Early Labor

Let God's natural process work. The baby will come when he/she is ready. I have 3 sons (1st was 2 weeks late, 2nd was 3 wks late and 3rd was on due date). I did nothing, but tried to relax and let God do his work. I know how miserable you are, as all Mom's know. This will be over before you know it, and when your children are adults you will wish they were in your womb again. All my sons are young adult men now, boy do I miss being pregnant. But, my 2nd son and his wife are having my 1st grandchild. I am so excited! Be patient.

1 mom found this helpful

J. like you I was miserable... I was 391/2 weeks along and I tried everything. My midwife was going to induce me the next day, but the week before I tried everything, my hubby thought i was crazy. I tried yoga, I tried castor oil, I tried praying. The night before I was to be induced my family and I went to eat at a longhorn steak house, and i ate, and ate and ate. I was so full when i left, But i thought i will not be able to sit down and eat a full meal for a while. About 3 am i woke up with bad cramps, I was in labor!!! wooohooo!!! I showed up at the hospial at the same time i was to get induced....I could have died, i wish my daughter would have done it the week before. Never the less, i had a beautiful 10pound 6oz girl!!!! lol.

i am a doula and I DO NOT SUGGEST CASTER OIL! Caster oil clears out your bowls and can give you diarrhea. If that can happen to you, then it could also clear out the bowls of the baby and cause mecconimn in the bag of water and that is a very bad thing. There are some homeopathic remedies and so other herbal things that you could do, but I could not tell them to you with out your doctor's approval for me to refer these things. If you are interested, contact me personally.

Well, I feel your pain so to speak and I know you want to have it right now. there is no magical thing you can do to make you have it sooner, the baby will come when its ready and only when its ready. everything else is an old wives tale and they do not work. Im sorry to let you down, but as a mother of four, i know a lil bit about it.
ttys
M

lots of walking...I went to the mall and spent the day shopping, next day I was in labor. Also, I heard raspberry tea or mexican food would do the trick. The walking works best and gets you exercise too! hang in there...remember those newborns? enjoy these last few days of semi-freedom:)

Hi, J.!
I am a Certified Birth Doula and a mother of two. I know it gets tough at the end. BUT, the best thing for you and your baby is to let the baby initiate the labor. (unless there are other medical reasons to induce) Your baby will be healthier and will be ready. Your labor will be better as well. If you get to your due date and still haven't gone into labor there are some safe things you can do. I can't give medical advice as it is against our code of ethics, but I can tell you some things that helped me as a mom. (and other moms) You know of course, that movement is good. Rocking in a rocking chair is something I did and it has also been proven in research to help labor move along. So, take advantage of the rockers when you are actually having your baby too if you can! A short trip out of town started my labor with my first child. This also happened to a friend of mine! I don't advocate castor oil as it works for a few, but I have seen it not work more often than not. There is also a chance that it can cause diareah. Sometimes we also have mental blocks and don't realize it. I wasn't ready for my second child to be born. I was dilating and effacing at 34 weeks. I should have had him earlier, but he was born only 4 days before my due date. I was not ready. Search yourself and see if there is anything at all, small or big that you may be holding onto. Walks are great, but if your water breaks take care to get medical attention instead of exercise!
I know you will have a great labor, and I wish you the very best. Hang in there, it will be a memory before you know it!!
Contact me at anytime,
S. W. Grant, CD (DONA)

Thats a bad idea you body and the baby know when they are ready.... dont rush it and chance something being wrong with the wee one... i know your miserable we all were. but why chance you possibly hurting your baby. good luck... ohh just wanted to add NEVER EVER use castor oil it causes the baby to have a bm and thus the whole swallowing the merconium (SP) issue comes up badddd idea

My friend ate spicy foods and did activities that made her very joyous. They also say that your husband can help speed things up...if you know what I mean. :)

I did not personally have these issues...2 C-sections.

I have also heard of the doctor/midwife scraping the membrane to generate results.
Just stay healthy and happy and nature will take its course.
Good Luck!

My midwife suggested a natural tea that you can get at Tidal Creek its called Organic Pregnancy Tea. I drank a couple of cups a day and it tastes like berry. Enjoy

If you're really sure you're ready for this baby, i mean really really really sure, Sex is your best option. Or exercise, like vigorous walking or running, if you can. But my suggestion is to just let nature take it's course, that baby will come when it's ready; no reason to rush him! I know how uncomfortable it is in that last couple weeks, but in the end the result is well worth the long painful wait!! Good luck and hope ya have a healthy happy baby!!!

