[00:00:00] My name is Trish Ware and I am obsessed with all things pregnancy and birth and helping you to navigate with the practical and the magical seasons of this journey called motherhood. I'm an all day coffee sipping mama of seven. I've had the amazing privilege of delivering many babies in my 15 plus year career as a labor and delivery nurse and as a mama of seven.

I'm here to help you take the guesswork out of childbirth so you can make the choices that are right for you and your baby. Quick note, this podcast is for educational purposes only and does not replace your medical advice. Check out our full disclaimer at the bottom of the screen. of the show notes.

So I am going to be talking about inductions, but mainly unmedicated inductions. I wanted to [00:01:00] talk about this because I get questions about this all the time, and this is something that I have done. All right, let's talk about unmedicated birth while being induced, and I have some notes So I can stay on topic. Again, my name is Trish. I have a 16 year experience as a high risk labor and delivery nurse.

I'm also a mom to seven. One was adopted. Six that I gave birth to. Three of those births. were inductions. So I'm going to be talking about what I did and what I teach my students to do to prepare for an unmedicated induction. Because a lot of people think, if you're being induced, like your unmedicated plans, your natural plans, you guys know I don't like to say natural for unmedicated.

But your unmedicated plans go out the window. So we're going to talk about a few points now. Let's talk about understanding [00:02:00] induction first. So obviously an induction is where we induce your labor. There are several different types or methods of induction, and I have a podcast all about this. I have a low cost class that's all about inductions, about self and medical inductions that you can grab as well.

The very first part of induction is usually getting your cervix ripe. So we use Cytotec, we do Cervadel, we do the Foley bulb induction, or we do the rods, the Dilipan S, something like that. Another form of induction, which I saw that one of you guys were asking about is a lot of people don't think that it's a form of induction, but membrane stripping is, or a membrane sweep is actually a form of induction as well.

Usually that's done in the doctor's office, and basically what they do is they go in, your cervix has to be open. for this to happen. For a Foley bulb induction as well. We [00:03:00] go around the inside of the cervix and separate it from the membrane and that stimulates the labor hormones to start labor.

So if your cervix is not over open and your cervix is, not soft, not ripe, not effaced, then we're going to start with cytotec or Cervidil. I have had lots of patients who I call them Cytotec babies, Cervidil babies. They go into full blown labor on Cytotec or Cervidil. Usually those moms were on the brink of labor anyway.

But Cytotec or Cervidil is usually put in the night before. And then a lot of times you have to have several rounds of it before you're ready for Pitocin. Cytotec, Cervidil, Foley bulb, Dilopan S, membrane stripping, all of that is like knocking on the door to say, hey, Hello? Hello, body. It's time. Pitocin.

is a contraction inducer [00:04:00] where the other ones are getting your cervix ready, the Pitocin is done once your cervix is ready for labor. It's favorable. So we start Pitocin, it's an IV drip, drips through your IV. We titrate it based on what's going on.

Now I recommend to my students, and especially if you're going to go unmedicated, this is one of the most important things, is to ask them to go low and slow on the Pitocin. Now all three of my inductions that were unmedicated. All three of them, I was on Pitocin. Two of them, I started with cervical ripener.

A lot of people are so afraid that the reason they can't go unmedicated is that it's just going to be too hard and too painful. And I will say that your perception of the labor contractions with Pitocin is that It's painful. Stronger and harder, but mainly because the way our bodies work are [00:05:00] so beautifully designed that when you go into labor on your own, you gradually go up the labor mountain, right?

So gradually the pain gets more, intense, you get more intense contractions. They start out, short little putzers, you build up your tolerance and you get more and more intense. With an induction, the reason people perceive it as so much worse and the contraction so much stronger is that you go from zero to 100 so much faster.

And what I love about having knowledge about titrating the Pitocin and asking for them to go low and slow is that when Pitocin is doing its job is to knock on your own body's positive labor, hormones and get it going. Once your body takes over, it's way more effective. And by flooding it with oxytocin and pitocin and so much [00:06:00] of it and going up and going up, you're overwhelming your body.

