Some of our members have shared their experiences below - hopefully you will find these interesting and of use!

If you wish to add you own experience please PM Lisa

I can give plenty of advice in here!! Had 4 inducions.

I went overdue with 3 of my babies so had to be induced. TBH the inductions worked pretty well for me. Just one dose of the gel worked and i was straight into labour. I had very fast labours with the prostin gel and although the pain is quite intense from the start with no build up really, it did kick start me off.

The only thing i hated about being induced was having to be strapped to a monitor throughout labour. It was so uncomfortable. I would advise you make a point of asking not to be strapped up unless absolutely necessary.

The actual induction can be a little uncomfortable but nothing major and they generally break your waters for you too although not always.

Any how if anyone wants to ask any questions about induction go ahead

I was booked in for an induction at 38w 3d with Izzy, due to me suffering from Obstetric Cholestasis.

However when I arrived and they inspected me I had already dilated 1cm, so the MW gave me a sweep in the afternoon. This didn't reallly do much.

At 9pm they broke my waters, it wasn't at all painful, although the gushing was quite an odd feeling!

My contractions started to become stronger then, it only took until 4am for me to be 10cm dilated.

Izzy was born 1hour 40 mins later (and only that long because the MW refused to let me move into a position I could push in!)

i was induced due to being 12 days overdue. i went in at 7:45, i was given a prostoglandin pessery and within 15 mins was starting to feel uncomfortable with back ache(felt constipated ) t gradually go more intense, but not unbareable until 3:30pm when they check and i was 3cm, so they broke my waters
it was then 4.5 hours to being fully dilated and ready to push at 8pm(he was born at 9:27pm)

i was strapped to the monitor for an hour in the morning, an hour after i had my waters broke and through the majority of the pushing stage, all for which i was asked to remove my tens machine(which obvs didnt have on during pushing )

this was my 1st labour so didnt know any different, i had a lot of people tell me it was more painful to be induced. dont get me wrong it was very intense but bareable with gas and air and a hell of a lot easier than my second labour...feel free to ask any questions x

I was induced at 38 weeks for no reason other than here in Cyprus they like to keep control over the whole birth process and when I was examined I was already 4cm dilated so they decide to induce me.

I was put on the oxytocin drip at 7am in the morning and told to walk around to help the contractions. I wasn't in any pain and was convinved they hadn't actually put any chemicals in my drip! Then they broke my waters at about 12 and out came Tyler at 3.15

It was a very easy and pleasant experience so don't always assume that because your being induced that it will be horrible!

I was induced with Theo as I was 12 days over. Got to hospital at 9am and was put on the moniter for 20 mins, before being given a pessery (sp). It was a bit uncomfertable going in, but not unbareable. After that another 20mins of monitering then me and OH went for a walk around the hospital gardens and watched some tv in the relitives room. Form about 10am onwards I was getting some mild pains, but nothing too major, they just gradualy built up.
Around 12.30pm I had 2 paracetamol and was put on the moniter again to check on baby. No contractions were showing up, so the MW said it must just be pains from my cervix moving that I was having. Over the afternoon my pains worsend, but I was still just breathing through them whilst sat on my bed reading a magazine and occasionaly going for walks around the hospital.
At about 6 I was put back on the moniter, but still not showing up contractions, the mw told me that I wouldn't be having my baby till the next day. Around 6.30 I was feeling very nauseous and threw up everywhere (sorry for the TMI) and was getting 4 contractions every 5 mins, so the mw agreed to do an internal, before thinking about moving me to labour ward. Whilst she went off to get her gloves etc I decided to go to the loo as I thpught I needed to poo I had been in there 5 mins when I thought something didnt feel right, i put my hand down, and could feel my waters bulgingout, along with a significant amount of head!
I had to pull the emergancy cord and about 7 midwives came rushing in, I hoverd over a wheelchair panting whilst they ran down the corridor to a delivery room with me, and just managed to get onto the bed as I pushed him out at 7pm on the dot
Thats probably much more than you needed to know, but I'm usless for waffling on, and I was just trying to get across the fact that not all inductions are horrendously painfull or mean that you are permanantly stuck to a moniter. My whole birth experiance was poistive, and about as relaxed as can be

I was due to be induced at 38weeks due to pre-eclampsia. I had been given a sweep at 37 weeks and over the following few days I had lost my plug and my waters went, so I was induced earlier at 37+5.

