Just For Fun - Old Wives Tales

Well I thought I was in the clear but it looks like Operation Expel Baby is about to commence.  I've been told if baby isn't here before my due date I'll have to be induced...and really don't want that.

I'm a firm believer that if your body and baby are not ready, nothing will work (thus why I was induced for 3 days before DD was born)...but it doesn't hurt to try some good ol' wives tales.

Has anyone tried any natural labour inducing techniques and what kind of results did you achieve?

Two days before my due date, at 9 pm, I ate a whole pineapple. At 2 am, my waters broke quite dramatically. However, I was not in labour and baby came by C-section at 11 pm on my due date.

My son, on the other hand, was a 3 day induction finished with a really beautiful natural birth.

I don't recommend the pineapple as it can cause your waters to break, but not labour.
Good luck!

You could talk to your midwife about eating lots of celery leading up to the due date.  It's been known to cause uterine contractions (so much so that celery seed taken early in pregnancy can supposedly cause miscarriage).

Stacey on Eastenders ate a bunch of curry to have her kid.  They didn't make it seem like it was what caused the labour, but it might be worth the try, especially if you like curry.

I've never had a baby, but I have heard lots of people say that spicy food and sex (though probably not at the same time) are good ways to get labour started. 

I've heard walking is supposed to help things along.  I'm not sure if it was just a coincidence, but I went into labor with DD shortly after doing a lot of walking.

It was 4 days before my due date, and I was huge and miserable.  I had a few things to do that day and decided I'd walk everywhere. I walked to the city center (about 2 miles from where I lived), then walked to a friends house, spent the evening there and then walked home (about a 3 mile walk or so).  I got home at 10 pm and started having contractions at 1 am.  The downside was I then went through about 29 hours of labor on about 2 hrs of sleep.

Stacey on Eastenders...

The best way to start giving all sorts of advice! 

I've heard the sex thing too.

Found this on babycentre:  http://www.babycentre.co.uk/pregnancy/labourandbirth/planningyourbabysbirth/naturalbringonlabour/

it mentions both pineapple and curry so I wonder what a pineapple curry would do?  (which would taste amazing right now...)

Good luck!

I don't know if it works for everyone but it certainly had brilliant results for me, I read it in What to Expect When You're Expecting and when my daughter didn't come on her due date, that night I spent 30 minutes massaging my nipples.  I woke up at 6:30 the next morning in labour.  It releases oxytocin which stimulates contractions, so you're not supposed to do it if you have a high-risk pregnancy or any complications, but I would much rather do that than drink castor oil!  And if it doesn't work it doesn't hurt, especially if you're going to breastfeed, to toughen them up a bit!

The best way to start giving all sorts of advice! 

I had honestly not heard of it before then.    I've heard most of the others (although I have to admit pineapple is a new one). 

I've heard walking is supposed to help things along.  I'm not sure if it was just a coincidence, but I went into labor with DD shortly after doing a lot of walking.

Me too.  I gave birth to my son after having spent the day walking around downtown Atlanta, waiting in an enormous line at the Immigration office, and then becoming enraged at the willful unhelpfulness of INS employees.  I'm not sure which part did the trick: the walking, the standing, the anger, or the huge veal and pasta meal I had at an Italian restaurant to cheer me up afterwards. 

My daughter was born after I spent a day walking around the Atlanta Zoo with my husband and my three-year-old.  I can't remember what I ate for dinner.

I've never had a baby, but I have heard lots of people say that spicy food and sex (though probably not at the same time) are good ways to get labour started. 

Ya know I thought ohhh DH would love this and I had the vision of sex while chowing on some type of curry lol what a image...
No kids yet but will keep this in my mind forever now for a giggle when we get there.

I've tried as many of these as I can manage with no success (although DH has had loads of fun with Operation Get Baby Out).  I even tried poking my belly repeatedly to see if I could aggravate him out.  Guess little munchkin man is nice and comfy.  Oh well...hopefully he will somehow be persuaded to come out on his own before he is served his eviction notice by the doctors.

I was induced early so I never had the problem of being late but my friends swear by clary sage.

The best way to start giving all sorts of advice! 

LMAO!!

I tried pineapple, driving on bumpy roads, and curry and she was still 8 days overdue (but I did at least start having contractions 2 hours prior to my scheduled appt to be induced!)