What herbs are you taking to prep for labor?

[sophi4ka]

I am 37 weeks now and my midwife gave me tons of herbs/pills/drops to take as a preparation. She said that I don't have to take them if I don't want to, but it will help me in labor.

What she gave me is:

- Liquid dulse - 10 drops a day
- 5W pills - 2 pills x 3 times a day
- Evening Primrose Oil - 1 pill oraly and 1 pill vaginaly before sleep
- Liquid Chlorophyll - a spoon 3 times a day
- Quercetin - 1 pill per day
- Red Rasberry Tea - 3 cups a day

I am already taking prenatal vitamins, additional vitamin C and iron. So now I am kind of concerned to overdoze myself with so many new pills.


If I have a normal pregnancy, and everything is fine, why should I take all those additional things? But then, she recommends... so I don't know what to do.

Are you ladies taking any of those herbs? Do you have more information on their benefits? My midwife explained it to me really vaguely.

Thanks


: Sophie

[zjande]

You know, I haven't actually even heard of several of those. I'm sure you & Baby would be just fine if you didn't take any of them, women didn't for thousands of years & had fine births! I'd research each one & make a personal decision about each if I were you.

I'm only taking my prenatals & alfalfa. The vit K in alfalfa is supposed to help my blood clotting capabilities to help ward off hemorrhage after my birth. I'm also taking Womstringe (a 4-5 herb tincture) just after birth for the same reason, help prevent hemorrhage.

I have a mountain of RRL tea, & I wish I could handle drinking it, but I think it tastes like weird butt.

[mama2rey]

My MW suggested Evening Primrose Oil. I asked about Red Raspberry Leaf Tea. I don't think any are necessary-but the EPO apparently softens your cervix, and the RRL helps make ctx more efficient. I started RRL on Monday because of ctx that aren't doing anything-I figured it can't hurt. I haven't started the EPO because I am already 75% effaced, and dialated 1.5cm-however I may start the EPO if I haven't delivered by Monday. I don't think these things hurt-and they may be helpful, but it's not necessary.

[kittywitty]

I am taking (every day):

3500 mg EPO a day
2000 mg EPO vaginally

2 pints or so RRL, Nettle, Alfalfa, Oatstraw, Rosehips tea

600 mg Calcium + Vitamin D
2 CLO pills (can't handle the taste!)
1200 mg Echinacea or something like that
2 garlic pills
4 probiotic capsules (2 am, 2 pm)

2 Emergen-C packets

I'm sure I'd live without all of this, but I haven't been getting sick like everyone else keeping up with it. And I don't want to be in labor sick! Plus, I need to build up my blood.

I have some liquid chlorophyll I might start taking a little of soon.

[cravenab00]

i'm still drinking RRL, though sporadically. It seems to bring on tons of BH contractions. not sure if that is being helpful, or not.

[MCKH]

I am not taking anything besides my normal prenatal (when I remember it.) I didn't take anything last time and my body seemed to work just fine on its own.

[Momma2DoubleCuties]

I'm taking EPO my midwife recommended it yesterday, so I started yesterday.

[Beppie]

I'm taking:

RRL every day (I really like the taste of it, oddly enough), sometimes just one cup, sometimes three.

A prenatal, and

Liquid chlorophyll (b/c I'm having a homebirth, to help with bleeding).

Otherwise I take probiotics, but mainly because of my bout with stomach flu last week and because I had a yeast infection earlier in my pregnancy.

I'm sure if I start to approach being pregnant at 42 weeks, then my mw will start me on other things to try to naturally induce baby to come. Hope it doesn't reach that stage, though.

[Friday13th]

I'm taking EPO three times a day, RRL capsules several times a day (I tried drinking the tea in the first trimester while I still had morning sickness and it may have forever rendered me unable to enjoy it) Vit C, Echinacea, a prenatal and Emergen-C. (getting a cold right before or after giving birth is a huge fear of mine)

[Belleweather]

Mostly, I'm just taking my normal supplements (flax and fish oil, Cal/Mag, B vitamins, chromium) that I've been taking all along. I'm going to start some alfalfa and up the fish/flax oils because of bleeding and PPD. I have some EPO and some 'Herbal Allies' tincture that I'm thinking I'll start using around the beginning of next week, after I get checked to see where we're at. I'd like to 'encourage' this little one not to go too far over dates, and that's about all the 'encouraging' I'm comfortable with.

[Mom2Wilmo]

The midwife recommended 5W pills since I am not progressing yet-I am starting them tomorrow. Anyone had any luck with those?

[Momma2DoubleCuties]

I've never heard of those, what are they?