Natural ways to induce labour??

[Youngmum57]

Hey guys i am now 39wks pregnant with my 2nd i went 2wks overdue with my first and had to be medically induced at the hospital which i found to be a bad experience:no: so i want to do everything i can to avoid it happening again. i have been having rasberry tea leaf every day, sex every 2nd to 3rd day (bit hard to have any more often then that) walking at least once a day. so i went to my health food store and got evening primrose oil which i am taking 3 times a day. and i am just wanting info/stories on blue/black cohash how do you use how much after ur due date etc? and castor oil? and any other ideas would be great:D

[lil miss]

i have been in early labour since saturday (im 36+5), and when i saw my midwife on tuesday she said the only ways she recommends to bring on labour or speed it up is sex and nipple stimulation (use a breast pump if you have one)... she said castor oil etc is only a wives tale (i was concidereing using it before i spoke to her), and it isnt good for baby and can make you sick. She didnt mention anything about the primose tho....

so if u have tried everything else, maybe try the nipple stimulation? She said 10 mins of it is usually long enuf.... if u can get ur dp to help even better for u :laughing: good luck!!

[Amara]

Orgasm once a day 3 days in a row did it for me. No need to DTD.

[lil miss]

Orgasm once a day 3 days in a row did it for me. No need to DTD.

i wish it would work me :laughing: we have dtd every night and i been taking care of myself during the day since saturday, still nothing lol.... sorry about tmi

[IndigoJ]

It is actually the hormone in sperm that softens the cervix so sex with a partner is the only way you will get anything out of it. (cant remember the name of it)

I tried Castor oil, three times over a two day period when i was 40+5 and it did nothing, i didnt even get the effect that the oil is supposed to cause (its a laxative).

I have heard rave reviews about acupuncture to bring on labour :)

[Mrs Awesome]

Accupuncture!!!!!! Works a treat! :-)

[3boysnpregnant]

Dont use the Cohosh of either kind its dangerous..

Evening Primrose is good but you should put it in your vagina in addition to taking it orally..

It has the same effect as sperm it puts prostagladins straight onto your cervix as does sperm... So it softens your cervix..

That and nipple stimulation... best done with a breast pump..

I wouldnt do Castor oil ever..

I have a few middie friends who said the paitients who actually admitted they tried it had babies with meconium in the water...

[IndigoJ]

I wouldnt do Castor oil ever..

I have a few middie friends who said the paitients who actually admitted they tried it had babies with meconium in the water...

While i do agree its useless, i just wanted to say that i tried it at 40+5 (3times) and it didnt work DS was born at 40+9 after a 22hrs labour and my waters were clear, no meconium, so i think it may be just a few people who get bad effects from it, but not all. :)

[Bellini]

I had acupuncture and went into labour the next day :)

[chickenandfrog]

I can't really suggest anything but reading this thread has nearly made me throw up lol i drank castor oil with orange juice and the thought of it is making me feel o so queesy! It did nothing for me either, i tried walking up and down stairs, sex, bumpy car ride, a lot a pineapple juice, more sex... Nothing. In the end bub will come when ready.

[meredithlinda]

DS was 40+5 and I had clary sage oil baths a few nights leading up to it. The instructions on the bottles were for I think about 6 drops in the bath, which I did. The next couple of nights I poured nearly half the (small) bottle in, and DS arrived early the following morning.
Like with any natural inducing method it's hard to know if it helped, or if bubs would have been ready to come at that point anyway.
But I enjoyed the baths!

[RiffRaffMama]

I'm sure you've had your baby by now lol but for others' reference: get professional guidance for using black/blue cohosh as they are powerful herbs. Clary sage massage (on your belly) and acupuncture are all great options for attempting to speed up or induce labour. So is old fashioned gravity- squat, use a slide at a playground, jump up and down, it all helps put pressure on your cervix for speedy dilation.

[fai firinne]

Inducing a first time mama is cruel and unusual punishment. Was there a medical reason for it, like high BP in you or the foetal heart not being so good? If not, it sounds like a case of 'failure to wait' on the part of your care providers. Some women naturally gestate longer just like some bulbs take longer to blossom. I've known women who've gone to 43, 44, even 45 weeks, then started labour spontaneously and then had normal, safe births.

