Water broke 52 hours ago but no contractions :(

[ocean_dew]

52 hours ago my waters broke but my labour hasn't started. I went into hospital the first night and everything looked fine. I declined induction and they told me to come back in 12 hours. I did lots of research and thinking, and after listening to what some of the lovely nurses said I decided to wait it out at home.

I don't know what to do. Most of the research I have come across states that Pitocin wont always work unless the cervix is already softened/ dilated a bit. That it can bring on harder contractions which results in people opting for epidurals which can slow down labour, upping the need for more Pitocin etc. That this can all result in a C-section.

I really want a natural birth, but not to the cost of my baby's health. I also don't want to be pushed into drugs and medical intervention if it's unnecessary. The risk of infection is apparently 1% (as opposed to 0.5% in women whose water didn't break before labour started). I'm regularly counting kicks, checking my temperature and watching out for signs of infection etc.

How long is too long to wait? Has anyone gone through this before? I thought my contractions would start first and now I feel so lost.

 

[WhitheartsQ]

I would think the main concern is infection, had no idea it was so low of a chance though. I also know you need to watch out for the cord.
Sorry, don't really have any answers. Really hope things work out! Don't blame you for wanting to go naturally, fxed you will be able to!

 

[lauraairving]

I wouldn't like the thought of baby having no water it'd worry me. It can't be very pleasant for the baby even if there isn't any serious health risks x

 

[ClairAye]

My personal experience is slightly different as my contractions started an hour later but I went 38 hours from waters breaking to birth and I got a pretty bad infection and that led to a few complications with my delivery - which almost ended in an EMCS.

How long are they willing to leave you if you show no signs of infection? It's a choice only you can make but from my experience I'd of been opting for induction.

 

[ocean_dew]

I wouldn't like the thought of baby having no water it'd worry me. It can't be very pleasant for the baby even if there isn't any serious health risks x

I thought the same thing and asked the nurse if I should try to stay seated/ laying down as standing led to more fluid coming out. She said not to worry about it at all as my body would keep making more amniotic fluid and that I should stay hydrated. I guess that reassured me a bit and I've been drinking lots.

 

[GPapo1013]

I thought that once your water broke, you had 24 hours to deliver the baby, due to increased risk of infection....that would REALLY concern me. I would put my feelings aside and just go for the Pitocin. The health of your baby, I feel, may be in jeopardy...

 

[tublet]

I thought that once your water broke, you had 24 hours to deliver the baby, due to increased risk of infection....that would REALLY concern me. I would put my feelings aside and just go for the Pitocin. The health of your baby, I feel, may be in jeopardy...

Yes this is what I've been told - my hospital has a 24 hour limit

 

[Kirstiedenman]

My hospital has a 90hr policy so your not even up to my hospitals policy yet. I am also a none medical intervention person and I think as long as you baby and your nurse team are happy then I would give it another day. Your waters will keep replenishing as long as you drink lots of fluid especially coconut water I think its called you can buy it in the supermarkets. Ina may gaskin guide to childbirth book talks about delivery babies after the waters have broken and waited for labor to start naturally and those stories are enspiring. Are you trying anything such a walking bouncing on a ball clary sage oil or rubbing evening primrose oil on your cervix all of these can help. I would be looking out for the cord dropping through as the main worry as infection has warning signs you can pick up on.

 

[OurLilFlu]

Just keep in contact with your care provider and keep monitoring for signs of infection.
As a nurse, I believe the 24 hr rule is crap... My midwife believes in active management after the waters are broken which is still in line the SOGC guidelines. One thing she said ill never forget is 'that once the waters are gone your vagina does not act like a vaccuum and suck in bacteria, there has to be bacteria present or introduced to cause an infection'... So if you are GBS negative and you're not getting unnecessary cervix checks just keep monitoring. If you have a Doppler, even better, other than a fever, one of the first things to go up is your heart rate and babies heart rate so it wouldn't hurt to keep an eye on that. But most of all trust your care provider and your gut, there probably will be a time where they won't let you go on too much... Keep us posted

 

[overcomer79]

Just keep in contact with your care provider and keep monitoring for signs of infection.
As a nurse, I believe the 24 hr rule is crap... My midwife believes in active management after the waters are broken which is still in line the SOGC guidelines. One thing she said ill never forget is 'that once the waters are gone your vagina does not act like a vaccuum and suck in bacteria, there has to be bacteria present or introduced to cause an infection'... So if you are GBS negative and you're not getting unnecessary cervix checks just keep monitoring. If you have a Doppler, even better, other than a fever, one of the first things to go up is your heart rate and babies heart rate so it wouldn't hurt to keep an eye on that. But most of all trust your care provider and your gut, there probably will be a time where they won't let you go on too much... Keep us posted

To be fair, each individual is different. You can't just say the 24 hour rule is crap to everyone. When my water broke with DS, 12 hours later I had a fever of 103...it came out of no where. This is from someone who very rarely runs fevers. I hope no one takes your medical advice over that of their medical team. So I personally wouldn't feel comfortable going that long after.

