The baby dropped two days ago and I have two more days until my 40 week appt.
I hear sex, acupuncture, birthing ball, and walking all help baby make his appearance. What natural methods did you use?
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After my membranes were swept, I spent the next day on the birthing ball. I went into active labor that night and baby was born early the next morning. He was born at 38 weeks 6 days.
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Waiting
(LO2 was born 40+6, after 3 weeks of preterm labor. It felt like a long wait!)
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I keep wondering what people mean when they say their membranes were swept? What does that mean, I dont remember that being done with my first?
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I don't have any personal experience but I do know that my acupuncturist said she would not be able to do any points that could possibly induce labor. She said she used to but her insurance carrier said she had to stop or they would drop her. She said the liability of something going wrong was too high for her and her insurance. I was pregnant last year so it's recent info.
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With my first I was bouncing on a yoga ball when I went into labor (after eating tacos and walking around a lot). With my second I just rolled over in bed and my water broke.
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I used accupuncture, it was no joke, lol. The practitioner used small sticks that he lit on fire to "show the baby the way out."
My son was born the next day, but he was also 40 weeks, 6 days at that point.
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I was 39 weeks and standing in the front of Lowes since DH forgot something and ran back for it. The cashier asked me if I was having contractions. I said no, why? She said that the concrete floors does it. My water broke about 8 hours later...
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None worked for me! I did acupuncture, walked a ton, ate pineapple/drank pineapple juice, had my membranes swept, drank a bunch of tonic water (recommended by my acupuncturist), had sex, etc. I was induced at 41+1. I know a few people who had success with castor oil but I wasn't interested in trying that. (And my induction went really smoothly so I'm glad I didn't start out the labor process dehydrated from pooping my brains out!)
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Well I didn't intend to naturally induce myself but we had sex when I was 37w4d. my water broke sometime during that night & contractions started the next morning!
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An enema. Seriously. My water broke with no contractions and I didn't have contractions for more than 5 hours. The hospital midwife suggested an enema as a natural way to get contractions going. It worked, contractions started within about 25 minutes of the enema being administered.
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I did two sessions of acupuncture, and I went into labor an hour after the second one!
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@Smurfette: You went into labor after a trip to Lowes and I got pregnant after a trip to Home Depot. What's with us and hardware stores??
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I did everything, but was still induced at 42 weeks. My midwife suggested castor oil at 41+ 3 and I was so desperate to avoid any medical interventions that I did it. It caused a few slight contractions, (and obviously some poop, but nothing too insane) but that was about it. I ended up with basically every intervention you can get so I wish I had just relaxed about it more. But going overdue is so hard. Every day feels like an eternity.
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I tried pretty much everything but the castor oil and nothing really worked. Had 3 membrane sweeps in the span of a week... finally went into labour 41+4 and had DD 41+5... so for me I'd say it just took time/waiting.
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@bluestriped bee: my doula recommended acupuncture, so she must know someone that can still do it.
@jape14: I have fresh pineapple in the fridge.
All good things, ladies! @Mrs. Goose: my reasons for wanting this baby out in the next 6 days is really silly- I want an Aries vs a Taurus. Even with him dropping and getting out of the bed 5-6 times a night to pee I'm not all that uncomfortable, thankfully.
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I don't know if any one thing did it for me, or if baby just wanted to come at 39 weeks.
My baby was sunnyside up, so I'd been spending a lot of time on the yoga ball doing exercises recommended by my OB & doula for that.
I was also walking a lot, including a really steep set of steps in the neighborhood.
I was also drinking red raspberry leaf tea and taking EPO capsules orally and vaginally.
Oh and I was eating a lot of pineapple but mostly because it was hot out and I was craving it
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I went to the grocery store and took a nap. Contractions started while I was cooking. She dropped around 38 weeks and I delivered at 40+3, but I was sitting on the birth ball daily and walking a lot trying to hurry her up.
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Walking and RRL tea for DD1 and a reflexology foot massage for DD2.
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sex and acupressure!
I was 2 days past my due date, and DH and I did both, I went into labor 4 hours later. I am convinced it was the acupressure. DH massaged the spleen 6 (warning, it does not feel good, as it is incredibly sensitive when you are pregnant!).