I have tried everything and the ONLY thing that worked for me is begging the dr. Finally when i hit the day that he thought it was safe, he induced. But that is the ONLY thing that I ever tried that worked.
Good luck and happy pushing.!

well my kids are 15 and 21 and this worked for both of them. my OB had me mix 4 oz orange juice, 2 oz castor oil and 1 tsp baking soda and drink it and then follow up with lots of liquids.....with my 2nd baby i took this at 2 in the afternoon and at 12:30 the next day he was here. Just make sure you have a clear path to the bathroom.

I don't know about three weeks early, but I swear by castor oil (not sure about the spelling). My obgyn told me to drink two tablespoons with a glass of OJ when I was a week from my due date and miserable. A bit of warning - it's a gentle laxative, but still a laxative. Also, it taste horrible, even in orange juice. But it worked. My water broke the next day and I delivered that night. According to my ob, it "lubes" everything up and gets it moving. I am now six months pregnant with my third, and if I get that far and that miserable again, believe me, I'll be holding my nose and drinking it.
Good Luck!

I had a friend who was recommended Red raspberry leaf tea, she went into labor about an hour after drinking it. I am not saying this is a guarantee, but it is worth a shot. The doctors once told me that lavendar can also put you into labor. If you try it, let us know how it works, lol...Good luck.

Going on long walks is the best advice I have heard because it is easy to do plus you can take your whole family with you.
Wishing you a speedy, smooth delivery,
A.

Drink lots of water. about a gallon a day! Excercise.

Looks like you've gotten lots of advice, that's great! I can tell you that for some people, nothing works. With my first, I tried everything except castor oil. I was doing aerobics up until the day she was born. In fact, on my due date, I went to Concord Mills mall and walked for 8 hours straight... no labor. I had been walking 4 miles a day up to that point. Tried spicy foods, special teas, nipple stimulation, bumpy rides, etc with both of my daughters, but I had to be induced both times, the first one at 42 weeks, the second at 41 1/2. With the 2nd, they even stripped my membranes, but it was still a week and a half before they induced me!! Hope everything turns out well, either way!!

Get your legs massaged. I mean a real massage. There are some places that know what to do when you ask for a labor masage. This is why they tell you not to get one when you are pregnant because it can start your labor. Hope this helps.

I am a proud Mommy of 3 beautiful children-Son,8yrs.old, Daughter,5yrs.old, and our newest addition, a baby girl, 8 1/2mos.old. I guess I don't have any advice you probably haven't heard from somebody. I did ALOT of walking, my Hubby and I were intimate, I drank raspberry tea, and well...I walked around dilated for weeks! My 1st was 1 wk. early, the last 2 were 1 DAY early. Not sure if any of these stories you hear will really make a difference in speeding up the delivery date...I think the baby just comes when he/she is good and ready. Good luck to you!

please dont do any thing i did that once and it was lets just say the biggest mistake i ever made it might just tilt your utrus and then the baby is in danger

i had heard tomato based foods due to the acidity. i risked the heartburn and went to Olive Garden and ordered the Four Cheese Baked Ziti. 14 hours later my water broke, 14 hours after that i had my son :-)

Hello, congrats!! One way to help with the baby to come sooner is to walk, walk, and more walking which you probably have already heard, but it does work... Good luck.. Nebo N.c.

My midwife suggested I take evening primose oil when my last one was past his due date. She also said to eat anything that would make me have a bowel movement. I have also heard walking helps. And as one nurse told me with my first who was overdue.. " the way you got him in there is a good way to get him out" . Make sure you are able to rest, and relax too and that you get a good's night sleep and are eating healthy.

Trust me... I tried it all and nothing really worked. I went to almost 43 weeks before finally (mercifully) going into labor. The doctor was just about 24 hours from inducing me. The one thing is that ironic tho is that my uncle's wife (who is Thai) claimed that eggplant will make you go into labor. Not sure if this was a customary thing in Thailand, or something she had heard elsewhere?? Anyway, we all went to lunch and I had a huge helping of eggplant at her insistence. Finally went into labor 48 hours later. I think it was just coincidence, honestly.The eggplant was long gone by then... :) Congrats and good luck!

