Why need this
Waiting For Your Baby
Nine long months you have been waiting for this little bundle of joy that should arrive about now… but you are waiting. Although you know that your baby will come when it is ready, it is difficult to wait when your due date is near. Especially if ladies around you with a similar due date already had their babies. You might also feel over the whole pregnancy thing. Those last couple of weeks are not exactly easy; you are so big that lots of little things become a difficult task and it is hard to get comfortable. You will also be extremely tired and might be in pain from all the stretching and extra weight. If you are ready for it to be all over, try some of these tips that our mums shared to bring on labour. Not all of them might be for you, but who knows, it might just work! Enjoy your labour!
Use it for
When Baby Is Ready
Please consider that babies will come when they are ready. Most likely these tips will not work when your baby is not ready yet, but you definitely do not want to rush things. Do not try to do any of these before the 36 weeks mark as it might be dangerous for you and your baby. You have got this mumma!
However there are definitely reasons to bring on labour:
- There are the medical reasons that make it better for mums and bubs to end the pregnancy. It is also possible that the placenta is deteriorating or there are cord flow issues. This might be picked up when there is reduced movement from baby or it could be that there is reduced fluid around baby. Baby might look big on scans which could complicate natural labour. If you had a previous complicated birth or very quick labour. Or you might just simply be close to the 42 weeks mark or over.
- Remote work – In some cases labour is induced when it is safe for mum and bubs when partners have remote work or own business and it will be difficult to attend labour otherwise.
- Planning – It is not for everyone, but some people would like to avoid a specific holiday or sibling birthday.
- Offered as a possibility – depending on your hospital and obstetrician is might just be offered as an option to you. Especially when you are very uncomfortable this might be a good option to consider.
- IVF pregnancy – It seems that in case of IVF pregnancy specialists do not like you to get overdue and induce you before.
- Standard procedure: some of our mums reported that without them realising their care providers seemed to apply stretch and sweeps and breaking waters as a standard procedure. If you do not like any of that, make sure you talk to your care providers well in advance.
- Some research suggest that risks increase passed 39 weeks of pregnancy, but research also suggests that intervention may lead to more intervention and a more complicated birth.
Our Mum’s Tips
20 Tips To Bring On Labour
Your care taker can help when labour needs to be induced, but some of our mums tried to get things started on their own. Whether they wanted to prevent the medical induction or whether they were just ready to get things started, these are the things they tried to bring on labour:
- Walking: go for a walk, walk the stairs, do some gutter walking, just keep that body moving. Especially the uneven walks seem to have a great impact. Be aware that some mums have delivered their babies on the stairs leading to the hospital entrance because of this…
- Eating spicy food – spicy food might get things moving for you. Where you did not want to eat to spicy earlier on, now is a great time to get into it. Order your favourite curry or make this delicious Prawn & Coconut Curry extra spicy and enjoy the wait!
- Bouncing up and down on a 75cm Gym Ball – it is all about the best position. The bouncing up and down will move bubs in the perfect position for labour. This is a great activity to start from 36 weeks on when you are watching television. When your baby is in the right position, labour will be so much easier!
- Sex – yeah, we know… maybe not the first thing you feel like right now, but as they say babies leave your body the same way as they came in. The contraction of your uterus and vagina during an orgasm might get things started. Orgasms also are a great way to relax during labour. There are mums that say they had the best orgasm ever during labour…
- Acupuncture or acupressure can help get things moving for you. There are many stories of ladies that started their labour within a day of their treatment. If it is not starting for you, then at least you had a nice relaxing session. Apparently, there are specific pressure points on your feet and ankles that can help start labour. Ask your acupuncturist about these or look it up online.
- Really hot bath – hot baths were not a good thing at the beginning of your pregnancy, but now they might help you to get into labour. Check out our selection of lovely bath products. Put on some nice music, lit a couple of candles, use your favourite soap and soak away!
- Nipple stimulation – yes, an interesting one! Stimulating your nipples can bring on labour. Whether this is in relation to the sensation of breastfeeding your little one, as long as it works, we are happy to try!
- Expressing colostrum (hospital information) – this is beneficial for your baby in every way possible. Catch that colostrum and freeze it in, so that you will have some of that ‘liquid gold’ available just in case your baby is not able to feed immediately or you cannot feed your baby straight after they are born. Additional benefit is the nipple stimulation that comes from this. Your uterus can start contracting as it will when you are breastfeeding after birth. One of our mums had a very specific instruction to express 5 mins each side for 20 minutes for 3 hours in a row.
- Bumpy car ride – not so sure about this one, but it is an alternative for the bouncing up and down on the fit ball or the gutter walking we guess… Make sure you stay safe!
- Massage with essential oils for labour – does not matter if it works or not, a massage is always welcome! If you pick Clary Sage, Peppermint, Sweet Orange, and Frankincense essential oils they might just stimulate you enough to get into labour.
- Induction dance YouTube video – at least it is worth the laugh we reckon. Some of our mums shared stories about induction dance videos on YouTube. Check it out and let us know if it worked for you! This is another example of how dance can help you through labour. It is worth a shot, just for the fun of it!
- Perineum massage – this might be one that is not for everyone. There are items(like the EPI-NO) that you can buy for this purpose but it is also possible to do it yourself. The idea is to stretch the perineum for labour, so that your baby will ‘fly out’ when labour start and you will not tear.
- Stretch and sweep – when you go over your due date your midwife most likely will offer you some stretch and sweeps. If you are keen, you can ask about these. They will try to loosen the membranes at the cervix.
- Raspberry Leaf Tea – is known to improve your uterus health. Some of our mums swear by drinking this tea from the 36 weeks mark to prepare their uterus for labour. One never knows how hard their labour would have been without…
- Castor oil – castor oil is known to improve blood flow to your reproductive organs when applied topically on your belly. Making sure that there is a lot of blood flowing to these areas to pick up anything that will signal the start of labour to the rest of your body, might just be a good idea.
- Pineapple – a lovely tropical fruit to nibble on, no issue for us. Bromelain in pineapple is said to help ripen your cervix and start contractions, but no research has shown this effect.
- Eating dates – some of our mums swear that eating some dates each day in the weeks leading up to their labour has made their labour so much easier and better. If you do not specifically like the taste of dates, you can find some recipes to mix them in a shake or a delicious slice or protein ball.
- Sperm – apparently sperm helps ripen your cervix. As mentioned before sex is known to be a great way to bring on labour. It might not just be the sex but the sperm that makes this happen…
- Squats – another one to bring baby in the perfect position and to open your hips.
- Clary Sage seems to have labour inducing qualities too. Try smelling some clary sage oil or make it a relaxing session with a baths with clary sage. Put clary sage oil on wrists and base of your spine or massage clary sage and Jasmine Oil into your tummy. Enjoy!
All the best of luck trying these methods. Please, let us know what worked for you!
