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@jholler25: no problem! i should also say that my sister was induced with both of her kids and hers went fine and she delivered vaginally rather quickly.

I was induced at 40 wks. My labor progresses verrry slow. It took 16 hrs to get fully dilated. I pushed for an hour but my contractions slowed way down, LO was face up and big, and I was really tired so it ended with a c section.

I was induced about a week early at my Doctor's orders. I had a two part induction and was admitted to the hospital in the evening part 1. I was not at all dialated. Part 2 began in the morning with pitocin at about 7am. I had my epidural before noon. At about 5:30pm I had progressed to about 2cm and my doctor said she'd see me sometime in the middle of the night, early morning for delivery. My daughter was delivered by c-section at 8:19pm due to decelerated heartrate. Pitocin has a way of messing with the baby's heartrate that seems to often result in c-section.

I don't care to go through heartrate deceleration again. It was scary business because I didn't know how much risk there was to my baby and the nurses weren't really communicating with me.

Would your doctor consider a scheduled c-section considering your circumstances with DH? Since you already seem very open to the idea of surgery. If we have another it will definitely be a scheduled c-section.

@jholler25: My husband made me ask if we could elect for a c-section and while they cautioned us to really think about that decision, in the end we could opt for one. A few weeks later when LO didn't turn it obviously didn't matter. I was surprised they said yes because I didn't think I'd have the option either. So definitely ask!

I was induced at 41 weeks with 0 dilation. I was given two doses of cervidil to soften my cervix followed by pitocin.. I ended up with a C-section after 2.5 hours of active pushing....my LO's heart rate was dropping and I developed a fever.

We thought DH was going to be deployed when I had C. Last minute, another guy volunteered so he didn't have to go. At least it just 3 weeks and not 6 months, although it definitely sucks either way.

I was induced at 40+4 after my water broke and my body didn't go into labor. I gave birth at a British NHS hospital, so their policy is that they induce 24 hours after your water breaks so that you have the best chance to go into labor on your own. My water broke about 11pm on April 1st. We went to the hospital at about 4am after I was sure that's what was happening because it was just leaking. They sent me home to wait out the 24 hours. I went back in at 8am and got cervadil gel put in at 9:30pm because I wasn't really dilated or effaced. They waited 6 hours for it to work and then started pitocin at about 4am. I got an epidural at the same time they started the drip, which only worked for a few hours. By 6am, my cervix was full effaced. By 9am, I was 2-3cm and the by noon, I was fully dilated. I pushed for an hour and a half before they realized her head was crooked and she wasn't descending properly. In the end, I was given an episiotomy and a forceps delivery. She was born at about 7:30pm.

Pitocin is hardcore and they had my drip up really high. My contractions were right on top of each other with no break for hours. I also did it med-free because I had 2 failed epidurals. I can't really imagine anything more painful.

They offered to give me a c-section early due to her size, but I refused. Personally, electing to have major abdominal surgery is not really something I wanted to do.

Is it weird that I thought of you the other day and i'm like "What is Jen gonna do?! Where's her DH going to be on her due date?!" I was all concerned about you and wanted to ask you about it but it slipped my mind:)

You know i'm pregnant with my first so I don't have any induction stories of my own but MANY women I know have been induced and didn't end up with a c-section. There are foley bulbs and cervadil (inserted into cervix to dilate it over a 6-hour period), nipple stimulation (with an electric pump), episiotomy and forceps to all help bring baby out without ever using pitocin.

The thing about a c-section is....I think it limits the amount of pregnancies you can have total to 3. I've read that several places but never heard it straight from a doctor's mouth. So, research that.
If you're O.K with that go ahead and schedule the c-section. That's totally your personal choice:) Honestly, I figure they're terrible but in your situation it'll probably be awesome because the pros will out weight the cons more-so than in a typical situation where husband works in town.
*See if your mom can stay a few weeks to help since c-sec will obviously debilitate you more than would a vaginal birth.
**personally I'm pro-induction big time. But that's mainly because our family has big babies so we like to get them out kinda early;) I am all for your plan whatever it may be.

I wrote up my induction/c-section birth story on this thread if you want to read it!
http://boards.hellobee.com/topic/baby-minis-birth-story

I have to agree with @Arden. I have read Ina May's Guide to Childbirth in addition to other research and would never opt for an induction or a c-section unless it was absolutely medically necessary. I definitely think you should do lots of research and take time to weigh your options. I understand that you do not want your DH to miss the birth, but there are serious risks involved with both induction and c-section that in my opinion, shouldn't be taken lightly.

There's actually a rating scale called the Bishop score that can be used to gage the likely successfulness of an induction. It takes into account a lot of factors like height/weight/dilation/cervix position of the mother and estimated size/condition of the baby to determine if an induction is a good choice for you. I'd suggest you talk with your doctor about your Bishop score as you get further along in your pregnancy, so you can prepare either way.

Personally, I used to be against inductions for anything other than medical reasons. However, with my second pregnancy I had a high Bishop score and my doctor offerred to induce me before my due date. I ended up going into labor before I hit the possible induction date, and I'm not sure I would have done it anyway, but it sure was nice to have the option! Just like every other issue, non-medical inductions aren't necessarily evil; there's a lot of gray area, and you have to make the decision that is best for your family as a whole!

@LeeLee: just curious how big was your baby?

@leelee: im in a similar situation, at 37 weeks baby boy was meausring in at almost 8 pounds. there estimating him to be almost 9 1/2 at 40 weeks, so i was just curious with induction.
sorry to threadjack!

@stargal: has your OB expressed any concern in babys size or brought up potential induction? Mine didn't bring it up until my 38 week appt where she set the date. They say that the ultrasounds can be off by a pound but my OB didn't want to take the risk and said my cervix was favorable for a induction. Course I definitely tried everything to get her out before the induction date but she was stubborn!

@Leelee: At 38weeks one of the drs said he wuold induce if i was dialated three or more centmeters, (i was only at 1) at 39 weeks. i go for my 39 week apt and an ultrasound this week to check his weight so i will be bringing it up to see what they are planning to do.

@stargal: Please don't induce because of size. My daughter was 10lbs 8oz and 22 inches long, born vaginally at 40+6. Your body can handle it. Here in England, they weren't going to let me be induced until 42 weeks even though they knew she was going to be very big. Ultrasounds are not really accurate for sizing.

@zippyleaf: good to hear that you were able to deliver naturally with a big baby! i hope i can to! i am high risk due to a bloood clotting disorder, (inudction can be safer for me and babes) so that will also be taken into consideration with doing an induction (if it comes down to that). my primarly concern is to get him here healthy

Did you see The Business of Being Born? A lot of people say they feel it is scewed one way but i highly disagree. It ends in the director needing an emergency c-section and they even say it's about understanding birth and then having the birth that YOU want. I think you should see it, it's on netflix, just to give you a bit of an idea of what to expect on both sides. THAT and i would also defer your decision until you can take a childbirth class and learn more about the details of all procedures. Maybe little Harper will even save you guys this tough choice by coming early on her own. you never know. either way it is not my place but i would highly recommend avoiding an elective c-section if you can. even induction is better to try first. it's MAJOR surgery that can affect the health of both you and your baby.