Induction or c section 🤷‍♀️

Recommend following thegreenmidwife on insta - she has lots of great information on induction and big babies to help you make the most informed decision 💓💓

Have you read the book How to Make Your Birth Better by Siobhan Miller? I'd recommend it

@Aimee no i haven’t, thanks I’ll have a look at it!

Agree with Aimee! Great book ☺️

You can pick it up quite cheap second hand tbh

I had this dilemma and was measuring over the 99th centile at 32 weeks. I knew I didn’t have to make a decision yet as we had another scan at 36 (which has come back fine and baby isn’t so big anymore). I personally was terrified of being induced, I still am terrified to be honest 😂 More so for the amount of time spent in hospital before things get going. In my head I was set on a C-section and watched hundreds of tiktok videos of really positive stories! Defo search for ‘induction story’ or ‘C-section story’ as I found it really helped my mind set. I actually didn’t come across anything negative at all. But of course you can advocate for yourself and decide to wait it out for your baby to come naturally!

Not an easy or straight forward decision to make! I was in the same situation and chose to be induced at 38 weeks as I felt pressure to try “give birth” and not just opt for a c section. I was in hospital for a week, the induction failed and I had a c section anyway so In hindsight I wish I had just went with the c section to begin with but it’s major surgery and the recovery comes with it’s own challenges. Good luck with whatever decision you make x

There is no right or wrong answer in this situation. Just do some research on both and stick to a decision, cause either way baby has to come out.

@Kirsty yeah i think that’s my concern- opting for an induction as I initially wanted a natural labour, but then ending up having an emergency c section!

You can definitely try the induction but be open to potentially needing a C-section anyway. I was induced and labored for 24 hours. I made it to 10cm and pushed for over an hour but my baby ended up being partially sideways and was not coming out. His heart rate started being funky so we were having a C-section within 30 more minutes. My next baby will be an automatic csection. If you do decide on a C-section try to find a place to sleep where you can partially sit up and make sure you get a belly binder. Good luck!

If you do get induced just know you are in control and can choose to stop the process at any point! X

I think I'd opt for a section as your body just won't be ready for labour, meaning induction is a lot more likely to fail. Ask for all the information you can from the doctors though. I would also say that big babies have always been a thing! Deffo look at the stuff Megan suggested to get a full view x

I had a induction with my youngest as was over due and she my bump started measuring smaller … the recovery was fine just like a normal labour no complications with mine . Xx

Research both and you will know what’s right for you. I got induced and the recovery was fine just like normal birth but much quicker for me. However the process of induction was like heavy pain compared to normal contractions, which I controlled by focusing on my breathing. Everyone’s pain tolerance is different as well as their experiences. Wish you all the best.

Thanks, feeling a little less stressed about it now! We have done some research but cant seem to see which would be better, we have another growth scan, so will hopefully give us a little more clarity then!

Lots of great suggestions/information already given. I’m certain you will make the best decision for you and your baby. You got this mama! ❤️

I really hope this helps some of you on this thread.... this happened to me with my first. He measured 99th all the way through and told me he was expected to be 10lb + at term. So being a first time mum not knowing what to expect etc I listened to my consultant who was insistent on inducing me early because of his size. I don't want to scare any of you and of course everyone is different but I'm going to be honest because I have done A LOT of research since my first birth because honestly I was so terrified I didn't want another one (but I'm currently 38 weeks pregnant) I asked my lovely midwife if we could do a sweep before my induction because I really wanted things to happen naturally... 1 turned into 4 before my induction date (it did make things happen but no consistent contractions) so say of induction I opted for the balloon as again I wanted as natural as possible... it stayed in the full 24 hours and was removed with another sweep after. I was then sent home to wait for a call for a bed to go in..

And have my waters broke. Whilst at home I was having contractions but not regularly and they would stop. I made the hospital aware when i went in but they were still adamant on breaking my waters and starting the drip. At 9pm she broke my waters and started drip and within an hour my body was contracting without a break in-between (this is very common with the drip) I managed 12 hours with gas & air and got to 5cm. Imagine doing solid cardio/ sit ups for 12 hours it's exhausting!! I was DONE! My consultant came in and said my waters had turned and they were worried about infection and how tired I was so they wanted to do an emergency section. I agreed because I was soooooo tired and just wanted it over. (In hindsight the infection was likely caused by how many people rummaged around down below doing sweeps etc. I would never allow/ opt for that again) During my section I had quite a bad reaction to the drug they use to stop you bleeding so they can take away the placenta and thought I was going to die..

both my babies weighed over 4kg at birth. 1st baby was induced at 42w had him 3 days later naturally. 2nd baby natural labour at 42+2 again naturally gave birth. The waiting for induction to work is time consuming and I didn't enjoy it. This time im hoping il go naturally again but hoping for a birth before 42w! The scan growths are not always accurate so baby may be smaller then what they are saying and vice versa. I would wait it out and see if you can labour naturally, then if things dont go to plan hopefully a c section will be the answer. You can do this its your body dont just say yes to induction..my advice wait it out

My husband and new baby boy were rushed out the room and drs came running in, thankfully it didn't last too long and they managed to control it. Fast forward a week.... I had been at home still regularly taking my pain killers every 4 hours but unable to get out of bed without help, go to the toilet without help, not walk around without help, couldn't hold my baby for long etc but having no knowledge of what to expect I thought this was normal after major surgery.. turns out it wasn't! I had a really bad infection in my wound that led to an abscess which burst open on my bathroom floor. My husband rushed me to hospital where I was how poorly I was.. thankfully it was caught in time otherwise I was at risk of sepsis! The drs told me I should of been sent home with antibiotics as my swabs during my section were positive for several bacteria but no one followed this up! I had to stay in hospital for 5 days. Eventually I got home and my midwife came round to check on me and she was appalled at what had happened

She said under no circumstances should I have been pressured into an induction just based on his size. The scans are NOT accurate, my boy came out at 8lb 2oz and was only 4 days before his due date! Since this I have done sooooo much research and I was really let down in several ways and I will absolutely not be going through any of this again. I'm at a different hospital this time with different consultant who couldn't be more supportive of natural births, no unnecessary inductions etc. It's very true that your body will only make a baby that is right for you. Ladies do your research before you are pressured into anything! Your growth scans cannot be 100% accurate as they are based on your weight, height etc but it takes two people to make a baby. My little boy was VERY long but slim just like his daddy and has stayed that way, they are the spit of each other... so no matter how good the sonographer is until both parents sizes are taken into account growth scans will never be accurate.

I've been induced 4 times due to pre eclampsia, twice at 37 weeks, once at 38 weeks, and once at 36 weeks. Inductions do come with a risk of more medical interventions than if you went into labor naturally, but c section is a major surgery and I wouldn't take that lightly. I've had growth scans with all my babies and they are notoriously wrong. Most of the time my babies measure in the 95% and they come out at a reasonable size. My biggest was 7lb15oz. With my last she was measuring over 7lbs at 35 weeks. She was born a week later weighing 6lbs4oz. If you don't have gestational diabetes or something like that I would be wary of putting much stock in the growth scans. Also, having a first c section complicates further pregnancies, so I myself would opt to avoid that option unless absolutely necessary. Good luck!

My first was 99th m, he was estimated to be over 10lb. He was 9lb9. He was a natural birth, quite long (in time) but nothing untoward really. I was only small myself so wondered how he came out 😂

Thank you to everyone who shared their experiences, I’m leaning away from c section after doing some more research but still unsure as to whether I should be induced at 39 weeks or wait to see if I deliver naturally! I think I’ll wait until my next appt and ask all the questions before I make a decision