Castor oil to Start Labor

[crzychickenlady]

I had the same thing...except i was 2 weeks early and scheduled for induction.
I was so stressed and worried over it, my labor actually started the night before and i was contracting when we got to the hospital!

Don't be to worried about the induction, it's scary and there are alot of horror stories about it. But, mine wasn't that bad, I have had 2 inductions now...both BOYS!

Here's how mine went...

Around 2 am, i started cramping/contracting, started getting ready around 4 am to go in to be there at 6am.....neither of you will sleep this night, so be prepared for that!
I was already having contractions, so they let me go for awhile to see if it would progress. It didn't so they started the Pitocin and broke my water at 8 am. They allowed me to have my epidural anytime after they broke my water, I chose to wait until around noon.
Dozed off and on for several hours and delivered by 6 pm.

Don't be too worried, things will go just fine and it's only one day away now!!
If I were you, I wouldn't mess with the castor oil at this point and just make sure you have everything together and ready for the hospital and homecoming.

HAPPY HATCHING!!!

 

[asher]

I would (and have) take castor oil before being faced with a medical indution. It will only work if baby/body is ready. It may "clean her out", but honestly, that's not a b ad thing before having a baby, anyway.

After just having a medical induction (technically, water broke, but labor never started so I had to have pitocin), I would choose castor oil over that in a red. hot. minute. BUT I'm an unmedicated birther. If I were going to go for an epidural or something where I couldn't feel the contractions (does anything like that exist?!), I might not give a flip either way.

Pitocin is horrid stuff on a body, though. Way worse than castor oil ever worse.

And

to your wife. I went 13 days over with one of mine and 14 with the other. It's not pleasant. I used to say I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy but I now reserve that saying for pitocin.

If she does have to get medically induced, have her request to be started with cervadil and then pit if she has to have it the next morning. If the cervadil dilates her enough (4-5cm or so), I'd just have my water broken, personally. It all depends on effacement and engagement of babe, too. It's hard for much to happen if the babe is not engagement.

Good luck!!!

 

[asher]

Quote:

You sound like me after 3 of my 5 pregnancies! I tried everything. EVERYTHING! When they were ready, they came. That's all that worked! *sigh*

Meanwhile, this one was barely late at all and the labor was horrid. I'd much rather go more overdue!

And I did evening primrose oil and several homeopathics for four weeks b/c of medical issues which they thought would make us have to indue early. So tried to get everything going and ready. Didn't do a darn thing. Walked in with my water broke and 1cm dilated, that was it.

So yeah...nothing natural will work unless everything is ready to go!

 

[amamaofmany]

Quote:
Because my abdominal muscles are 'stretched out' from so many pregnancies, my last 4 babies flop forward in my body and press on my spine instead of the cervix. (I kind of resemble a bullet nose Studebaker from the front in the last 2 months!) I needed pitocin for the last 4 because I had lots of labor, but it was doing nothing.

My doctors did a very good thing (and I discuss this with them before hand when its a new doctor) they give me the MINIMAL dosage of pitocin, and raise it gradually until contractions start 'doing something'. From there, they only raise the dose a fraction if the contractions stop.

I didn't have the hard pain that most women report with pitocin. It was like my other 'natural' labors, except much more steady and not the long stop/start bouts of contractions as my body tends to do now. It worked very well.

 

[asher]

That's what mine did as well. They said being my 5th, it would only need a little bit. They were wrong and I ended up having to have quite a bit to finally get my body to actually DO anything.

The contractions were just so much more intense and harder for me to get through than my regular labor contractions. My midwife and nurse were awesome and had me mobile, changing positions, etc. which was great and they turned the pit off at 7cm and still allowed me to have my water birth which I will always love them for.

It was the most medical/interventioned birth I have ever had (totally outside the realm of what I wanted, but you deal the hand the you've got), but they were great about trying to still allow me to do what I originally wanted.

That reminds me, I need to try to find a nice gift for my midwife before my check up.

 

[insiderart]

Here's a few facts to clear up any confusion. Semen is nature's "Cervidil". Semen contains prostaglandin which helps to "ripen" (or soften) the cervix, which is exactly what cervidil is (prostaglandin) and does.

It takes a while for for the prostaglandins to work too (i.e. it's not instantaneous) whether it's semen or cervidil.

The science behind nipple stimulation, is that nipple stimulation (i.e. newborn suckling) induces the body to produce oxytocin so that the uterus contracts to expel the afterbirth. Therefore, nipple stimulation can help the body to produce natural oxytocin which causes uterine contraction.

Also, please do not utilize the breast pump inserts which actually induce your "milk" to come down. You might be able to just use the regular pump (like you would use if you're already lactating), just not with the induction inserts.

You only get one shot at colostrum (nutrient and antibody rich first "milk"). So save it if you are bound and determined to do this. If you start your lactation process too early and your labor runs long it might make for a miserable time (it hurts when your milk does come in and there is no one around to suckle it), and I would hate to see your colostrum wasted.

HTH.

 

[asher]

Quote:
All great information! Just be aware that it may not work, no matter what you try!

(Trust me!

I've tried just about everything at one time or another.)

 

[pokey]

DON'T tell dh that semen is nature's cervidil!!!! omg i will never hear the end to all of that!! whatever happens i hope you have a good doc and team there to help. don't forget to post picks and many prayers for you! just want him to think we need a little sex, don't want him thinking it's a cure all! lol!

 

[scbatz33]

With my first I was in labor forever and the doc broke my water and decided I needed to be induced. I had the epidural so the induction was super easy and not painful at all.

With my son, I was looking to be over due so the doc "separated the membranes". Don't know what all was involved, I know it hurt like crazy for like five minutes. The boy was born with in 24 hours.

I am now a bit older and hopefully a bit wiser and the simple truth is the baby will come when it's ready. If the doctor insists on inducing then you have to decide what is right for you guys. It's her body, not his. Unless there is a major medical reason why, I would just ride it out.

I agree with a couple of the other posts though, being stressed can prevent the labor from coming on. Relax, have a nice night, take a long walk and a hot bath. The baby will get there when it's ready.

Good luck.

 

[wjallen05]

I tried this when I was overdue with my first daughter, and it made me SO sick and feel just awful! I would not recommend it.

With our second, I was only 37 weeks along but I had been on bedrest for 4 weeks and was tired of sitting around so on my first day off bedrest, I ate some Eggplant Parmasan and went into labor an hour later and she was born 4 hours later.... could have been a coicidence though.

Whatever happens, good luck!!