We had spend most of my 36/37 weeks in and out of our antenatal day assesment unit and wards to be monitored because of my blood pressure and protein in my wee, so I was monitored again the night before my induction, and first thing in the morning before it was administered. The monitoring was my blood pressure being checked, and straps across my tummy to check baby's movement and heartrate.

I was given the prostoglandin (Prostin) pessary which is removable because it is attached to a string. I was already 2-4cm when this was put in, but that fact wasn't mentioned to me!

Within 10 minutes of the pessary being put in, I began having strong period pains, within 30 minutes I was having contractions lasting 30 seconds, and 30 seconds apart - I vomited my co-codamol straight back up and started to feel really frightened that labour was meant to feel like this and it would go on the same for 20 hours

At this point I could barely stand up and I was still on the antenatal ward, so (thankfully) my husband pulled the curtains around my bed and one of the midwives came to put me on the monitor again. My husband put my tens machine on and it definitely helped at this point.

After 5 minutes it became clear that I could not lie on the bed to be checked (it takes usually about half an hour) and that I really was in labour - the midwife at this point realised that she needed to take the pessary out as it was working too quickly.

By now (approximately 1 hour from the pessary being put in) the pessary had been removed and the midwives were looking for a chair to take me to the delivery suite - the contractions were still 30 seconds apart but lasting longer than a minute and I couldn't speak or move during one. I was about 6cm by now. The midwives gave up on the chair and decided to wheel me on the bed as I couldn't stand up.

So off we went in the lift through corridors with me in labour and still wearing the clothes I came in with we had brought snacks and books and magazines but we really didn't have chance to make use of them!

I got to labour suite and was told I was 8cm, the contractions were still extremely close but after 6cm did not get any more intense, I was concentrating on the breathing and gas and air (thank you labour suite!) and was fairly oblivious to anything else - didn't have chance to feel worried about anything.

During these parts of labour things were quite blurry, but I was given 5mg of diamorphine which went into fat not muscle so didn't work, was given a tablet for my blood pressure as it was getting extremely high, and a tap was put in my wrist in case I needed to be taken for an emergency section due to my blood pressure. Meanwhile my blood pressure was being constantly monitored and there were a few doctors and midwives around in case things took a bad turn due to the labour moving so quickly.

I was now ready to push. As Elijah was back to back I felt the need to push very early on - but to be honest it was all so fast it wasn't too early. The pessary was still working at this point despite having been taken out. As I began to push the pessary began to wear off - the contractions slowed to one every 2 minutes (just what we didn't want by now ) but were strong enough to help me push.

Elijah had his cord round his neck twice and was born facing the sky but I had no stitches and a tiny tear so it could not have been any better really.

From getting to the hospital to having Elijah in my arms it was about 6 hours. On record my labour was 1st stage - 2 hours 5 minutes, pushing - 24 minutes and 3rd stage (placenta with injection) - 7 minutes. So a total of 2 hours 36 minutes.

Very very fast, but no time to worry! It was painful but nothing drastic and considering Elijah was induced, back to back and had his cord round his neck, we were discharged in under 24 hours I would not be worried about being induced again - every labour is different and I definitely got lucky this time

Sorry it's so long

I was induced with Aimee, but only by having my waters broken, as I was already dilated to 3cm naturally.

If you are going down this road, I would speak to the midwife before they do it, as I didnt and got quite a shock.

As soon as they broke my waters I started to dilate extremely quickly and the whole process was very stressful and very painful. I think the shock was actually what I found most upsetting.

Personally, if I was going down that route again and was going to have my waters broken, I would opt for an epidural before I let them anywhere near me, as it all happened to fast and they couldnt do it as soon as they had broken my waters. However, if you want to go the natural way without pain relief, then make sure you speak to the midwife so you know what to expect.

I dilated from 3cm to 10cm in 1 hour and 40 minutes and wasnt really getting much of a break between contractions. I spent an hour pushing for Aimee to be here after that.

After Aimee was born I was shaking so much, they had to leave me a while before they could stitch me up.

