does back labour always = posterior?

I had DD2 five days ago (a wonderful homebirth) and I suspect that she might've been posterior. She'd been in the correct position throughout my pregnancy and my midwife didn't say she was facing the wrong way but from the start of my labour, I had back pain. The pain was sometimes constant, sometimes only appearing during a contraction and sometimes, even at the end of labour, all I could feel was the pain in my back and I couldn't feel my uterus (or rather the surrounding whatnot) hurting at all. So basically, if you had a "back labour" does that automatically mean bubs was posterior? She was also enormous, 54cm 4.4kgs and my midwife said I had the biggest placenta she'd seen, so perhaps the backpain was caused by the general lack of space in my uterus? XD

Congratulations on the birth of your little girl!!!

I also had loads of back pain and nothing in the front, but dd wasn't posterior. When I (used to) get periods, it was always cramping at the front, so I was surprised labour was all back.

I would have thought the middie would mention if she was posterior...?

Congrats again!

No it doesnt. MIL had back labour with all her children and none were posterior. She described it as feeling like period pain though, not the normal pain descripton youd associate with a posterior labour.

Congratulations :D
My second baby was posterior and I had the 'numb' feeling in the abdomen that you describe, for some reason nobody picked up on it until her head was delivered and the whole time I'd been freaking out that something was seriously wrong because I couldn't push properly and was completely devoid of sensation at the front of my body.
My first baby was also a back labour, born facing the right way, but I still had sensation in my tummy - the pain, however, was all in my back. So... I guess no, a 'back labour' doesn't necessarily mean a posterior baby, but if there's very little/no sensation in the front, then chances are it is, kwim?
Sorry, that wasn't helpful at all, was it lol? :/

i had a back labour and my DD was faceing the right way.

Two back labours here, and both the right way round. I felt the bh cx in my front, but once I was in proper labour, all the pain was in my back.

Neenee congratualations on birthing your baby where you wanted to!!! :happyforyou:

Posterior labours generally present with contractions that are very close together and yes with very painful contractions felt predominantly in the back or "bum"...

However women also feel their labour in their backs & baby is not posterior... Remembering though that your baby may have been posterior and changed position...

Hopefully you will have a debrief with your midwife & she can share with you her observations during your labour and give you her take on things.

Congratulations again my love! :hug:

Thanks so much everyone :hug: I checked with my midwife and DD2 was posterior but turned the right away in the end anyway. It makes sense as my labour was quite long for a second timer (9hrs of active labour) and I had back pain before my labour as well. But all in all it was just wonderful so I can't complain XD