*Baby Corner*

[chnst 6]

what is castor oil? never heard that before?

Jonesie: good luck, maybe your little one will come out by himself this weekend!

[EsOrEnNa 0]

My due date is tomorrow and I don't see him being born this weekend. Any suggestions?

i am sorry.. i tried EVERYTHING except sex.. (cuz hubs was in US and i was in germany)

my doc stripped me 4 times!! did not help a thing.. spicy food, that berry leaf tea, hot baths, walking my ### off, walked up and down the stairs for hours, i dit castor oil 10 times i think with O juice.. had milk with lots of cinamon.. yeah that works sometimes my doc told me about that.. i did everything and he was still 10 days late..

i was 4cm since 36week and they didnt wanna induce me cuz the baby was fine.. there is a law in germany that u have to wait 11 days before thay can induce u.. well i went in on the 1oth day for a stress test at 11am.. got my 1st contraction at 2pm after lots of walking and a lil pitocin.. i was 8cm at 5pm.. got my epi around 7:30pm (longest time everrrr) doc broke my water at 9pma nd D was born with 3 pushes at 10:30pm..

u can do whatever u want but the baby is gonna comethen when he/she wants.. believe me..

[EsOrEnNa 0]

btw my epi sucked!! it was fine for like 2hrs but then one side wore off and i felt EVERYTHING on one side and the other was still numb.. that was paiiiiiin

@chnst

congrats!!

[EsOrEnNa 0]

what is castor oil? never heard that before?

here..

http://www.justmommies.com/articles/castor...uce-labor.shtml

How do I know if castor oil will work for me?

If you are 40 weeks and showing signs of labor, castor oil may work for you. You will want your cervix to be soft and thinning. If you have begun to dilate and efface already, this will increase your chances of castor oil being effective at labor induction. You should not try castor oil if you have not reached your due date or have a high risk pregnancy. Castor oil almost always causes diarrhea. Its primary use is a stimulant laxative. It has an unpleasant taste and may cause nausea, vomiting, and abdominal cramping. If you do not wish to experience these symptoms, do not try castor oil. Before using castor oil you should consult your health care provider.

How does castor oil work?

Castor oil is a laxative. It is believed that castor oil works to stimulate the bowels. It can lead to cramps and tightening of the muscles in the intestines. These cramps may spread to the uterus, tightening the uterine muscles and stimulating contractions. These contractions may or may not lead to the onset of active labor.

Is castor oil safe?

There are conflicting reports on the safety of castor oil. Some reports were shown to show a correlation between meconium in the amniotic fluid and castor oil. However, many others believe that it is more a co-occuring symptom of overdue babies. Castor oil is used most frequently in overdue pregnancies. Since overdue babies have an increased chance of having meconium in the amniotic fluid, many believe the overdue baby is the cause of the meconium and not the castor oil.

Is castor oil effective?

The verdict is still out on castor oil's effectiveness at inducing labor. Some women swear by it. Others feel it is nothing more than an old wives tale and pure coincidence for the women who do go in labor. There have been very few studies on castor oil as used for labor induction. Therefore, the long and short answer to this question is maybe.

How do I use castor oil?

Castor oil can be purchased at most drug stores in the laxative aisle. Opinions on how to use castor oil vary. Most midwives recommend using 2 ounces. You will likely want to mix it with something to make it taste more palatable. Castor oil has an unpleasant oily taste. If you use castor oil, you may want to try one of the following recipes.

Castor oil recipes

Castor oil and orange juice

2 oz castor oil

1 tsp baking soda

6 oz orange juice

Castor oil milk shake

2 oz castor oil

2 or 2 scoops ice cream

1/4 cup milk

blend in blender

Castor oil shots

2 oz castor oil shot followed by sucking on a lime or lemon

[nin 1]

Stomach cramps and severe diarrhea can indeed trigger labour contractions, but why would any sane human being put themselves through that just before going into labour. It is setting yourself up for a worse than necessary labour experience for what?

I would definitely go the sweeping of membranes route before that any day. And I did with number 3, in week 40 + 5 when I'd been at 4cm for a month. The stripping did zilch for me, the actual procedure was a little uncomfortable but not much worse than any other internal exam. My midwife did a little massaging of the cervix and stretched slightly to get a finger between the inside of the cervix and the membranes to loosen them. (In the end I had a simple amniotomy induction and a baby within an hour. Just like with number 2. The reason? GBS+ and previous rapid births, no time for antibiotics unless it was staged)

A normal pregnancy is between 37 and 42 weeks, you're not even close to being overdue. The baby will usually come when it's ready.

