HELP! need suggestions.?

Question

my due date was yesterday ( fri) and they are going to induce me this wed. i dont want to have to be induced, i heard labor was worse if your induced, so i need to know of anyway i can get labor started. im already dialated 2 . hmmm lets see sex hasnt worked, and walking hasnt worked, the doctor has also stripped my membrains. this is my first child. any suggestions welcome. but please dont tell me to be patient, im already past my due date.

Answer 1

I won't tell you to be patient, but I will tell you that the estimated due date can be off by two weeks in either direction. I'm surprised that your OB is scheduling you for an induction, because doctors usually wait for two weeks past the due date before they suggest inducing labor unless the mother's amnio fluid levels are dropping, her blood pressure is rising, the baby is in distress, or the mother has gestational diabetes. I hope that none of these are the case for you -- just tell your doctor that you want to give it a week and ask for a non-stress test (you relax in a reclined chair or exam table for about 20 minutes while they monitor the baby's heartbeat and check how much amniotic fluid is around him).

If you do need to be induced because of one of those reasons or some other reason (and being 5 days past your due date is NOT a good reason!), I would like you to know that I had two of my sons induced, and they were my two easiest labors of my five. One is my second oldest, one is my youngest. All they do is insert a cervigel tablet into you to help you dilate and efface. Some women need a Pitoncin drip -- an IV with hormones meant to jump start the contractions -- but for most the gel is all you need. When you start feeling the contractions, you can ask for an early epidural. I did and it took effect so well I didn't feel a thing during delivery, to the point that my son was 3 cm from crowning before the L&D nurse thought to check how I was progressing, I was so relaxed and just typing on my laptop.

Now, ways to get you closer to delivering:

What Does NOT Work:

Eating spicy foods. All you end up with is heartburn, cramps, and a very unhappy intestinal tract. That's the last thing you want to deal with this close to delivery.

Raspberry Leaf Tea. It is a uterine toner, all right, but for it to tone your uterus you needed to drink it in quantities during your second trimester, not now.

Evening Primrose Oil. Known to cause asthma, migraines, and seizures. Plus the prostaglandin amount released is nowhere near the amount needed to jump start your labor.

Castor Oil. Ideal for cleaning out your GI tract, but that's it. Leaves an oily, nasty taste in your mouth, too. You really don't want diarrhea this close to deliver.

What MAY Work:

Walking. Try walking twice a day, as briskly as you can, for 15 to 20 minutes each time.

Sex. You'll need your husband to have sex with you and ejaculate at least once, if not more, for about a week to get the levels of prostaglandins high enough to be effective.

Nipple Stimulation. This is only effective a few days before delivery, and many women find the ongoing stimulation annoying. It's not just a few tugs, it's 15 to 20 minutes of it. It does start contractions, really strong ones, but often they stop once the effects of the nipple stimulation stop.

Fresh horseradish and fresh spearmint. Noted causers of uterine contractions. You'd need anout a third of a cup of each every day, as fresh as possible.

I hope this gives you some ideas. Good luck!

Answer 2

Why are they going so early? Most doctors or midwives try to wait until you are at least a week past before they consider inducing . . .

You're right, depending on HOW you're induced, it IS more intense and painful (Pitocin, the synthetic form of oxytocin, is the culprit . . . I had it with my first!)

When I was pregnant with my youngest (now two), I was overdue by a week and a half. I'd had a non-stress test, the baby was fine, and I was scheduled to be induced by Cervadril (sp?) the following Wednesday afternoon (this was a Monday.) That night, I ended up going into labor, but I almost missed all of the signs, since I was so hung up on the fact that I hadn't gone yet (I also had back labor, and have always had a bad back . . . I didn't even feel anything in front until I was already in transition . . . ) Not only did I avoid being induced, I had a completely drug-free labor, since it went so rapidly! I actually walked out of the hospital about an hour and a half before my appointment!

One thing you can do is not worry. The one guarantee you have is that the baby WILL be born, one way or the other. But, worrying and stressing can slow everything down to a stand-still! As soon as I stopped focusing on it, my labor started . . . She was ready, and that was that!

But, according to my midwife, some of the things that DO help (depending on whether it's dilation or contractions that are your problem; sounds like contractions . . . mine was dilation!) include sex (she said that semen contains something that'll naturally help soften the cervix) and laxatives, like castor oil (that'll help bring on contractions). I don't remember if there was anything else, though. I've heard that nipple stimulation can also trigger contractions.

If you really are worried, the best thing to do is to talk to your doctor. See if he or she's willing to wait a few days or even a week before inducing you, to give you a little more time to go naturally. As long as the baby's alright, they may be amenable to giving you a little more time; at the very least, if they're not, they might be able to give you a reason!

As hard as it is to hear (I remember when I went past, both times!), patience is the only real recourse you have, at this point! Whether you're waiting for Wednesday, or waiting for things to go naturally, it's all just a waiting game now . . . But, the end IS in sight! Just keep that in mind, hard as it seems . . .

Good luck!

