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WOMEN'S & CHILDREN'S | Family Maternity Center | Pregnancy Resource Center | Pregnancy Library | Delivery Methods | Are enemas the norm?
Are enemas the norm?
Used to be that the "welcome" when you arrived at the hospital to give birth was an enema. Healthcare providers routinely prescribed them to clear out the rectum and give the baby more room.
However, it's now recognized that nature usually takes care of this during early labor. You may find yourself running to the bathroom with "nature's diarrhea" when you enter labor, but you won't find yourself facing an enema at the hospital.
Sometimes a healthcare provider may try an enema to get labor started. This may be done if your cervix is very ripe, the baby's head is already engaged and you are trying to avoid having labor induced. Sometimes stimulating the bowel can jumpstart the process.
Date last reviewed: October 2002.
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