Well, Daniel's birth came before I had time to write a post dedicated on things I take and do to prepare for labor. So I will dedicate this post to that and will write another post later just about how my home birth went. This post is mostly written for future Mommas. So if your a guy you might not want to read this due to some certain content...
ANYWAYS....This is my 3rd birth and overall I feel like I have had quick and easy labors. I have been very blessed. There is a few things I do that I have read help the body prepare for labor which I believe have really helped me so I'm going to share with you!
First of all about 3 weeks before my due date I start taking Evening Primrose Oil. Some of you might have heard of this herb but supposedly, Evening Primrose Oil is used for cervical dilation. It is believed to act as a prostaglandin that softens and ripens the cervix. The softening of the cervix is suppose to help make your labor quicker and easier. I take it orally and also internally. You can read more about it in the following link: http://herbs.lovetoknow.com/Evening_Primrose_Oil_for_Cervical_Dilation
I also start to drink Raspberry leaf tea about a month before labor. Raspberry leaf tea was found to cause a relaxant affect on the uterus. It is believed that this relaxant effect causes the uterine contractions to become better coordinated and more efficient, thus shortening the length of labor. It is also commonly commonly assumed that women who take Raspberry leaf throughout labor will have an improved second and third stage of labor and will bleed less after birth. So yeah, I usually drink this tea about a month before delivery during the day and before bed time. I love tea anyway, so I just add a little bit of sugar or honey and enjoy. Here is a link if anyone wants to read more about it: http://www.pregnancy.com.au/resources/topics-of-interest/pregnancy/raspberry-leaf.shtml.
ANYWAYS....This is my 3rd birth and overall I feel like I have had quick and easy labors. I have been very blessed. There is a few things I do that I have read help the body prepare for labor which I believe have really helped me so I'm going to share with you!
First of all about 3 weeks before my due date I start taking Evening Primrose Oil. Some of you might have heard of this herb but supposedly, Evening Primrose Oil is used for cervical dilation. It is believed to act as a prostaglandin that softens and ripens the cervix. The softening of the cervix is suppose to help make your labor quicker and easier. I take it orally and also internally. You can read more about it in the following link: http://herbs.lovetoknow.com/Evening_Primrose_Oil_for_Cervical_Dilation
I also start to drink Raspberry leaf tea about a month before labor. Raspberry leaf tea was found to cause a relaxant affect on the uterus. It is believed that this relaxant effect causes the uterine contractions to become better coordinated and more efficient, thus shortening the length of labor. It is also commonly commonly assumed that women who take Raspberry leaf throughout labor will have an improved second and third stage of labor and will bleed less after birth. So yeah, I usually drink this tea about a month before delivery during the day and before bed time. I love tea anyway, so I just add a little bit of sugar or honey and enjoy. Here is a link if anyone wants to read more about it: http://www.pregnancy.com.au/resources/topics-of-interest/pregnancy/raspberry-leaf.shtml.
I hope no one who is reading this is too queasy because I'm going to talk about Perineal Massage next :) My first birth was pretty quick and went very well but I did rip pretty bad and had to get stitches... At this point I didn't know anything about Perineal Massage so I blame that. My midwife told me about this and I have done it in preparation for Noah and Daniels birth and I have not ripped at all which makes recovery a lot easier!! I don't really want to go into much detail about this but I will add two links about this:
That's pretty much it really. I don't guarantee that doing these things will absolutely help. Everyone's body is different but I do believe it has helped me which is why I am sharing with you!
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