Category: Maternity

Preterm labor occurs when regular contractions result in the opening of your cervix after week 20 and before week 37 of pregnancy.
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Preterm labor can result in premature birth. The earlier premature birth happens, the greater the health risks for your baby. Many premature babies (preemies) need special care in the neonatal intensive care unit. Preemies can also have long-term mental and physical disabilities.
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The specific cause of preterm labor often isn’t clear. Certain risk factors might increase the risk, but preterm labor can also occur in pregnant women with no known risk factors.

Signs and symptoms of preterm labor include:
Regular or frequent sensations of abdominal tightening (contractions)
Constant low, dull backache
A sensation of pelvic or lower abdominal pressure
Mild abdominal cramps
Vaginal spotting or light bleeding
Preterm rupture of membranes — in a gush or a continuous trickle of fluid after the membrane around the baby breaks or tears
A change in type of vaginal discharge — watery, mucus-like or bloody.
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You might not be able to prevent preterm labor — but there’s much you can do to promote a healthy, full-term pregnancy. For example:
· Seek regular Reflexology care
· Seek regular prenatal care
· Eat a healthy diet.
· Avoid risky substances (smoking, alcohol, illicit drugs)
· Consider pregnancy spacing.
· Be cautious when using assisted reproductive technology (ART). If you’re planning to use ART to get pregnant, consider how many embryos will be implanted. Multiple pregnancies carry a higher risk of preterm labor.
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If your health care provider determines that you’re at increased risk of preterm labor, he or she might recommend taking additional steps to reduce your risk, such as:
· taking preventative medications
· Managing chronic conditions. Certain conditions, such as diabetes and high blood pressure, increase the risk of preterm labor.

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Labour Priming in natural therapies works differently than it does in Allopathic medicine. Allopathic medicine calls it Labour Induction, which is by definition a medical intervention to artificially start labour, either with medicines (pitocin, cervadil…) or procedure (membrane sweeping, artificial rupture of membranes …).
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How Reflexology for Labour Priming works is through learned protocols we check in with birther and babe to ensure everything is in order for a good and natural birth. If this is the case, then Reflexology for Labour Priming can start a process that wasn’t starting itself for whatever reason (anxiety by mom, anxiety of babe, imbalance of hormones or interrupted communication channels between uterus and pituitary/hypothalamus). If everything and everyone is ready, the birther and babe can expect action to begin anywhere in the 48 hours post Reflexology Session.
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If, however, some finishing touches still need to be applied or if the birther or babe have some last minute processing to do or whatever the reason for delay of labour starting, Reflexology for Labour Priming helps put the finishing touches on, helps any processes sort themselves out etc and Labour will not start until everything is sorted accordingly.
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Reflexology for Labour Priming can safely be received anytime the birther is 37+ weeks and has the “go ahead” from their obstetrical care provider . Generally these protocols are applied after 40 weeks to help avoid any medical intervention in birth.
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Regular Reflexology throughout the whole pregnancy is shown to reduce 1st and 2nd stage labour times, reduce sensation associated with birth (pain), and speed healing times postnatally. Regular Reflexology throughout gestation can also encourage natural onset of labour, negating the need, in many cases, for natual or allopathic “induction” procedures.