You're overwhelming your mindset. Ask them to go low and slow. So that being said, how do we prepare for an unmedicated birth during induction? The most important thing that all of you guys can do, whether you're being induced, whether you're not, whether you're going to get medicated, via epidural or nitrous oxide or IV narcotics or whatever, or whether you're going unmedicated or some of you guys like to say natural, which I don't, it's not my favorite.

The most important thing that you guys can do in general for birth and why I've poured my heart and soul into a birth class that walks you through all the things and is very foundationally laid in a mindset, mental prep, is that the most important thing you can do is up here and I'm teaching a weekly free class.

I'm not doing it next week because the [00:07:00] following week is fearless birth experience and

we start the week out. By walking into why a positive mindset and mental strategies is your most powerful tool that you bring into the labor room. If you are able to stay focused and calm, and I'm not saying that you're going to be hurting, are not hurting if you're focused and calm. I'm not saying the labor pain is like so much better, but what I am saying is that having a positive mental mindset and having strategies and being prepared allows you to navigate it calmer.

And when you're able to navigate it calmer, Your labor goes faster and smoother. Your oxytocin flows. It's the love hormone, you guys. So you have to have a birth plan. You have to be educated. There's just no ifs, ands, and buts about it. And I don't know if you guys know, [00:08:00] but you can actually get reimbursed for your birth classes.

So don't wait! You can comment class on my on any post, any story, any live, or you can go to labor nurse mama. com forward slash calm, C A L M and join the classes now and we'll help you get reimbursed from your insurance company. The reason they reimburse you is because they know that what I just said.

is 100 percent the most important thing you can do. So mental preparation, mindset strategies. This is why that everybody who joins my birth classes gets to come every Wednesday to a birth coaching call with me and my doulas. Because we know if we can have you walk into your little room with a positive mindset, And you have strategies to stay focused and stay calm, whether you're induced or not, whether you are planning medicated birth or [00:09:00] not, you are going to be a more calm and confident birther, period.

Period. So you have to be educated. I say this all the time. If you don't know your options, you don't have any. So when it comes to inductions, if you're not educated, if you don't understand the options that are laid before you, if you think that your doctor, Can just say, Hey, I'm just going to pick one of you guys.

Let's see someone's name. Hey, Angie, we're scheduling your induction for Tuesday. I'm going to have you come in at midnight. I'm going to start you on cytotech and then I'm going to make rounds at 6 30 in the morning. I'm going to break your water. Then I'm going to start Pitocin and then we're going to have a baby by 7 PM.

If you think that's all there is to it, you've been fooled because how that should go is that Angie is educated. She's taken my class. We've gotten her prepped. We've hung out with her every Wednesday on zoom. And she knows [00:10:00] that when her doctor says to her, Hey, Angie, we need to induce you on Tuesday.

Number one, she knows how to navigate that conversation to find out if it is something she should do or if it's being done for it. convenience for someone else. Number two, she knows that she 100 percent knows the options for inductions and she knows what to ask for that she's already decided she wants if she has to be induced or she needs to be induced.

And she can say to her doctor hold on. I can come in Wednesday at midnight, not Tuesday. That's more convenient for my family. Two, I want to have Cytotec because I'm really not a fan. I want to have Cervidil because I'm not a fan of Cytotec. And number three, I am not allowing you to break my water.

I want to wait until I'm in active labor. So if I'm in active labor at 7 a. m., fine, you can break my water. But I have to be over six centimeters because Trish said there's no need to break my water before that. And four, [00:11:00] I don't want to start on Pitocin at max dose. I want to go low and slow. So you have to be educated.

You have to know your options. You have to know what you want and don't want. And the only way you know that is by understanding all the options, understanding the interventions. My goal is that my students will walk into that room knowing as much as I know. And they do. They tell me all the time that their labor nurse is like, Oh my God, I thought you had experience in labor and delivery.

