Trish: Hey mama.

Welcome to Pregnancy unpacked.

I'm Trish, a labor nurse of 16 years, mom of seven, and your birth vesting.

I'm gonna be walking you through not just baby bumps and fruit sizes, but the entire identity shift that pregnancy.

C will be for you.

Each episode drops every Wednesday, and we're gonna unpack what's happening in your body, what to expect, what to do, what's normal, even when it feels extremely weird, and how to actually feel supported emotionally and physically.

You're gonna hear from me where I'm not gonna sugarcoat it, but I'm gonna be cheering you on along the way.

You can follow along each Wednesday because pregnancy deserves more than outdated advice and Google anxiety.

Hey mama.

Welcome back to Pregnancy.

Unpacked your 41 weeks and you're still pregnant.

I want you to take a breath.

This is not a failure.

This does not mean your body failed you.

So stay with me.

By the end of this video, you'll have a calm, practical plan that you can use tonight, and the exact words to say to your provider so you don't get railroaded into an induction unless you want one and one evidence-based, like little gentle nudge that.

Might start your labor naturally, and it often does within 24 hours, even if your provider already mentioned induction.

Even if you're exhausted or you're scared, don't worry.

As a labor and delivery nurse for 16 years, a high-risk labor and delivery nurse who's helped thousands of mamas and I've had over 15,000 moms take my birth classes online, I'll give you the tests that actually matter.

The scripts that protect your rights and the tools to increase your chance of a vaginal birth, whether you start labor naturally or you decide to go for a medical induction.

So let's go.

Here's my quick roadmap.

First I'm gonna explain why the due date isn't a deadline.

Then we're gonna talk about a safety checklist, what to check right now.

Then we're gonna talk about three real evidence-based nudges.

You can try.

Then the exact provider scripts that keep you in control and a little screenshot ready, 48 hour plan you can use tonight.

I'll also tell you how to get my balanced birth induction masterclass, which is normally $97 four $17 with the code pod PD at Labor nurse mama.com/induction.

It's the full playbook I use with my students.

And this is going to help you prepare your body to go into labor or prepare it for a medical induction because we want it prepared to up your chances for a vaginal birth.

First off, let's calm the fear.

Here's a fact.

Due dates are estimates.

They're a statistical average, not a countdown clock, and most first time moms give birth around 40 weeks and five days.

So 41 weeks, girl, you're still in the expected range, and your baby's timing is biological, not by a date on a calendar.

That's us, that's people.

So we're stopping the panic.

Panic just makes everything feel.

I want you to breathe.

I want you to take a deep, deep breath.

And let's talk about some tests and evidence and not a stinking calendar.

So do these three things today.

One, we're always watching fetal movement.

You, you wanna do the fetal movement counts.

You don't want to ignore anything That has to do with fetal movement.

That is what tells us that babies doing okay on the inside.

Two, agree to a non-stress test or a BPP, A biophysical profile.

This is where the provider can monitor the baby and let us know.

Baby's doing fine, everything's good, placenta's not, you know, falling apart and baby's doing good in there at the biophysical.

Profile, which is number three.

They're gonna check your amniotic fluid.

They're gonna check the levels, they're gonna check the movement.

They're going to do all the things to make sure that you can pause and wait and do some gentle nudges.

If any of those are concerning, that's when we move faster, and you can, I'm sure if you're past 40 weeks, they're already doing these things, but I want you to understand why they're doing them.

They're just making sure baby's doing good in there.

Okay, so hospitals have policy, but you have rights.

So yes, some stats show a very small risk increase after 41 weeks, but statistics without context are scary, not useful.

The real story depends on you individualized you.

And how are you and your baby doing?

We don't make decisions based on the calendar day for sure.

We use test results.

We use is baby moving?

Okay?

And share in that decision making.

You're not being reckless If your tests look normal, you're being informed if your tests are normal.

These are the things I tell my students and my clients to try, not magic.

But they move the odds.

So first, using purposeful movement and positioning, walking, squatting, using a birth ball, doing the mild circuit focused movement helps the baby engage.

When the baby engage, it pushes pressure onto the cervix, which tells the brain more oxytocin and its nice little cycle.

So aim.

Three 30 to 45 minute walking sessions every day.

