Hi and welcome to today's video where I'll be talking to you about cervical sweeps,
why they're carried out and how to make the procedure as comfortable as possible for you.
If you're new to my channel "welcome!" my name is Anja and I'm a hypnobirthing practitioner on my
youtube channel you'll find pregnancy, birth and postpartum related videos and relaxation audios.
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single Tuesday and I don't want you to miss out on any important information ;) A cervical sweep is also
known as a membrane sweep or a stretch and sweep and they're carried out to kick-start your labour.
Normally cervical sweeps are offered after 38 weeks of pregnancy but they're
usually offered to you at your 40-week antenatal appointment and your 41-week antenatal appointment.
There are two stages to a membrane sweep. The first stage involves your doctor or midwife
inserting one finger up inside your vagina to your cervical entrance and what they're doing
is a circular or sweep like motion and that's aiming to separate your baby's amniotic sac
from the cervix. When that happens your body releases a chemical called prostaglandins
and prostaglandins are there to soften and ripen your cervix even more so that labour can start
and further cervical dilation can begin. I just wanted to point out here that the first stage
of a membrane sweep is only manageable if your doctor or midwife can feel that your cervix is
already partially open. If they have a feel up there and they can feel that your cervix
hasn't opened at all naturally they won't be able to perform a membrane sweep so you might have to
go back in for another one in a few days or a week's time. The second stage of a membrane sweep
involves your doctor or midwife inserting two fingers into your vaginal opening right up
inside to your cervix then they'll place these two fingers inside your cervical opening and stretch
their two fingers apart like this. What that's aiming to do is further open and dilate your
cervix to accelerate the start of labour but the second stage of a membrane sweep otherwise known
as the stretch part of it will not be carried out if the first stage hasn't been carried out first.
The purpose of a cervical sweep is to trigger spontaneous or natural labour to start and
this reduces the chances of you needing to have a medical induction in the hospital.
If a membrane sweep is going to be successful it should trigger natural labour to start within 48
hours of having the procedure but normally one cervical sweep won't bring on labour. However, you
can have up to three sweeps so what some women will do is book a sweep at 38 weeks of pregnancy
another one at 39 weeks and then another one at 40 weeks of pregnancy. Technically though you can have
three sweeps in six days so what some women will do is have a sweep, if it hasn't brought on natural
labour, they'll go in for another one 72 hours after their first one, then, if the second one
doesn't bring on labour, they'll go in for a third sweep 72 hours after they've had their second one.
Yes, they're usually very very safe although if you experience leaking amniotic fluid or
heavy bleeding after having a sweep make sure that you contact your hospital immediately.
Most women regard cervical sweeps as uncomfortable but not necessarily painful after having a sweep
you might experience menstrual like cramping which could lead to contractions starting but also they
may not. You might also experience a little bit of spotting in your underwear but, as I said before,
if you experience heavy bleeding make sure that you contact your doctor straight away. To make
your cervical sweep procedure as comfortable as possible it's really important that you breathe in
slowly through your nose and out through your mouth as that's going to help you to relax more
deeply. It's also really important that you don't tense up your shoulders, your bum or your thighs
because that will just create tension in your body, tension in your abdominal and lower pelvic area
and make the procedure more uncomfortable and possibly painful. So just try to breathe as slowly
and gently as you possibly can and relax your body to make the procedure as comfortable as possible
for you. After you've had your cervical sweep if you place a hot water bottle on your lower
pelvic area and also take a few paracetamol that can take the edge off any menstrual like cramping
that you might experience. No you don't have to accept a cervical sweep if one is offered to you.
Some pregnant ladies like to feel productive at the end of the third trimester, they're ready to
get their baby out so they agree to having a cervical sweep to try and get things moving.
Other women are really fed up and feeling increasingly uncomfortable in the third trimester
and the last thing on their mind is being fiddled with inside their bodies and feeling
more uncomfortable than they already are. So some women choose to have a cervical sweep, others won't.
I, for example, declined a cervical sweep because I was already feeling so uncomfortable.
I was struggling to sleep in the final weeks of pregnancy, I had backache, hip ache and the last
thing I wanted was to have menstrual-like cramping and weird spotting coming out of my vagina
so I said no to a cervical sweep and my labour started when I was 41 weeks and three days
naturally without having to have any type of procedure beforehand. But, if you're one of those
ladies who likes to get things going, you don't like to sit still and be waiting for labour to
start, you want to feel like you're doing something productive to get things going, then by all means
agree to having a few cervical sweeps. It really is a personal choice, it's completely up to you.
Thank you so much for watching this video today. I hope that you found it useful
and informative :) If you've got any questions about cervical sweeps, please don't hesitate to leave me
a comment beneath the video description and I'll get back to you as soon as I possibly
can. If you're keen to sign up to one of my free hypnobirthing taster sessions on zoom, please
click the link in the video description below and for more information about my hypnobirthing
classes and courses also see the link in the video description. Take care and see you again soon, bye :)