What Would You Do?? Help!

[PamelaBee]

I am 38wks 3 days.  My OB is in practice with 4 other OBs.  Since I became pregnant I have requested to see him exclusively.  My due date is Aug 3rd.  Today at my appt, my OB asked me if I'm ready to have my baby next Wednesday.  I am only 1cm dilated and 50% effaced.  I asked him why...am I going to be induced?  He said he leaves next Thursday for a 10 day trip to NYC, and that because I want to see him exclusively (my choice), next Weds would be the only opportunity.  At that point next Weds (July 29th) I will be 39wks 2 days.  I said ok, yes, fine...but now that I'm back home and thinking about being induced simply for convenience, and not having reached my due date, I'm having serious reservations.  I was induced with my son, but I was past my due date.  What do you guys think?  Am I worrying for nothing...will it be ok, should I wait????  HELP!!!

[Juliaschill]

Well i have never been induced so not sure what goes along with that but you should follow your gut, I am sure the baby will be fine that fat along but this is your body and your baby so you should  not be pushed into anything, best luck Julia

[tatorbug40]

Well,  I would do it, because I loved my doctor, and he was out of town when I went into labor with my first, and he was here for my second-  I really really enjoyed having him there for my second...  it felt more right,  but the first delivery went just fine,  just more emotional for me to have my doctor there the second time- it all felt more connected...  and I had mine at 36 weeks and 37 weeks...  and my babies were just fine....  so I would go ahead and do it, but I think it is a very personal decision.....    5 days early....  39 weeks is when they to make sure you reach with any pregnancy......  

[BabyBlue07]

To me... I think I just let my labor take naturally.. I don't like to induce..  Yes.. with your own doctor... you will feel more comfortable.. but doesn't he know your due date... if he plan to take a trip, should he take before or after?  I don't t hink he is considerate... Is this trip for business or personal? either one... he know that he should reserve those dates for you.  

He is not the only one is good.. There are more good doctor there... If you are in labor... there will be good doctor to take care of you... At this stage... you are depend on him and he doesn't have any compasionate for you and decide to take a trip around your due date... I will drop this doctor in a heart beat and i will find other doctor who can commit and take care of me... If i ever get pregnant again, i will not go back to him...

Of course there are some emergency that have to bend the rule...

This is my thought... I am 15 weeks pregnant and maybe i am too sensitive about this... If my doctor told me about this... I will tell her have a good trip and i will find myself another doctor who can help me...

[Pum]

That's a difficult one. Are you having a c-section? If not, then inducing you on Wednesday doesn't guarantee the baby will come before he leaves anyway. I was induced on a Sunday and nothing much happened Monday or Tuesday and needed a c-section Tuesday night.

I thought 38 weeks was counted as full term pretty much. I personally would wait as induction does increase your chances of c-section and lots of other things you might want to avoid.

It would be helpful if your little one decided to come earlier of their own choice. Come on.

[SoCalTricia]

I don't agree with Baby Blue at all. The doctor is not inconsiderate. I mean, they have lives, too, and they can't plan the rest of their lives around when their patients MIGHT go into labor. They have many, many patients who could go into labor on any given day, and there is no way to know who will go when. Baby making and delivering is definately not an exact science!

That said...I'd probably go ahead and induce. You are definately far enough along. And if it's THAT important to you that this doctor be the one to deliver you, then you really have no other choice. I was induced with my last...it was not a problem. The hard labor comes on much faster - but if you are getting an epidural (not sure if you are), that's not a problem. My labor was short...they started the induction at 2:30 p.m. and I had my son at 6:30 p.m. On the other hand, if you are set on going into labor naturally (which, again, is not guaranteed), then you take your chances on having a different MD. Who knows? You may go into labor naturally before next Wednesday!

