I Tried to Induce Labour "Naturally" - Here’s What Happened

0:00 apparently you can induce your labor naturally. The NHS disagrees. I tried quite a few ways in order to try and have my baby before 40 weeks. I did the walking, ball bouncing, nipple stimulation, sex, and a few others. And in this video, I wanna break down what actually worked, what was a coincidence, what eventually happened that my baby came three hours after my waters broke I'm definitely going to be telling you what is evidence-based What's my experience and how much of it is a coincidence?

0:29 I'm 38 years old. This is my third baby, and my last baby was born five years ago. I had many reasons for why I wanted this baby to be born by 40 weeks, I will caveat this video with saying that everybody has a different view of labor. As an obstetrician where I've witnessed and participated in labors, my point of view is different from a midwife's who tends to see a different type of birth, and their point of view would be different from an anesthetist, so if you've got different types of clinical staff who have a different opinion of birth, what can we expect from people whose only experience is their own birth or witnessing a friend's birth or a sister's birth?

1:08 So everyone's view of birth is different With my doctor hat on, I didn't want the baby to go beyond 41 weeks. That's like the absolute cutoff for me. And evidence and science says that the longer you're pregnant beyond 41 weeks, there's an increased risk of bad things happening. So the placenta starts to age and not work properly, there's an increased risk of the baby being small at the time of delivery or smaller than what they need to be, or doing a poo, inside, which can complicate the labor and the birth, or, heaven forbid, having a stillbirth.

1:41 So evidence tells us that all gets worse after 41 weeks. In practice, there's evidence that if you have an induction from 39 weeks, in an ideal world, you're not increasing your risk of having a bad outcome, and that's typically the advice we tend, to give. So if you are 39 weeks pregnant and you request to have the baby by having an induction, in the UK at least, very few people will talk you out of it because the evidence suggests that in and of itself is not risky for your baby So that's my doctor hat.

2:14 With my mum hat on, I've had two babies before. The first was 40 weeks and two days. The second was 39 weeks. And in my head, I had convinced myself that I was gonna deliver at about 39 weeks, completely disregarding the fact that I delivered my second baby at 39 weeks after an induction. So those are, like, my influences.

2:32 And my impatience meant that I wanted this to be sooner rather than later And that is where my recovering control freak personality comes into it. So I had this rough deadline of 39 weeks. I'd chosen my sister as my birth partner, which I talk about in one of my newsletters, which I may well recycle into a video.

2:51 If you do wanna receive my newsletters click the link down below and join the wait list. If you're new here, my name is Remi. I'm an obstetrics and gynecology doctor, now a mother of three, I'm creating this platform around pregnancy and the postpartum period so that you can navigate this season of life with safety, with clarity and with support, because again, it's more than just the body, it's also the mind and the life that's affected by being pregnant or having a baby.

3:16 So coming back to my control freak personality, I really wanted my baby out by 39 weeks, and I'd told my sister who was gonna be my birth partner the first time I was gonna have someone in the room that wasn't just my husband She cleared her timetable for 39 weeks 'cause I told her to. I said, "Oh, the baby will come at 39 weeks."

3:33 And I was like, "Yeah, of course. this is my due date, but I expect my baby to be born here." As if I've got control, as if anyone has control. And I know better. When someone comes in with their birth plan, I'm like, "Yeah, the baby's gonna do what they want." Did I listen? Did my hormones listen? No.

3:50 I went about for two weeks disturbing myself to try and get this baby out, and I'm gonna tell you what I did and what I feel was useful versus not So the first thing was at 36 weeks, I had an appointment with the midwife, and I asked them to give me a sweep from 38 weeks, and they were like, "Well, no, it needs to be approved by a doctor so we agreed 38 weeks and five days.

4:14 So that's when I had my first sweep. The idea with a sweep is that a finger goes into the cervix and stretches it and removes the membranes from around it, causing you to contract. That's how it works. And this was the first thing I tried because realistically, there were so many other things I probably should have done before that, but with my doctor hat on, I was like, "I know a sweep will work I'll have a sweep, and in two days I'll be in labor."

4:41 Wrong. I went home, and I had, little to no contractions. It was actually quite disappointing. And the midwife at the time had said, "Oh, your cervix is still really hard, and it's closed, and it's at the back." So the sweep itself was not even successful. But it was after that point that I was like, "Okay, I need to take matters into my own hands."

5:01 So I'm like, "What are the natural ways in which you can induce labor?" And I didn't Google it, per se. I was just like, "What have I heard people talk about?" I didn't do much research. But walking, walking, trying to get the head down because once the head goes down, it presses on the cervix, it softens the cervix, it improves the chances of you going into labor.

