How many of you were induced and it ended up in c-section?

[Babysaurus]

As the title says really.

I was told that, at 38 weeks, there was a "60 to 70% chance of ending up needing a section" at my obs appt the other week and am now considering the various options available.

I don't want to have 3 days of them trying to induce and then ending up frazzled, knackered and needing a section anyway, so am wondering more about the elective option, seeing as there appears to be a high chance I'd end up needing one anyway. Previously a section was the last thing I wanted but now an elective is looking far more appealing than an emergency one...

Interested to know people's views.

For info, the baby is in the middle of the graph size wise, I am fit and healthy - although perhaps at 8 months don't feel it! - and the HbA1c's are in the low 5's but I have been told that there is a chance of still birth regardless if I don't go for the induction route, anyone else heard similar....?

 

[Smit]

I'll let you know in a week or so honey, hoping to be induced a week on Monday. Got my last appointment on Monday and I'm going to ask about c sections figures etc then. I'm hoping I go myself before induction date, a girl can dream! X

 

[rachelha]

Hi, I had a c-section after being induced. Nathan was quite large and was back to back. I got fully dilated, pushed for a while, then they tried forceps and finally ended up with the section. With the wonders of hind sight an elective section would have been preferable. I was absolutely exhausted, I had not slept for 48 hours and Nathan had to be fed formula on his first night as I could not stay awake to feed him. We went on to bf successfully for 9 months though so this was not really a problem.

 

[Babysaurus]

Rachel, its stories like yours that are pushing me towards asking for an elective!

 

[Ellie Jones]

I had two babies induced both no problems with normal delivery.

Even though it may sound as a Elective C-section might be preferable, you do need to consider the over-all risk factors, such as Epidural going wrong, changes of infections happening, or other complications that can happen with a c-section

Yes being induced can mean a c-sec, but there again going into labour can end up this way.. And there got to be a reason behind why they go for an induction first rather straight for a c-sec!

 

[Babysaurus]

Ellie, I am more than aware there are risks with c-sections! Previously it was what I wanted to avoid at all costs, largely due to the recovery. However, the "60/70% chance" of needing one anyway puts a whole new different light on things!

And one of the reasons they go for induction instead of just a c-sec is cost! An emergency section also carries far more risks than a planned as it is done in a rush (my sister works in an operating theatre as an ODP) which is another reason to explore more options.

I am thinking of asking if a cut off of, say, 24 hours for the induction is realistic or if they are keen for it to be at least 72 hours.

 

[Ellie Jones]

I really don't think you can say what a cut off point is in a time spam as it's other factors that depict whether an emergency section is called for...

As what point do you say labour starts?

With my first daughter (I wasn't diabetic nor induced) I was in labour for 4 days, I know this has had an anti-natal on the Thursday morning, and at this point I was 2cm's dilated yet I didn't go into hospital until the early hours on Sunday morning and had her on Monday evening!

You seem to ask a question seemly with not having all the information, so when somebody points out that you need to be looking at other considerations to make a well informed judgement, You claim to have access to all sorts of information!

 

[Babysaurus]

Ellie, I am not going to bother getting into yet another 'discussion' with you as, I have learned from experience, that you tend to assume vast amounts about myself, my circumstances and my past experiences. You also tend not to read the posts properly which doesn't help! And your last sentence doesn't make a vast amount of sense either!

I am going to explore the various options with a clear idea of what I want to avoid, and see how myself and the obs can help this become a reality (as much as these things can be predicted, which I realise it not always easy!)

 

[Emmal31]

Hi,

I was induced at 38 weeks but I was never told about the statistics of it ending up in a c-section I only found that out from someone on here a while after.

I was induced on the monday morning nothing happened until the evening after my husband had left. The contractions started around 11pm and so I was up all night I was moved back down to the labour ward in the morning and by 11am I was only 4cm dialated at which point Jessica's heart rate started to dip and they said if things didn't improve then I'd be taken to have an emergency c-section. Jessica was born at 12:54 by emergency c-section. If I had known that high percentage I probably would have gone for an elective c-section. Next time I will not be letting them induce me because I don't want to go through that all again I will be having an elective c-section.

I think that you should do what you think is the best option for you and your baby, good luck with your decision x

 

[Babysaurus]

Thanks Emma for your reply. Its a tricky call I think. Ideally, I want to go and have a successful induction and by that I mean one which doesn't last for days and also does not involve the dreaded forceps or any other kind of intervention, including an emergency c-sec. However, statistically this is looking rather iffy! I think the apt on Weds will consist of a lot more questions about how successful things generally are the info I was given at the last time threw me somewhat (ie I am more likely to need a section than not anyway.)

Prior to that, c-sections sounded scary but now I am wondering if an elective one will actually be the lesser of the two evils!

 

[sugarfreerach]

I know the statistics say all sorts but in my opinion you would be missing out on the experience of labour if you went elective. Up to 32 weeks I secretly wanted to have an elective but after that my mind set changed, due to me feeling more confident and also i think hormones change etc. Also my consultant was very much against elective.

I was induced and gave birth vaginally. I did need help with forceps but only because he got slightly stuck. For me I wouldn't change that at all and really hope i get to deliver vaginally next time.

