Ways to labour

With DD i was on constant monitoring and there fore no one would allow me to move off my back the whole time. Only time i was allowed to move was when i needed to use the bathroom. I asked to sit up and they said no, again only time i was allowed to sit up was when i was pushing. I thought at the time this was fine (even tho i had great plans to move around, try different positions etc....but wasnt to be).

In the end i needed a vac extraction cos Chels wouldnt come out and i got a 2nd degree tear as a result. When i had my 12 week appointment for M2 at the hospital i was speaking to the midwife about it and she said i tore because i was on my back the whole time.. and gravity couldnt help... which all makes sense to me. She also told me not to let the midwifes or dr's labour that way again?

So in saying that..... what positions are the best? and how would i go about saying 'No i dont wanna be on my back again, i wanna choose my positions'.....if i once again get monitored....

I guess im worried ill tear again and i want this time to go close to plan as possible. I know its not always going to be that way.... but i worked hard on my last birth plan and in the end i got nothing i wanted at all.

Hey Kim,
Can you find out if they have a mobile monitoring system? I had one and because I was induced and on a drip had to have constant monitoring and was able to even go in the bath with it on. Even with the normal one I moved around as much as I could - the midwife would just adjust the monitor thingy or put pressure on it to get bubs heartbeat while I moved around.

Maybe you could negotiate that every 20-30 minutes you get monitored for 10 or something like that so you can still move around and try different possies... I found being on the fit ball great, and also putting the bed up as high as it would go and standing up and leaning over it with a pillow. All fours and kneeling I found too hard on my knees but did it for a change for a few contractions at a time. But I have to say the best pain relief for me was the bath.... it was great. Good luck with your plan - hope you get some of your choices this time hun!

Thanks Tan i will def ask about it this time if it happens again. It was so strict.. wouldnt let me do anything....was fine til they done ARM and found meconium. :(

Will you have a support person who can advocate for you - 2 people saying this is what we want is more effective than one IYKWIM.

With Mya-Rose i had so many tubes & cords hanging off me, i was stuck on my back.
With Bodhi all was good & was able to get around. I tried leaning over the bed on all fours. Was good for a while, but after a a bit my back was just killing so much i could hardly move or hold myself up. They then moved me to a birthing stool. On this i was able to sit upright & have DF behid me rubbing my back. I would def recomend the birthing stool. I just found i had alot more control over my body and what i was doing.

If there are no concerns with your pregnancy and you aren't induced and don't have an epidural then there shouldn't be a need for constant monitoring. Thus you would be able to move around and get into the most comfortable positions for you. With my last birth I was not hooked up to a monitor, I was free to move around and spend most of my (admittedly short) labour sitting upright on an exercise ball in the shower. The midwife on a couple of occasions, particularly as Matilda was about to be born, used the little heartbeat monitor that they use in ante-natal visits to check her heartbeat and make sure all was fine.

Don't let your care-givers just tell you what to do - know your options. They cannot force you to do anything and when they propose doing something, like hook you up to a monitor or ARM (which also is usually unnecessary), make them give you their reasons.

With your first birth they probably insisted on monitoring you because they discovered meconium. I think they need to keep you still to allow the monitors to work.
Having said that (I HATE being monitored). Doctors still need to accept that a woman in labour can go through the process alot better if she is allowed to position herself comfortably.

The positon I have adopted each birth is: leaning/kneeling over the top end of the bed. Basically, I have the head end of the bed raised on approx. 45 degree angle and then I use a bean bag/2 pillows to create a hole for my baby bump to fit into. This way I don't have to hold myself up, gravity works with me and the midwife/dr can still access the baby as its born.

Everyone / everyones circumstances are different though. Don't be affraid to ask 'why' if your midwife insists on something.

Wishing you all the best.

good point seventh heaven coz i was watching this birth vid at prenatal class yesterday n the lady in the vid was told to get on her side although she was more confortable on the birthing ball. as soon as she got on her side the contractions became worst! i forgot to ask the mw why she was asked to do so. i thought it wasnt right from my point of view....the lady ended up giving birth on her knees, leaning forward.

i'm thinking of that position too since i would like all the help gravity can give me. reclining n semi reclining is not really on my list....

Definitely agree on having an extra advocate who knows your options and rights. Have supported women before with mec and they were able to have intermittent monitoring and absolutely able to move, sit on the fitball etc. Just because you had mec last time doesnt mean you will now - I had it with Ris but not Elijah and had a great birth - got into hospital 9cms and pushed him out.

I strongly recommend getting New Active Birth by Janet Balaskas, its all about active birth, and / or the Pink Kit. Take back the power ;)

I second that motion, Kelly!

