Getting induced without being dilated yet

nikkid917 · October 2010

I just passed my due date and am now contemplating getting induced. I'm not dilated at all yet and my cervix is still thick according to the dr. I have been extremely uncomfortable and never thought I'd go past 40 weeks. My dr says I can be induced and I have an appt scheduled on Monday evening to be induced...I'll be 40w 3d. If I am still not dilated yet they will give me cervidil and then pitocin. The nurse was trying to talk me out of getting induced if I'm not dilated yet because it could be a long tiring process and has a much increased chance of having to result in a c section.

I just wanted to know if anyone has been induced without being dilated yet and if so how that went.

Thanks!

Sweets2005 · October 2010

My sister was induced without being dilated and she had her DD just fine. The cervadil is to soften your cervix. GL!

Hawt83 · October 2010

Im a day overdue too...I dont think much is going on other than some cramping, but if nothing happens today or tomorrow I will be induced monday too!!

Best of luck to you!!!!!

Toots_pop · October 2010

nikkid917:

I just passed my due date and am now contemplating getting induced. I'm not dilated at all yet and my cervix is still thick according to the dr. I have been extremely uncomfortable and never thought I'd go past 40 weeks. My dr says I can be induced and I have an appt scheduled on Monday evening to be induced...I'll be 40w 3d. If I am still not dilated yet they will give me cervidil and then pitocin. The nurse was trying to talk me out of getting induced if I'm not dilated yet because it could be a long tiring process and has a much increased chance of having to result in a c section.

I just wanted to know if anyone has been induced without being dilated yet and if so how that went.

Thanks!

When was your last appt? Things can change pretty fast, so maybe you've made some progress since then?

houndbaby · October 2010

I was only a fingertip dilated when I was induced with my ds, my induction was about 32 hours from the time I checked in to the hospital until ds was born, and i didn't need a c/s

mkeatts · October 2010

My doctor told me that if you induce without a "favorable" cervix, the chance of having a C/S is 70 percent.

nikkid917 · October 2010

I was checking this morning and nothing...cervix still closed. The nurse told me like 75% chance of having c section if you get induced without being dilated at all. I'm hoping for at least 1 cm by monday but who knows if that will happen. After researching it I have been finding out probably about 50% end up resulting in c section.

J+MS · October 2010

zeadfly:
I was induced at 42 weeks, 1cm dilated and ended with c/s. I would say to give it another week, a lot can change in a week. But you have a 50/50 chance of c/s if you induce.

This. I would put it off a little longer (if it's safe) so that you can give yourself some time to make a little more progress.

Monkey2007 · October 2010

I was induced at a finger tip dilated on a Tuesday and didn't deliver till Thursday afternoon. They threatened a c-section many times, but the baby and I were doing fine, so I pushed back. Everything went fine in the end, but it was a long process. Also, I was attached to the IV the whole time and was so filled with fluids, that by the time I left the hospital, I actually weighed more than when I went in by 5 pounds which was shocking.

Mama_SAS · October 2010

I was induced with cervadil. It took 2 days before I went into labor and we didn't use pitocen.

I did have a c/s but I would have no matter what due to CPD.

Allie30 · October 2010

FWIW, I'm in the EXACT position as the OP. I'm not dilated or effaced or even softened, and I'm set for Cervadil Monday night, at slightly less than 41 weeks.

I was EXTREMELY concerned about this and proceeded to have LONG conversations about it with both of my doctors, who have over 60 years of experience between them. One is head of the midwife program at his hospital and has been in charge of several c-section reduction programs in his hospital system, and the other is the head of OB at her hospital.

They both said that although statistically, there is a higher rate of c/s if you go into induction with an unfavorable cervix, there are other factors that factor into the Bishop score of successful inductions, such as fetal station and contractions. The reason they start Cervadil 12-24 hrs before pitocin is to help with softening and effacing the cervix.And then once you have that, you have a much better chance of having a successful induction.

What else is going on with your cervix, vis a vis position? How about hte baby's station? In my case, the baby is REALLY far down, which will help me in labor, since the most important 3 factors in Bishop's score are dilation, effacement, and fetal station. (firmness and position are the other 2). If we can get effacement and dilation going with cervadil, I'm almost there before we start pitocin..