Nothing really works. The baby will come when baby and momma's body are ready. Good luck and enjoy the ride!

Hi J.:
My name is R.. I am a mother of 3 girls. Well, during the late stages of my pregnacy, I walked a lot. I climbed the stairs of the football stadium and walked as fast as I could during the last few weeks. It worked, I went into labor a few days after I climbed those stairs. Ofcourse you know to be very careful and make sure that your husband or another adult is with you. Good luck!

Baby supposed to come, when baby supposed to come. Inducing early labor, other than hospital setting, not good idea.
Can you sleep and rest well?
Get a big recliner, it'll help you get more comfortable.
Good Luck, it'll be over before you know it.:)

I did this and it worked. Go to the mall with someone and walk, doesn't matter how tired you get, just keep walking. I went into labor the next day.

Too funny....not that you are miserable, but that I'm in your same exact situation!!! I'm almost 38 weeks pregnant...due 3/10. I don't necessarily want a leap baby, but would be nice to go early. I have a 2 y/o daughter & am having another girl :) So my advice is just this....be careful what you wish for!!! hahaha!! I'm just as anxious as you are to have this baby...but having an infant is very hard work. Our lives are about to change as we know it! However, it's nice that you have 2 older daughters....I'm sure they are super excited to have a baby brother & will be a lot of help too.

Other than that advice, I think everyone has pretty much covered all of the suggestions that I've heard of to bring labor on early....I did nothing with my first & had her 4 days early. I was actually thinking of trying the raspberry leaf tea starting the 1st week of March. My sister-in-law did the Primrose Oil thing & had her baby 3 weeks early. I would NOT recommend the castor oil thing at all!!!

Hope this helps & good luck!!!

Ask you doctor about being induced. I talked to my doctor about it and was induced @ 38 weeks. Although, I had a great pregnancy, I wanted it over with. Good luck.

Evening primrose oil....taken orally or vaginally. You can gat it at a GNC or Whoe Foods.

Little old ladies told me to take a spoonful of castor oil...
if I was ready it would kick in the parastolic movement
if I wasn't ready it would just give me a little diarrhea

I took it and it worked...
8am I drank it in orange juice.... 4pm I had my first contraction

but the little old ladies also said...
you would never take a cake out of the oven early, would you?
sometimes those little ones just aren't done yet

good luck

Walking really helps. My husband and I were at the mall looking around and we were trying to decide on a riding lawnmower. I walked the length of the mall from on retailer to another with my husband trying to decide. Needless to say, I went into labor later that night. It was worth it though. I was only in labor about 4 hours before I had my daughter. So find a mall and start SHOPPING! Oops, I mean walking:0) I got a little excited.

walk walk walk and forget about it for a day that you want to go into labor and walk

I've had 5 children and I swore with each of them I'd never make it to the end, but we did, LOL. My doctor told me there wasn't much you can do. He had women taking castor oil (only cleaned them out, but no baby), ride on bumpy roads (wore out the shocks on the car), ate spicy food (gassy result but no baby) and 1 woman even jumped off the roof of her garage (broken leg, baby nice & cozy in the womb). While you may want a leap baby (and I think that would be very cool) having a preemie has a whole gaggle of issues with it. Walking seemed to help my labor along, so IMHO that might help move you INTO labor? I'm just guessing, but I know walking is a great way to progress your labor.

Good luck and I have 3 March birthdays in our home & it's a fun month too.

Dear J. W,

With my 1st baby being late by 10 days, I can understand your being miserable and uncomfortable, as well as not sleeping very well. I have 4.5 years between my daughters, and with my second pregnancy I had forgotten about the 'not sleeping' after you have a baby.

My daughters are now 19 (in college) and 14 (High School next year) and it seems like just yesterday they were babies. They were so different from each other. The oldest was a great sleeper... my youngest had colic, and I was so tired for the first 6 months.

Do not rush what nature has given us moms, a 40 week pregnancy 'wait' time before birth.
For the final weeks gives your baby the ability to gain more weight, mature their lungs and other vital organs, etc. Use these few weeks left as time for you... enjoy what free time you have left to rest and to give special time to your daughters, as the new baby will have priority after birth.