Inducing Labor Naturally

You have dreamed of finally becoming a mom after a long, long, long wait. And now is the time. Probably today. You will finally meet your baby, finally hold and tell her, "I love you forever." You will cherish that first time you will lay your eyes on her; it will be engraved in your heart for eternity.

Now is the time, now... That was what you are thinking for a few weeks.

And now, on your 42nd week, 2 weeks overdue, still hoping and praying that any minute now, you will finally say, "This is it, this is really is it", but to no avail.

Is it driving you insane? Well, you're not alone.

You would not mind that you cannot sleep at night, going to the restroom almost every hour, the difficulty in breathing every time you move, the back ache that never goes away, the ugly swollen feet staring at you and the fact that you are as big as your 8ft commercial stainless refrigerator. But the waiting...

So now, after you have consulted your OB Gyn and agreed to explore the possibilities of naturally self inducing your labor, then check out the list below. We have gathered the most common ways to inducing labor naturally for you.

Inducing Labor Naturally

• Walking
• Nipple Stimulation
• Acupressure and Body Massage
• Making Love
• Foods
• Herbs
• Castor Oil
• Folklore
• YOUR tips

Walking

While not really supported by many studies, the theory is that walking may help gravity to pull down the baby near the birth canal. But it has to be in a relax and steady pace only. You can also try other non impact exercises like swimming, stretching, pilates or even walking up and down the stairs. These non strenuous exercises also help. Just don't overdo it. You need some energy (or well, a lot...) for giving birth.

Nipple Stimulation

Studies have shown a significant benefit from nipple stimulation in women whose cervix had already started to soften, thin and open ready for labour. 37% women who had tried it went into labour within 72 hours as compared to just 6% of those who had not.

However, it is only recommended for normal pregnancies, not for high-risk ones, since there aer no studies on effect in high risk pregnancies.

Acupressure and Body Massage

For a thorough guide to how to induce labor naturally using acupressure, click here.

Making Love

This is said by parents to help - a lot! (But still not much scientific evidence...)

During the process of having sex, oxytoxin is released and this can help you contract your uterus. The orgasm may help activating teh uterus. And finally, there are prostaglandins found in the sperm, this will soften the cervix readying it for the labor ahead.

Remember that making love during pregnancy is allowed as long as it is still comfortable (well, to some degree..) to you and of course, your water has not broken yet, you are not bleeding and your midwife has not instructued you to avoid sex for any reason (such as a low-lying placenta).

Foods

Let us now talk about the yummy part, the food that has been said to help out in inducing labor naturally.

Are there actually foods that can induce labor?

Well, there have been rumors that for example Skipolini's Pizza in California and Scalini Restaurant in Georgia actually served foods that helped their overdue women go into labor. Don't book a trip, though! In addition to mere co-incidence, it has been found out that their common herb ingredients, basil and oregano might actually have played a minor role. Basil and oregano are said to stimulate labor contractions. (Read more about herbs below.)

There are also other foods and fruits that some women believe can help inducing labor naturally, other than pizzas, like spicy foods - the hotter the better and tropical fruits like pineapple, mango and papaya. Some women claim that this helped them, but nothing has been verified by scientific studies.

Herbs

In addition to basil and oregano, other herbs are also said to do the same thing like, Blue or Black Cohosh, Goldenseal, Squaw vine, Red Raspberry Leaf, Cramp bark, False Unicorn Root, Motherwort, and Evening Primrose Oil. There are however not many scientific findings to back up the efficacy of the use of these herbs.

Castor Oil

Castor oil is actually an old Egyptian method to induce labor. And it seems to work, although with side effects.

A study of 100 women indicated that 57.7% went into labor after taking a single dose of 60ml of castor oil, as opposed to while 4.2% of those who didn't. The drawback though, all the women who took castor oil because nauseous.

If you want to try this, make sure you discuss it with your midwife first!

Folklore

I just cannot imagine how fright, starvation and having an enema would help. What about you, will you try one of these?

So, as you can see, there aren't that many scientifically proven ways to inducing labor naturally. Nipple stimulation, love making and acupressure are your best bets.

YOUR tips

So moms, have a tip on how to induce labor naturally?

What did you do or plan to do? Make love, run a marathon, just rest?

Share a tip or the story of what worked for you, and make a desperate, overdue mom really happy!

Click below to see contributions from other visitors...

Nothing Works!  Iv tried all of the above plus more such as going up and down the stairs sideways like a crab but still at 42wks NOTHING!!! Just have to play the waiting ...

Pedicures And Reflexology  Your feet are a very sensitive place often said to be reflective of the whole body.

When, at 42 weeks, I had yet to see my new son I decided to employ ...

I Tried It All...  I was really not wanting to be induced by the doctor, but as I was almost two weeks overdue it was starting to look like that was exactly what was going ...

Having Sex  I was about a week overdue and my doctor suggested walking and having sex so we did both. Me and my husband walked around the block twice and then had ...

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