Nipple tweaking to bring on labour?

[Pennies]

Does this actually work? If so how long do you have to do it for?!

Have tried every other remedy to try and get things going but nothing's happening and am desperate to give birth as am so uncomfotable now!

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If you've found this page in your search of the benefits of nipple stimulation to induce labour, you might find our guide to the best nipple toys useful. Hope this helps! MNHQ

Don't know but apparently you just do it to one - seriously was on a thread started by Oliveoil last week!!

I read that you should tweek for 15 minutes each, each day! It releases some endorphin or hormone or somthing like that!

I am trying it, along with the raspberry tea and the walking.

My sister swears the only way to bring on labour is sex, but I'm having none of that right now! She also swears by a curry - but I can't face the thought of that either.

Saddy x 38 wks today.

You need Blu, who is curiously enthusiastic about this.

Not so much a tweak as a scissor movement, squeezing betwqeen two fingers, and not so much the nipple as the areola - wish I could draw a diagram. You have to do it quite firmly. I did it for a minute or two on the morning of my due date and it brought on contractions. Repeated it every couple of hours till labour was established and again if the contractions slacked off. Worked a treat.

don't believe any of it! I tried nipple tweaking and sex and everything else every day for a month. it's all just luck.

well, i experimented with my breastpump and it brought on braxton hicks bigtime. didnt bring on labour as such but i definitely believe it links to your uterus contracting. just like when bf your uterus contracts - this i know for sure as suffered period pains when bf for first few days after birth and still do sometimes.

I tried this with DD, and found that I could get really strong contractions - but they stopped as soon as I stopped 'tweaking'.

Seriously, I tried everything - curry, gin, pineapple, sex, tweaking, long walks and what shifted her was a nice sweep followed by the house over the road burning down!

Good luck.

I read 20 mins on each side for 3 hours a day - er, how are we meant to find the time?

THis works, according to a MW friend of mine, very useful in 're-starting' stalled labour

It worked for me. I was 2 weeks over and really irritated, so I ran myself a nice warm bath and stated tweaking them, after about 40 mins contractions started. BEWARE - it did make my nipples very sore (which is not such a good thing just before new baby!). I didn't use any lubricant, so perhaps with some Kamilosan or almond/olive oil it would'nt have been so bad. I can't remember if I used a particular method for the tweaking, but if I was going to do it again - I would try and pulfrom the areolar to the nipple (like your drawing the milk from the breast to the nipple), try and relax and feel for the 'let down' feeling. Once your breast feeding, the hormones released make your uterus contract back into shape - so it is pretty logical really and not so much of an old wives tale!

Worked for me, I only did it for about 10 minutes!

Well, I'm pregnant (27 weeks) and BFing and I don't really notice an increase in braxton hicks when my son feeds but I'm hoping that he will keep on BFing as I might require his services to stop me from going overdue! It's not very pleasent as nipples at this stage can be very sensitive and sore so I wouldn't do it unless you were really desperate. I think it releases oxytocin which is the hormine that helps to contract your womb.

I assume Pennies has had the baby by now.