Ways to get things started

[Naomip88]

im 38 weeks pregnant and I'm wondering if anyone's got any suggestions of things to try to get labour going? Feeling oddly calm and excited about going into labour but I do have worries about intervention such as inductions and having my waters broken and I'm hoping for a water birth ( I know things don't always go to plan - I just don't want to be poked and prodded constantly with every sort of intervention!) I'm no lentil weaver but I wouldn't mind giving alternative therapies a whirl if people have had positive experiences

Nothing works. Seriously. In all studies, they have never, ever found anything that works. For every person who anecdotally says "I had sex and four hours later my waters broke" (forgetting that in those 4 hours they also ate a biscuit, had a snooze, watched a romcom and ironed the cat yet it's always the sex/curry/pineapple myths which definitely started labour), you'll get hundreds of women for whom it doesn't work. That's coincidence for you.

You don't actually want to induce labour anyway. The baby will come when ready. This might not be for a few weeks yet. The absolute best thing to do, if you can, is relax and try and enjoy yourself as much as possible safe in the knowledge that you can't start labour yourself.

At the antenatal classes our midwife recommended sex (there's something in the semen which is the same as what they use to get you going) and nipple tweaking!!

She also recommended leaving it as late as possible to go into hospital as otherwise your body produces adrenaline and stops the contractions which delays everything, might get you sent home and can lead to interventions. She said to relax, go for a walk and even to the cinema!

Yes my midwife suggested nipple tweaking! Walking seems like a good one as gravity must help- annoyingly every time I start walking for a while I have strong braxton hicks but that might because I live in very hilly Bristol. Im not expecting miracles but I'm not adverse to trying these things as eating pineapple and curry and having sex and going for walks are all pretty pleasant ways to spend your maternity leave just curious to see if anyone has positive experiences or suggestions - no harm in giving things a go !

I did everything possible. Still went overdue. NOTHING WORKS, it's totally true baby comes when they are ready.

I mowed the lawn the day before I went into labour, doesn't sound much but it was a petrol mower that was a bugger to start and the lawn was 200ft (long not tall )

I hadn't done much but sit on my arse for the previous 4 weeks so maybe it helped??

There is a reflexology point just above the inner ankle bone they say if massaged will help start uterus to contract
Liquorice
Fresh pineapple
Nipper tweaking
Sex
Chillies
Castor oil

All supposed to help and more so ifar used in combination though I would avoid body contact after chillies and sex after a tonne of liquorice could turn rather messy lol

Ultimately the body will only respond when ripe ... patience is not one of my strong points but after all the above AND a sweep at 40 weeks my 3rd child still arrived 11 days late ... and waited until Friday 13th for good measure!!!!

I just don't like all of this 'supposed to work' and 'worked for a friend' because it inevitably puts pressure on a heavily pregnant woman. We know none of it works but old wives' tales persist in the same way as they do in every arena of life. Except you can end up with heavily pregnant women feeling thoroughly demoralised. It's fine if you're happy and you accept that it's all hokum and you're not feeling any real pressure but there's at least a thread a week on here with a woman feeling let down, desperate, fed up with the constant enquiries and asking what she can do. And often she's uncomfortable and doesn't want chillies and sex and lots of marching around, she wants to hide under a duvet. But people tell her that this WILL work and did you know there's x enzyme in this substance and it definitely helps. Well it's like telling Harry Heroin Addict to lick a poppy. Yes the link is there. No it won't help.

If you want to go on walks and eat curry and pineapple and twiddle your nipples, then more power to you. It won't induce labour though and you mustn't ever start to feel it's something we have control over because I've seen the guilt and pressure it heaps on women.

And please stay away from castor oil. It'll just give you a nasty upset stomach.

no guilt or pressure here- I think its more to keep me occupied- I've been on maternity leave for a month and boredom is starting to set in now Christmas is out of the way and I've done all my baby preparations!

That's brilliant that you feel relaxed and not pressured. Good luck for the birth when it happens. And enjoy the last few days/weeks of doing whatever you want. I went on maternity leave on the Monday with my first and my waters broke on the Wednesday so had no time to do anything at all. I spent my two days of maternity leave pre-baby sorting out my hospital bag. If I had my time over I'd read books, potter in the garden, eat gingerbread men, go out for lunch with friends, eat lovely food with dh, watch films, take photographs, batch cook, write and sleep. Basically, the things I plan to do on retirement.

In Your Body, Your Baby, Your Birth I was most impressed to find that drinking champagne is on the list of old wives' tales to get things going...