The 10 Month Mama page might encourage you about the normal variations. It's on the Birth Love site.

If you do go past dates (there is no such thing as a due date, and the science used to estimate due dates is dodgy and out-dated anyway - they should be using the more accurate Woods method that Anne Frye discusses in her books), there are ways to know that your baby and placenta are both well.

- baby is moving (it's normal for the movements to decrease closer to birth but you'd still get a few)
- the foetal heart is good - you may wish to go into the hospital now and then just to have a trace done to reassure everyone (as long as they don't bail you up and pressure you, which happened to one of my clients)
- there is plenty of amniotic fluid, which proves the placenta is working well - they determine this by ultra-sound, although be aware that the results of this can be inaccurate and subjective.

There's every chance this baby won't go past 42 weeks (remember that's a very arbitrary and probably inaccurate count). Or maybe s/he will. Babies come when they're ready. Sometimes they have a bit more re-positioing to do, to get ready for the most straightforward birth for you both.

There are things you can do to prime your body to go into labour at the right time for you and your baby. You just have to be aware that this might not be on the time-table of your obstetrician. In which case, consider changing careproviders, e.g. to an Independent Midwife who is not scared by women who gestate longer than 42 weeks.

Sometimes things like Optimal Foetal Positioning, and Chiro or Osteo care, can help you and baby get lined up and into the best position for labour to commence. It's worth a try. Once baby is in a good possie (for that baby), then lots of walking, which hopefully you've been doing the whole pregnancy, will help. I think there is not much point inducing a woman, either through natural or medical means, if the issue is that perhaps her pelvis is imbalanced, and/or the baby hasn't yet shifted to the ideal position for that baby. That would involve forcing the baby lower in the pelvis (kind of like a coffee plunger effect), in a position that is not right for that baby, making it harder for the baby to adjust his or her position. This can cause more complications and lead to more intervention. Resolving either of things things, if they are relevant, can help clear the path so that labour can begin whenever the time is right. For example, if a trip to the chiro helped resolve and band of tension cause by imbalance in the pelvis, so that the baby could turn to LOA, then the baby's head could be better applied to the cervix, and this plus movement and gravity could support labour starting naturally when the time is right.

Another thing that can help soften you up and relax you, plus help the baby into an optimal position, is the rebozo (mexican shawl). If you can find someone like Midwife Fiona Hallinan or another midwife or doula who knows how to do this (I do it with my clients), it can be a useful tool in your tool box.

Not being a 'watched pot' helps. You need to be free from time pressure & worry, and be able to relax - that helps your birth hormones to surge. So swimming, walking, massage, cuddles, sex, time with loved ones, yummy food (but avoid sugar which makes your hormones sluggish).

There is also a herbal mixture that some midwives give their clients to tone the uterus ready for labour. I'll have to go and search for the link .. forgotten the name of it ...

Good luck! Trust your body, and your instincts, and don't let anyone push you into anything.

[fai firinne]

I can't remember the name of that formula, which you get from USA and take from 35 weeks, to help prepare your body. But a similar formula contains False Unicorn Root, Withania, St Mary's Thistle, Raspberry Leaf Tea, and Squaw Vine. I also used a tea made up of Raspberry Leaf Tea, Nutmeg, Lavender and Basil. I think a herbalist or a midwife would be the best people to help you with these options.

Also some homeopaths have preparations to help prepare you for labour. Pulsitilla and caulophyllum come to mind, but again, you'd want to see a professional practitioner.

[niks28]

I agree with the acupuncture, sex, raspberry leaf and laksa :)

[ourhope]

Raspberry Tea is also called as Mummy Tummy Tea. I had tried it a week before labor but if u really want it to work you have to try it from at least your 7 months onwards. Have only a cuppa every day is whats recommended. It wouldnt work if u have it in your last week like I did.:smiliedance:

[LillyB]

Along the same lines as herbs, many oils can be used for inducing labor naturally. Some are taken in pill form whereas others are applied topically or swallowed in liquid form. Foremost among these is the practice of using castor oil to induce labor.

[LillyB]

First and Most Important is Relax! Labor will not begin if you're tense, worried or trying hard to start labor. Try a warm bath in candlelight. Get a professional massage with the only goal being relaxation. Acupuncture and acupressure, because of the focus on key areas of the body, have also helped inspire labor.