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9 Ways To Speed Up Labor And Get To Pushing

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Since you never know how long your labor is going to be, it’s no wonder that you want to know how to speed up labor so that it’s as quick as possible. I don’t think that a single one of us wants to be in labor for hours and hours on end. I have a sister in law that had a 30-hour labor—yikes!
But there are things that you can easily do to make yours even just a couple of hours. Be sure to follow these tips for quickly and easily speeding up your labor in natural ways.

9 Ways To Speed Up Labor

These do NOT include a pitocin drip or having your bag of waters manually broken. Your doctor may likely try and augment your contractions with either one of these because they’re the traditional methods. But you DON’T need them.

Don’t believe them when they try to push it on you. If you find that you’ve plateaued and haven’t progressed as quickly as you wish, it’s likely because they’re interrupting you and keeping you stressed.

If you find that you’ve plateaued and haven’t progressed as quickly as you wish, it’s likely because they’re interrupting you and keeping you stressed.

So find the ways to decompress and calm your body with any of the following easy methods and you’ll have that baby out in no time. I’ve done every single one of these with one birth or another and I KNOW they work.

Items Needed For Speeding Up Labor

Rocking or bouncing on your birthing ball. Or if you’ve had an epidural, use a peanut ball while propped up.
Small electrical candles that can be on while still keeping the room as dark as possible.
Wear an acupressure ring to stimulate the right acupressure points.
A playlist of relaxing spa music to listen to.
Essentials oils for relaxation:
- lavender
- frankincense
Clary Sage essential oil for stimulating contractions.
If you’re rocking while sitting on a toilet, keep your legs propped up with a squatty potty stool.

Walking

This is the #1 BEST way to get things going quickly. I can’t say enough about it.

Not sure if you’re real labor? Walk.
Do you want to sit down and wait them out? Walk.
Feel like you don’t have the energy to? Walk.
Angry at your husband for putting you in this position? Walk.
Take the shuttle or park far away at the hospital? Walk.

Birth is all about movement. Imagine your baby trying to come through you’re birth canal like how you try to take a snug ring off your finger. It needs a little twisting, turning, and movement in order to come off easier. The same goes for your baby emerging.

Turn off the lights

When your brain starts to generate the hormone melatonin that helps you fall asleep, it also acts alongside a pathway that creates oxytocin too. When I was in labor with my third boy, I kept all of the lights off in the rooms that I was walking through. I got sleepy, but it was sure worth it. Just use electrical candles to limit the light.

Acupressure

There are certain energy points along the body that correspond to stimulating contractions and responses to the uterus. Applying pressure to these sends nerve signals and help increase your labor contractions. You can just an acupressure ring to make it easier.

Hand Webbing. Between your thumb and forefinger on either hand, there is the mass of tissue and muscle. You can massage these firmly and squeeze gently for a few minutes at a time.
Ankles. Just above the inside of your ankles lies another sensitive spot you can rub. Make your husband do it while he massages your feet in order to help you relax.
Roof of the Mouth. Press your thumb into the top of your mouth and rub in circles. You can even suck hard on a lollipop too.

Relaxation

When you’re stressed, your tension inhibits your body’s ability to cycle forward with your hormones that control childbirth. There are myriads of things that you can do to promote relaxation during labor. My favorite thing is to listen to calming spa music, like Enya, and visualize peaceful places while breathing deeply.

Figure out what works for you and stick with it.

progressive muscle relaxation
visual imagery alongside meditation

I teach these and more relaxation techniques in my book that you can get here.

Sexual Stimulation

If you haven’t read the orgasmic birth post yet, do it now so that these next suggestions don’t throw you for a loop. This helps generate the oxytocin that your body needs to give birth.

Sensual Touch. Caress and stimulate the areas of your body that help you enjoy private intimacy with your husband.
Clitoris and Nipples. These spots are directly connected to the physiological reactions necessary for sexual experiences such as childbirth. Stimulating them will further your labor.
Kissing. Having some intimacy with your husband during labor actually creates a better experience. There is a flow of energy through your body that it needs which can start with simply making out.

Exercise Ball

Sit on that birthing ball and make it your new best friend if you’re needing a moment from walking.

Bounce on it. The motion of baby descending downward is further perpetuated.
Rock on it. Getting that baby to fit just perfectly through a tiny opening is a fantastic feat. Rocking to and fro, front and back, in circles, whatever…will help your little one be positioned perfectly.

Move, move, move

Change your positions often if you don’t feel up to walking or using a birthing ball. Not everything will be comfortable, but go back and forth between two positions at the very least between contractions.

squatting
on all fours (hands and knees)
leaning over the birthing ball
on the toilet with a squatty potty
standing and swaying
dancing
lunging carefully in any direction

Here I am just before our third baby was born, constantly moving around during labor. Yes, I absolutely wanted to just rest. But I kept moving because I knew how important it was; I ended up having a super fast labor!

Essential Oils

Have oils like lavender and frankincense diffusing to help you keep calm and relaxed.

Besides just using them to relax, you can use clary sage to help stimulate contractions. It’s been known to do so quite well when you apply it to the inside of your ankles, like the acupressure point above.

Laughing

Let’s face it. When you’re having a good time with some laughs, are you stressing out or tense with anxiety? Not likely. Find something you can joke about for the moment and let your husband keep you smiling during this magical time.

It will promote the positive feedback your body needs to complete all the hard work it’s trying to do. Your labor WILL come to an end and it will seem faster than it actually was once you’ve come full circle. Just make sure that you’re doing SOMETHING, anything to keep your labor progressing.

To Summarize

Don’t let your nurse or doctor pressure you into having a pitocin drip or breaking your water. It can help, but it can also hinder. Exhaust all other options FIRST.

Walking
Turn off the lights
Acupressure on your hand webbing, inner ankles and roof of the mouth
Relax
Sexual stimulation of sensual areas
Birthing ball
Moving and changing positions often
Clary Sage essential oil
Laughter

Relaxation is most often the hardest thing for women to do during their labor. But it’s so simple to learn how, it’s no excuse to have a difficult labor when you can easily learn it.

>> Master Your Relaxation With This <<

Then before you know it, you’re ready to start pushing out your baby, or breathing through their descent from heaven to earth. And it’s all downhill from there.

What have you done to keep your labor going as quickly as you can? I once saw this mom dancing to mega hip-hop jams in order to keep her momentum up! Let me know in the comments and I’d love to hear your best tips and tricks. Cheers!

How do you plan on speeding up your labor?