Try these handy hints to speed up your labour.
1. Pace yourself
“If us doctors step in while you're in labour too early, you’re more likely to end up with intervention, so it’s worth waiting it out,” advises Virginia Beckett, a consultant obstetrician at Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust in the UK. “Go to the hospital when your contractions are three minutes apart.”
2. Maintain energy
Eat and drink little and often to maintain your energy level. Go for dried fruit, such as mango slices.
3. Pain relief
“It’s safe to take Panadol during labour, as it won’t affect your baby,” Beckett notes. Long labours can be difficult, so an epidural could also help conserve your energy for when you start pushing.
4. Splash it out
Get your husband to get you a water spray or nozzle to cool you down as you'll get warmer with the progression of labour.
5. Sleep it off
Sleep or rest whenever you can to save your energy for when you need to push.
Photos: INGimage
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