5:19 So I started to go for walks. And because I'd been working from home, I actually hadn't been that mobile beyond the school run So I started walking and then I'd ordered an inflatable ball because I'd bumped into someone who was a yoga teacher and was like, "Actually, having a ball while you sit and work, it's really great for opening up the hips, helping with the back."

5:38 So I was sitting on that watching TV, bouncing on the ball, doing my meetings bouncing on the ball, trying to get this baby's head down. And so when I got to 39 weeks, I had an appointment in hospital and I spoke to my colleague and I said, "Look, I really want this baby out by 40 weeks, and I'm gonna try and do it naturally.

5:59 But actually, if they've not been born by 40 weeks," so their due date, "I would like my induction to be booked." So we booked it for 40 weeks. And so again, if you're watching this video and you're like, "What is wrong with this woman?" Please don't judge me. Like I said, we all have different biases and information about pregnancy, about labor, about delivery, and everyone's is valid.

6:22 So at that appointment, I then asked for another sweep because, why not? If it's gonna work, typically if a sweep is going to work, it would be s- most of them are successful within 48 hours. And that's like work as in getting in, you into labor. And also acknowledging that a sweep is a form of an induction in that it's a mechanical form.

6:42 It is an intervention. It can cause you to have contractions. The whole procedure itself can be really uncomfortable. And the second sweep I had, I felt was more successful than the first 'cause I came home and my contractions, tightenings, whatever you wanna call them, had increased in intensity and in number, and I'd had a tiny bit of pink discharge.

7:04 So I was like, "Yes, this is gonna work. Within two days I'm gonna go into labor." And it's, for me, interesting what are the things that I was doing in the meantime. So went for the walks. Nothing. Bouncing on the ball. I would get a few more contractions with bouncing on the ball, but again nothing.

7:21 And again, also could just be a coincidence. And then I was remembering the birth story from one of my cousins, and she used nipple stimulation. And when she saw me, she was like, "Try nipple stimulation. I guarantee it'll work." So I was like, "Okay, fine. Let's see what this is like." Did a random Google search for what, how do you do it, how often do you do it?

7:42 Just so that I knew that I would be doing it effectively. And so the advice was about trying to do it for 30 minutes, 15 minutes each nipple, and then seeing what happens. Obviously, if the contractions are prolonged, then stopping. And if you're not gone into labor, then you could do it again. So I tried it, and I would have more harder, lasted longer contractions.

8:06 But they didn't equate to having regular contractions. And I tried the nipple stimulation on and off for about a week, and I wouldn't say I'd noticed a difference with that either. What else did I try? So now, this is the first time I feel like I've ever had sex to try and induce labor and I'm not gonna say it worked.

8:22 And actually, I feel really bad for every woman I've ever seen in clinic encouraging her to go home and have sex and liken it to a sweep because it doesn't feel like a sweep at all. It's actually quite pleasurable, as it would be. Awkward because of the bump, but there are different ways in which you can have sex in the last trimester so not like a sweep at all.

8:41 and it didn't produce the same intensity of contractions for me as a sweep had done. So again, if I was to compare, immediate contractions post the intervention, the nipple stimulation and the sweep I think gave me more consistent contractions than sex. And let's be realistic. Everyone reacts to everything differently.

9:05 In the medical profession, we say to have a successful induction of labor you need this medication for this many hours, then this medication for this many hours, then we break your waters, then we give you a drip, and then we get you into labor, and then you have a baby through the vagina. And even with medication we know that not everybody responds the same.

9:27 So it is obviously understandable that with things that are even way less defined like sex, nipple stimulation, walking, curb walking which I did not do because of my pelvic pain, that those things will affect people differently. So I did try sex. It didn't really work. But literally since I was a med student I have heard senior colleagues say, "If you are in the last bits of pregnancy and you're trying to get labor to happen naturally, sex is a great way to do it."

9:56 and for me it just was not. Also, the second caveat with that is if your waters have broken you should not be having sex 'cause that can increase the risk of an infection in the uterus and it's therefore advisable that you do not have sex if your waters have gone or if you're actively bleeding So closely linked to the nipple stimulation is colostrum harvesting.

10:17 And I have a video on this channel about colostrum harvesting, who it's for, who it's not for. And I decided to buy a kit for colostrum harvesting. So I've mentioned before that I've had some trouble breastfeeding in the past And I've had to rely on formula to bridge the gap for a feed or two whilst my milk was coming in, whilst my nipples were really sore.

