Natural Remedies to Speed Up or Induce Labor
Are the nine months up and still no baby? Are the last days of pregnancy feeling like an uphill climb? We’ll show you some natural remedies to help you get through, and even induce labor.
Nine months is a short time when you aren’t expecting a baby. However, when a woman is pregnant, the 9 months of waiting can be the longest of her life. Especially for new mothers.
It often seems like the moment to give birth will never arrive. Moreover, in some cases they may have gone past the nine months and there are still no signs that the baby wants to be born!
First of all, we’re going to explain the function of the hormone oxytocin, which has an important role to play in childbirth, and then give you some tips that have helped some pregnant women induce labor a little earlier than would have happened otherwise.
Oxytocin and childbirth
Oxytocin is a hormone that women release under certain circumstances. One of them is at the moment of giving birth. It’s responsible for initiating the birth process. For this reason it’s so important in the whole process.
In this way, when it’s necessary to artificially induce labor, oxytocin is used to help initiate it.
For this reason, the natural remedies to induce labor must be based around the release of oxytocin into the body. Remember that, once the nine months are up, any moment is a good one for your baby to be born.
Natural remedies to advance or induce labor
Before putting these remedies into practice, we recommend you consult with your doctor. He’ll tell you if there is anything about your pregnancy that should prevent you from trying any of them.
- Relaxation techniques. Increased stress can cause a delay in the birth date. This is because hormones that don’t facilitate the release of oxytocin are produced by stress. We recommend that you practice prenatal yoga, relaxation techniques and mindfulness.
- Physical exercise. Practicing physical exercise can, above all, help the baby to be properly positioned. It hasn’t been proven that you can actually speed up labor, but certainly doing physical exercise such as yoga, walking or swimming helps your body prepare for it.
- Sex. We know that it’s uncomfortable because of the size of your tummy, and the physical fatigue doesn’t help either. However, it’s true that sexual relations can speed up the delivery of the baby. When you reach orgasm, you release oxytocin, and you feel better and more relaxed. In addition, prostaglandins can be found in semen, and this favors the dilation of the cervix.
- Foods. Some foods can cause the baby to move. One very nice example is chocolate! Its effectiveness to speed up or induce labor isn’t fully demonstrated, but it can cause movements in the baby and help him to move into the correct position.
- Talk with your baby. Obviously this last method isn’t scientifically proven, but you certainly can’t lose anything by trying. Encourage him, connect with him emotionally, let him know how much you want to see him and get to know him. This may not speed up the birth, but there’s no doubt it will favor the connection with your baby.
Let your baby know that he is loved, wanted and expected
When to put these remedies into practice to advance birth?
These remedies that we’ve recommended to help induce labor are also healthy habits that you can maintain throughout the pregnancy.
Relaxation techniques will be useful to you right from the beginning. The first trimester can be very stressful and finding times and places to be peaceful, calm and emotionally stable should be paramount for you.
And that includes relaxation in your daily routine right from the start of your pregnancy.
Physical exercise is also recommended right from the moment you know you’re pregnant. You must, of course, adapt the exercise to your condition, and avoid routines that could harm the baby.
Ask your midwife which ones may be the most appropriate for you at each stage of your pregnancy.
As for sex, it’s a very healthy practice for you when you’re pregnant. It’s liberating, de-stressing and improves your skin, blood supply and, without a doubt, your mood.
Food, on the other hand, is one of the most important aspects for pregnant women. Don’t take risks with foods whose origin or composition you’re not sure of. Ask your doctor before eating foods that aren’t part of your normal diet.
Finally, talk with your baby. Most pregnant women have a natural way of interacting with their baby, and so you won’t have to work very hard on this one.
Even if you don’t believe it, it’s important that you talk to him or her in order to create a greater connection with them, and to let them know that they ‘re loved, wanted and being waited for.
