What do you think about birthing all fours and not tearing?
Someone told me that if you birth on all fours with your bum in the air, you lessen the chance of tearing dramatically.
what are your experiences?
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What do you think about birthing all fours and not tearing?
Someone told me that if you birth on all fours with your bum in the air, you lessen the chance of tearing dramatically.
what are your experiences?
Yeah i'm interested in hearing what others have to say about this too.....
Wouldn't that be pushing uphill???
I labour on hands and knees but sit/stand right up to use gravity to birth. I have never had a tear, oh one graze.
I did it on all fours for a while....probably about 30-45mins. It was a comfy (as comfy as being in labour can be hehe) position for a little bit. I found when i tried to go to a different position it was really painful tho. Thats just me tho. As for tearing, i did tear a little bit, but as i said i did change to a different position & bodhi was a rather large babie
I supported a lady who was in the position for the pushing stage and she did tear a little....using gravity is always the best option i say...:D
i was on all fours for 2 hrs until i was ready to push bubs out. This was the both babies.
ON my back for both births... no tear #1 - 2degree tear #2... so not sure... Wanted to birth squatting or standing but couldnt muster the energy to stand!
try reading "new active birth" - it gives some great info
I'm just reading New Active Birth now and it says the best was to avoid tears and the most efficient way to birth is a supported squatting position. I'm gonna have to work on my leg muscles I think.
With #4 I was standing. Very easy pushing stage, and no tears, over 8 pound bub!!
With #5 I was on all fours, and they raised the bed head so I was really on my knees, holding the bed head, for pushing. Very easy pushing again, no tears, almost 9 pound bub.
I will definatly be getting a good gravity position this time too!!!
me too sara jane!!
I intended to birth that way or squatting but after a long labour it wasn't possible as I just didn't have the energy to be in that position. I laboured for hours on my knees next to the bed, then for hours on all fours on the bed, then on knees with arms over the bed head.
I tried pushing whilst in that last position but after a while I was too exhausted and ended up on my back. My 1st stage was 15 hours and 2nd stage was almost 2 hours so it got absolutely exhausting.
i laboured for 1st bub on knees holding the bed and delivered that way, i had grazing
baby 2.. was on back but sitting in a sense.. a had a graze there as well
baby 3 - standing up leaning in bed... no tear no graze... and omg so easy to push
I birthed bub No2 on all 4's and had a 2nd degree tear. It was along the scar from tearing the first bub and it was a very quick birth which nobody encouraged me to try to stop and let the perineum stretch. May have ben a different outcome if that was the case.
you cant gurantee in any position of no tearing as it depend on babies position, decent of baby and stretchyness of perineum and control during pushing.
Hands and knees and standing or sitting on loo do lessesn chance due to you positioning and way baby descends down birth cannal and peri.
Best way to facilitate as small a tear as possible is to:
1. suppoerive midwide
2. active birth and position changes
3. sit on loo, stand, or hand and knees for pushing
4 listen to guidance of midwife so that you allow perineum to stretch slowly.
good luck
I think some positions make tearing less likely than others, and certainly reduce your risk of someone deciding you don't have enough room and cutting you themselves.
I think there's lots of things at play as far as tearing though - the position of the baby, being able to follow your own urge to push and being given enough time for it to kick in, and also plenty of time to let your pelvic floor, and your perineum stretch around the baby.
The number of times I've seen women being roared at to push like billy-o as soon as the baby's head is on view....it's really awful. Just because they can see the baby's head they then feel the mother has to push it out asap. THIS is the cause of alot of tears that might not happen otherwise.
D, I birthed Abbey on all 4's, she was my only one born that way. I had no tears at all, but then I have never teared with any of my births. I did find that the desire to push wasn't as great as it was in other positions, but I was able to let Abbey just sit there and stretch me, I did little tiny pant pushes to get her out and never did that huge push. My body worked with me and helped to ease her out gently.
Goodluck huni.
WEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE So excited that you are UTD again. So wish I could share it with you hun :hug:
I birthed both girls on all fours.
Briley - She was found to be posterior. Had no back labour though oddly. When it came time to push I was pushing in the semi-sitting position for about 30 mins without my movement. Midwife suggested I turn around into the all fours position. I was'nt keen at first because of the "exposure" of it all but finally did. I pushed her out 30mins later. Did have some grazing but no tearing.
