I had it easy with my first child, 14 & 1/2 hours of labor with an epidural.  And 1/2 hour before he was born the epidural wore off and my labor progressed so fast that it was time to push so no more medicine was given... 6 minutes and 3pushes later he was born!  Vaginal birth was great, expecially when it was natural.  I was hoping to have the same luck with this past pregnancy.  I went for almost 17hours of straight no medicine/ pitocin drip pain of labor and couldn't progress past 5cm.  I tried walking, swaying, bouncing a bit on a ball.  But he wouldn't decend into my pelvis.  So my doctor got the bright idea of breaking my water to see if that would help.  The only thing it did was intensify my contractions.  But before we get into the c-section bit.  If the doctor says Foley catheter, beware!  They balloon a water balloon the size of a fist behind your cervix to open it up.  And thats how I got to 5cm.  And the pain of it coming out, oh my gosh.  OUCH!  But after I couldn't pass 5cm they stopped the induction and rushed me into an emergency c-section.  I really felt inadequate because I wanted to be able to hold my baby.  Thankfully my husband was allowed, but I felt lonely because I wasn't allowed.  I had been up all night and day, and I wanted rest.  So they came in a little after I finally got to sleep and asked me if I wanted to feed him.  And what mother wouldn't? I held him until I couldn't stand being awake anymore; so I gave him back to the nursery.  I stayed in the room where they had originally put me, not changing over to the wing where the mothers had already had their babies at.  I had to finally go to the bathroom, and still having the urine catheter in; I'm sure you know what I had to do.  Finally I got so tensed up because I had to go really badly, I got out of bed and went myself.  It took them 20minutes to get to me finally after I had gone to the bathroom.  And they wonder why I was so mad at the staff there.  That night they put me in the other wing, thank god.  And things ran a bit more smoothly.  They had me up and walking more the next day which I pushed myself to do.  But having a c-section at that hospital again is a no-go for me.  I have chosen to go to another hospital close by!