If you have had a healthy pregnancy without complication and haven’t gone into labour by 41 weeks you will have a routine appointment with your midwife to discuss the next steps.
What happens at your 41 week appointment?
You will be offered a membrane sweep, which is an internal examination of the cervix. During this examination your midwife will insert the tip of her finger into your cervix and sweep around the bag of membranes that cover your baby’s head. This has been shown to release hormones that may encourage labour to start within 24 hours. Sometimes the cervix isn’t yet open, and a sweep isn’t possible. You may be invited to return for more sweeps.Your midwife will also offer you a date to have your labour induced. This is normally recommended by 41 weeks and three, four or five days (depending on your maternity units guidelines and availability). Some maternity units are able to offer complementary therapy to encourage labour to start naturally. Ask your midwife about this.
If you have had a healthy pregnancy without complication and haven’t gone into labour by 41 weeks you will have a routine appointment with your midwife to discuss the next steps.