Edited December 14, 2007 by nin

[nana_356 0]

Is anyone palnning on having a completely natural birth???

[EsOrEnNa 0]

Joel: what is the surgery for??

D always had a lil bump on his chest.. it was the size of a rice corn at the beginning but then i grew like a pea and over night i was HUGE.. the docs said it was just old cells.. when it was big like a pea they did an U/S and they said its a lymphnode infection.. antibiotica made it only worser and he had a emergency surgery to let all the fluid out.. but then they said its a cyst.. so we really dunno what it was.. we had to go back today to see if everything is heald right and if there is something left.. and if there is then they need to do a 2nd surgery to take the rest out..

but the doc said today that it looks good and they took everything out.. if it gets infected again or gets bigger then they do the 2nd surgery but not before that..

here are some pics..

couple hours before the surgery

all done

scar

Edited December 14, 2007 by Joel'sWife

[EsOrEnNa 0]

btw.. look what we bought D.. one of his many many X-mas gifts..

his own lugagge set when we fly to germany in january.. its sooooo cute!! we got it 2 days ago and i LOVE it!!

[nin 1]

I have given birth to 3 children without medical pain relief, if that's what you mean by "natural". That way works for me, and I'm happy with my experiences.

Non of them were "squatting on a dirt floor natural". Number 2 and 3 were induced, both through amniotomy. And with both I got antibiotic IV's prior to induction. So I guess it depends on your definition.

[Saddle Bronc 124]

Castor oil: a ultra-ultra-foul-tasting purgative. There may be some idea (likely misconception--I've only ever seen it mentioned in a VC Andrews novel) that it can induce labour. Very few things it's actually good for:

• feedstock for making nylon-11
• charring to produce a greasy soot known as kaajal (similar to mascara, used by many Indian women)
• maybe for biodiesel

It definitely ain't meant to be swallowed!!!! (as it comes from the toxic part of the plant in the first place--the unrefined stuff also extremely-foul-smelling) Edited December 15, 2007 by CherryXS

[BelwinMills 0]

@marilyn: oh boy, stitches down there, and then bedrest..... sounds like torture to me but as long as she and baby are ok...... hope she feels better soon!!

@belwinMills: I am about 20 weeks too and I just started feeling the baby a couple days ago. It's more lika a tiny flutter than a kick and sometimes I'm not even sure if its gas or the baby... haha. I had a car accident yesterday and it has been really active bouncing around all day. Thank God nothing happened to the baby.

@autumnchik and yassmine: what is it with pregnancy and chinese cravings???? I could eat chinese every day. i never had any extreme cravings like pickles with peanut butter or anythiung like that. just watermelon and chinese when I felt sick.

I am glad you are O.K. after the car accident. I think I might be feeling the baby but it just feels like a sharp stabbing pain.

The lady doing the ultra sound the baby was a kicker. The baby was kicking a lot and had its hands in front of its face the whole time so no 3D picture.

The baby is a girl. Feww cause we only had a girls name.

Joneise. I hope your baby comes soon. I know only a few babies actually come on their due date. All the best girl.

[chnst 6]

Anne and Cherryxs: thanks.... sounds gross. not for me.

@nana: I'm planning to go without pain meds as long as possible but I consider myself a "sissy" when it comes to pain, so I guess I'll cry for the anaesthesician as soon as I walk into the hospital. I guess it depends on how it goes.

I read through most of the baby thread and and it looks like most of you had to be induced.

[BelwinMills 0]

Our baby weighed 9 ounces and 12 inches. I can't believe it I was picking up bottles filled with liquid of 9 ounces it amazing process.

[BelwinMills 0]

Anne and Cherryxs: thanks.... sounds gross. not for me.

@nana: I'm planning to go without pain meds as long as possible but I consider myself a "sissy" when it comes to pain, so I guess I'll cry for the anaesthesician as soon as I walk into the hospital. I guess it depends on how it goes.

I read through most of the baby thread and and it looks like most of you had to be induced.

Wow I applaud you I cried today when I couldn't use the restroom before my ultrasound it was like I was going to explode. Pain is not my friend and being allergic to 8 medicines. Medication scares me.

Talking about food cravings its werid all I want is avocados and lemon juice in every drink.

[chnst 6]

@BelwinMills: congrats to your girl! we just found out today we're having a boy! he gave the doc a hard time because he was kicking and covering his face with his arms. no 3D pic for us either.... how many times during pregnancy are they doing ultrasounds? I forgot to ask. I hope that wasn't the last one?

haha we too only had picked out a girls name- Erin....

now we have to come up with a boys name, that seems so much harder!

your stabbing pain might be from the ligaments stretching out. I'm having that too.