If you can do the mile circuit every day, if you can, it's consistent stimulation, not exhaustion.

'cause also rest, second controlled nipple stimulation, it releases oxytocin and can start contractions.

The safe method that I teach is starting at 38 weeks.

So girl, you're past that.

You're gonna do 15 minutes on each side once a day.

And if you start to go in labor or you want to go in labor, you can do a full on blown nipple stimulation induction method, which I teach in the balanced induction class, but don't overdo it.

The third thing is membrane sweeps.

This is an in-office procedure where the provider will put their fingers in and separate the membrane slightly from the cervix is a little uncomfortable, but practice your mindset tools.

If you're one of my students, you have it all in the course it, but.

It can increase the chances of labor starting.

However, we have found that you need to have three in a row.

So ask them if they can schedule one every day, three days in a row, if best, if not every other day, three times in a row.

It's less invasive than starting with Pitocin.

There's also a bonus nudge that I use with my clients, which I've already been hinting at, and that.

The mile circuit.

It's a gentle, evidenced, informed sequence of movement and positions designed to encourage the baby to engage and stimulate your natural labor, beginning without pushing or straining.

The mile circuit combines walking, pelvic tilts, lunges, supported squats, and guided breathing in a specific rhythm.

And I have a blog post.

It's Labor nurse mama.com.

Slash miles circuit and we'll have it in the show notes as well.

And this is going to help you do the sequence, the timing, and part of it is actually rusting, so you'll enjoy it.

Do the circuit once a day, and.

This should help your body go into labor as well.

But there's some more things in my balanced labor induction class that I can't say on the outside words.

Also, change the power dynamics.

What you're telling yourself matters.

So stop saying anything negative.

If you start having negative thoughts, I want you to say, no, not today.

Like I grew up saying, not today, Satan, right?

I want you to change what you're telling yourself.

Remind yourself, your body knows what to do.

It doesn't need our help.

You can nudge it, right, but your body really does know what to do.

Your body got this baby's heart beating and your body will start your labor, okay?

And you can ask your provider, have conversations, don't make emotional decisions.

Take a pause, right?

Let me tell you about Claire.

She was told to induce that night because she was post eight.

She felt doomed and she was so emotional.

She came to our pregnancy hangout.

We talked about her Ns.

Ts were good.

Her BBPP was good, she asked for a membrane sweep.

She did the mild circuit.

She rested and she slept.

And at 41 weeks and two days, her contraction started on her own.

Now she did a couple of the things also that I teach on the inside, but she later wrote, I almost gave my birthday away because I thought being overdue, mint failure, and that breaks my heart.

You don't have to feel that way.

You can wait on your body and there's some things you can do to gently nudge.

So if this is resonating and you want to learn exactly what I teach inside the Balanced Induction Masterclass, you can grab it@labornursemama.com slash induction.

Use the code.

Pod, PODI.

Normally it's normally 97.

I think it's on sale for 27 right now, but you can get it for 17 for listening to the podcast.

I love y'all so much and I'm so proud of you.

You are 41 weeks and that is incredible.

Incredible.

You are a queen.

You are an absolute queen.

Now make sure you share this with someone else you know that is sitting there like, oh my God, I'm past my due date.

You have got this.

Both of you, all of you.

You guys are incredible.

Your body is incredible, and I am just so proud of you for making this.

Now, guard your mind guard.

Put up some boundaries.

I know people are sending you messages like, is the baby here yet?

Have someone else deal with that?

You don't have to deal with that.

That is not your problem.

Okay?

You worry about you and this baby, and you don't even have to do all the things.

If you just want to rest, that's also fine.

Just remember, you always have a right to say no to anyone.

You have a right to refuse interventions.

But should you, you need to know we can refuse everything, but should you, and you can answer that from knowledge, not fear.

So if this help hit subscribe, leave a review, share it with a friend, or comment below and tell us a little about you.

We read every comment.

If you're watching this on YouTube, share this with another mama.

We love you.

Remember, hospitals and doctors have policies, but you have rights.

You always have a right.

Okay, you guys, you've got this.

Rest.

Do the things.

Birth like a birth queen.

I am so proud of you and I will see you again next week.

Bye for now.