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Hi My daughter is being induced tommorrow after a long pregnancy with many complications. She has tested psotitive to gbs and will have an iv ass well. She has asked me to go in as support and I am happy to, however I need to know the best way to support her and there really isnt any advice after searching the internet. Anyone have any advice? Thanks in advance for any replies.
dont let her be pushed into a c section! thats the best advice i can give, many hospitals who want to get patients in and out will push for this. when you are in pain and exhausted it seems a good idea at the time BUT i wish i had not agreed to it, although in mycase it turned out if i hadnt my bub may have died (prolapsed cord) but just be aware that it can be a lengthy process, i was in labour for 2 days with three doses of the gel and still nothing. but everyone is different. GOOD LUCK!!!!
Yes it all helps thankyou heaps. C-section is not on her birth plan lol but then neither was induction. She has irratable uterus since 7months and painfull contrations during this time. She is 3 cms dilated and 100% effaced so here is hoping. Thanks ladies
Definitely talk to her about her birth plan in detail, if possible.
Know what pain relief she wasts, if any, and does she want you to intervene on her behalf if you think the midwives/drs aren't listening.
each person is going to be different in what they need so it's really going to depend on what your daughter needs
for me - an ear to listen while i whinged that it was taking too long and nothing was happening - i was induced with gels and then the drip - but my contractions were pretty much a non-event pain wise until my waters were broken.
support and encouragement - reminding me of what i'd been through to get here (ivf, difficult pregnancy) and that the baby was soon going to be there.
encouragement to be as mobile as possible. if your daughter can be on her feet, get her on them - it's easier to rock through a contraction if you're anywhere but on your back.
a voice of reason - if she has a birth plan that says she'd prefer not to have an epidural/pethidine or whatever - and she starts saying she needs them during contractions, remind her of what she wanted. don't tell her she can't have them (cos she'll kick you out if she's anything like me!) just remind her of the other options.
if she wants massage, ask her where - she will be best to guide you.
if her hubby/partner is in there - be a support to him too. make sure he eats. make sure he is there for her etc
unless she says otherwise, take a step or five back when the baby arrives to give mum and dad time to check it out and wait for an invited over to beak. it's an amazing moment, and your DD and partner may want to share it with you, but they might just want a minute. if you can, grab the camera for those moments. they can never be recreated! also ask in advance if she wants labour photos taken. i ended up with a c/s and no photos immediately after my DD was born - but i do have photos from while i was labouring and i love them. no one apart from hubby, myself and SIL (maybe my bro) have seen them - they are the ones that are just for us...
if she asks you to leave, don't take it personally!
i guess just being there to support her through whatever she needs is important. you may be asked to step out during consultations with ob's that check on her etc - take that moment to grab an extra drink for yourself or her partner. try to encourage dd to drink - i didn't drink enough (damn morning sickness in labour as well!) and ended up on the iv being rehydrated
ooh, and unless she asks - don't watch the CTG and tell her when contractions are coming or how much more painful that one must be than the last one! i had an epi in, so couldn't feel the pain, and it didn't worry me when SIL did it - but had i been experiencing the pain factor, i'd probably have gone off my nut
hope that helps - and good luck to your DD
I was induced at 34w1d because of pre-eclampsia. I was 1-2cm when they did an exam prior to deciding which way to induce me. When they went to break my waters (as they said the gels would only get me to where I already was) I had progressed to 3cm.
I would say that they will likely break her waters if she is already 3cm dialated - but then again some hospitals have used the gels or tapes at that time. My experiences in talking to others that have been induced is that the tapes/gels can sometimes prolong things so I would suggest that your DD could ask for her waters to be broken.
She will likely have a drip which will have syntocin in it - this will bring on the contractions and ramp them up a lot quicker than they would with a non induced labour. Your DD will also likely have the CTG monitors on and they will monitor the contractions and the baby's heart rate. I had the synto drip dosed up every half and hour or so at first and then it was left on until well I am not 100% sure when.
I asked no one to mention c-sect to me - even if things were talking longer than they liked... the baby would still come when it and I were ready. If it were necessary I could consider it then but I didn't want to be held to a timetable.
Support wise - I can't tell you exactly what will work but I can tell you what I appreciated. I like massage because the contractions can come on a lot quicker and get really painful a lot quicker than a non induced labour. I didn't like people telling me the numbers on the CTG - I could tell when a contraction was coming on and when they hurt... I could have shot my partner when he starting saying "ouch, that one was up to 100". Other than that - take your cues from your daughter, ask her to tell you what she wants (I often asked my support people for water, to get me the fit ball, for heatpacks) but other times if she hasn't asked for things - offer them.
I am not sure if that is the kind of things you were looking for, please if you have any other questions - do not hesitate to ask.
Thankyou ladies It is much appreciated I ahve four children and all pregnancy trouble free. I am hoping that she has had such a crappy pregnancy the least she could wish for is a trouble free delivery. I am hoping to be a support and will take on board your suggestions... Thanks heaps oh what to do now no sleep for any of us tonight. So exiting but need to remain focused. So hard to see your children in pain so hope I am a support and stick to the plan with her. Cheers
I was induced with my 2nd son as i had merconium (sp??) in my waters but i probably don't have anything usefull to add as you have received some great info already.
...I just wanted to say good luck and that your daughter is a lucky girl to have you by her side. LIke most things in these circumstances the lead up is the hardest and once you are there everything will fall into place. I hope your daughter has a trouble free labour and that you are holding your new grandchild in no time :)