You Don’t ‘Have’ To Be Induced
…YOU REALLY DON’T⠀
Okay, so I’ll carefully caveat that with, obviously if you or your baby are ill or need extra support then it might be a really good idea to see your baby sooner rather than later….⠀
But...⠀
If you are well, if your baby is well then you don’t NEED to be induced, you don’t HAVE to be induced. ⠀
Induction of labour comes with short, medium and long-term RISKS to both you and your baby. Although often dressed as the ‘safer thing to do’ it really isn’t for everyone. ⠀
It doesn’t always work. It can be more painful and it CAN lead to iatrogenic harm.⠀
If you are moving toward your 38 or 40 week midwife check-up then you WILL be 'offered' induction. You may also be told that you 'need' to be booked in for your induction there and then as otherwise there might not be any appointments left. This simply isn't true or correct and it is clearly coercion.
Remember that due dates are misleading and outdated. You may even have had yours altered, even though you knew your conception dates.⠀
Are there risks in birth? Yes, birth is not risk free.
We know that the risk of stillbirth at 41 weeks is 0.2% and at 42 weeks 0.3%, it does go up but the figure remains very small. But when we are being offered induction there is rarely any balance to the conversation we have and you need to remember that everything that you are being offered comes with a risk/benefit profile that needs to be explored - whether that is doing nothing or doing everything.
The final word though is that it is YOUR choice to make, not your midwife's, or your doula's, or your mother-in-law's, or anyone else. Yours, yours, yours. It's your body and your baby.
Avoiding unnecessary interventions during pregnancy and birth really can make a huge difference to your experience of your birth. And your experiences really REALLY DO MATTER. Be prepared BEFORE your 38 or 40 week appointment so that you are not caught out without the relevant learning and information that you need.
As always I suggest visiting:
drsarawickham
dr.rachel.reed
theserenitydoula
Either over on Instagram or via their own personal websites.
Melanie x