Juju Sundin has a t-shirt in her book, "Birth Skills" that says,

"Keep Moving! Keep Moving! Keep Moving!"

I say to my clients, "Be a Moving Target".

Our Doula Programme director told us, "Put your bags on the bed when you enter the room."

One lovely birth centre midwife entered the room and said to me, "I love how you have moved the bed." - I'd moved it because my client wanted her birth mat and ball on the floor near the couch. The midwife was thrilled that the mother was moving the room around to suit herself. (She was a wonderful, empowering midwife!)

One younger mum told me recently, "They wouldn't let me off the bed because of the monitor, so I went to the bathroom and locked the door. They were trying to make me come out, but I stayed in there, stayed upright and had a baby."

Gutsy girl!

I think that continuous monitoring can actually be the 'Kiss of Death' for a normal labour. The studies show that continuous monotoring does NOT improve outcomes for the babies, but by taking away the mother's ability to use gravity, mobility and privacy to help her labour progress, it greatly increases her chance of being cut, without improving safety for the baby.

I know several midwives who, aware of the scientific reviews, absolutely refuse to do continuous monotoring on women except in extenuating circumstances.

The Spinning Babies Website, The Pink Kit and New Active Birth all have great ideas for using your healthy strong muscles during labour to keep your pelvis mobile, supple and open.

A Doula can be a great help in assisting you to sift through the info and practice the techniques - before you go into labour.

Best wishes for an active, assertive birth!

Thanks heaps Kelly and Julie.. most appreciated. I have a doula.. only a trainee tho...in fact she is also one of my friends...so im hoping she helps me out alot!!

I had no staining when my waters went but some appeared closer to birth. We were at home, DD's head was visible, they had no option but to catch her! I was on my back to deliver because i'd laid down for a VE (next time i will tell her if she can't do it when i'm kneeling on all fours then she can't do it at all!).

I found sitting backwards astride a dining chair, leaning over the back of it (with a pillow over it to rest arms/face on) was really great. DP sat right in front of me and got me through contractions, my birth assistant Jen sat behind me at some points and rubbed/pressed my back, and the forward-slung bump helped DD turn from a bit posterior to anterior in under 2 hours.

It also (might not be a consideration for you) helped me keep control in what was an extremely fast labour. At 2.30pm i was 2-3cm dilated and 25% effaced, at 6.20pm DD was born after 2 hours of me bellowing so i didn't push and one half-hearted push when i realised, at the height of the contraction when i was on my back, what "crowning" actually MEANT. She SHOT out!

Walking around, squatting, rocking on my knees were all good in early labour, but once my body started to move it MOVED and the chair was my best friend - kept my pelvis open but allowed me to sit still and try to surf on the waves instead of drowning.

B

I found a cross between kneeling and all fours worked well for me. With pg2 I had painful bh so I practised positions during them to see what was relatively comfortable. That worked every time. I had a 3 hour labour and spent it in that position. THe mw said as soon as she saw me in that position she knew I'd get by without pain relief (which as just as well as I didn't have time for pain relief).

Kim - When i had tori i spent most of the labour on my fitball at home and then at the hospital again on the ball but in the shower and i ended up with her popping out while i was climbing up onto the bed to get on all 4s.
With charlotte though, as you know i was induced and had to be monitored which was terrible and they doubted that what i was feeling was real contractions untill they started reading the print outs from the monitor. I managed to at some stage of it convince one of the midwives to let me off the machine so i could go for a walk for a while (we agreed on 15mins) and that was great and obviously when i managed to get most of 2nd stage over with. Almost as soon as i got back to the room i asked to be taken to the birthing suit (they still didnt believe i was ready though) when i got around to the birthing suit i was hooked up again but this time i had a lovely midwife who let me move as much as i wanted and she just followed me around adjusting the monitor and even holding it on for a while there. I spent most of that time on my knees on a bean bag on the floor with my head resting on my arms on the end of the bed which had been lowered as much as possible. I had charlotte 40 mins after going to the birthing suite which was only 4.5 hours since the gel had been placed.
I would definately do all you can to stay upright and move around as much as you feel you need to this time and as you say, let nature and gravity do its thing!

Thats so cool you are having a doula in training, i hope i find people to let me attend when i do my training!

It's not like they are literally going to hold you down (which would be assault if you had refused) so just tell them you are moving around and then do it. If you really really do need constant monitoring insist on a wireless belt, or perhaps the internal monitor (they attach it to bubs head and then tape it to your leg, though I think this would be a bit distressing for bubs).
And an advocate is a great idea.
Good Luck!

I was stuck on my back when in labour with my daughter. It was so much more painful then when i birthed my DS!

This time I am definitely going to birth on all fours :D

Goodluck :)