What's the Tea?

By Marley Archibald

In 2023, nearly 3.6 million babies were born in the United States—an incredible number of new lives and expectant mothers preparing their bodies for labor. A quick Google search reveals countless methods that claim to make labor shorter, smoother, or less painful. With so much advice out there, it can be overwhelming for pregnant women to figure out what’s genuinely beneficial. Today, we’ll dive into some provider-approved ways to support your pregnancy and labor journey.

One of the most commonly discussed topics in terms of labor preparation is red raspberry leaf tea. This tea, known for its uterine toning benefits, is often used in aiding PMS and reducing menstrual cramps, regulating menstrual cycles, supporting hormone balance, and assisting in productive contractions. We here at The Elderberry Co. are SO excited to be adding a new tea to our Wellness Tea line: Red Raspberry Hormone Harmony. This tea contains not just red raspberry leaf, but also: nettle, spearmint, ginger, oatstraw, rose petals, lemon balm, and chamomile. In addition to the benefits from red raspberry leaf, you are also getting some other wonderful women’s health benefits.In particular: nettle, for high micronutrient content, diuretic and detoxification properties, anti-inflammatory benefits, and bleeding support during and after labor and oatstraw, for healthy fetal development during pregnancy, overall maternal health, uterine toning, and milk production. 

I personally have been drinking our Hormone Harmony tea in the final weeks of my own pregnancy. In fact by the time you are reading this, I will be on my maternity leave! While it is obviously too early for me to personally speak to its benefits in labor and delivery, I know that these herbs are time-tested and the breadth of women’s testimonies for this tea are immense. I feel confident knowing that drinking this tea leading up to labor is helping to nourish my body! Now, for some other pregnancy “hacks” to help prepare your mind and body for labor.

Eating Dates

Recent meta-studies have shown that eating 70g of dates daily beginning at week 36/37 of pregnancy resulted in a statistically significant reduction in the length of second and third stage labor, a.k.a active labor and pushing time. 70g of dates is about 5 medjool dates per day. Blend into a smoothie or fill with peanut butter as a yummy, nutrient dense way to eat your daily dates!

Spinning Babies

According to the American Nurse Journal, the Spinning Babies method was successfully able to flip about 50% of breech babies being observed. Spinning Babies is a collection of recommended movements and stretches that encourage the baby to engage with the pelvis in an optimal position– whether it be flipping a breech baby, or rotating a sunny-side-up one! Plus, these exercises often help reduce pelvic discomfort for the mother by balancing unequal tension in the muscles, ligaments, and joints.

Curb Walking & The Miles Circuit

While there is no concrete evidence, The Miles Circuit is a provider-approved series of movements that are helpful as a natural method of labor induction or augmentation– similar to Spinning Babies, but with a different goal. So, if you are having some prodromal labor that seems to go on night after night, check with your care provider to see if they recommend The Miles Circuit!

Visualizations & Affirmations

It is no secret that the labor journey is just as much a mental one as it is a physical one. As such, the importance of preparing mentally and going into labor with a positive headspace cannot be overstated. One method that women may find helpful is the use of visualizations and affirmations– visual and verbal mantras that help center you through the intensity. Things like imagining yourself on a beach with each cresting wave being like the rise and fall of a contraction, or empowering phrases such as “I can do anything for 60 seconds.” 

Ultimately, I have found the #1 thing for my own labor prep to be surrender. I feel empowered by my preferences and vision for childbirth, however I recognize that the process of labor is fundamentally beyond our control regardless of the prep I do. We can and we should prepare our bodies and our minds for the marathon, but it is also important to go with the flow and not resist changes as they may come. I firmly believe that God has planned each baby’s entrance into this world, and that my body will give birth in His perfect timing! So, do not be dismayed if these pregnancy hacks do not immediately kickstart your labor, if you find yourself going overdue, or if labor ends up being longer than anticipated. Your body was designed for this, momma!