Colby - Knew as soon as I fell pregnant that I wanted to birth in an active position. Colby was anterior but had horrible back labour. Again thought that was odd. As soon as I felt the urge to push I immediately turned round onto all fours. It was an very instinctual moment where my body just took over. Colby was born 10 minutes later. No tearing. No grazing.
I birthed DS on all fours on the floor, well actually i was on a gym mat the hospital had and i was leaning over a big bean bag to support my belly IYKWIM, so actually on all fours more of my upper body was supported which was great! I had been trying to push for 1.5 hrs and nothing was happening and just felt so unnatural being on my back with my hoohah there to show the world....had quite a few spectators at that point too, all medicos!
No tears just a slight graze i was told!
I've delivered twice in this position and easily find it the most comfortable. I feel less vulnerable, more in control, and it hurts less! I haven't had any tears in three of my five deliveries (one tear six stitches labour #1, lithotomy position, 1 small tear, 1 stitch labour #2, knees to chest position), so I can't say if it made a difference there.
I was too exhausted to stand, I actually knelt on the bed, maybe on all fours, or leaning on the headboard? I had two small tears I think, three stitches, nothing serious at all. It seemed the only comfortable way to go at the time. For pretty much all my serious contractions I was laying on my side, and for each new contraction I had to switch sides! ALL my pain was in my back!
I am DEFINATELY going to have to read active birth, and work on my leg muscles! Make that ALL my muscles! One uber unfit and no-stamina chick here!
Some more things I just read in new active birth about not tearing:
"Use your own hands to feel the baby's head when it begins to crown and to ease the tissues or even massage them with a little oil. Interestingly, mothers who use their own hands to help the baby out rarely tear."
"Giving birth in a darkened room with as few people as possible, so you can let go without feeling 'watched', is the best way to avoid a tear"
"Feel free to shout spontaneously as the baby emerges - as your throat releases, so will your perineum!"
That could've been the reason I did'nt tear! Cause I did some serious shouting. :lol::
Looking back on the video...my peri did some serious stretching! :o
I wish I'd been in some other position instead of sitting up and leaning back in the bed (I had a foetal heart rate monitor attached so moving around unfortunatley wasn't an option). I think the position I was in was responsible for the labial tear that i got- five stitches that finished just above my clitoris (I know, that's way too much info).
I did months of peri massage thinking it would help me avoid tears. The irony is it probably did help me avoid peri tears, but made the labial one much worse...
I had no tearing.
I laboured on a fitball (despite continuous external monitoring) and then when I started having that irresistible urge to push my cervix was checked on the bed. I requested to stand again in order to push but my midwife said there probably wasn't going to be much difference for me. I birthed on my side and held my legs up:lol: (I had very sore shoulders the next day haha).
Why didn't I get a tear? My opinion is
* I laboured on a fitball so Bub was in a GREAT position for birth.
* I listened to my midwife and pushed when they said push and panted and 'held in it' when they said to stop.
* I was bathed in a warm liquid 'down there' during the pushing stage to keep my muscles loose.
* I automatically made my mouth into a little 'O' shape and breathed out. It always relaxes those muscles.
IMO the best thing you can do is push at the right times and pant at the right times. Don't birth too quickly. Looking back, I wonder whether be able to stop pushing was even better for us than I thought, my baby's umbilical cord was wrapped 'round his neck and my OB was able to untangle it easily because I 'held the baby in' after I birthed his head.
I would question the midwives about this next time 'round. I was hooked up to the foetal monitor for my entire labour - I was eventually induced about 18 days after my EDD - and I was able to labour on a fitball and to move about occasionally. I'm sure this isn't always possible, but I hope it can be for me again.:pray::
I laboured my whole labout standing or squatting over a toilet. The first two contractions where I was pushing (but we didnt "know") was on all fours. Then she wanted to do an internal because she didn't realise i was pushing - personally I think she just didnt want me to birth him like that. Anyway, I birthed him on my back. I only had a tiny graze.
I laboured on all fours for a while, was the most comfertable position and then changed to an assisted squat to deliver my DD. I did have a 1st degree tear but I felt that I couldn't stop pushing when the midwife told me to stop. I was also monitored as DD came early, but their was no way I could have coped on my back and luckily no one suggested it. My legs were like jelly afterwards though lol, I wasn't very fit but didn't notice the strain on them until after.
This is when its probably better if you either sit or lay down to stop the pressure of gravity pushing baby down onto your cervix even more.:
Just a bit of advice for next time! ;) Good luck!