Cervical/internal checks in 3rd trimester

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Sorry if Im hijacking the thread, I've got a question that kind of relates~

8am. I was about 2-3cm Dilated. Steady contractions, and my OB broke my waters.

Four hours later, I was in a lot of pain and I think driving the midwives on the maternity ward crazy, cause they told me my labour wasn't progressing so I was to have a syntocin drip. And I had to have an epidural because if I couldn't handle this pre labour I couldn't handle a syntocin labour.
This decision was made without any internals except from the one at 8am in which my waters had broken.
DD was born 2hours later while I was told to wait for the guy to come and do the epi( about an hour after they moved me to the Suites while telling me it was too early to go there really).

I'm not really sure if what I think is right, but was I meant to have an internal before all that was decided?

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Firstly, can I just say I think you were treated pretty badly. But I doubt this is uncommon - I've heard loads of people say they were dismissed as being in pre-labour, yet they birthed their baby only a couple of hours later.
In terms of what they are 'meant' to do, my suggestion is not that they should have done another internal before deciding that your labour should be augmented, but that they should have had some bloody patience.
IMO, there should have been some sort of medical reason for them to want to augment your labour, not just that you've been 'taking too long'.
I am sorry that you were treated this way.

Thanks Snacks, I think your understanding is worth more than anything! I was mostly wondering if that was right/wrong in a way.
The whole birth has been sitting in the back of mind bothering me since it happened. There were a bunch of tiny little things like that throughout the whole experience. So now when I mention it, I have to edit all the ranting out of it.

With my first I didn't have an internal check until I was about to be induced for pre-eclamsia and with #2 I didn't have an internal until overdue and looking at induction plans so I would say it's pretty normal. Neither of my dr (both different) did the strep test. I too thought it was weird that everyone else was having updates in their final weeks as to if they were effacing/dilating etc I got nada. Interestingly enough at both my checks I was 3-4cm dilated and my laboours were only 5 and 3 hrs respective. I don't think having an internal is going to change the duration of your labour, nor tell you how long it will take as you can dialte and efface quickly or slowly I walked around 3cm dialted for over a week without going into labour :-)

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Thanks Snacks, I think your understanding is worth more than anything! I was mostly wondering if that was right/wrong in a way.
The whole birth has been sitting in the back of mind bothering me since it happened. There were a bunch of tiny little things like that throughout the whole experience. So now when I mention it, I have to edit all the ranting out of it.

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Babes, feel free to rant as much as you like! (I did just then, and it wasn't even my birth, LOL!) There's a section on the forum devoted to birth debriefing. You'll find that a really comforting place to go through it all and get it out there, if that's what you'd like to do. Ranting and all ;)

de-briefing-disappointing-traumatic-births/

Never had an internal before I was in labour - and they would be absolutely DREAMING if they thought I would submit to one before I was suffering agonising labour pains!

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I'm not really sure if what I think is right, but was I meant to have an internal before all that was decided?

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At Least! I've been told I wasn't progressing too and had the baby 4 hours later while they were 'deciding what to do with me'. So much for not progressing! That was WITH an internal! Horrible way to treat a woman. :hug: for you.

No internals are completely unneccessary unless there is a reason like to obtain your progress in labour or to see if your cervix is open enough to allow your membranes to be broken in the event of an induction. Actually unless your thought to be in strong labour they don't like them done at all before 37weeks because of the risk of starting something or exacerbating something thats already going on (not that thats a concern for you as your 39weeks). Id say yeah for you and hope you don't need many (your usally very lucky to avoid them during labour though).

Thanks guys.
Hearing it has really helped. :redface: Sounds so corny!

I've read a few stories on the forum and mine seems so nice in comparison. So I've been hesitant to post. (That and I'm a bit shy~ I sit here and work up courage a bit before posting. :redface:)

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Thanks guys.
Hearing it has really helped. :redface: Sounds so corny!

I've read a few stories on the forum and mine seems so nice in comparison. So I've been hesitant to post. (That and I'm a bit shy~ I sit here and work up courage a bit before posting. :redface:)

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Kam, you don't need to worry about anyone here, your input and experiences will always be welcomed. Wonderful, wonderful people here.

No doubt it does seem nice in comparison. I was horribly traumatised by the aftermath of my 3rd labour - but when you compare it to some here or my older sisters, it seems tame.
I does not - in any way, shape or form, demean how I was left feeling about what I went through. Its the same for you. You don't need to be tied to a bed, sliced and baby pulled out with an ice cream scoop to be unduly traumatised, and you will find support here no matter what the circumstances. I do recommend debriefing if you havent gotten it out yet. I should probably debrief on mine because it is making me a really difficult 'patient' - but I think I like it that way! :lol:

Don't ever hesitate to get involved!

*dehijacks thread, lol*

Yes you should have had an internal to see if you were "not progressing" before the decision was made to start Syntocinon. Once your waters have being artifically ruptured they usally like to start the drip within a few hrs if nothing appears to be happening or if they need the baby to be born sooner (ie if its distressed) but you should have had an internal if you were having regular painful contractions that had being increasing in duration and intensity since your waters were broken.

i do know how you feel Karmarine.

My waters broke at 35wks and after intially being told i would be on bed rest for 1-5wks by the admitting midwives. The ob in the moring delcared i would actually be giving birth.

From memory i was 3cm @7am. He never gave my a chioce about being out on the iv and due to short staffing and a mini baby boom no one actually explained the process to me (hadn't completed birthing classes either). There was some confusion as to what my gbs results were as well which confused the process even more.

So i went with the flow and didn't ask many questions as i was concerned about the fact dd was preterm. I had a pretty strightforward vag birth. Now i relise that the drugs given to me can contribute to jaundice (which dd got). But that being said if you go from waters breaking to birth it was about 20hrs and i only started the iv at 10am so maybe i just wasn't going to go into labour ( i wasn't actually having contractions even morning after waters broke).

So i am left with lots of ques but overall happy with the result. Now as i approch 30wks I know i have lots of ques to pose to the ob and i won't leave them till my 36wks appt.

I should add that i was not offered a epidural as part of the process. Infact i was only offered pethadine @3pm when i was 7cm. I was told now or nothing at all. Taking it was a decision i regretted as it made me violently ill but hey who knew how i would react to pethadine as this was only my 2nd time in hosp since being born. the first only a year earlier so hosp and drugs is very unfamiliar to me.

You guys are amazing, I should have posted more from when I first joined a year ago!!


Maybebabie - I did the same thing! I just ate everything they told me. I had to be induced. I had to have my waters broken. I had hours to go. I couldnt have drugs cause this labour wasn't really labour. (They gave me panadeine forte like 3 hours before DD was born. I didn't feel a change at all? So I guess I don't count it as pain medication.) Going with the flow seemed the best way.
I mean, I got what I wanted, a vaginal birth and a healthy daughter. But I feel like it was at their schedule not mine?

Im TTC and DF and I are determined to be more in control and know what to expect this time :D