[Submitted Question]

My baby is already four days overdue and my doctor just told me that I have to be induced if nothing happens in the next week or so. What exactly does that mean?

[WombToBloom]

In the last few weeks of pregnancy, most women see their cervixes start to thin and dilate. This means that the baby is moving down and the cervix is starting to slowly open to allow the birth to occur. When actual labor begins, this process speeds up and the baby bears down and pushes its way into the birth canal. For some women (myself included), this doesn’t happen on its own in those last few weeks. So, several different methods are used to spur this process along – this is referred to as “inducing” labor.

Your doctor may have already “stripped your membranes” in an attempt to naturally induce labor (didn’t work for me either). When you are scheduled to be induced at the hospital, the doctor will give you a drug called Pitocin via IV. This jump-starts the cervix dilation process. As soon as the cervix is dilated enough, the doctor will usually break your waters – allowing the amniotic fluid to drain out. This usually nudges your uterus and the baby a bit to get started. I was induced twice and it can be a long process (the first one was longer than the second for me). I went into the hospital early in the morning and didn’t have the baby until prime time that night.

[journeybirth]

If your cervix isn't ready for pitocin, some doctors might use cervadil or a foley bulb. Cervadil is a drug which ripen the cervix, a foley bulb is a catheter which is inserted into the cervix and is inflated. If they use cervadil they usually start pitocin the next morning, if they use a foley bulb they usually start pitocin once the catheter falls out.

[Knoxville Doula]

You may want to check out the Bishop Score... a method of seeing how "induceable" you are and discussing this with your doctor. Am I ready for induction? - Childbirth.org This can greatly determine the methods involved in an induction and how well one method may work vs. a different method.

[Nicolexx]

Originally Posted by WombToBloom

In the last few weeks of pregnancy, most women see their cervixes start to thin and dilate. This means that the baby is moving down and the cervix is starting to slowly open to allow the birth to occur. When actual labor begins, this process speeds up and the baby bears down and pushes its way into the birth canal. For some women (myself included), this doesn’t happen on its own in those last few weeks. So, several different methods are used to spur this process along – this is referred to as “inducing” labor.

Your doctor may have already “stripped your membranes” in an attempt to naturally induce labor (didn’t work for me either). When you are scheduled to be induced at the hospital, the doctor will give you a drug called Pitocin via IV. This jump-starts the cervix dilation process. As soon as the cervix is dilated enough, the doctor will usually break your waters – allowing the amniotic fluid to drain out. This usually nudges your uterus and the baby a bit to get started. I was induced twice and it can be a long process (the first one was longer than the second for me). I went into the hospital early in the morning and didn’t have the baby until prime time that night.

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