I spoke at length to both of these doctors, both of these old school, anti-c-section doctors, as well as to the head L&D nurse at the hospital where I'll be delivering, and they all said that they thought there were many risks associated with going too far overdue (placental breakdown, the baby getting too big, etc.) which would also result in a higher chance of section, and that this was the best compromise.

And don't worry about the weight gain from IV -- it's fluid. It comes off easy.

Good luck and I wish for you an unexpected labor (I've been hiking all weekend) or else a successful induction. My friend and SIL were both induced -- one had a pain-med-free birth, and the other had an epidural (as planed) but they both delivered vaginally -- first timers, too -- in less than 20 hours.

Soap1 · October 2010

It's your call! As long as you are making your decision with the advice and approval of your doctor, whatever you decide is fine.

However, if your body isn't prepared to go into labor on its own, it's more likely that the induction will end in a c-section. Keep in mind that you can go from 0cm 0% effaced to full on labor very quickly!

Cheekers2010 · October 2010

If you want to avoid a very long drawn out process, I would really recommend that you wait until you are more favorable. I know it's hard, but you're saving yourself a lot of potential headaches.

krisnolan22 · October 2010

these inducti0on post make me feel like crying! I'm So glad I'm not the only one. I barely slept at all last night worried about not being dilated and having to be induced. My dr wants me to go in tomorrow night for cervadil. I'll be 40 weeks Monday. I really wanted to wait, but when I called to speak to her today, she was unavailable. I was going to just wait until Monday and ask again to speak to her because I really did not want to go in for an induction when I didn't need to. I am so so so glad that I am not the only one.

earthboundmisfit · October 2010

Have you heard of a Bishops Score? It tells you how likely a successful induction might be. It depends on how much your OB has told you in terms of cervix thickness, position and stuff. Worth looking at.

https://www.amazingpregnancy.com/pregnancy-articles/173.html

krisnolan22 · October 2010

earthboundmisfit:
Have you heard of a Bishops Score? It tells you how likely a successful induction might be. It depends on how much your OB has told you in terms of cervix thickness, position and stuff. Worth looking at.

https://www.amazingpregnancy.com/pregnancy-articles/173.html

I have never heard of bishop score before reading these past few post. More research to come. Thank you for posting the link.

cari12 · October 2010

Soap1:
It's your call! As long as you are making your decision with the advice and approval of your doctor, whatever you decide is fine.
However, if your body isn't prepared to go into labor on its own, it's more likely that the induction will end in a c-section. Keep in mind that you can go from 0cm 0% effaced to full on labor very quickly!

This.

I had to be induced for pre-e with my first (at 39w2d) and was totally unfavorable going in. I had 12 hours of cervadil (which only got me to 50% effaced), followed by pitocin - 4 hours into the pitocin my water broke on its own but I was only a "finger tip" dilated at that point. I progressed to 1cm over the next hour or two and ended up getting the epidural at that point because the contractions were intense. After that though, I went from 1-10 in about 5-6 hours and delivered vaginally after a couple hours of pushing.

Good luck with whatever you decide

Mrs.JBowman@gmail.com · October 2010

houndbaby:
I was only a fingertip dilated when I was induced with my ds, my induction was about 32 hours from the time I checked in to the hospital until ds was born, and i didn't need a c/s

This exactly.

cari12 · October 2010

Oh and re: having a long, drawn out labor.

Mine was about 28 hours from the start of cervadil to when she was actually born. First 12 hours was the cervadil and I slept through most of it (they gave me something to sleep), then when they started the pitocin the contractions weren't bad at all at first...I actually fell back asleep for a bit and only woke up when my water broke. By that point I was 16 hours in. It definitely got more intense after that, and that's when I really consider the "active" labor to have started so I only ended up with about 12 hours of true active labor which is totally in the normal range for regular first time birth with no induction.

Not all inductions take days, but be prepared for it to take longer than you are expecting.

redhotchili83 · October 2010

I was induced at 40 weeks for extremely low fluid and was 0 dialated. They did a foley catheter instead of Cervadil. In 12 hours (with a low dose of Pitocin) I went from completely closed to 8 cms. I managed to vaginally birth a 9lb 6oz little boy

You might want to ask abotu a foley catheter instead of Cervadil? It worked extremely well for me!

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