As a pregnant woman, you become more than ready to deliver your baby into the world after 40 long weeks. From this time your due date is in sight, in most cases you’ll need to pack your hospital bag and spend the rest of your time till your delivery is set in the hospital.
At this period of the pregnancy, you already start to feel your baby’s kicks and wiggles, but may not yet have had a single contraction. Contraction is when there’s a shortening of the uterine muscles occurring at intervals before and during childbirth. It may or may not be extremely painful and a sign that you are about to deliver.
So when you reach 40 weeks of pregnancy and you still haven’t had any contractions, you start to worry. However, it is important for you to know that late labor contractions does not mean that anything is wrong with you. Still, you might be wondering what you can do to speed things up and whether there’s any way to naturally jump-start your labor contractions.
While it’s usually best to be patient enough to allow your baby to decide when it’s time to make their big debut, there are plenty of things you can try to move things along.
Here are a few safe ways to try to induce labor contractions.
Natural Ways to Induce Labor
With little to no scientific evidence backing up their effectiveness, these methods fall into the realm of folklore. It is advisable that you discuss with a healthcare professional or birthworker (like a midwife) to get the green light.
Get Moving
Movement may help start labor. You don’t have to take a boxing class, just a walk around your neighborhood or going up and down a few flights of stairs could do the trick.
The idea is that the gravity force may help your baby fall further into the birth canal. This increased pressure may help your cervix dilate thereby leading to contraction.
This might not work for everyone, nevertheless, exercise is useful for relieving stress and strengthening your muscles. Just don’t overdo it, you’ll need lots of energy when labor really does begin.