Labour Positions
I genuinely believe that taking a good childbirth education class and doing lots of birth prep can make a big, big, big difference when it’s labour time.
The CBE classes are wonderful, and one of the best parts is that they do labour stations; essentially you rotate around the room and try out different labouring and birthing positions. That’s great, of course, but it’s not something that families are practicing at home or can even remember very clearly so that’s why I’ve created this video for you here on labour stations.
Down below you’re going to find two different images that have a wide variety of labouring and pushing positions. You’ll also see that some positions are circled in yellow and others are blue; the yellow positions are more active and require more energy, whereas the blue are more restful and passive.
I suggest that you try out these positions in early labour when it’s becoming difficult to cope and the birther needs to focus more and find more comfort, and also these are all great for active labour. Early labour is more about ignoring labour, saving energy, eating, sleeping, resting so there isn’t as much need for these labour positions but they can come in handy if things pick up or get tougher to manage.
Again, the yellow positions are more active and the blue are more passive. I usually suggest that a birther change position every 20-30 minutes to help baby get into the best spot, to keep contractions up and of course find new ways/distractions for the birther to cope. The recommendation is 2 to 1; so two yellow positions, each for about 20 to 30 minutes, and then one blue position for the same 20 minutes which brings us to a cycle of positions every 60 to 90 minutes.
Take a peek, practice, and remember that these positions are just one piece of coping. Breathing is arguably the most important piece of coping but being in a comfortable position in labour will allow that breathwork to flow more freely. Practicing these positions can also be great for partners so they can begin to imagine how and when they fit in, in terms of which positions are conducive to hip squeezes, sacral pressure, hand massage and also practice giving sips of water and of course they can help time the positions as well.
I genuinely believe that taking a good childbirth education class and doing lots of birth prep can make a big, big, big difference when it’s labour time.
The CBE classes are wonderful, and one of the best parts is that they do labour stations; essentially you rotate around the room and try out different labouring and birthing positions. That’s great, of course, but it’s not something that families are practicing at home or can even remember very clearly so that’s why I’ve created this video for you here on labour stations.
Down below you’re going to find two different images that have a wide variety of labouring and pushing positions. You’ll also see that some positions are circled in yellow and others are blue; the yellow positions are more active and require more energy, whereas the blue are more restful and passive.
I suggest that you try out these positions in early labour when it’s becoming difficult to cope and the birther needs to focus more and find more comfort, and also these are all great for active labour. Early labour is more about ignoring labour, saving energy, eating, sleeping, resting so there isn’t as much need for these labour positions but they can come in handy if things pick up or get tougher to manage.
Again, the yellow positions are more active and the blue are more passive. I usually suggest that a birther change position every 20-30 minutes to help baby get into the best spot, to keep contractions up and of course find new ways/distractions for the birther to cope. The recommendation is 2 to 1; so two yellow positions, each for about 20 to 30 minutes, and then one blue position for the same 20 minutes which brings us to a cycle of positions every 60 to 90 minutes.
Take a peek, practice, and remember that these positions are just one piece of coping. Breathing is arguably the most important piece of coping but being in a comfortable position in labour will allow that breathwork to flow more freely. Practicing these positions can also be great for partners so they can begin to imagine how and when they fit in, in terms of which positions are conducive to hip squeezes, sacral pressure, hand massage and also practice giving sips of water and of course they can help time the positions as well.