What should I do to prepare for an induction?

I see a lot of inductions. Like A LOT of inductions - I swear Oprah level of inductions. 

"You get an induction, you get an induction, everybody gets an induction." 

And when your provider schedules one, they might tell you it'll be about 24 hours. Quick, easy, in and out. And sometimes? That's true.

But more often than not, especially for first-time moms, I've watched inductions stretch into two, three days. And more times than I'd like to count, day three ends in a C-section for "failure to progress."

Can we talk about that bullshit phrase for a second? Failure to progress. As if your body failed. As if you did something wrong. ARG! You didn't.

But what I do know is that a lot of those outcomes could have looked different with better preparation beforehand.

So I did what any slightly obsessive doula does: I started paying attention. Tracking patterns. Running my own unofficial research study on what actually makes a difference. And I want to share what I found with you, because if you have an induction coming up, this is your homework.

Not to scare you. To protect you. To increase your odds of this working. 

Your induction homework:

1. Know the steps of an induction before you get there.

An induction isn't one thing. It's a series of steps, and each one comes with options. Cervical ripening, Pitocin, breaking your water… these are decisions, not just things that happen to you. The more you understand the process, the more you can participate in it instead of just getting swept along.

2. Have your birth preferences ready (including the C-section conversation) 

I know nobody wants to think about a C-section going into an induction. But inductions do carry a higher risk, and walking in with preferences already thought through means if that conversation happens in the room, you're not making decisions from fear and exhaustion. You already know what you want. That's power. Not sure what your options and preferences are? Schedule a 1:1 Birth Preferences session with me.

3. Do the Body Ready Method induction prep circuit 

The Body Ready Method circuit is specifically designed to get your body as ready as possible before your induction date. Think of it as showing up having already done the warm-up. Watch the prep circuit here.

4. Start the Miles Circuit now and do it daily 

This one is a game changer and I cannot say it loudly enough. The Miles Circuit is a series of three specific positions designed to help your baby get into the optimal position for birth (left occiput anterior, for the nerds like me). When baby is lined up well, your cervix gets consistent, even pressure, which helps everything move more efficiently once labor starts.

Here's what I saw in my own families: the ones who did the Miles Circuit consistently leading up to their induction, and repeated it on induction day and through early labor, went from three-day inductions down to 24 hours. That's HUGE!

Start at 37 weeks, do each of the three positions for 30 minutes (start with 10 and build up), and repeat daily. Learn the full circuit here.