Tricia

[prevatt77]

With my experience with Gavin, delivered on Dec 30th was induced on Dec 29th.  I would never do it again.  Now, you need to remember every pregnancy and every labor is different.  When I went in to be induced I was already 5 cm dialated, so I thought it was going to be a breeze.  It took 9 hours to get from 5 cm to 6 cm.  Gavin was all the way up.  I forget the stations of how the baby's head lays, I know it's something like +3, +2, +1, +0 then -3, -2, -1, -0 (something like that, you all know what I mean), he was all the way up at the higest stage.  My epidural never worked, it took me forever to get to 10 cm.  Good thing was I only pushed for 30 minutes.  I was able to pick my induction date and Because my birthday is Dec 30th and my daughter's is Dec 31st, I wanted Gavin's to be Dec 29th, well that didn't happen, he arrived on my birthday.  But I was induced for medical reasons, I had GD.  To be induced just to have the doctor you want, I personally would not do it.  But I do wish you the best on whatever decision you choose.

Good Luck and keep us posted.
Debbie

[kellym]

Yeah, that comment from babyblue made me laugh. I think that the Dr. is considerate for keeping you informed of his schedule and working things out so that he can be there to deliver you. Gosh, you may be able to hold out until he returns but if you feel that strongly, yes get induced. BUT why not Tuesday? I went in on a Wed and didn't have my c-section until Thursday night. What if you don't progress that fast because your not favorable for induction? I would discuss an extra day for padding in there and then you can see him the day after too? Maybe I'm being weird :)

[lynda544]

I would wait and let your labor start naturally unless you have already passed your due date. I had one baby at 42 weeks, one at 41 1/2weeks, and the last baby at 39 weeks. I was induced with all 3,  but the last baby was a convenience issue. Baby number 3 was really fussy for 2 weeks until her GI system matured.

[natalie910]

I think it would be perfectly fine, your dr wouldn't suggest it if it weren't. I was given the option to be induced 2 weeks early with my dd. I was worried just like you are but my father had just passed away and it was a very emotional time for me. My blood pressure was up a little from being so upset, so she suggested it. Everything went fine and I was glad in the end that I went ahead with it. Since you really like this particular dr and have only seen him throughout the pg, I would think it would be fine. Good luck to you in whatever you decide. I can't wait to see her!!

[40smama]

I would personally go ahead and do it - since you're 1 cm dilated & 50% effaced, you should be fine - 39w2d is so close to 40 weeks anyway.  Why not have your ob do it if that's the only doctor you've seen?  You seem to trust him so I think just relax and go w/the flow & don't worry(fine for me to say, right??).  If you have to have a repeat c-section, they generally take the baby earlier than that. - jen

[adgal]

Oh hon, I wish I could help here.  I don't know anything about induction, but I can't imagine it being a problem for Olivia with your due date only a few days away.  I gotta tell you, I am getting awfully excited to see pics of your little girl!!  I would probably opt for the Dr. I am comfortable with.  That sort of thing is really important to me, and it sounds like it's important to you too.  But at the end of the day, follow what you think is right in your gut.  You know whats best for you!!  Ohhh.....I wanna come to PA for the birth...lol.

[joal]

This is kind of funny because the same thing happened to my mother with me. She only wanted that one Dr. and he was going on vacation so I was induced. I am fine, although I have always been impatient and like to tease her and say it's because I was induced. The important thing was she was relaxed and comfortable with the doctor.  She had a bad experience with my older brother and I do think that having a doctor she trusted deliver me made all the difference to her.

[selaiwa]

I was induced with my second child on a Thursday morning .It  did not progress well.I had to have a C-section in the late afternoon on Friday. But that said ,everyones labor is  different . It is a hard decision for you to makebut,if you decide to be induced go in on Tuesday to allow enough time.I wish you the best!! Hopefully you will go into labor on your own this weekend. Bd alot ! (lol)  I heard that helps induce labor! LOL LOL

[PamelaBee]

