subject: How to Induce Labor at Home - Quick Tips [print this page] Every second women all over the globe get the greatest gift someone can get - giving birth to a child. They carry a new life inside their body for long nine months and have to deal with different changes, emotionally and physically.
While the long wait for the baby's arrival usually fuel up everyone else's excitement, too much waiting can be a bad thing, especially when mothers-to-be go past their due dates. Scenarios like these usually call for labor induction. In general doctor's will only allow natural labor induction if valid reasons are given. Most acceptable reasons are if the baby is already overdue, or if the mother or child have any underlying medical conditions that could put both of them in danger.
Choosing to induce labor naturally is the smarter and safer choice compared to medically induced labors. All medical inductions are invasive, and can pose serious threats such as fetal distress (baby) or uterine rupture (mother).
Here are the most popular and safe methods to induce labor naturally:
1) Intercourse
As weird as it may sound, intercourse does help natural induction. Semen contains natural Prostaglandins. This helps ripen the cervix and eventually dilate it. While most women repel the idea of intercourse during the 9th month of pregnancy, nipple stimulation can do the job as well. This helps in releasing "Oxytocin", a hormone responsible for starting labor, while female orgasm, on the other hand, has been known to help dilate the cervix up to 2 cm.
2)Maternity Acupressure
Maternity acupressure helps most women feel rejuvenated and relaxed. Labor induction through this method requires stimulation on any of two pressure points which help create contractions.
The pressure points are a) Webbing of the thumb and index finger, b) Four finger-widths above the inside of ankle bone.
Please note that you should only use this method if you are very close or past your due date. Caution should also be employed in applying acupressure or any labor induction method for that matter.
3)Take A Walk
The best and safest thing to do is walking. This activity exposes the cervix to gravity which aids in its ripening, thus speeding and inducing labor naturally. Definitely, this method is the most natural and effortless method there is.
Of course there are many other natural ways to start labor naturally. In choosing the right method, listening to your body is important in making any kind of decisions. Keep in mind that you should always talk to your doctor before using any of the methods described above and also make sure you do not induce labor prior to the 40th week of gestation
Lastly, in waiting for the baby to arrive, patience will always be the key. You should also be aware that in any health situation responsible decisions should be made so that everyone in the long run will be happy and healthy.
