HELP! Were you Past Due Date and used Pitocin to induce labor??

I am now a week late........uggggggggggg and next week (if baby doesn't come on its own before that)I will be induced with Pitocin. Anyone out there with POSITIVE experiences after being induced??

I had to be induced with Pitocin. My water broke after irregular contrations that never became regular on their own. It's my understanding the Pitocin hits harder and quicker if your water has broke (broken?). I got pretty intense contractions that were 2 minutes apart within minutes of the first drip of pitocin. But never fear - the man with the epidural was near. I would definitely recommend an epidural if you are being induced. You may not have the luxury of "easing into the contractions" with the Pitocin. My sister-in-law was also induced (she was well past her due date) and she had a really smooth labor and delivery. Her contractions started light and gradually intensified. She also received an epidural.

In the end, when that bundle of joy finally appears the discomfort of the contractions will long forgotten. You'll be fine. Who knows - maybe nature will takes its course early. I was originally scheduled for induction 4 days after DS arrived. I still had to have the Pitocin - but got to meet my boy a few days earlier than I expected.

Congratulations, good luck, and keep us posted!

Absolutely. I was induced one week after my due date. I would definitely recommend that you get the epidural. Pitocin induced contractions are SOOOOO much worse (or so I've heard) than natural ones. Quite honestly, I slept through most of my labor.

If you have any more questions or want to talk, email me.
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Candy
Mommy to Matt, 5/22/02

Thanks for the quick responses! I am definitely planning to have an epidural!!!:7
It's the only way to go in my opinion. I hope to be able to sleep through my labor too.
Were you at all dilated when you were induced?

My water broke, but I wasn't having contractions. I was also only/maybe one cm dilated when my water broke and the baby hadn't dropped completely. Talk about starting from ground zero!!

I started on pitocin and began having short (approx 20-30 seconds), but intense contractions about 2 minutes apart. As soon as the nurse said I was being started on pitocin, she said I would very, very likely want the epidural (I went in open-minded, er, naive, about getting one). It was 9 hours from pitocin to delivery. Painful until the epidural? Yes. But did I have a positive experience? Absolutely!!

Mary
Mommy to Lane 4/6/03

I had something similar to Mary, only the baby had dropped. Even though my water broke, it was a slow leak and still was in a big pool. Consequently, I was started on pitocin and didn't feel anything for about 6 hours until they broke the pool in a big gush. Then I felt everything and cried until they gave me an epidural. But I'm a big, fat wimp and always knew that I would have an epidural, so the time that I was experiencing contractions wasn't really that bad. Oh, and I have no idea how far apart or how long they really were because they could not find them on the monitor throughout the labor process.

I was 5 days overdue with DD and was 3 cm dilated when I was put on pitocin to induce labor. The funny thing is that the day I was scheduled for an induction, I actually had started some minor contractions. But the doc still put me on the pit. And yes, very positive experience! :) Good luck!

...Maureen

Mom to
Kathleen 3/22/01
Ellen EDD 6/12/03

I was induced at 38 weeks because I had pre-eclampsia. It was a terrific experience. They broke my water for me ast 6 am then started the pitocin drip. At first it wasn't too bad but after 2 hours I asked for the epidural. Then I slept for about 90 minutes because the pain was completely gone! At 10:45 am they started me pushing and the baby had arrived by 11:06 am. This was my first baby. I have to say I was shocked at how fast and (relatively) easy the whole thing was. I don't remember the pain so much as the exhaustion of pushing.

I had no problems at all with the pitocin. I did have other problems as a result of the pre-eclampsia, but the induction was great!

I had two inductions (both for gestational diabetes) with Pitocin. Both were about 1 week before my due dates. Both were intense, pain-wise. The first I got the epidural 30 mins after they broke my water (that's when it started to hurt) and life was good. The second they got me the epidural 20 mins before my son arrived. Not good, but I went on to have a third, so it could not have been that bad, right?

Overall, both were very positive experiences (I mean, I did not have the joy of having a 10 lb. baby, so I was extremely happy!)

Good luck to you.

I was induced twice with Pitocin. The first time was on my due date because they estimated the baby to be at least 10lbs. I got the Cervidal gel the night before both times. The first time I started Pitocin at 5am and by 1pm I still had not had any contractions with the Pit cranked up to 20. The option was have my water broke and probably end up with a C-Section, or go home. I went home and tried it again the next week. I had contractions for about 12 hours when I got the epidural. I wanted to be at least 5cm dilated, so when I got to that point I got the epidural. The baby was still at 0 station though, so I ended up having to push for two hours. His heartrate was erractic so the doc wanted me to start pushing. I didn't feel anything after the epidural, but I think that made it harder to push accurately. We ended up using the vacuum to pull the baby out, and I was seconds away from a C-section. I guess my little guy was just very stubborn and did not want to come out. I know it's hard to wait at the end, but just hang in there. And make sure you eat a big meal before you get induced. I made my husband take me to Red Lobster on the way to the hospital, and brought some cheese biscuits to eat right before the cutoff point. Sorry so long.