10:38 So this time round, I did do some colostrum harvesting, and I started it after 37 weeks. And I think it's really important, this is a real deviation off the topic, but lived experience versus clinical experience are not the same thing. So I can sit and do a video about how to harvest colostrum, how you massage the breast, make sure that the breasts are warm, make sure you come out of the shower.

11:01 And when I went to sit down and collect colostrum and I had a tiny, the tiniest amount come out My humanity and my own experience came through, and I was like, "What the hell is this?" 'Cause it was painful, it was not comfortable, and I had less than a milliliter of colostrum harvested. And I'm like, "What's that gonna do for a newborn?"

11:21 And the idea is that you persist. So I then did it one other time, and I got double the amount the first time. And then I did it again, and I got a bit more, and I was able to freeze it. So when the baby came, I actually didn't use it, and I think this is the point of my last video is that it, you could harvest colostrum, but actually if you're able or you manage to breastfeed, even if you're breastfeeding in pain, which I still am breastfeeding in pain, and I will do a video on that, it may well be an activity that is wasted effort.

11:49 Having said that, the stimulation from the nipples and harvesting colostrum can slightly induce a hormone that might cause you to have some more contractions, and again, might contribute to you inducing labor naturally. And this is why when you are harvesting colostrum, there is a safety window that they tell you to do it from because of the risk of inducing a preterm birth, which again, will happen all very per the individual.

12:15 And it's why you need to speak to either your midwife or doctor before you start colostrum harvesting just to make sure that it's a safe thing for you to do. So I've talked about the walking, the bounce on the ball, the sex, nipple stimulation, colostrum harvesting. And so one day I was out on a walk with my kids and I was like, "This is gonna bring on labor."

12:32 And I ended up in an organic store. So I walked in being like, "Oh, let's just have a look around," trying to get my steps in, and I saw raspberry leaf tea. And now, like I said, I never Googled what to do, what natural things I should be doing to try and induce labor. But when I was in the store, I was like, "Oh, patients ask me about this all the time.

12:50 I wonder if this actually works." I'm gonna buy a box of raspberry leaf tea at 39 weeks, and I get home and I make myself a cup of tea. Sit down and I drink it. And I'm like, "Oh, what's the evidence behind this? What's the actual method behind this?" And apparently you're meant to be drinking it from 34 weeks, which I obviously didn't know.

13:10 and so therefore I cannot say whether it worked or not. I can only say that I did not do it the way that they prescribe it online And therefore I'd be doing it a disservice. But raspberry leaf tea I don't believe is particularly harmful, and no reason why you can't do it or try it. So one of the things that was floating around my friendship groups, my mum, some aunties, that people were like swearing by is castor oil.

13:35 And they were like, "Oh, if you just have some castor oil, that'll bring on contractions." And I read about it, and I was just like, "Hmm." don't really wanna do that. Like for me it was just, it just felt like a step too far. So that's the method I didn't try. And therefore I have no real opinion on it.

13:48 I know people who swear by it. And I think the, the obstetrician in me was just like, if you take something that causes you to have really strong, regular, frequent contractions, what if it causes you to have too many contractions and then that becomes dangerous for the baby? Or you're not at hospital and things like that.

14:06 And for me, there was just enough like mental caution that I was like, "I'm just not gonna do it. It's not worth it." and I could just carry on with methods that I knew were a bit more controlled. So when I was, like, 39 weeks and a few days, I went for my third sweep, and the midwife was like, "Look, I can get my finger through the cervix a little bit.

14:25 It's still really far back. The baby's head is still really high." All which just tells me that my baby was enjoying themselves, having a whale of a time in there. but we would try it again. It wasn't very favorable. It increased my contractions a little bit, but other than that, not really do anything else.

14:42 And then we'd agreed that I'd have one last final attempt two days before my induction was planned. And at that point, I resigned that I wasn't gonna go into labor naturally, like I wasn't going to just start having contractions. And so when that day came, that was two days before my induction, I was at home and I was like, "You know what?

14:59 Can I be bothered to go to the hospital again, or do I just wait for the induction date? I'm gonna have an induction anyway." And all the while, one of my sisters was just like, "Remy, leave this baby alone. You're not even due. what are you doing? Why are you, obsessing over getting this baby out?" And what I could have done was spend two weeks relaxing, having my feet up, going for gentle walks, not ways to get the baby out.

15:23 But hormones, and impatience, and being a control freak meant that I went for that last sweep. And it was successful. It was successful in the sense that she got all the way through. She could feel the baby's head. Baby's head was still high, but my plug really had started to go from that sweep. The contractions had increased a little bit, but not by very much.

