INFORMATION TO BE USED AT YOUR OWN RISK.

Any suggestions or opinions voiced in these pages are those of the authors, and in no way to be constructed as final treatment advice. They are intended as a starting point to develop your own preparation and treatment plan. Please consult your medical and/or psychological experts or caregivers to fine-tune the advice and suggestions for your own unique needs.

 

 

PHYSICAL PREPARATION OF THE BODY FOR CHILDBIRTH

 

Here is a collection of remedies and advice that Karin has found very useful in the physical preparation of the body, and especially the uterus, for natural childbirth.

 

(Please discuss these methods and remedies with your midwife or doctor)

 

WHAT TO CAN TAKE:

RASBERRY LEAVES

During the last one to two months of pregnancy, raspberry leaves help to prepare and tone the uterine muscles for labour and delivery.  (Please do this under supervision of your midwife). After birth raspberry leaves help the uterus to return to normal. Raspberry leaf encourages the flow of mother’s milk.

 

HOW TO MAKE IT:

  • As a tea – brew one teaspoonful of dried leaves in hot water – drink 2-3 cups daily.
  • And/or take raspberry leaf tablets 3x p/d after meals (obtainable from your health shop).
  • Other uses: Good for diarrhoea (also for children), throat irritations, mouth ulcers and to relieve period pains.

CANNOPHYLLUM

This homeopathic preparation helps ease childbirth.

 

HOW TO TAKE IT:

Take 5 granules under tongue once daily during the last two weeks of pregnancy

 

EVENING PRIMROSE OIL

Take during the last month of pregnancy to prepare the cervix and perineum for childbirth.

 

  • Orally: 1 capsule 3x p/d
  • Vaginally: insert 1 capsule at night before bedtime

 

WHAT TOU CAN DO:

Childbirth classes are essential for educating new parents about pregnancy and childbirth issues. You will gain knowledge of what is happening to your body as you move through labour, and this knowledge enables you to relax. A lack of knowledge often causes nervous tension that in turns causes muscle tension, which is associated with slow and difficult childbirth. Emotional and mental preparation for childbirth is just as important as the physical preparation.

 

Obstetric TENS machine (Transcutaneous Electric Nerve Stimulation) is used to facilitate an easier, natural childbirth experience for the mother. The TENS is a little portable machine that consists of a 9 volt battery driven unit with 4 electrodes, which are placed on specific areas on the back.

 

WHEN TO USE IT:

  • Practice from 37 weeks of pregnancy: practice for 20 mins every second day. Useful in relieving lower back pain. Start producing and storing endorphins  (the body’s natural painkillers).
  • During labour: the nerve stimulation provided by the electrodes interferes with the pain signals as they travel from the uterus, via the spinal cord, to the brain. As labour progresses you can tolerate higher levels of stimulation with greater effect. It also increases endorphin secretion.
  • After natural labour: the TENS can also be used for the relief of after pains in the days after giving birth, as your uterus contracts down to its pre-pregnancy size.
  • After Caesarean section: used to relieve pain at the wound-site, and accelerate healing (this is the only time the electrodes will be placed on the abdomen, on either side of the wound).
  • Nipple stimulation aids the release of oxytocin, a hormone that facilitates contractions during labour (it is also secreted when the foetus stimulates the cervix) and that stimulates the release of milk from the breasts.

 

HOW:

Stimulate the nipple by rolling it between the fingers for approximately 20 min at a time.

 

WHEN:

  • Can start nipple stimulation shortly before your due date – also a natural labour induction technique.
  • Loving, touching and sex. Oxytocin is enhanced by feelings of safety, relaxation and light-touch massage and inhibited by fear or stress. Activities that generate feelings of comfort, pleasure or enthusiasm, such as touch, privacy, praise, aromatherapy and movement, improve the release of the body’s natural pain killers, endorphins. Semen consist of a hormone prostaglandin that helps soften the cervix in preparation for natural childbirth.
  • Reflexology is often used to facilitate labour by balancing energies in the body and stimulating certain areas involved in childbirth, e.g. the uterus, adrenal glands, colon, hypothalamus and pituitary gland, amongst others.