Top Tips For Inducing Labor at Home
If you’re reading this then I can bet that you’re pretty fed up! You feel like a hippo that’s been wallowing around for way too long! You’re lacking energy and getting comfortable is a joke… only it’s not funny! Inducing labor sounds like something that your midwife has to do, but that’s not entirely true. There are things that you can do in your own home to try and help matters along. So come on – It’s time to meet your baby!
Some Mothers don’t get to 40 weeks pregnant. Giving birth between 37 and 40 weeks is quite normal, but what happens when you get to 40 weeks and still no baby? You get anxious, you just want to hold her, you imagine that you can smell that ‘new baby smell’. It’s likely that your midwife will tell you to wait it out for another 2 weeks and see what happens, then she will induce labor for you (in a very undesirable way!)
So if you’re up to your maximum 9 months and you just want your body back (you have shared it for an awful long time!) and your baby out – Here are some things that you could try.
Inducing Labor Naturally
Let me first tell you about one tip that I DON’T want you to try – Castor oil! I know that some mothers swear by this, but it really shouldn’t be used to try and induce labor. Although it may help to start those contractions, it is more likely to make you vomit and give you diarrhoea. Vomiting and diarrhoea in pregnancy can make you dehydrated, which is definitely not good.
Top Tips To Try
Do check with your midwife before trying any of these tips at home.
Let’s start with something easy – Walking. A gentle walk around the park, not a marathon can help induce labor.
Spicy food, this may work or may just give you heartburn!
Make love! Even if you don’t feel like doing this, a hormone called oxytocin released by your partner can cause the uterus to contract.
Nipple stimulation, reported as one of the best ways of inducing labor! The whole area of the nipple should be massaged and stimulated, you need to mimic the sucking motion that your baby would make. Be warned though, this method of inducing labor can cause very strong and intense contractions.
Acupressure is becoming a very popular and successful method of inducing labor at home. Do make sure that follow instructions carefully, and know exactly which pressure points to apply pressure to.
If you really can’t wait to meet your baby then these methods may be worth a try. Don’t forget to check with your midwife or GP first. Don’t try to induce labor if you are under 40 weeks pregnant.
