scared of not going into labour

[vbacwantingmum]

I am starting to stress that i wont go into labour (im only 19 weeks atm)

im just scared i wont go into labour naturally.. what happens in that case.. like personal experiences..

what induction methods should i aprove etc

[~clover~]

As far as I know they don't like to induce with VBAC.
I'm guessing thats what you are trying for?

There are quite a few on here with experience, so I'm sure they'll be along soon

[Arimeh]

Hi

I went 14 days over with DD so I didn't get my VBAC.

You can start preparing your body for labour, using the old wives tales (better than doing nothing!) like Evening Primrose Capsules being inserted, drinking Raspberry Leaf Tea, rubbing Clary Sage on your belly etc (of course when you are closer to your due date - say 39 weeks or something!!!)

Also - acupuncture. Definitely get it done.

Next time around (yes I'm going for a VBA2C) I'll be doing this earlier than I started (41 weeks)

They can "induce" you by a balloon method apparently - but my OB didn't want to do anything if my cervix wasn't looking favourable - which it wasn't. They just won't induce you the regular way (ie, drip)

Good luck!!

[vbacwantingmum]

Hi

I went 14 days over with DD so I didn't get my VBAC.

You can start preparing your body for labour, using the old wives tales (better than doing nothing!) like Evening Primrose Capsules being inserted, drinking Raspberry Leaf Tea, rubbing Clary Sage on your belly etc (of course when you are closer to your due date - say 39 weeks or something!!!)

Also - acupuncture. Definitely get it done.

Next time around (yes I'm going for a VBA2C) I'll be doing this earlier than I started (41 weeks)

They can "induce" you by a balloon method apparently - but my OB didn't want to do anything if my cervix wasn't looking favourable - which it wasn't. They just won't induce you the regular way (ie, drip)

Good luck!!

Yeah the i no the method your talking.. so you think start doing the wives tales say 38 weeks just to try and get the ball rolling??

im going to talk to my doctor about that one at 26 weeks and see if they actually do it.. alot of people are against it (well other sites that ive asked etc) but i think why not give it a try.. it has a chance of working and its safer then drugs so.

Thank you

[alice77]

I went right up to 41W + 5 days, just 2 days till I was booked in for c/section! At 37 weeks, my obs had told me bubs was engaged and I started have different types of braxton hicks so I was sure I would come early.
So every single morning for 5 weeks I would wake up sad that I wasn't in labour!!! The expectation was so high I was making myself sick and depressed. I didn't go out of the house or even answer the phone for weeks. NOT GOOD. I was so desperate for natural labour.
The morning I went into labour, I had a serious talk to myself and came to terms with the very real possibility of a c/section. Then 5 hours later labour started. Co-incidence? Or my body finally letting go?

My point? Hmmm... not sure how helpful this advice is but I think it's important to accept the idea of not coming in time - not to the point of giving up but so that you don't go insane waiting! Easier said than done I know.

More practical stuff - I had a stretch and sweep done on thursday and went into labour sunday arvo, so I don't think it worked just stressed me out.
I went for a vigourous walk the night before labour and watched '3 men and a baby' (urban legend that this movie brings on labour - but it actually worked!).

I had the option of having my waters broken at 42W but if this doesn't work you have no option but "emergency" c/section.

all the best.

[Midwife Melissa]

All women go into labour eventually Many don't go into labour by their due date, but remember, babies usually come between 37 and 42 weeks and we usually induce women well before then. Imagine how many more babies would arrive by themselves if we only waited until they're ready? You always have the option of monitoring your baby later in pregnancy to ensure that all's well. But the majority of babies are fine about waiting, and waiting tends to make the labour easier and faster.

[Leonie P]

This is something I am scared of too. I am 29wks and am about to fight for my right to VBA2C I have been told that I will have to have another c-section.
I have done a lot of research and found that I can attempt a VBAC but am also scared of not going into labour as my first child was 10 days over, induced and still had to be cut out.
I have been doing everything I can find to increase my chances of going into labour spontaneously like keeping active, doing yoga, I have the rasberry leaf tea and capsules ready for wk 32ish. I am also contemplating seeing a osteopath do make sure my delivery passage is clear and ready for delivery.
I just hope my fear of not going into labour doesn't stop me from going.

[Sanchez]

Hi there

I have done a fair bit of research on membrane sweeping and it has high results for getting women into labour. The best results are if you have it done by your midwife starting at 41 weeks and then every 48hours until you are in labour.

Down sides of membrane sweeping - can be painful to have done, and can cause you to have severe braxton hicks that doesn't put you into labour......better than being induced though.

For anybody not sure what it is, a midwife will insert her finger into your cervix and in a circular motion sweep the membranes off the uterine wall.

[alice77]

Yes, I had a stretch & sweep done at 41 weeks. It was quite uncomfortable but not too painful. She put her fingers in and felt that I was 2cm dilated so she "stretched" me to 3cm dilated, as well as "sweeping" the membranes. The midwife said that if it was to work it would take effect that afternoon or evening. Nothing happened for me till 3 days later, so it's debatable whether it actually worked for me.

[Inertia]

One thing you can rest assured about is - there will be no reason for spontaneous labour not to start from your side of things. Its whether your care providers are willing to wait for it to happen that is the question. The amount of first timers I know that end up getting induced at 40+10 is crazy sometimes. It was like Melissa said, if they are left to go themselves, they more probably will. I made them wait until 40+14 and went on to have a SVD - thanks in no small part to my extreme and irrational needle phobia.

Baby is not going to stay in there forever, and they can estimate and guesstimate your due date until the cows come home - doesn't mean they will be right, and it certainly doesn't mean that if it doesnt happen then, it wont happen at all.

I don't usually do this because nothing I can say can really prepare anyone for the sheer power of an active labour contraction - but try and shift your focus to mentally preparing yourself for that, because it's like nothing anyone can possibly describe. It is far more intense than you may yet have imagined (even I was under prepared for my first active labour and I was utterly petrified of how much it was going to hurt!). With VBAC, you should not accept any form of pain management. You need to feel it all to make sure nothing is going wrong because they can't tell from the outside 'looking in'.

Remember - you are in complete control of your own body. If you are telling to to prepare itself for a VB, then that is exactly what it is going to do - just as much as telling your hand to scratch your backside makes it do just that. (horrible analogy, I know, but it makes my point). You have such amazing finite control over it already and use it every single day that its not that much of a stretch to accept that its much more than skin deep.