15:41 And so then by that point, my desire or my hope was that by the time I've come to have my induction on the Tuesday, that I don't need the medication cocktail that I'd listed earlier on in this video, and I'd be able to get to the point where they could just break my waters, so what they call an artificial rupture of membranes, or an and what that entails is examining you, putting a plastic hook, and popping the balloon, and then the waters come out.

16:06 And that's what happened. They were able to break my waters And three hours later, the baby came. and so for me, did the natural methods of induction work? There is no evidence that any of them in and of themselves will work, but what it did tell me is the idea of trying to get into labor is a bit more active than we give it credit for.

16:26 So I think because of the medicalization of birth and the medicalization of obstetrics, it's really easy to see a doctor and say, "You know what? If the baby's not come by so and so date, we'll induce or we'll do a section." But I do think there is a role in what we do from about 37 weeks in the intervening time that encourages your body to be ready for labor.

16:49 I do think there's a role, and it's not for everyone. But because I had more of a sedentary lifestyle in the last few months, I don't think that's helpful to get the baby's head in position, have the hips be open, all of these things. So if I could go back, I would have incorporated daily walks from about 35 weeks, into my schedule And beyond that, probably not much else.

17:11 I just wish I c- I w- I just wish I was a bit more active in the third trimester. Do I think that would've got me into labor any sooner? Ultimately, we do not know how labour starts. Science cannot concretely tell us how labour begins, like what keys you have to unlock for labour to start. We know which hormones promote the cervix to soften, which hormones will give you contractions and regular contractions, but even with that, we know that people will have all those things and still not enter active labour or have a vaginal delivery.

17:43 So therefore, with all the evidence we have, we know that process in and of itself is not straightforward. So what my take-home from this is, and what I want you to take home from this, is that, yes, you can do things to try and promote your body to contract, to try and promote the head to come down, to try and get labour to start, but there is no guarantee that any of that will lead to a successful vaginal delivery in the assumption that is what you're aiming for.

18:14 No guarantee. And therefore, if we think about our circle of influence what can you control? And in my logical brain, I know this. In my hormonal third trimester brain, I felt I had more control over my body. I did not. I don't think things like walking, ball bouncing, sex, nipple stimulation, colostrum harvesting are dangerous, so I do think there are things that are worth doing, especially in the last few weeks of pregnancy, to see if that promotes or encourages your body to start prepping for labour.

18:47 Raspberry leaf tea appears harmless. The castor oil for me just felt like a step too far, but that's my personal opinion. And, there is no evidence that it works the thing that has the most evidence, of what I did was sweeps, but even then they're not super predictable, as is my case so all in all Be a bit more proactive in the third trimester, but also just relax because it's not within your control.

19:09 There's nothing you can do to guarantee that you will deliver or go into labor when it is you want to, unless you're having a planned cesarean section. But even then, you'll have your date and then your body will trick you and then you'll go into labor before the date comes anyway. So there is no guarantee So if you are planning for birth, discuss with your midwife what your birth plan is, what pain relief you want, what options you wanna consider.

19:34 If you want to have an induction of labor, if your labor pregnancy goes past dates, and what each step looks like. The mechanical induction with just a sweep, which you can do and then go home. The medical, induction and ultimately having the waters be broken for you, which is what I had done, so that was a form of induction where they broke my waters and then the baby came.

19:55 And again, it doesn't work like that for everybody, so definitely worth discussing with your midwife about the different options of induction of labor. I've got a video, on this channel which I'll link somewhere here about induction of labor as well. So go and watch that, and it goes into a lot more detail about what you should be discussing with your clinician really if you are planning an induction and if your baby has come, congratulations.

20:17 The postpartum period is a beast in and of itself. And in order to have clarity into what area of your life you need to tackle so that you thrive in this season, I have a recovery check-in questionnaire for you down below. It will ask you a few questions, and it will give you a breakdown of what you need to focus on in the next 7 to 30 days to improve either your body, your mind, or your life in the postnatal period.

20:39 I'll be running workshops over the next few weeks about how we can improve life in the postnatal period. And if that's something that interests you, join the wait list for that down below So you are one of the first to hear about it. In the meantime, subscribe to this channel and share this video with someone that you know that might be in the third trimester or in their pregnancy at any season, so that they can plan appropriately for their induction of labor.

20:59 I have other videos in this series talking about preconception, first trimester, second trimester. So go and have a watch of those, too. But until next time