You have to know this is too important of a day for you to go in there and wing it. So once you're educated, once you understand the whole process and you have agreed that an induction is the best case for you, then you have to create a flexible induction birth plan. And I say flexible because things can happen.

And you may have to move around. We call it a birth map or birth preferences, because just like a map, I always tell my girls the baby is the exotic, [00:12:00] beautiful vacation. The baby is the exotic, beautiful vacation at the end. And not really a vacation because you're going to be exhausted, but it's the big prize at the end of the map.

The birth map is a map. And if you were, let's say you're going to Bali, right? Woke up in the morning and you had called Uber and they were supposed to be there at 6 30 AM to get you for your flight. And they're not there. You're going to figure out another way to get to the airport, right? Now, let's say you're on your way to the airport and there was a storm and there's debris in the road.

You're going to go a different route. And it's the same way with your birth map. You have to know the different routes. You have to know the different options. If you don't know your options, you don't have any. You'll be like, okay, now there's a tree in the road. I don't know what to do. How do I get there?

So we have to have you prepped for that. So you have to be educated. You have to know the potential interventions that are going to be offered and all your options. [00:13:00] The other thing that I want to say to you, if you're planning to be unmedicated for an induction, for birth in general, you have to understand your natural pain relief methods.

Number one, I already told you that your mindset is the best. the biggest tool. What you're saying to yourself inside your head matters, especially during birth, but really during all of life. I also do coaching and I coach birth, baby, parenting experts, how to grow businesses. And what you say to yourself whether it's in your job, whether it's in your birth, your parenting journey with this baby really matters.

So the first thing I want to talk about is visualization. And visualization is a powerful tool during labor. And what I teach my students inside the classes is how to come up with the right visualization for you and how to map it out. And [00:14:00] then. your partner's role in that because that's important as well.

Another thing that's super important is learning the proper breathing techniques, labor positioning, how to move your body. There are ways that you can move your body that increases your oxytocin, which means they can slow the potosin down. There's ways you can move your body to relieve the pain, depending on the level of pelvis the baby is at.

You have to know all of these. Then there's TENS units. You can do rollers essential oil rollers or essential oil diffuser, diffusers. There's all sorts of different natural pain relief methods that if you don't know about them, you're just going to be relying on thinking, Oh, I can just wing this.

And you can't. The other thing that's really important. Did you see how much I emphasize really is the role of your birth partner, a doula. and your health care team. So we're going to talk about birth partner first. So your partner, whether it's your husband, your partner, your mom, [00:15:00] your friend.

They need to be as educated as you are. They need to understand the induction process. They need to understand the stages of labor. They need to understand your mindset strategies, your breathing techniques, all of the positions, and they need to know them prior to walking into the labor room. So you need to be practicing them with them.

Again, you need to take your class with them. Before this, because you need to have these as part of your muscle memory and that you both know.

Different tools and blueprints to take to the labor room with you. But your partner has to, they should do the classes with you. They should be there when you prepare your birth plan. You should walk through each point of them. So if you can't advocate for yourself, which. Insider tip, the only job you have during labor is to labor, not to fight for what you want, not to speak up and have to fight your nurse or your partner or anyone else.

At the point that you're laboring, all you have to do is labor. Now your partner has to step into the role of advocate and they need to understand what's on [00:16:00] there. They need to understand the interventions. They need to know the options because when the providers come in and the nurses come in and there's a little bullying going on, your partner needs to step up and say no.

Now, when we talk about a doula, of course, having a doula is an amazing option. And if you can afford it, I say do it. A lot of states are providing doulas, find out, but a lot of us cannot, or when I was having my babies could not afford a doula. And so one of the things that I really prayed about and met with my team about was having doulas on my team.

So we have three doulas, we have two birth doulas, and then we have a doula that's being trained in postpartum. And we do that because we know a lot of you guys cannot afford a doula. So number one, join the class. Number two, we'll help you get reimbursed for the class from your insurance. So you can comment class or go to labornursemama.

com forward slash calm, C A L M. We'll help you get reimbursed. And then you also get [00:17:00] 30 days free inside our mama membership. It's 19 a month after your trial, but that helps me pay for doulas and all the support that we give you guys. So when you join my classes, you have an option to add on what is called the labor bat signal.

