clary sage - when / how much?

[annady]

hello,
i'm approaching 39 weeks and considering using clary sage in baths / massage oil this week - just wondered if anyone has any advice as to how much i should use and indeed whether there is any risk associated with said oil?
i believe it can also be inhaled during labour, does anyone have positive / negative experience of this?
many thanks,
a x

Clary sage is a wonderful oil, it is a great relaxant, anaegelsic and decongestant and to a lesser extent a uterine stimulant. It won't induce your labour though unless your body and baby are ready, so unless you really love the oil I wouldn't worry about it too much. I'm sure lots of people have anecdotal evidence, but afaik the only RCT carried out that has shown benefit has shown benefit only in labour (reducing need for artificial pain relief). It's great for end of term pregnancy aches and pains though.

If you want to use it in the bath use a few drops (max 6) of oil dispersed in a saucer of milk and pour it in a just run bath (it's much nicer if you blend it with another oil like lavender). If you want to massage it you need some carrier oil like sunflower, almond or grapeseed and you want a max of 1 drop in a tablespoon of oil.

In labour it's lovely to sniff off of a cotton bud during a contraction as it will aid you to breathe more deeply.

Be warned though it might give you crazy vivid dreams!

i had some and popped it in the bath when i went 7 days overdue

i sniffed the bottle a lot during early labour (and the 7 days preceding it for that matter) - it may have worked, but then, so may have the raspberry leaf tea, the pethidine and the traditional way to get things moving...

it is so hard to tell with htese things but go for it. it can't hurt and it might help.

good luck

I put some on a handkerchief to inhale during the first stage of labour. I kept putting it down between contractions & forgetting to use it though! When I did I felt it helped. I also mixed up some calming/encouraging oil mixes to massage in during labour & something lovely to burn. I'll vouch that it kept me happily occupied, so worth it for the distraction value alone! I was pretty relaxed & not at all panicky even though it was my first so maybe it really does work.

thanks very much for your replies - as long as there's no reason NOT to use it (am due in just over a week) then i guess it's worth a try!
a x

I used it during labour. I put some on a wet flannel and breathed during contractions. Make sure you don't put too much on the flannel though (one drop should do) as it smells quite strong and your nose buds can get quite sensitive during labour.

Good luck

I have been wondering whether to buy an aromatherapy oil to distract me as I have realised that, no matter how much I try, I will not be able to do this mental imagery that natal hypnotherapy suggests when in labour as I am simply not a visual person. So smells and touch are the way forwards for me. I will be off to my local organic shop to source a bottle of clary sage this afternoon! Any tips on what it is good to mix, eg something like lavender, ylang ylang, jasmine or rose, with which may also help during labour?

hi moshi moshi,

yeah, i'm also interested in finding safe and potentially worthwhile / distracting natural labour aids.

(haven't really looked into hypnobirthing though, and it's a bit late now for me tbh).

in addition to the clary sage, other things i've read up on which i might try are bach rescue remedy (you can drink it diluted in water during labour apparently) and a tens machine: i used tens during a v long early labour for DC1 and it definitely helped alleviate some of the pain, and gave me a bit of a control / distraction mechanism too...

if any one has any other thoughts / recommendations though, please let me know.

thanks again for all your comments,

a x

Yes, I used Rescue Remedy in late pregnancy too & found it calming. I just used a couple of drops directly into the mouth.

I found TENS helped me through the whole of the first stage too.

I used blends made up from Neroli, Bergamot, Jasmine & Lavender (plus carrier oil). I found the info for this online.

I found focusing on breathing through the contractions helpful using simple yoga technique. I couldn't relate to all the flower opening type imagery suggested at all! I found when I was exhaling that I visualised my breath drifting into the distance between some hills in a green landscape. Don't know where this came from as it wasn't a pre-planned idea before labour! Worked though.