Bring it on.... nipple stimulation!

[cousinsandra]

I know nipple stimulation is recommended to get labour started/moving. Could a manual breast pump be used for this, or is that a little over stimulating? Anyone have any experience/knowledge of this? Also would pumping pre-delivery help at all getting the milk to come in sooner? Thanks in advance.

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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

i don't think pump should be used, in my limited experience i don.t think it works in quite the same way, bu t i was taught to kind of massage my whole breast as well as stim my nip, and a pump won't do this. also pump kind of stretches your nip which may make it sore. soory bout typing got baby in other arm

I think you have to fiddle with your nips for a looooong time to get labour started. You need one of the doulas on here to advise. Don't think pumping pre-delivery would help milk come in sooner (any reason you are worried it won't come in at the right time?) Babies only need colustrum to start with.

Cousinsandra - this from Babycentre.co.uk might help. 15 minutes every hour for several hours - wouldn't bother personally! There is more info about natural ways to bring on labour on there if you want to have a look.

Nipple stimulation

Nipple stimulation is the gentle rubbing or rolling of the nipple to encourage the start of contractions. The theory is that oxytocin, a hormone that causes contractions, is released in the body when the breasts are stimulated.

Is it safe?
Nipple stimulation has been reported to produce very strong contractions and for this reason you should use it with care. However, a study of 719 women found that there were no problems of this sort following nipple stimulation.

Does it work?
The study mentioned above was thought to be too small to draw concrete conclusions from, but did show a significant benefit from nipple stimulation: 37.3 per cent of women who had tried it went into labour within 72 hours as compared to just 6.4 per cent of those who had not.

How do I try it?
The idea is to simulate the suckling of a baby so you need to massage the whole areola (the dark area around the nipple), not just tweak the nipple. Place your palm over the areola and move in a circular motion, applying a firm but gentle pressure. This may need to be continued for some time. The usual recommendation is 15 minutes of continual stimulation on each nipple each hour for several hours.

wow, thanks petitfilou, that's really helpful - I would have been doing it totally wrong! I am just a bit concerned as my last baby had to be induced and then the milk didn't come in til about day 5/6 and he cried a lot til then. I thought maybe it was because of the inducing and my body not quite being ready! Thanks again for your help.

If the idea is to simulate a baby feeding, then surely all those of us who are still feeding one child when we have the next would go into labour very early?

Cantsleepwontsleep not unless you were still feeding for fifteen minutes on each nipple each hour for several hours I doubt there is anyone out there doing that- although you never know on MN

It certainly feels like it some days with my boob obsessed dd!

The hormones responsible for your milk coming in are triggered when the placenta is delivered so being induced shouldn't have had anything to do with when your milk came in.