JT was born 10/21/02, 9lbs, 20 1/2 inches, and beautiful

I was induced with Pitocin when DS was a week and a half late. I had the epidural as soon as it was possible, and before that they gave me Nubain, another painkiller. Because of the prompt painkillers, I had a positive experience with very little labor pain. Labor was 10 1/2 hours.

Best of luck!

Karen
Tad, 11/21/02

Not even one freaking cm. I was sooooooo ready to get DS out, but wasn't dialated at all. Very po'd when ob told me that at the appt. He decided it was definitely time to get the baby out before I took drastic measures myself. I think the fact that I told him I wasn't going home without a baby helped a little too! :)

Candy
Mommy to Matt, 5/22/02

Hey, Stacey~
So sorry you're a week late...I was 2 weeks overdue w/DS #1 and was induced/had my water broken at 42 wks. I was like 1/2 or 1 cm. dilated (don't know if that even counted for anything!), and never (even with Pitocin) dilated past a 5. They started the Pitocin at 7am, and by 2pm, I was really ready for pain meds. By 4pm I was dilated enough to get an epidural, and that was nice. Turns out DS had his little leg all caught in the umbilical cord- they'd had indications of some sort of distress, but didn't know what the cord was wrapped around--- anyway, he couldn't have dropped the way he was tangled up, and that's why I didn't really progress on my own. I was glad I'd gone w/the epidural, b/c I was able to be awake when they wheeled me in at 8:30pm for a c-section (instead of having to go under general anesthesia).

HTH, and best wishes to you!

Good LUCK Stacey:)
I hope you have a very easy labor and an easy and fast delivery.
Hope it happens TODAY
Sending you easy and fast labor vibes right now and happy healthy baby stars too*******************************************

Stacey:

I wasn't late, but my water broke and I was given Pitocin to make my contractions stronger. I had a great labor and delivery experience though and my labor was only about 11 hours. My suggestion is to get the epidural b/c pitocin contractions are so strong and they come together pretty closely. It was just hard for me to catch my breath in between the contractions. I was also told by many girlfriends prior to my labor to get the epidural if you are going to be adminstered with Pitocin. One of my close friends also was induced with Pitocin and she only labored for 12 hours. She hard labored for about 4 hours.

Good luck. HTH.

Sonia
Proud Mommy to Martie 4/6/03

Hi Stacey,

I was induced with my twin babies using pitocin. It wasn't nearly as bad as all the stories out there... in fact, it was quite gradual I must say. It took a good 5 or 6 hours before I felt anything worthy of considering an epidural. My induction was scheduled and I was already 4 cm when I went in. They broke my water about 5 hours after the induction started. The epidural helped alot as the day progressed - I got it about 6.5 hours after the start of the induction. They also do these things called "bolsters" (sp?) which is a quick shot of the epidural meds - they can do them from time to time to alleviate any additional pain. I had a few of those and they're wonderful!

As it turns out, after 15 hours of labor, charlotte still didn't want to come down the pipe so we opted for plan b - a C section! I was so relieved - even if I could get her out, I didn't think I'd have the strength to get Else out. The C was fine - it actually felt really really good when all their hands were in my belly - it was almost like a massage!

Good luck! and don't worry!

susan

twin girls 7.20.02
charlotte & else

I second everything everyone else has said -- being induced/pit is not something anyone would run out and do for no reason, but to get to meet your precious baby, we'd all do it again in a heartbeat!!

The advice on the epidurals was great. I don't consider myself a wimp, but feel I waited WAY to long to get one. The nurses were all surprised I waited at all. They all said (and the doc agreed) that if you're already on pit, you can get an epidural at any time (no need to wait until a certain number of cm, etc.) since they can always just turn the pit up a bit more if labor stalls.

My story, in a nutshell: 3 days late, BP up a bit, little protein in urine. Less than 1 cm dilated. Doc decides to induce. Go in on Sunday night, get cervix gel. Pit starts Monday morning after they break my water, get epidural about 6 hours later. Finally get to 10 cm after 21 hours on pit. 3 contractions, 12 pushes (20 minutes) later I had a 10 lb 9 oz 24" baby boy.

It was worth it!!

Sarah