However, my complications were to continue. After the birth, my heart rate was around 120bpm and wouldn't go down. My temperature was also high and so they thought I might have an infection. Cue a further 4 nights in hospital with both my baby and I on IV antibiotics. Our blood markers came back fine every time, and I actually found out afterwards (through my notes, it was never mentioned to me at all!) that I had suffered heavy bleeding during the caesarean and so was low on haemoglobin during my stay. That might have accounted for my racing heart rate and high temperature but I guess they have to err on the side of caution when it comes to maternal and neonatal infection. 

    I have mixed feelings overall - part of me wonders if I would have endured less complications had labour started naturally. Perhaps I would have got my wish of a vaginal birth with just gas and air (I would have been consultant led anyway due to my other risks) and a shorter hospital stay. But the other part of me thinks that if the baby was in the wrong position anyway, then maybe the complications would have happened induction or no induction. Either way, I know my experience is a bit extreme and most people I know who were induced at the same hospital had much simpler, more pleasant experiences. So if you are having an induction, good luck and I'm sure you'll have a way better experience then I did. Also I thought the care I received during labour was absolutely brilliant, which is very reassuring for next time. (Oh and sorry for the essay! It's nice to get it out sometimes!) 

  • I was induced with my little boy but it was horrible experience (hospital messed me around). Was all booked in for the Saturday morning (8days after my due date) called up and there was room so went in at 8. Was told by 930 they were short staffed and had no room for me so was sent home and told to come back on Sunday. So went home and enjoyed the weather whilst I could. Sunday morning came and I rung up again and was told yes come in. Went in and they gave me the pessary and again was sent home by 2pm that day after the midwife lied on my notes about being checked on. Was told to come back in on the monday. by this point I had had enough.

    Went back in Monday first thing and found out pessary hadn't worked so was given two doses of the gel. Again this didn't work during the day despite walking round the hospital a million times lol. By 9pm I was told to get some sleep and they  will break my waters in the morning. Just getting ready for bed then they come in and break my waters there and then at 10pm and then placed on the drip at midnight.

    Had up to the highest dosage on the drip and still nothing except the odd contraction and wasnt dilating. So was told at 11am on the tues it would have to be an emergency c section. I was a mess when they told me that But realised it was for little mans sake and by this time I was shattered as had no sleep since Sunday night. At 12.22pm on tues 11/4 baby oscar was finally born weighing 6 10. the whole experience has now put me off any more children especially after thecare I had after the birth and When I got readmitted A week later. Xxx

  • I have been induced with 3 out of my 4 pregnancies with every possibility of being induced with baby number 5. 

    My first pregnancy was fine. My second pregnancy i was induced at 38 weeks as my lb wasnt growing properly. Was in labour for a total of 36 hours. 

    My 3rd pregnancy i was induced with my lg at 38 weeks due to having cholestasis. Labour was a lot quicker. Waters went 30 mins after having the gel, the rest of the labour progessed slowly over the next 6 and a half hours. Then went from 3cm dilated to giving birth in 29 mins. Whole labour 8 and a half hours.

    Pregnancy 4 again induced at 38 weeks due to low fluid whole labour took 9 and a half hours. Waters broke 7 hours into the labour. However went from 6cm dilated to giving birth to my lb in 5 mins xx

  • I was induced 2 weeks early as I developed Obstetric Cholestasis (liver condition). I was at the hosiptal for 3 days and had my baby on the third day. Had 2 lots of gels but only had very mild period like cramps for 2 days - not enough to take any pain relief. Baby and I were strapped up every 4 hours, day and night, to be monitored (that itself was exhausting as I couldn't properly rest). The night of the second day the pain really intensified but I was encouraged to walk around/keep moving (soooo difficult!!) By the morning of the third day I was waiting to be examined by the doctor as a c section was being discussed and POP waters broke naturally! From that moment the contractions went from a 3 to 100. I was vomiting from the shock of the pain. Waters broke at 10am and I had only dilated to 3cm by 2pm. My partner was told we were looking at a 12 hour labour and I was going to be put onto a hormone drip. I was fully dilated by 3pm and had my baby naturally with no pain relief 50 mins later. I found the contractions incredibly painful the labour itself relatively pain free.

  • Beani3 cholestasis is an absolute nightmare, i had it with my 3rd pregnancy (my little girl). Im 25 weeks pregnant with number 5 (another little girl) and am showing signs of cholestasis again xx

  • Oh Stace, it's horrible isn't it. I was so scared as I had such a smooth sailing pregnancy and then right at the end got OC. It has put me off having another as I'm just too worried! Good luck with your 5th pregnancy, you're a braver woman than me!! I hope it goes as well as it can and you don't have any further complications xx

  • Beani3 ive got the all clear atm with the OC, however little madam isnt growing properly, ive now to have growth scans each week as well as steroid injections next week. This will be my 3rd small baby and 4th time being induced xx

  • After 2 fairly normal natural births- my 3rd was an induction as our baby stopped moving at 35 weeks. At 37 weeks I was induced. I had a reaction during the labour to the hormones and suffered 2 heart attacks after 35 hours of constant none relentant pain. My body began to shut down. My husband says it's the worst time in his life. I don't remember very much. Our son was born by Emergency csection perfectly healthy I spent the first hours of his life unable to feel him and drifting in and out of consciousness in Hdu. I also suffered a massive haemorage. It's safe to say we are grateful for our 3 children and we won't be having more children.

  • Hi 1st time mummy to 4 month old. I was due 13.06.17.. the week before I was adamant that little man would be early that I wasn't going over so Thursday before my due date went for massive walk. Friday I lost my plug Saturday my waters broke. Went to hospital on the Saturday morning to be sent home as no contractions. Told if anu thing changed to get back in touch... or to call at 8 am sunday morning so I can be induced. 

    Eventually went in on the Sunday at 4pm. Was given the hormone drip to start my labour off. I found it to be relaxing as the midwife spoke to and told me every little step by step guide what would be happening. I would say keep and open mind and keep calm and you should be fine. Any questions s you have how ever stupid you may thing they are just ask. 

  • Sorry only just seen your message Stace. Have you had your lo now? Hope it all went well (as much as it can) and if baby is still due... GOOD LUCK!

Sign In or Register to comment.

Featured Discussions