Preparation for Labour

[Sara1988]

I have four weeks to go until due date so trying to prepare for labour. Trying to do some prep to make it as smooth as possible but trying to focus on techniques I can find evidence for.

The things I'm doing based on evidence:

• dates
• perineal massage
• yoga/stretching
• swimming
• hypnobirthing

Have brought raspberry lead supplements but when I looked into it there's no scientific evidence it works. Anyone had success with it?

Is there anything else I could do that I'm missing?

I honestly think most of the time it’s just up to your body! The best thing you can do is just stay as calm and relaxed as possible, and accept whatever comes you way.

Do whatever makes you feel better, calm etc.

For what it’s worth I did just about everything you can think of; dates, raspberry leaf tea, perineal massage, yoga, swimming, kept fit and active throughout pregnancy, I did everything “right”, and still ended up with a week of slow labour followed by an induction, episiotomy and forceps delivery.

On the other hand my best friend did none of the above, had severe PGP so couldn’t manage swimming/walking/yoga, didn’t like dates so didn’t eat them etc, and had a 2 hour perfectly straightforward labour and birth.

Oh 100% there's an element of luck/genetics but it doesn't cost me anything to be prepared and has served me well as a strategy so far.

With my first I drank raspberry leaf tea and ate dates. I didn't do any walking because of PGP. In labour I used a peanut ball that I had between my legs as I was laying on my side on the bed with continuous monitoring due to meconium in the waters. She was back to back. I had an epidural eventually and labour with her lasted just over 5 hours (1 hour of pushing then an episiotomy).

My second was an induction and I got the epidural before starting the induction and then just slept until he was ready to be born (I was feeling very unwell and had had no sleep the night before). He was just over 6 hours from start to finish and I pushed him out very quickly.

I think my labours are too different to compare. DD was faster despite being my first but was that down to the tea and dates or because she was a spontaneous labour and DS was induced? There is evidence for using a peanut ball to reduce C-section rate and speed up labour though (possibly because it keeps the pelvis open for women who are lying in bed for whatever reason).

I'm doing the all same, plus been having raspberry leaf tea since week 32. There's no evidence for it but it is cheap, no harm, and hydrating! It's hard to prove anything helped someone, as labour is so unpredictable and individual - as PP said! I figure the exercise is good anyway, it's helped my back pain, and helped me sleep. I'm fully prepared that none of it will make any difference but it's worth a try! I think best to be informed about all possibilities and options, be prepared for anything, and focus on the end goal of the baby.

The main thing you need is oxytocin - so do whatever you find relaxing and tells your body you're in a safe, happy place to give birth :)

@Kinsters I'd be so happy with 6 hours. I've told myself 24 and will be grateful for any less. Will look into getting a peanut ball - you're the second person to recommend. I think you're right it's hard to judge anecdotally but have read a few papers which suggest dates really do help! Nothing on raspberry leaf though.

@Peonies12 can't find any evidence for raspberry leaf but plenty for swimming and stretching. I mean just feeling less heavy while in the water has been nice and stretches seem to help my back pain too!

@2mumlife 100% on the oxytocin! Have prepped my partner on this and having a home birth with soft lighting and calming tracks.

@Sara1988 You're a week ahead of me, but I'm also planning a home birth this time around :) My raspberry leaf tea arrived today. Other thing I did with first pregnancy was use clary sage balm. Can't say any of it particularly helped (I went a bit over my due date, and ended up with a forceps delivery due to a long time pushing). But I also think the transfer and faffing at the hospital really didn't help, which is why I'm going for home birth this time :)

Hi there it's a labour ward midwife. I would say get or hire a TENS machine. There are different kinds of evidence - professional experience is considered evidence too. In my professional experience, I have seen many women doing very well in a labour with a TENS machine and entonox (gas&air) all the way to delivery. There is strong evidence from randomised controlled trials that peanut ball increases vaginal delivery by 11% for women with epidural. I would strongly advise you not to discard the possibility you might at some stage need an epidural . Unfortunately not every labour ward has a peanut ball. I would definitely get one from Amazon. Just make sure it's not too big for you- they come in different sizes. Get the size you will be comfortable with for hours. I hope it helps. Good luck!

@2mumlife I brought some clary sage but haven't actually figured out what I do with it yet! I agree- I can't think of anything worse for my oxytocin that being in a hospital. A friend had a quick first birth. Started at home but had to be transferred and she's certain that it was staying at home for so long is what did it.

@Kosenrufugirl I'm renting a tens machine with my birthing pool. Midwife brings gas and air. I will invest in a peanut ball then! I'm not against an epidural but as I'm hoping to birth at home it won't be possible.

Yes, can't complain at 6 hours. I think it was because I pretty much skipped the early labour stage and had no contractions until my waters broke and I was already 6cm.

@Sara1988 I went in at 7-8cm dilated, didn’t give birth for another ~10 hours so things definitely slowed. With the clary sage I rubbed it into bump/wrists/pressure points

@2mumlife was that during labour or in the lead up?

Just had my second. My advice would be to stay as active as possible in the last few weeks. I also did dates and raspberry tea leaf and has 2 decent births so not sure if they helped but would take them both again if I had a third

@Sara1988 Just during lead up. In labour used TENS machine until I (finally after a lot of faffing) got onto labour ward at hospital where I got into the birth pool. Have rented a TENS machine and birth pool for home this time around. Loved the TENS machine

I'd enjoy adult time and batch cook meals for the freezer.

Hi there, clarysage is meant to help stimulate labour and lots of midwives are trained to use it. However, it does have certain contraindications, please follow your midwife's advice. Lots of midwives on our midwifery led unit use peanut balls, especially if the woman has a lot of back ache but too tired to mobilise or she has had morphine. The way to use the peanut ball in labour (as opposed to yoga etc) is the woman is lying on her side with the peanut ball between her legs. It's perfectly possible to top up the epidural in the lateral position, the woman simply needs to roll from side to side between top ups (Epidural works with gravity). There is excellent evidence for the use of the peanut ball for women with epidural, the link is to follow. There is no evidence as of yet for women without epidural - I suspect it's because it hasn't been looked into it yet. Last word - peanut balls come in various sizes. The link below is the size we use on our labour ward
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Zsh-thickening-explosion-proof-equipment-environmentally/dp/B085WVXS7Y/ref=sr_1_38?crid=1POA4RFJZ0JD6&keywords=peanut%2Bball%2B35%2Bcm&qid=1694902095&sprefix=peanut%2Bball%2B35%2Bcm%2Caps%2C156&sr=8-38&th=1

www.amazon.co.uk/Zsh-thickening-explosion-proof-equipment-environmentally/dp/B085WVXS7Y/ref=sr_1_38?crid=1POA4RFJZ0JD6&keywords=peanut%2Bball%2B35%2Bcm&qid=1694902095&sprefix=peanut%2Bball%2B35%2Bcm%2Caps%2C156&sr=8-38&th=1