 

[randomrach]

I have to agree with the above.

I do really hope it doesn't happen but once a fever does hit baby can become distressed very quickly. 18 hours after my waters were broken I developed a fever, LO was distressed and turned back to back all in the space of 10 mins and needed to be born asap, it's a pretty worrying situation.

I wouldn't say you HAVE to be induced but please do keep in contact with your hospital and if they wish to check you over there's no harm in going in and letting that happen. You don't have to agree to anything just because you're at the hospital

 

[LisK]

My water broke with DD and I didn't go into labor (and my cervix was only 1 cm). About 12 hours after it broke they started pitocin. I asked for the epidural about 5 minutes into pitocin contractions and got it right away. She was born 8 hours later. So if the epidural slowed my labor, it wasn't by much.

I'm not going to lie to you ... I thought pitocin sucked. It made my contractions very painful. But it also popped the baby out pretty quickly!

 

[overcomer79]

I had epidural with both of my inductions. DD was smooth sailing. DS, the were trying to get my bp down. I had stopped progressing long before the epidural. I hadn't progressing in the four hours prior to the epi...so def wasn't what slowed mine down.

 

[WantsALittle1]

Never given birth vaginally like the other ladies have, but if it were me the worry over infection would drive me to be induced. My cousin had a severe case of amnionitis about 12 hours after her waters broke, and her son went into distress during labor because of this. She ended up having an EMCS and her sweet little boy has had some problems because they weren't able to get him out fast enough.

I am a bit biased though. Due to personal experience, I feel like my babies are safer outside than inside my womb but I know that's not a typical perspective and that we were just really, really unlucky.

You must do what's right for you hon. All we can do is speak for ourselves and our experiences and preferences!

 

[Jessica_MTY]

from my perspective i think the risk to the baby and you is greater doing nothing than inducing so at this point i would act and have an induction. i can understand that 24 hours doesnt have to be a hard and fast rule but you're way beyond that at this point

pitocin doesnt automatically mean epidrual (which in turn doesnt automatically mean csection)

 

[want2bemommy]

Aside from infection the concern with lack of waters is more risk of baby compressing the umbilical cord which can lead to distress. For me personally I'd go in.. Maybe they can try some cervidil to ripen your cervix before trying pitocin?

 

[special_kala]

I thought that once your water broke, you had 24 hours to deliver the baby, due to increased risk of infection....that would REALLY concern me. I would put my feelings aside and just go for the Pitocin. The health of your baby, I feel, may be in jeopardy...

You are aware Pitocin has far more risks then the already stATED 1%??

Pitocin can present other hazards. For the mother these include: tumultuous labor and tetanic contractions, which may cause premature separation of the placenta, rupture of the uterus, laceration of the cervix or postbirth hemorrhage. Fetal hazards include: fetal asphyxia and neonatal hypoxia from too frequent and prolonged uterine contractions, physical injury and prematurity if the due date is not accurate.

Then there is the increased chance of csection after using pitocin which obviously increases lots of risks for mum and baby.

So please educate yourself before you start telling people they are putting their babies at jeopardy

 

[Pearls18]

You're doing the right thing questioning things, the 24 hour rule is quite dated and extremely risk averse (understandably) but it does have to be remembered there are risks with inductions so the OP is doing the right thing balancing the different risks. I find it amusing how quickly women jump on their pedestals about "I couldn't do that to the baby" but don't actually bother to educate themselves fully on the whole situation, we should obviously have faith in our medical providers but maternity care is notoriously flawed with the amount of heavy handed risk averse medical intervention that can be easily avoided and whatever decision you make should always be balanced, I personally wouldn't put my baby in jeopardy by going by a one-size fits all policy rushing into something without doing some background research first as the OP is doing.

I haven't been in this position so don't know much about it myself, however, as a home birth hopeful I do know of a lot of women in this situation who opt to extend beyond "policy" in the hope of gaining the safest arrival for their baby so even though you are not planning a home birth if you find "home birth and hopefuls" on Facebook there are some very knowledgable women on there who can point you in the direction of recent research

Good luck whatever you decide, it can't be easy

 

[EmmaFTM]

I was left 79 hours before my daughter was delivered by emergency c section. If I were you I wouldn't leave it much longer. She turned back to back which is why is why I couldn't get to the pushing stage and meant I could have the natural birth I had planned xx

 

[FeistyMom]

One thing to note is baby's current position - without the extra cushioning of water (and even after your water's 'go' you are still creating new amniotic fluid, so it isn't totally dry, but the levels never fully recover to pre-breakage marks), if baby isn't already in the right position for a vaginal delivery, it is more unlikely they will adjust.

Great job doing the research and looking things up though; as many PPs have indicated, there are risks for any option we choose so you just need to make the decision that feels right for you and your family