For those of you who’ve gone through an induction, did you find that the pitocin made your contractions “worse” and that you needed an epidural? I wanted to try for as natural a childbirth as possible, but I’m most likely going to be induced, and from what I’ve heard, the pitocin makes the contractions stronger (and it comes on suddenly), so many women end up getting an epidural. (Which I’m open to, but I wanted to at least try to go without it!)
Anybody out there been induced and given birth without an epidural? And how did the induction go for you? Thanks in advance!
They didn’t induce me but they did use pitocin to speed up my labor. The recomended I have an epidural just for the simple fact that pain makes my blood sugar rise. They were doing what they could to keep blood sugars in a good range during labor so that my daughter wouldn’t have issues. That is my only experience
I don’t mean to scare anyone, but yes, I had pitocin after my water broke unexpectedly at 34.5 weeks. With pitocin my contractions were much stronger and sharper and yes, I got an epidural because of it. I was hoping to go much more natural. If I could have been laboring while standing up/moving around, I think it would have been so much better but I was attached to the monitors and needed oxygen. Laboring on my back was no picnic. I ended up feeling really foggy and almost out-of-body throughout the delivery.
TTC #2 in the next few months and will be actively trying to stay off of pitocin when the time comes.
I was upset about my birth experience for a long time (my daughter is 3-1/2 now). I feel like I know so much more this time around and will press a lot harder to find out my options. We didn’t know that we could have delayed or even eliminated pitocin and waited for labor to progress on its own after my water broke. Now, in my mind, hospital = intervention.
You’re asking great questions and sounds like you’ll be prepared for whatever comes your way. All the best!
My water broke early as well, but my OB felt safe in letting labor progress on its own. I was in the hospital having contractions for a week before she was born. They monitored my very closely and was only allowed out of bed to pee.
My OB had told me that pitocin could increase my chance of a C-section with my daughter almost 3 yrs ago. She opted to use cervidil to ripen my cervix and cause my water to break on it’s own. It’s definitely an option to discuss with your OB.
Good question–I’m thinking about all this, too… Please feel free not to answer this if you’d rather not, but why do you think you’ll be induced? I’m wondering what my chances are, as well. Thanks.
Well, the baby is currently measuring large (I’m almost 36 weeks), so they’ll probably induce for that reason. I also think it’s my doctors’ general “policy” to induce diabetics a week early, especially if it’s a large baby. I did ask him if we could go later than 39w before inducing to see if my body would go into natural labor, and he said if things looked fine, that was a possibility. BUT if the baby is large, I think by that point I’ll just want to be done with it and get him out of me!
Thanks. I’m 28 weeks, and my baby’s weight is in the normal range but seems to be trending upwards. So I’m wondering if maybe I’ll end up being induced too. I hope not, but like you, I’m trying to be open minded and accept whatever comes along. Best of luck!
Well I hope your baby can stay in the normal range! I think mine was normal until 32 weeks or so. I’m partly blaming genetics because my hubby was a 12.5 pound baby…so I’m not convinced it’s completely the diabetes. But it is what it is, right?! Good luck to you too!
It’s not only the diabetes…big babies run in my family as well. My daughter was 10 lbs 11oz delivered at 40wks. I spoke to my OB about not wanting to be induced or having a C-section and she did everything under the sun to help me accomplish that. The only reason that my daughter’s size wasn’t a huge deal was that my A1C was 6.0, my placenta was in great condition and my non-diabetic sister had a 12lb baby a few years earlier (hello genetics!!). I’m currently 26 wks and baby is still within normal range as of a few weeks ago but I suspect next week’s ultrasound is going to show that baby may have had a wee growth spurt cause my tummy sure has…I look ready to pop already!!!
Oh and here’s something I found interesting, I was told by a midwife when I was pregnant with my daughter that it’s not the size of your hips but the size of your feet that dictate how easily you’ll deliver a bigger baby. Apparently the size of your feet is proportionate to your pelvic opening…go figure.
Here’s something else that’s interesting. My high-risk OB told me that there is some mechanism at work in diabetic pregnancies that makes babies tend to be larger, regardless of blood sugar control. She said she has seen many women in excellent control who end up having large/macrosomic babies. When I asked her what the mechanism was, she said that no one knows. Somehow this made me feel a little better (if my baby does end up being large). Of course I’m still going to do my darnedest to control those fingersticks, but I think I will feel less guilty if the baby is big, knowing that.
Seeing as I only have one child (and the fact that every labor is different), I can only say what my experience was. My baby is now 5 weeks old, so the experience is still pretty ripe in my memory. I was induced due to Pre-Eclempsia. They gave me Cervidil to ripen my cervix… which unexpectedly put me into labor with contractions every 1-2 minutes, lasting about 45 seconds each. The contractions felt like they were literally splitting my hip bones and dislocating my joints. They were pretty intense. This is BEFORE any Pitocin. I lasted 15 hours without pain meds, even when the contractions made me vomit from the pain. I was pretty determined. But… I gave in to the epidural because after 15 hours of labor, I was only at 3 cm. After the epi, they broke my water and started Pitocin to keep the contractions going. I didn’t feel a thing. I could tell I was cramping, but it didn’t hurt any longer. Six hours later I was at 7 cm dilated. I was progressing quickly at that point, but my baby wasn’t coming down into my cervix. I ended up getting an emergency c section as with each contraction (after 21 hours of labor), her heart rate dropped significantly. Turned out she didnt have any soft spots on her skull, which is why she wasn’t coming down into my cervix. She had a bruise on her forearm from being pushed against my hip bones for hours from the contractions (probably also why my contractions were so intense).
My story is rare. They said Cervidil only puts about 5% of women into labor.
Also, her not having a soft spot on her skull is not typical and had nothing to do with labor.
Also, I had been in the hospital for 2 days prior to the induction due to Pre-E. With no sleep (literally no more than 2 hours per day) because of the constant nurse/ doctor check-ins all day and all night long, my pain tolerance was definitely lower than usual.
Having nothing else to compare it to, seeing as every woman’s pain tolerance is different, every labor experience is different, every baby is different, every pregnancy is different, etc. I’d say try to go naturally. Have it in your head that you want the natural experience. But, if it becomes unbearable, take the pain meds. You won’t have any other way of knowing whether or not you can handle the pain / experience. I talked to a woman who had 6 kids. Some naturally, some c sections, some epidurals, some induced. She said every single experience was different from the others and her own pain tolerances were different from the others.
Give it a try and see what happens. They say that’s the beginning of being a parent: to expect the un-expected.
My A1c was 6.2 for the majority of my pregnancy (never higher than 6.5 and got as low as 6.0). Very well-controlled. I had a 9 lb 4 ounce baby. She is perfectly healthy.
It’s not the size that matters… haha. You have to keep your glucose controlled so your baby’s organs develop properly. Also, just before and during labor, you need controlled glucose so your baby doesn’t crash with her own insulin when she is born. The more controlled you are, the better start she will have to her life. An un-controlled diabetic I knew had a child with a hole in her heart. Your ability to keep things stable as much as possible is very beneficial for your child. It’s not in vain.
