Written By: Debjani Arora | Updated : November 2, 2015 6:54 PM IST
You can never be certain with labour. Sometimes your pain can start before your due date and at times you might not feel any, way past your expected due date. While experiencing labour pain early isn t of much worry, but not experiencing pain for long after you have crossed your due date could be a matter of concern. The reason being, post term pregnancy could pose risk to both, mother and baby. Here is how post term pregnancy affects the health of mother and baby.
In case you have passed your due date, here is what you need to do:
Be ready to go to the hospital: In case of a delayed or post term pregnancy, labour can strike you anytime, anywhere. So be ready to go the hospital and prepare well. This means, keep your maternity bag ready and keep your family and friends in loop. So as soon as you feel the contractions, you can get help from them and rush to the hospital in time. Here are 23 things that you need to pack in your maternity bag.
Talk to your doctor: Crossing your due date is not uncommon or an emergency, but it has certain associated risks for both the mother and the baby, says Dr Anil Magdum, consultant gynaecologist, Sunrise Hospital, Mumbai. So meet your doctor to go through a check-up to be certain about your health and that of your baby s. Your doctor would be the right person to tell you if you should wait longer for labour to set in or opt for an emergency C-section to avoid further complications. Here is what happens to you after a C-section.
Opt to induce labour: When your baby is inside your womb for a longer time, your baby s head could become bigger, the amniotic fluid could decrease in quantity, giving rise to fetal distress. To avoid these complications, your doctor might tell you to induce labour medically by injecting certain medications. However, there are natural ways to induce labour that are safe. Here are 12 ways in which you can induce labour naturally.
Check on fetal health status: If you are five days past your due date, go for fetal monitoring, count your fetal kicks, and opt for NST (non-stress test), ultrasound and biophysical profile (BPP) to know about fetal wellbeing. These are prime indicators and could give you cues on what could go wrong during a post term pregnancy.
Be open to your doctor s suggestions: In most cases, doctors advise for a C-section in post term pregnancies. This is done to relieve the fetus of distress and avoid injury to the mother during natural labour. Most of the time going for a C-section seems to be the best option to deliver a baby in post term pregnancies. Read to know what happens after a delivery and why no one speaks about it.
Image source: Getty Images
For more articles on Pregnancy, visit our Pregnancysection. For daily free health tips, sign up for our newsletter.
Disclaimer: The content on TheHealthSite.com is only for informational purposes. It is not at all professional medical advice. Always consult your doctor or a healthcare specialist for any questions regarding your health or a medical condition.
