*TW: if you have issues surrounding labour, induction, forceps and birth trauma: please read with care or don’t read on”
I’ve seen a lot of stories in the media recently surrounding labour and being induced, and the positives and negatives of induction. Having been induced with Grayson, I can understand a lot of both sides of opinions.
I ended up going 2 weeks overdue with Grayson, and if I didn’t have my best friends wedding I would have carried on waiting until Grayson was ready to come out himself. However, because I couldn’t miss this wedding I bit the bullet and asked to be induced.
I had 2 forms of induction with Grayson. As I was identified as a low risk pregnancy I was initially offered to have a small pessary inserted behind my cervix that would be kept in for 24 hours. With this I was allowed to go home and carry on my day, in the hopes that hormones it released would start off my labour.
*spoiler alert* it didn’t do anything
So after much longer than 24 hours, and my waters breaking naturally I was told I would still need to have the hormonal drip to induce my labour and contractions (although I was already having contractions). The only 2 questions I asked the midwife at the time were: what were chances I would end up having an assisted delivery or c section, and would the pain be worse.
Now I already knew the answers, but I wanted to hear it directly from the midwife. She said that the hospital had a fairly high rate of assisted deliveries as a result of inductions (I can’t remember the amount she said) but it wasn’t high enough for it to be the definitive outcome and then in terms of the pain she said that it was likely to be more intense as you’re basically have labour forced on.
So I ended up having the induction, and the pain was intense. I have nothing else to compare to, but I ended up having a lot more drugs than I’d initially planned and I think it did contribute a lot to my traumatic birth. I also did end up in surgery, prepped for a c-section, but the doctor on call managed to get Grayson out with forceps. Obvious at the end of it all I got Grayson, and he was happy and healthy which is the main thing.
Obviously, induction isn’t like this for everyone! I know plenty of women who have gone through induction and found it a really positive experience, it just wasn’t for me. For that reason I wouldn’t have an induction again, and it’s important to know that if you are a low risk pregnancy you can refuse induction. It does mean you have to have very regular checkups until the baby is born, but you don’t have to be induced.
I’m not the type of person that goes in to something blind, and for that reason I think it’s important to research very carefully. So if you’re considering an induction or need to be induced, there’s plenty of information online. The NHS website was especially helpful, and the hospital I had Grayson at also had a whole host of information available.
It’s important to choose the best option for you and your baby, and try to have the best experience possible!