Answer 3

Well if your dilated 2 cm then you are already in labor, just because you probably don't feel contractions doesn't mean your not in labor.. With my second Daughter my water broke and a couple of hours later I started to get contractions mind you I was only 36 weeks so... anyway I went to the hospital and they admitted me.. This labor I can say was BAD! not only was I in labor from 5:30pm till 5:59am which is when I had her,.... during that time after my water broke It felt like I would dilate like 1 cm every 2-3 hr and then when I wanted Pain meds. the Nurse told me no because I was only able to get them at 7cm it was to late ( I could have rang her neck for not checking on me) Plus after that The Doctor decided to induce my labor because I was dilating very slow.... so can you imagine that no meds and induce labor I felt like I was gonna Die! Well I wish I really did get a chance to walk around, because from what I had heard walking helps allot while in labor and also before labor also try to take warm baths because that relaxes your body and most likely you will have your baby before Wednesday.. your body is not suppose to be relax that's why it is always so uncomfortable during Pregnancy because you can get contractions.. so I was told by a couple of people, that it will help... and sex I am not really to sure if that will make you baby come any faster.. I always thought because you are dilated that you can get a infection because you are opening for Delivery.. I would just ask your Dr. in the triage center and see what they think.. Well Good Luck and hope my story didn't scare you :) Hopefully all goes well because having a induce labor is Killer!

Answer 4

To be completely honest, nothing really helps if the baby isn't ready. I was 8 days past due when I was induced with my SECOND child in January (2007). I was induced with my first too. Don't worry about it, your baby is ready to come out on Wednesday, everything will be fine. As a side note, it's best not to go past a week overdue, for both of your health and safety. Remarkably, your body instinctively knows what to do during labor, so try not and stress about it too much.

Good luck and congratulations, being a mother is an amazing feeling!

Answer 5

I really don´t think that there is something that will naturally induce labor but here is some other methods for you...

Sexual intercourse - This works in two ways to induce labor. First, female orgasm can bring on contractions. Second, semen contains prostaglandins. Prostaglandins work to help ripe and soften the cervix.

Nipple stimulation - Stimulating the nipples triggers the production of natural oxytocin. Oxytocin contracts the uterus.

Accupressure - Accupressure may be helpful in inducing labor. Some pressure points you can try are the roof of your mouth, the webbing of your fingers between your pointer finger and thumb, and above the ankle about four fingerspaces above is a pressure point.

Stripping the membranes - This can only be done by a health care provider. Your doctor or midwife will seperate the bag of waters from your cervix and this is thought to help encourage labor to start.

Raspberry Leaf Tea - Rasberry leaf tea is not actually known for it's labor inducing properties, but it is believed to be helpful in toning the uterus and helping with labor.

Cinnamin stick tea - Take cinnamin sticks and boil them into a tea and drink. It actually tastes good so even if it doesn't bring on labor it may help you to relax.

Evening primrose oil - Evening primrose oil comes in small capsules similar to vitamin E. It is believed to help soften and ripen the cervix.

Walking - Walking may help to get baby to drop into proper position.

Visualization/relaxation - Relaxation can help with labor induction. Try doing relaxation exercisers. They are also good practice for when labor actually begins.

Pineapple, cumin tea, eggplant parmesan, and spicy foods - are another thing you can try.

Answer 6

I have also heard that induced labor is far worse. By Wednesday you'll only be 5 days past your due date. So, if you do not wish to be induced (assuming you have no health issues like high blood pressure), why don't you just tell them you don't want it? You're already dilating so your body has started doing what it knows how to do naturally. In fact, I bet you'll be laboring within a week. Good luck with whatever you decide, and congrats!

*sending easy labor vibes*

Answer 7

Just keep walking & having sex. You say it hasn't worked, but if anything will, that would be it. When you have sex, make sure you have an orgasm, because the orgasm releases oxytocin, which is the same chemical that the drug pitocin tries to simulate (the labor-inducing drug).

If you're concerned about the pain of having labor induced, you should consider getting an epidural. My wife and I were gung ho with the idea of not getting the epidural. She was about 12 hours into labor before she changed her mind. When all was said & done... her favorite doctor was the anaesthesiologist.

Of course... if your water breaks, sex is out of the question.

Answer 8

Fore warning. I have heard that caster oil causes you to have diarrhea and vomiting and stomach cramps...in addition to labor! Personally I wouldn't try it.

I don't know if there is any true evidence that this works but I have heard a few people mention black cohosh tea. My best friend had her baby within 24 hours of drinking the stuff. Her midwife suggested it.

Also, if you are not comfortable being induced and you don't have a medical condition that is making it unsafe to continue pregnancy...don't let them do it! It is your body and your decision to make...not theirs!

Answer 9

I FEEL YOUR PAIN! I been tryin everything as well and no luck either! My due date is Mon but due to a cyst near my ovary that was causin probs 2 wks ago they tried inducing me w/cervidil & pitocin and it did not work! I have had contactions 2-4 mins apart since then but they say the contractions not strong enuff cause i am only dilated 0.5 cm, 65% effaced &-2 station. so good luck 2 u

Answer 10

Hun just keep doin what your doin. There really are no other options after that other than to be induced. For the most part if you are gonna have pain during labor then you really aren't going to notice if it is worse because you were induced. Unless you are a lucky one laboring usually sux. Good luck!