I was induced at 39+1 after being in hospital for 3 days due to pre eclampsia and begging for them to either induce or let me go home!!! They eventually decided to induce me and inserted the pessery (I was already 1cm by then) then broke my waters, my labour started straight away after that. I tried to be as brave as I could and not use pain relief (god knows why) for as long as possible, by 5cm I needed something so had gas and air. After 6 and a half hours I was 10 cm and ready to push but I was really struggling by this point, I was absolutely exhausted after not sleeping in hospital and Libby was back to back with her hand next her face. Her heart rate then started dropping very low every time I pushed and all of a sudden a load of doctors came rushing in and everything turned serious and they told me they had to get her out fast. They tried a ventouse but that popped off, so in the end they had to give me an episiotomy and finally after 7 hours in total Libby was born. I had ALOT of stitches which actually fell apart after only 3 days but thats a whole other story!! xx

I developed pre eclampsia with my first pregnancy my bp went sky high despite being on lots of medication so was kept in hospital at 38 weeks. They faffed around deciding what to do with me then decided they would try an induce me.

After 3 attempt nothing was happening and by this stage I was really worried so the doctor examined me and my cervix was still closed so she said they could take me upto delivery and break my waters but to do that I would have to have an epidural as it would be very painful. If that didnt work I would prob have to go on a drip and if that didnt work prob end up with a c section. I asked for the section there and then, I didnt want to go through all that. I was never going to get the natural birth I wanted and to be laid up on a bed during labour wasnt what I wanted.

As it turned out I was kept in hospital for a week after as well as my bp just would not go down.

I sufferd severe SPD and was due to be induced at 39 weeks. At 38 weeks i was given a membrane sweep and my water broke at 38+3. I wasnt sure that it was my waters as it was a slow leak rather than a gush. I felt damp all day but didnt know if i had just wee'd myself! I had read about waters breaking slowly so i phoned the hospital who asked me to go in to get checked. I went in about 5pm and got examined. They confirmed my hindwaters had broke and that they give 24 hrs from waters breaking to go into labour naturally. I started getting contractions that night altho they were only sporadic and were only every 30 - 45 mins. I hardly slept that night and ended up on the settee downstairs all night! The next morning i phoned the hospital at 8am and they said they had no beds yet so to come in for 9.

I made Gav keep the rest of my birth story so here goes:

9.00 - got to hospital to stay in clinic until they had a bed was put on trace machine
1.00- finally got a bed
1.30 - canullar put into arms and the syntosis (or oxytocin) drip was set away at 2ml?s per half an hour
14.00 contractions start and are 5 minutes apart no pain releif was needed up until 4.05 and gav applies amys TENS machine
16.20- contractions are now a minute and a half apart still only tens machine used
17.10 contractions strengthen and is offered gas and air. still battles onwith no pain relief gas on tap and ready to go
17.20- pain to much and decides to give gas and air a go and shes offher t**s! contractions getting closer and more intense and continues todo so u until 5.40
18.10-contractions have very little time between them . Gas and air seems to be just enouh for now - diamorphine offered.
18.20 - decided on diamorphine - pain getting too much bless!
18.40 - drugs kick in and amy looks worse than i do on a saturday night!
20.00 - cervix checked - only 3cm dilated but discovered forewatershavent yet broken - midwife broke waters and cervix auto dilated to 4cm
21.30 - had another diamorphne shot - pain extreme. feels the urge to push already?
22.10 - checked cervix 6cm
22.15 - requested epidural because of exhaustion
23.00 - 7cm dilated
23.35 - 9cm - COME ONNNN!!! cancelled epidural
23.45 - LETS PUSH!!

20/04
1.45 - babies heartbeat high due to pressure of pushing - docorcalled advised emergency ventouse or section required to get baby outasap!
2.00 - ventouse machine applied - episiotomy performed cut 4cm
2.06 - baby alfie born!

There u go! Labour wasnt as half as scary as i thought it was going to be and i actually cant wait to go through it again!! Induction isnt that scary either! x

i was induced 13 days overdue i went in at 9 am i got the pessary in at 9.30 am i started contracting within half an hour and niggled all day the midwife said i was over sensitive to it so i couldn't get another pessary till the next day,
anyway the new mw came on at 4 she left me for a couple of hours and at 7 she examined me still only 3/4cm at 7.40 she managed to brake my waters
and at 8.37 finlay was born it was def not as bad as what i was expecting and would quite happily be induced again x