39 Weeks Pregnant - getting labour started naturally?
Weekly pregnancy updates from a childbirth educator, doula and mum to 2 little girls. Come and join me on my journey as I share how I’m feeling, how baby is developing, what I’m doing to prepare, and some favourite resources!
By this stage of pregnancy we’re feeling pretty heavy, uncomfortable and just generally looking forward to being able to get up out of a chair or roll over in bed without it being a big deal! So since baby is technically classed as being “term” now, what about natural options for moving things along?
The first thing to do is to ask ourselves why we want to move things along? If mum and baby are both well, there is no reason to rush things. Each baby has their own natural gestation, and unless there is any medical need to intervene for mother’s or baby’s health and wellbeing, “hurrying things along” is interrupting the natural physiological process, which is where mum’s body and baby’s body work together to decide when the right moment is.
If you want to stay fully on the physiological path, and there is no medical reason not to, that means waiting for things to start on their own. Of course, there are good medical reasons at times for inducing labour, and each situation needs to be assessed individually.
But while I am a fan of waiting for spontaneous labour, I don’t think it needs to be a passive waiting. As mums, we are part of the equation as to when labour will start. We can prepare our bodies and minds for birth, and then when baby is ready things can just flow.
I think at this stage of pregnancy there are 5 key things to focus on daily so we can be prepared for whenever labour starts.
rest & relaxation (nervous system calm and regulated)
movement (strength, flexibility, endurance for birth and postpartum recovery)
hydration (absolutely essential - always!)
nutrition (energy stores for birth and postpartum)
mental/spiritual preparation (mindset ready for labour, birth and postpartum)
All the lists you see of “natural ways to start labour” aren’t things that will actually start labour. They may be things that help your body prepare, but labour won’t start till your baby is ready too. So by all means eat the dates, drink the red raspberry leaf tea, do the acupressure, have sex regularly, do the Miles circuit, and so on... but remember these are things that are helping your body be ready, not things that will start labour. The key is patience, recognising that your baby needs time to prepare as well, and will come in their own time!
What symptoms am I feeling?
I had a little bit of vaginal cramping one day but nothing much at all. I am continuing to get Braxton Hicks contractions regularly, though as with my previous pregnancies I don’t tend to notice them unless I actually place my hands on my belly and feel it tight all over.
How has baby been developing this week?
At around 47-49 cm and 3.1-3.6kg, baby is developing more fat stores, getting ready for life outside the womb.
What am I doing to prepare?
With my “nesting” birth prep is all done, I’m focusing on having more downtime and keeping up with my daily physical and mental preparation.
And that’s it for this week! 🌿💛
[Image credit: Photo by charlesdeluvio on Unsplash]