To induce or not to induce?

Question

I am 38 weeks pregnant with second child. I am not dilating, effacing, and the baby is still "floating". My doctor gave me the option of inducing me on the 21st. I am not due till the 25th, but due to a full schedule at the hospital for inductions, that is the only time she could get me in untill Sept. 8th. (I beleive I would be like 42 weeks by then).

I know it's all up to me, and she'll come when she's good and ready, but I just wanted some opinions on it.

Answer 1

I would not recommend induction unless necessary. Of course, there's nothing "wrong" with it, but you should be aware of what goes along with it.

1. When you are induced you must be monitored constantly and that means you're gonna be confined and hooked up to a lot of machines, IV's, etc. They made me lie in bed all day and pee in a bed pan. I was miserable.
2. The drugs they use to induce will start your labor out HARD and STRONG with no buildup and it can be quite painful and overhwhelming.
3. Studies show that being induced makes a woman much more likely to end up with a c-section and other delivery complications. This is for several reasons, but the main ones being sometimes the fetus does not tolerate the artificial, harder labor very well - and also labor quite often does not progress because the mother is not allowed to move about freely and enlist the help of gravity and positions comfortable to her like she would in "natural" labor.

The choice is up to you, but I just wanted to share my experiences, and also some of the facts about it. If you and baby are doing great, you have every reason to wait and just let nature do its thing.

Answer 2

i would wait and schedule it for 42 weeks. remember your due date can be off by 2 weeks either way, so you could really only be 36 weeks, not 38, or could be 40 now. they will schedule you for non-stress tests 2x a week until the baby is born to make sure the baby is ok. the placenta stops growing around 36-38 weeks i believe, so they do an ultraosund after the non-stress test to make sure there is enough fluid and the placenta is still healthy. if they see a problem they will induce you without an appointment. i was induced at 41 weeks and 1 day. i got to the hospital at 4am and they had no room for me but told me not to leave because i was overdue and my daughter was big. i got pitocin at 5:20 and she was born at 10:54am weighing 9lb 3oz. big babies aren't harder to deliver if you ask me, and it's worth waiting for to ensure the lungs are fully developed. also remember you could go into labor on your own before the induction and i've done both- i'd rather have gone into labor on my own, i begged my daughter to come out lol. induced labor is painful. in my 5 and a half hour labor, i only made it 2 and a half hours without an epidural. when i went into labor on my own with my son i went the first 9 of 16 hours without it, and i only got it then because they came and asked if i wanted one (i could have waited a few more hours maybe)

Answer 3

I would wait before I got the baby induced. They gave me the option of having my last son induced at 41 weeks and I did, and it was extremely more painful that way. My contractions were very hard for several hours. Just let your little blessing come naturally and don't even bother about a doctor's schedule. They will have nurses (who actually do most of the work with you) available for when you go into labor. It should be about what is best for the mother and not the doctor or hospital.

Answer 4

Well sweetie, I've been pregnant 8 times. Delivered 5. Delivered 4 vaginally without induction. delivered one by c-section due to a failed induction. Emergency c-section. So one thing I'd ask you is, did your doctor also tell you that if your body is not ready (and it seems it is not yet) you could lay there and suffer through all that and not deliver the baby? If your body isn't ready, it simply won't work! Obviously it is up to you, and I totally understand your thinking. Shoot...I have some things I deal with, and hey...I'd love to deliver early. However, forcing things may not work, and could cause some problems. Please stop and think things through before you decide to induce. And if you do decide to go through with it, good luck! I hope things work well for you...better than they went for me! :-)

Answer 5

Generally, I would advise you to wait, but if the next available time is 42 weeks, induce now. My first child was a 42 weeker and he was so big that he got stuck, there was no amniotic fluid left and I ended up with a fourth degree tear due to his size.

Answer 6

I HAD to be induced all three pregnancies (long story-- but health problems each time made it necessary).
It does make the contractions harder and longer. I would keep the induction as an option, but not do it if I had the choice.
Best of luck with your little one!

Answer 7

I would say to let nature take it's course, however if it's only 4 days early and you are miserable (I was when I was pregnant that last month) Then would say go a head. Is there a medical reason why they want to induce you? I am suprised that they do it, just because.

Good luck and congratulations!

Answer 8

seems like they induce for every one; why not wait till the baby is really ready Nature does a great job of this

Answer 9

I would wait if I were you. Let her come when she's ready. I think inducing is great, but I think it should really only be done if you are over due. Congrats on the little one! :)

Answer 10

I don't think there is any harm in scheduling when you have your child if you are that close to the due date.

Also, if your go into labor unexpectedly, no hospital will kick you out because you weren't on the schedule...