Our labor bat signal is where you have a team of a labor nurse, moi and two doulas. And you have us, I don't have another way to show you via telegram app. And it's a group chat with you and your doula team, your birth squad, I call us. That starts at 36 weeks and goes until eight weeks postpartum, unless you need us longer.

If you're high risk and you're getting induced earlier, you have a lot going on. We let you initiate it earlier and keep it longer, that gives you. Two doulas and a labor nurse who can help you with positioning, help you navigate induction questions, making choices boundaries with family, all the things.

And we did that because we know a lot of you guys can't afford a doula, but the studies show that by [00:18:00] having an educated support person, you have a better chance of having a successful vaginal delivery. You have a better chance of loving your labor. Your babies have higher APGAR scores and overall you have less interventions.

So we offer that in the form of our services and it's 49 to add it on you guys. It's literally insanely low and then 20 a month for the membership. Okay. So another thing that I would say when it comes to the support of your healthcare team, I want you guys to know that you have rights to tell anyone they're not allowed in your room, including your doctor and your nurse.

So if they are not supporting you, if they are not encouraging you, if they're making you feel terrible, fire them. And you can do that while you're in labor. The hospital has to provide aid. Okay, so the other part of your pain management plan for your unmedicated [00:19:00] induction would be creating a common supportive and birth environment.

We've already talked about the people, but what about the things? So some of the things that you can include are music. Lighting, we love the star projector, like using a star projector, aromatherapy is another thing. Now with aromatherapy, you do have to let them know because if there's any nurses on the floor that have allergies, they have to be aware.

Taken some twinkle lights, grab on my Amazon list and I'm going to put this, I'm hoping it goes on sale During Amazon prime week, but a star projector is so calming when I've had patients with those. It's just, it's amazing. Another thing you can do. One of my team doulas brought a blow up tub in her hospital letter.

So you'd have to clear it with your hospital. Hydrotherapy is insanely calming. amazing when you're unmedicated. Myself, I've had three unmedicated births. One of which was my baby, number three. It was elective because we were [00:20:00] moving and I wanted to have him in time to be able to recover with my family before we moved.

And we started on Cytotec the night before and then the next day my doctor came in. I didn't know any better back then. I let him break my water and I had a precipitous delivery. My nurse delivered him at noon while my doctor went to lunch.

And Elias came. My second one, he was breached and we did a version and I was already effaced and starting to dilate. We did the version, turned him head down, and then they started me on Pitocin. If I knew what I know now, I would have just had them do the version and I wouldn't have been induced. My third one, I was 42.

I was on blood thinners and I was freaking out a little. And so I allowed them to talk me into an induction. Now I'm not sure if I would. But at the time it's what gave me peace. And so that was where I want to sign off today. I want you guys to remember that no matter what anyone is saying, whether they're saying, [00:21:00] Oh, you should be induced or you shouldn't be induced.

It's really up to you, but just go in educated, understanding the options, help create your induction plan. Don't let them just tell you what you're going to do. Be a part of those decisions, be educated so you can be. And then. just, navigate it with the right mindset and the right tools and the right breathing and the right movements.

And you're going to have a very powerful, beautiful unmedicated induction.

Thank you for joining me. As always, you can comment class and join the birth classes. All right, you guys have a great day.

Thank you so much for joining me today. While we talked about going unmedicated during your induction, you have to be informed. To be empowered. Remember your birth experience is unique and personal to you with the right preparation and mindset. You can have the birth you want, whether or not you're being induced.

I promise. If you enjoyed this [00:22:00] episode, please subscribe to the podcast, leave a review and share it with someone who's pregnant that might benefit from the information. Your support helps us reach and empower more women on their birth journeys. You know, My goal is to change the birth culture everywhere.

Alright, I will see you again Friday. Bye for now!