Comments on: Healthy Birth Blog Carnival: Birthing On Our Backs

By: michelle

michelle — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 05:50:30 +0000

Yes, the freedom to move around is key and what works for one woman might not work for another. I moved from kneeling to standing while my 2nd daughter was crowning because I had an overwhelming urge to stand up – my midwife remarked afterwards that she’d never seen a woman do that before but it was exactly the right movement to bring my daughter down. She was born with her right arm up by her left ear, but she didn’t get stuck and I didn’t tear.

Hooray for freedom of movement!

By: Acacia

Acacia — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 13:44:39 +0000

I am so sorry for your sister!! That is horrible. I would have felt so angry. Changing positions is what may have saved Everett from being cesarean.
He was posterior and my back labor was so intense I had a hard time feeling when contractions began and stopped so I had a lot of positions. I was happy to have a MW that let me move around, but at the same time disappointed because I was pushing in the same position (ironically, that was sort of semi-sitting) in a bath tub for over 2 hrs. I shouldn’t have been in there for so long or in that position, but she didn’t suggest anything and I was so in it I had no idea how long it had been or really didn’t notice what position I had ended up in. When we finally did move to hands-and-knees he was born in less than 45 minutes.

By: Dionna

Dionna — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 17:26:45 +0000

Melodie – I totally agree. What works for one woman may be labor stalling for another.
Thank you for all of the comments, ladies! I too, love birth stories. What a connecting thread between mamas :)

By: Melodie

Melodie — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 16:53:21 +0000

I love reading birth stories. So interesting what works for some moms and not for others and how different hospital personnel interfere while others do not. I wish moms were given the freedom to choose what feels best for them all of then time though.

By: megan

megan — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 03:10:42 +0000

With all my babies (4) I labored standing up but when it came to pushing I preferred a semi-reclined position. The longest I pushed was 15 minutes with the first, thirteen with the second, five with the third, and eight with the fourth, he was hung up on my pelvis(I actually scooted farther down so my lower back was flat and that freed him up). I think I had a short pushing stage b/c I stood up for all of my labor and baby dropped into position easier. My first two were hospital births and the last two were home births. The second was a horrendous hospital birth b/c I was put on the staff time table and when I got back on the bed my labor stalled out and they wouldn’t let me get back up. They hooked me up to a pit drip thinking they had lots of time and warned me of a c-section possibility, thirteen minutes later he came roaring into this world sending everyone hustling. Hence the homebirths for babies three and four.

By: Lauren @ Hobo Mama

Lauren @ Hobo Mama — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 00:32:02 +0000

Really interesting stories. I loved my pushing time because it finally relieved the back pressure and made me feel like I was really doing something. I was in much more of a sitting/reclining position than I’d thought I would be. I expected, based on my study beforehand, to want to push in a more active position, but reclining really worked fine for me. I mean, I wasn’t lying flat, but I was still surprised at how traditional-hospital-y it ended up being and yet it was perfect. I guess just going with what your body feels is right, huh? We tried squatting, and it was so intense that I couldn’t differentiate the pushing contractions and was trying to push all the time. Leaning back gave me and my body a chance to recover between urges.

Speaking of which, I need my write my post for this carnival… :)

By: curlymonkey

curlymonkey — Tue, 06 Apr 2010 23:15:02 +0000

I was lying on my back for 12 hours for my first child (hospital birth) and coached to push, I hated it! This is the reason why my second child was born at home (UC). Squatting was the way!
Don’t get me start on the subject, I am a birth junkie now!

By: mamapoekie

mamapoekie — Tue, 06 Apr 2010 21:01:52 +0000

Your sister being pushed into lying back is exactly what happened to me. It is so absolutely wrong how birth professionals abuse a mothers vulnerability to get them to do what makes things easier on them. I also wrote about it in my entry.

By: Amber

Amber — Tue, 06 Apr 2010 17:17:10 +0000

I’ve given birth twice – the first time was semi-sitting, and the second time was hands-and-knees. Somewhat ironically, I far preferred the more traditional semi-sitting and wanted to be in that position for my second baby, but in the act of pushing I couldn’t manage it. It’s amazing how it can feel totally impossible to roll over or move 2 feet when you’re in certain stages of childbirth. It’s intense, man.

Regardless, in both births my caregivers were listening to me, and doing the best they could FOR ME. And so I feel good about it. I have an acquaintance whose first child was born 2 days after my second child, and she was made to move from hands and knees to her back for birth, which she didn’t like. I can understand that certain positions are more convenient for birth attendants, but surely their convenience matters MUCH LESS than a mother’s comfort and safety in birth!

By: NavelgazingBajan (Nicole)

NavelgazingBajan (Nicole) — Tue, 06 Apr 2010 14:41:47 +0000

I’m so sorry your sister was treated that way. When I was in labor I felt the most uncomfortable when I was laying on my back. I ended up giving birth on my hands and knees while draped over a birth ball.