Thank you all for yor replies. Of course I would love to wait and let nature run it's course, but as Tricia said, delivering babies is not an exact science.  And, yes it is important to me to have this particular OB, he knows my history, and I feel completely comfortable with him, changing to someone new would make me very anxcious at this point.  I would feel like I'd have to test the new doctor just to see if they're ready or qualified.  Just a little background, immediately after I delivered my son, I hemorrhaged very seriously, was rushed to the OR for an emergency D&C...I couldn't see my son til the next day, I was given a blood transfusion, it wasn't a memory I fondly want to remember, I was diagnosed with uterine atony.  So, when I became pregnant again, I made it my mission to check out and have an OB that was familiar with what happened, and felt I would be in the best hands with. With my first pregnancy, I only dilated to 2cm 3 days past my due date, and I've heard that sometimes history repeats itself with subsequent pregnancies...that being said, even if I wait til my Dr returns from his trip, I still may not have budged "down there"...so, I feel alot better and more comfortable knowing that I will be in my 39th week and so close to my due date anyway and with an OB that is prepared in case it happens again.  Worse case scenario, would be prolonged labor and ultimately needing a Csec, I guess that's the risk I'll have to take...anyway, it looks like I've made my decision to stick with the induction date of July 29th...thanks for listening to me babble on and on...again thank you all for sharing your advice, and experiences with me!!!  Wish me luck...I love thoughts and prayers too : )  Pam  

[rdh1981]

With all the extra medical history you just provided us with this is a no brainer! Go, for the induction!!! Would it be possible for him to do it on Tuesday?? That way if it does take a little longer, you still have time before he leaves?!

Love ya,
Rachel

[sherrysb]

Good luck and my prayers are with you, your family and the newbie. Stay calm and relaxed when you get induced.  I was induced on a Monday morning and delivered on a Tuesday afternoon (not long, it was all natural). Stress and an epidural may make the labor longer.   ((((HUGS)))))

[rubyinparadise]

This comes down to a very personal choice about how you feel about being induced in general, and then... how you feel about being induced for pure timing's sake (and not out of physical necessity or emergency).

If you are at peace with being induced, then you may as well go ahead and have your doctor of choice. If you have qualms about it, or you'd simply rather allow your baby to arrive in his/her own time, then you'll need to make peace with possibly having a different doc at your delivery.

My personal opinion is that it will be YOU and your baby doing 99.9% of the work... not the doctor, who is there to oversee and watch for any emergencies. Most normal births really do not require interventions. But again, this is a very personal, even some could say a political, opinion. :)

Personally I would never use pitocin (induction drugs) unless it was a real medical emergency, but that's just me, and what matters here is how you are going to feel at the birth of your child. Think it through carefully, because either way you don't want to have regrets. How do you want your child's experience of coming into the world to be?

[alikat1205]

At 39 weeks 2 days, I wouldn't worry too much about your baby being early.  What I would worry about it is you.  Inductions are far more painful than regular contractions.  Induction increases your odds of ending up with a c/s.  Consider these things before you go forward, and I wish you an easy delivery no matter what you decide.  

[tatorbug40]

Well,  July 29th is a great birthday anyway-  it is my mom's birthday!  :)

[selaiwa]

I wish you the best! Considering your medical history I think that you are making a good decision on staying with your doctor.My thoughts and prayers for you to have a fast,and safe delivery!

[40smama]

Pam, I forgot your story about your last birth - in that case, I want to re-emphasize that delivering w/your ob is of utmost importance - this is my opinion.  I read an article today in Parents Magazine (I believe it's the August issue) where it talks about wanting pregnancies to continue to at least 39 weeks.  The old thinking was that 37 weeks was full-term but that's not necessarily the case now.  Since you're so close to 40 weeks, literally a few days away, according to that article, your baby should be just fine.  Check out that article if you want - it's called "As They Grow - Pregnancy".  There are articles of this nature throughout all of childhood ages - from pregnancy through 11 years of age.

[Micky109]

Don't worry at all.  My OB delivered my first and third (all breech and CS), but he was out of state when I delivered my second (also breech and CS).  My first and second were 4 1/2 and 51/2 weeks early and were very healthy.  Although I trusted the other doctors because my OB trusted them, I was still uncomfortable without his familiar face in the delivery room.  Congratulations on Wednesday!