This is a good video:
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Tentative appointment with an acupuncturist is set! I have been on my birthing ball all afternoon!
@birdofafeather: @MoonMoon: I've been drinking my RRL tea for weeks as a labor aid to strengthen my uterus, but I didn't know it could also help induce.
If I'm not too tired this evening I'll take a lap around Lowes. There's a sweet old man at the Home Depot across the street from Lowes that shoos me out of the store every time he sees me. He's had three daughters and doesn't want to deliver another baby. LOL
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@Run2shore: oh yes I forgot acupressure! My water had broken, but I wasn't having contractions and they wanted to try pitocin, so DH googled and found that, we tried it, and contractions started almost immediately. Again, I have no idea if that's what did it, but it didn't hurt to try!
@Mrs. Lemon-Lime: you're right, I'm not sure RRL is known for inducing.
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After an aggressive membrane sweep we walked the mall. Went into labor that evening.
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Spicy food may have done it for me! It was unintentional, I was 37 weeks 4 days. We had spicy pizza when we went to lunch with friends then we had a pasta dinner at the in-laws. My water broke around 1am after that.
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I was in early labor, but I'm convinced that testing out my breast pump (aka nipple stimulation) helped spring me into active labor!
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Walking a ton + sex.
Good luck!
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Lifting my preschooler
At my 38 week appt, the doctor told me I was barely dilated and had ways to go. LO2 was born later that night in less than like 3 hours since contraction started.I did nothing different or unique my second pregnancy except lifting my 3.5 year old.
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A looooong walk. Then castor oil. An ounce or so in 4 ounces of cold OJ (shake it up hard!). Repeated every two hours three times. I did that in the evening, woke up at 2 with timeable contractions.
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@mfa_lady: I read this wrong first time as "walking and a ton of sex." I was impressed!
I've heard eggplant parmesan can do the trick. And there used to be a cupcake sold here that people actually traveled out of town to eat b/c it was said to induce labor.
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I did have a membrane sweep the day before going into labor but also ate a whole pineapple and tried out my pump! I was 40w on the button so it could have just been the right time.
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@Happygal: Hahahahaha. For me, it was actually JUST the walking that did it. I was SO sick when I went into labor with E--I tell people I kind of think I coughed my water broken--but I had gone on a super duper long walk earlier that evening. However, I have a friend who has gone into labor hours after sex TWICE. So, seems legit.
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@Mrs. Lemon-Lime: you are funny! Hopefully one of those activities will help! I think with LO1 staying physically active helped me. I tried spicy food too but that didn't do anything.
I think I'll look into the acupressure techniques this time around. -
Membrane stripping. I was only 1cm dilated but had my membranes stripped and started labor only a few hours later.
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@autumnleaves: lol, DH keeps telling me just let the baby come when he's ready. The only Taurus I know for sure made some really poor choices in life and that's coloring my feelings on this a bit.
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It was definitely the sex for me. I'd tried lots of walking earlier in the week and also spicy food, but after having sex at 40+3, I lost my mucus plug, and labour started 40 mins later. My water broke after a few contractions. My contractions started at 2 mins apart, and LO was born 12 hrs later. If it helps at all, we did it doggie style, which stimulated my cervix.
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@Mrs. Lemon-Lime: haha. We all have reasons I guess! I was good comfort wise up until 42 weeks, I could have gone further, but I was worried about going late and they induce then here anyway. My crap sleep and hip pain while lying in bed was my biggest complaint, but that started pretty early on for me and I didn't see it as a huge deal because it was going to be rough with a new baby anyway!
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My first came at 40+6, so I don't know if anything 'worked'...but I did all the same things with baby 2 and he came 2 hours before his due date!
- a ton of red raspberry leaf tea
- exercise ball and walking
- homeopathic blue/black cohosh
- evening primrose oil capsules both orally and vaginally
- sex, using my pump for nipple stimulation
- eating pineapple and spicy food -
I had sex, pumped, did lots of walking, sat on an exercise ball at work all day, ate spicy food, got chiropractic adjustments, drank third trimester tea, and took EPO - I have no idea if any of it helped! At 40w6d I went in for an "induction massage" and my contractions started at 1am the next morning.
(LO2 was born 40+6, after 3 weeks of preterm labor. It felt like a long wait!)
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