Induction of labour.

I receive many questions about IOL and although a small blog post cannot possibly do justice to this thorny subject, here are some answers. Perhaps they may be of help to you.⠀

“‘I have been told that I have to be induced…’”

IOL is NOT compulsory. You do not HAVE to do anything. As IOL comes with both pros and cons you will need to discuss both sides of the argument with your care team before choosing. ⠀
It might be absolutely the right choice for you to make considering the evidence that you have, or it might not be.⠀
So, find out the reason why. Research it. Then choose. It is always YOUR choice to make and you should never feel emotionally blackmailed into a decision.⠀ ⠀

“‘Many friends I know have been induced, they say that it is really painful, is this true? What can I do to help?’”

It is important to understand spontaneous physiological labour to get under the hood of this. Labour is a delicate dance of hormones that happens in a specific order. Thus one hormone will trigger another… and so on until birth happens.

Oxytocin, the hormone for happiness, love, hugs, sex and a whole host of things including birth is naturally made during labour (assuming that the women is comfortable, safe and for the most part unobserved). Oxytocin helps to trigger endorphins in labour and endorphins are nature's own pain reliever.

When labour is induced using a synthetically made oxytocin, although it will have a similar effect on labour, it will not cross the blood / brain barrier reaching your brain. So the trigger for the endorphin release is not made. This is going to make labour feel more uncomfortable.

Induced labour also tends to drop you into labour as opposed to following a slower build up. This can for many women feel hugely overwhelming.

Obviously if you have chosen IOL then you can plan for this, using techniques that you have learned, comfort measures you have arranged or pain relieving medicine such as epidural analgesia.

“‘Everyone in my NCT group who has had IOL has ended up with interventions or c-section!’”

All mammals move in labour. It is important for baby's descent and mum's comfort. As IOL changes the path of normal labour continuous monitoring will take place. Thus many women find themselves tethered to a CTG machine and sitting/reclining on a bed. This can be incredibly uncomfortable and also stop movement and the use of gravity to birth baby. Epiduaral use rises.

So we tend to see more use of forceps, ventouse or c-section birth.

There are also other reasons such as hyper stimulation of the uterus and associated problems that need to be considered prior to making a decision.

Simply put, if we change things... changes will occur.

The decision needs to sit with you, with no guilt or pressure.

Understand the evidence (Dr Sara Wickham / Evidence Based Birth / Rachel Reed / AIMS) , then make the best informed decision for you. 💗