If it had ended in a csection, I would've been equally proud that id given it a go!

I think as diabetics we can miss out on so much normality, that i really didn't want something else to be tainted by diabetes when there was no real need after my sugars were so well controlled.

 

[newbs]

My first labour started naturally at 38 weeks on the day I was due to be induced and I had a normal vaginal delivery. Second time I was induced at 38 weeks and immediately DD's heart rate dipped very low and I spent the next 10 hours lying on my side (best for baby) and having intense contractions. At the end of that time DD's heartrate dropped away completely (and at that point they discovered she was back to back) and I was given a general anasethetic so they could do an emergency c-section quickly to save her life. Scary stuff.

Having a vaginal delivery is by far the best way to go though and if I were to go through it again I would seriously think about declining the induction at 38 weeks and maybe agreeing to it at 40 weeks if I hadn't gone into labour naturally then, rather than going for an elective c-section. Obviously it all needs to be discussed and weighed up for you and your baby's safety.

 

[RuthieG]

I'll let you know in a week or so honey, hoping to be induced a week on Monday. Got my last appointment on Monday and I'm going to ask about c sections figures etc then. I'm hoping I go myself before induction date, a girl can dream! X

Hi Smit

Keep us posted (when you can!). Hopefully all will go smoothly and you will go into labour before they need to get their hands on you.

Good luck and looking forward to reading your updates (before and after the arrival of your little one)

Ruthie 🙂

 

[Catwoman76]

Hi 11 years ago I was told that it would be a vaginal delivery and I had been through that befor with my eldest daughtere, but didn't have diabetes then. At 33 weeks it all changed big time and I had to have a C section under a general anaesthetic, I was very scared, because at the age 42, I had never had an operation before. Whatever happens, you and the hospital will do everything possible for the safe delivery of your baby. Good luck and best wishes Sheena

 

[PhoebeC]

I was induced at 34 weeks due to pre-eclampsia 36 hours later with the help of forceps normal delivery Yes i kind of wish it had been only 1 day with a quick section but they didn't seem to want to give me one for some reason
And the fact that i did it after all that time in the state that i was with over an hours pushing makes me a little bit proud of myself 🙂 x

 

[Monkey]

Bit late to this, but I was told that 75% of inductions in T1s at abround 38w ended in sections at my hospital.

We deliberated for ages about what to do, but went for the induction. As you know, it ended in a section, but I managed to get to 10cm and push for a couple of hours, and it was very, very positive.

For me, I was pretty aware that if I opted for a section first time, I'd have a real battle to be allowed to try a vbac in a subsequent pregnancy. It was a good decision, but a very tough one to take.

 

[MrsCLH]

Just to add my experience. I was induced at 38.5 weeks and Harry was born 3 days later, forceps delivery in theatre just in case I needed a c-sec. My experience was awful, I just didn't get regular contractions even with that awful drip on full whack so ended up with diamorphine and an epidural and then a spinal block. Was exhausted, Harry was back to back and couldn't push him out. I also ended up completely out of it on all the drugs and thought I was dreaming for the first 24 hours after the birth - I honestly thought that nothing was real, it was awful. Having said all that, I don't think I'd go for an elective c-sec next time but I would definitely have an epi before they come anywhere near me with that synto drip!

 

[Babysaurus]

Thanks for sharing your experience too, MrsCLH and so sorry to hear your experience was grim. I have found some research which may explain why this happens on a regular basis - here's one link here, but it is also written up in the BMJ. http://wrap.warwick.ac.uk/40859/

It is relatively recent research (ie neither obs I mentioned it to had any idea, I asked them about contractions in diabetics first and was assured that there was no difference - hmmm) so it may not have filtered down to everywhere yet - I have no idea how long these things work so may be wrong!

I am guessing that that may also be why forceps and similar play a large part too.

 

[sorcha]

I was induced with all three of mine; all were vaginal deliveries. Certainly there's a statistical risk that any single intervention will increase the chances of further interventions being necessary, and this includes pain relief - in other words, a c-section is more probable after an epidural, for example.

In my third labour I was given three pessaries, several hours apart, and nothing was happening. They told me they thought I would need a section and I said "Not yet." (A previous experience of medical negligence meant that spinal anaesthesia would be fairly risky for me.) I asked to go home and come back in a day or two, but the doctors said they would prefer me to stay for the night just in case something happened, so I agreed. Less than 90 minutes after that, my son was in my arms.

My rule of thumb was to ask if any intervention could wait half an hour. Sometimes that's not possible, especially if there's any indication of fetal distress, but sometimes it's worth waiting it out.

I do think induction is a dilemma for diabetics, because statistically the outcomes are significantly poorer if we go too much past dates. But there used to be an idea that it was best to induce way before the due date, and I couldn't find much support for the practice in research.

My first was induced after labour spontaneously started - and then stopped - at 36+6; my second was induced at 40+2 and my third was induced at 39+5. All were healthy and reasonably-sized!

Hope things go well for you.

 

[Babysaurus]

Thanks Sorcha, some very good points to bear in mind!

Sorry to be a bit thick, but what's 'Type 1.5 LADA'....?