GD and Hypnobirthing

Lilmrslay · June 2013

I have been diagnosed with GD and, when talking to the diabetes midwife, was advised that they probably won't let me go to full term, due to possible complications of GD. Her comment was that most GD Mums deliver earlier.

Which got me thinking/worrying about what that means for our Hypnobirthing plans. We are using the Hypnobabies program, and had intended to let things go naturally as much as possible.

So, has anyone been induced and then gone on to happily and successfully use their hypnobirthing methods?

I'm sure it's more than possible, but it just kind of flies in the face of what we considered as part of our plan.

dmhrn13 · June 2013

I'm a midwife & a Hypnobirthing teacher. I've caught babies where women have been induced & gone natural. So it is possible. I'd say about 1 in 10 who want natural & need to be induced do it. These are usually the women who walk in 3 or 4 cm's from the get go.

Personally my water broke & my cervix was long & closed & scarred over from a surgery. I needed to be induced with pitocin & a foley bulb because labor never started & so I got an epidural. It is what it is & I had a vaginal birth, so I'm OK with it.

Have your plans but just take it as it comes, be open & flexible. GL.

Arielle27 · June 2013

Not sure if this compares as I was not induced with my second, but due to several factors (internal and external) I had premature labor on and off from 34 weeks until 37 weeks when I gave birth to my daughter. I still went completely med free and wasn't pushed to do otherwise by the doctor or hospital staff.

meg&jeff · June 2013

I think I can give you some hope as I went through this with baby #2. But first, with GD, you have to be prepared that your plans will not be set in stone (like any birth plan really), and you really have to be ready for changes. Keep an open mind.

I have GD 3 for the 3rd time, used hypnobabies with baby #2, successfully with an induction. With GD, is not a given that you will give birth early, but they will keep on top of you with growth ultrasounds and make sure the baby is not getting "too big", which is their biggest worry. They also make sure that fluid levels and blood flow in the placenta stay normal. Sometimes if those 3 factors deviate from the norm, they will want to induce. Most likely though, they will not allow you to go much past your due date. My midwife/ob will not let me go past my due date.

My story with baby #2, my GD stayed pretty well controlled on diet, and then only a little bit of oral meds in the last few weeks. I prepped and prepped for weeks with my hypnobabies wanting to go as natural and med free as possible. I half expected to go into labor naturally early, because that's what happened with #1. But I reached my due date and had to be induced that day. Luckily my cervix 4cm and was very "favorable" so that made it likely that the induction would be successful. So I had to be started on Pitocin to get the birth going and that was all it took. Thank goodness for hypnobabies, because I don't think I would have made it through the birth pain-med free without it. Pitocin made things really intense and it took every ounce of focus and strength to stay in my zone and not throw in the towel. But I made it through with very little interventions other than the Pitocin.

So it is possible and you can do it. Again, you need to keep an open mind and realize that plans can change. Inductions are not the end of the world, and it is possible to make it through without too many interventions. In the week or 2 leading up to your due date and your baby is measuring ok and no other complications, try everything you can to encourage things to get going naturally... red raspberry leaf tea, pineapple, evening primrose oil, sex (what gets them in helps get them out), and lots and lots of walking. Best of luck to you!!

badbridey · June 2013

andrea ri 80:
Obviously, if complications arise, you'd want to adjust your plan, but GD in itself is not a reason to induce early.

This! I had diet/exercise controlled GD as well and my OB said that we wouldn't even start talking about induction until I reached my due date. I know that a lot of OBs will induce GD mommas at 39 weeks as a matter of course...but if your GD is well controlled, there really isn't any need for that.

As it turned out, I had a stubborn LO who didn't want to make an appearance so my OB wanted to induce me at 41 weeks - I refused the induction but agreed to daily NSTs and had LO without an induction at 41.5 weeks.

Also, as a side note, those growth ultrasounds can be inaccurate. I had one at 39 weeks which measured LO at 8.5 lbs - when she was born 2.5 weeks later, she was 7 lbs 3 oz.

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