In the United States an estimated one in every five labors is induced. Many doctors recommend induction when:

• The mother is one to two weeks beyond her due date and labor hasn’t started naturally.
• The water has broken but the mother is not having contractions
• The placenta has separated from the wall of the uterus or begun to deteriorate.
• The amniotic fluid surrounding the baby has diminished.
• The baby is not growing at the expected rate.
• The mother has a medical condition, putting the baby and/or herself at risk.

HOMEOPATHY TO INDUCE LABOR
Two commonly used homeopathy to induce labor remedies are Pulsatilla and Caulophyllum. The Faculty of Homeopathy researched the use of these homeopathy to induce labor remedies and did not find any incidents of damage caused by using them. The worst damage homeopathy to induce labor can do is be ineffective by selecting the wrong remedy.

A homeopath will advise which remedies are best. If he/she can attend the birth, they will supply a labor kit with instructions.

The following Homeopathy to induce labor remedies are often required both during and after labor. If you are new to homeopathy or unable to consult a homeopath, start with these:

• Aconite: used when labor is too fast (at any stage); the pains are very strong and the patient feels a sense of panic
• Amica: used from time to time during labor to help the muscles function properly; to reduce the bruised feeling after deliver and to relieve the physical exertion of labor
• Kali phos: used for simple exhaustion during labor, mental, emotional and physical stress
• Caullophyllum: taken during a difficult labor when the cervix is slow to dilate and the pains are strong but ineffective. The patient feels cold and shaky. (Consult a registered homeopath. This remedy is not available over the counter.)
• Pulsatilla: used when contractions are weak and irregular, the cervix is slow to dilate and the patient feels clingy and tearful. They may talk about giving up and going home.

As a rule of thumb, take one dose of the selected homeopathy to induce labor remedy three times daily for up to three days. Let tablets dissolve under the tongue. Hard tablets that do not dissolve may be chewed.

Stop when you feel better. Sometimes during labor, patients find that they may need to take a homeopathy to induce labor remedy more often or take more than one remedy in a single day. It is fine to change the remedies according to the patient’s needs. During labor a patient may require different remedies during each stage of the birthing process.