best ways to deal with hospital induction--support thread

[tofutti]

it occurred to me that some of us won't be able to avoid a hospital induction...and that we should start a thread about how to make the best of this!

i wish i would have done some research last time - i was woefully unprepared and i think i did myself no favors! i was clue-less!

one thing that i have learned this time (NOT that i am going to be induced, fingers crossed) with my great new midwife/ob combo clinic is that there are GENTLER ways to be induced in the hospital.

tips, random stuff i have learned....

1. no cytotec, never (danger)
2. best/natural way to prepare cervix is a foley bulb (i think this is the term) filled with water and put in the cervix (i think) overnight. cervadil is maybe the next "best" (at least it is not dangerous like cytotec)
3. if nothing is happening, break water
4. then WAIT....4 hours or so (no rushing like my last bad doc!)
5. then a tiny tiny amt. of pitocin. if contractions start see if they can turn it off for a while? have dh or doula monitor the nurse with the control over this stuff. (my friend demanded they give her a break from it and they did)
6. and ask for cordless monitors. hold em in place with something comfy like a bella band (not the scratchy nightmarish thing they give you)
7. still try to do all of your natural techniques -- and dont beat yourself up over an epi. maybe just try to hold off as long as you can.....

if anyone has other stuff to add please do i am not a doctor

[deymm]

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[cristeen]

I would honestly suggest the pit before the AROM. The AROM starts the clock on you - some places are only giving you 12 hours after AROM now.

Even with the foley bulb or the drugs, walk. Get vertical any way you can. Being stuck in that bed is one of the worst things you can do (mentally, emotionally, and physically).

If you're not on pit yet, ask for a Heplock, and not an IV. They don't need an IV for a foley, and they shouldn't need it for Cervadil, either.

If at any time a doctor/nurse comes in and says you HAVE to do/have something (i.e. antibiotics, epidural, c-sec, etc.) ask what your other options are. I found that my doctors didn't tell me the options unless I asked.

ASK QUESTIONS!! Before and during! My doctors just did stuff and ordered me around with me not having any clue why I was doing things. I really regret not asking for explanations at the time, because it would have helped with the feeling of helplessness I felt for months afterwards.

As soon as labor patterns are established, and the drugs have been turned off, ask to be removed from continuous monitoring and switched to intermittent.

That's all I'm thinking of at the moment.

[pageta]

My water broke and I had no action so I was facing induction. I had (thankfully!) already scheduled an acupuncture session for induction (I wanted her to be born on her due date - 9/9/9, but the closest date I could get for the acupuncture was 9/8/9). I ended up having the baby four hours after the acupuncture session ended (so missed my target due date) but didn't have to do castor oil or hospital induction.

I could feel the needles (they wanted me to be able to feel them) but it didn't hurt at all. That first shot at the dentist when they go in to numb your tooth so they can work on it is much, much worse. The procedure took 45 minutes. It was performed by an MD. My doula refers clients to him all the time and she's 12 for 14 in the clients she's sent to him. You do need to be slightly dilated in order for it to work (I was 3 cm).

But I was so glad I had this option rather than facing a hospital induction.

Bottom line: know your options - acupuncture is one of them.

[tzs]

i just had one last week. i didn't necessarily want to go that route but i always had it in my head that it could happen, and that my ideal situation was not dependant on how labor went or if i used the tub or if i skipped the epi or any of that but instead that i ended up with a healthy baby.

and in the end there were alot of things that happened that were not anywhere close to ideal and could be really irritating if i mulled on them, and i could be really annoyed at my OB or myself but ya know what...our daughter is healthy, i am healthy, her father is happy...and that's what matters in the end.
nobody has anything to prove and having a dream birth experience doesn't really make anybody a winner or loser.

[sunnyCA]

Originally Posted by tzs

i just had one last week. i didn't necessarily want to go that route but i always had it in my head that it could happen, and that my ideal situation was not dependant on how labor went or if i used the tub or if i skipped the epi or any of that but instead that i ended up with a healthy baby.

and in the end there were alot of things that happened that were not anywhere close to ideal and could be really irritating if i mulled on them, and i could be really annoyed at my OB or myself but ya know what...our daughter is healthy, i am healthy, her father is happy...and that's what matters in the end.
nobody has anything to prove and having a dream birth experience doesn't really make anybody a winner or loser.

I totally agree with you!! This sounds similar to my experience with my first. After all was said and done, I decided to not mull over the process but on the fabulous outcome. The interesting thing is that with my DD I had a birth experience that was better than I ever could have imagined. However, all that really matters in the end is the 2 wonderful, healthy children that I have today.

[MichelleAnnette]

I would prefer pitocin to having my water broken because 1) it starts the clock and 2) if baby is not engaged, it could cause cord prolapse. Breaking the water after labor is well established is a different story, although still something I will avoid, but breaking the water to induce labor could be a bad idea, depending on other factors.

[tofutti]

good info!!!

yeah, my midwife is the one who said they do the water breaking before pit, have to ask her the logic on this.

TZS i totally agree with you!! i think being mentally ready for anything (including induction) is the key - with my first i was one of those "oh its gonna be like this and like this" people and then i got so mad when it all went the opposite way.

and of course in the end, here is DS - the happy healthy light of my life! and for all i know, the induction really was the best option - didnt need a c section, and he is healthy! i will never know what refusing an induction would have ended up like......could have been better, but could have been much worse, right?

[grumpybear]

Know what you want but be open to changes anyway. I feel that open-mindedness makes for a good birth experience (whether it's natural, induced or c-sec).
If you still want to forego pain meds, surround yourself with an awesome support group.

[MyZoeJane]

An excellent and timely thread for me. I hope it keeps going.

I am due tomorrow and at my midwife appointment today the "i" word came up. She is not comfortable letting me go past 41 weeks since this is going to be a big baby.... even though she acknowledges that even the ACOG says that macrosomia is not a reason to induce.

I have a week and a day to go naturally or I'm in for induction #2. Not such an awful thing as the first time, if it does wind up happening, since this time I am already 3cm and 70% effaced as of now. I was closed up like a drum the first time.

But it's good to think right now about how to make it the most positive it can be if it comes to fruition. I don't think it will, as she stripped my membranes today and I'm feeling a bit crampy.... but one never does know.

I would definately feel better about starting with a tiny dose of pitocin before AROM.

[2boyzmama]

Remember too that home induction techniques can be used in a hospital...breast pump, even orgasm. Sometimes your body might need the kick start of the foley bulb or a bit of pitocin, but then you can try to get in the hot shower with hubby and be close and intimate--even just passionate kissing--to keep things going more naturally.

And I also would choose a low-dose pit in place of AROM, unless I was a VBAC mom AND baby was fully engaged, then I might choose AROM over pit.