Giving Birth in a standing position

[2010BEBES]

My daughter is investigating on giving birth in a standing position. We know that women in peruvian mountains use to give birth in this form and it is said that ir is more natural for the baby to come in this form especially without anesthesia.

Has anyone heard something about this or have any experience on this birth form?

[Sarah108]

Hi, when I was investigating ways to give birth, my gynaecologist recommended that the easiest way to give birth naturally, because of gravity, is by squatting (standing) with two people holding you on either side.

I eventually opted for caesar (as most women do in South Africa) so I can't comment on it's success first hand, but he says he uses it for all his natural patients.

[evilkitten]

why dont you google something on hypno birthing. i used that method and it works wonder for me.

[heyblue41]

I second the hypno birthing.  And get a good Doula.  I gave birth to my second child on my hands and knees.  It was a much easier birth than my first, which was the normal on your back feet in the air.  I don't know if I could have managed standing without alot of support.  The important thing is to make sure the hospital or center where you plan to give birth will allow you to give birth in whatever position you prefer, and you doctor will allow it also.  Some of them don't because of their malpractice insurance.  They have a standard protocol and if you do something different they might have problems with their insurance if you do something different.  Unfortuantley this is what our overly litigious society has done to obstetrics.

[LocaHijabi]

It is an excellent and second to the best (squatting) position in giving birth. I had researched natural birthing after watching Business of Being Born by Ricki Lake.  It is an excellent documentary on how it has become a business and the mothers needs are secondary to what the hospitals rules and policies are.

I gave birth to my son in water doing hypno babies and had a wonderful experience.  If your daughter can, she should try and get these books or borrow it from library, since they do carry most of them depending on the library.  Ina May's Guide to Childbirth, Back Labor No More and Active Birth : The New Approach to Giving Birth Naturally, Revised Edition by Janet Balaskas.  These are all excellent books esp for those wanting to do it naturally with tons of information. 

Also, having a doula really helps!  I had one who was a friend and she encouraged and supported me all the way, which also made a huge difference in having a positive birth experience.  It is good to be informed in all the good natural birthing positions.  Standing may or may not work out for your daughter, so knowing other positions during labor, helps. 

Hope this helps =)

FehMina

[LocaHijabi]

Also to like Heyblue said, your daughter will need to find a hospital or a birthing center to give her full liberty to do it in a position thats comfortable for her.  Many hospitals do not allow that.  I had picked a hospital that was an hour and half from my house that allowed it, compared to one of the best hospitals in the State which was 5 mins away from me, but they had a high Cesarean rate and were very rigid with their rules.

[bella]

i had the most beautiful birth experience with my last 2 birth . it was the best thing that a woman could experience in a life time . ok my first was a hospital birth which ended  in the doctors injuring my beautiful baby and me almost lost my life .
that is why i always question whatever doctors say and do my own homework and investigation .
i  did lots of preparation during pregnancy , yoga , visualization , watched lots of u tube unasssited water birth , they really help a lot and went on forums where mums write about their own experience . pain is really relative and in our mind and can with the fear you might have hinder your progress .
i was so prepared and needed nobody but my husband around me . and the same way we conceived our babies privately intimately this is how we welcomed them to the world , in our bedroom , in a birthing pool , i was standing squatting most of the time and of course i was in vertical postiton when babies emerged . my baby boy weighed 4.5 kgs . i have a friend doctor who said considering my history with my dd1 ( brain injury ) and  the baby wiehgt if i was in hospital they would have opted for c-section .
look i know so much about giving birth , my dream is to be able to assist future mums with giving birth . giving birth is not a medical procedure , and only when it is turned this way that complications can occur .
there are wonderful books i can recommend to prepare you physically and mentally for labour . you don't really have to do it my way at home , although you can , but being prepared can really help a lot you should look at birthing centers that allow mum to deliver naturally move around , having birthing pools , water is wonderful to help with pain .
good luck and if you have any questions please write back .
i really would have a baby a year just for those magical moments we experienced .
love and blessings
viv 

[Skylark]

Yes, it is pretty common position for natural birth, some woman I attended chose it and upright positions in general work great. Worst position by far, physiologically, is on your back. In water you can assume different positions more easily.But when it comes to birth, you can not predict ahead f time what would work best for you for that particular birth. You just need to move, work with your body, try different positions (that is a good reason for investigating your options ahead of time or following your midwife directions, suggestions) and see what will work. Remember it would be different from person to person and from birth to birth.

[2010BEBES]

Thank you for your comments. Truthfully I have to confess that i am afraid of different forms of bith other than natural birth laying down. But since she mention this other form to me i wanted to know your opinion and it seems it is not as terrible as i thought.

Also to like Heyblue said, your daughter will need to find a hospital or a birthing center to give her full liberty to do it in a position thats comfortable for her.  Many hospitals do not allow that.  I had picked a hospital that was an hour and half from my house that allowed it, compared to one of the best hospitals in the State which was 5 mins away from me, but they had a high Cesarean rate and were very rigid with their rules.

Besides here in Peru doctors also are doing a lot of cesareas liq LocaHijabi mention and i think it is not a good practive. Thank god my daugther's ginecologist (a woman) is not this type of doctors.
Thank you all again for your responces and sharing experiences.
 

[Skylark]

What do you mean by "natural birth laying down". Indeed natural birth can happen in any position that woman would chose to birth. However if you mean that Lithotomy Position = natural, it would be a misconception. Laying on the back for giving birth per se is not natural or normal in itself. It can happen and did happened occasionally for natural birth, particularly as one of the manipulation techniques in case of shoulder distortia, when it is done as one of the transitional positions, proceeded with some other position after that. And in a few rare cases, certain positioning of the baby leads mommy to chose lithotomy position, which is normal -- to follow your body urges during birth.

But you need to be careful to not just "chose position"  even before the labor, just because that is the only thing the doctor does, etc. That would be far from natural, and it can pose undue pain and complications. Remember, you would want to support mommy in following her body and baby's needs and be as non-intrusive as possible, then she would have the birth that she meant to have and it would go the best way!

I thought, may be just a brief information on "laying on the back" lithotomy position can be a help, so you can have the information to work with:

The lithotomy position has been widely used by obstetricians as it allows easiest access to the mother, not necessary for mother's or baby's benefits or safety. This position is not based in evidence.  It comes with a multitude of poor factors, including narrowing of the pelvic outlet, placing pressure on the tailbone, restricting the mother's movement, placing undue stress on her perineum increasing the risk of tearing, working against gravity, increasing discomfort, lengthening the pushing stage, increasing the risk of a fetal malpresentation, and effectively making the mother push uphill against gravity. 

If a mother is placed in this position during her labour, it  compresses the main blood vessels including the vena cava, which limits the blood flow to the baby and places it at greater risk of fetal distress. That is why many mommies who are pressured to labor in that position strapped to various monitoring devices, end up with fetal distress and subsequent C-section.  Lower rates of blood flow also causes more mothers and babies to die unnecessarily during childbirth. 

Roberto Caldeyro-Barcia, past president of the International Federation of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, summed up it quite nicely in his statement, "Except for being hanged by the feet, the supine position is the worst conceivable position for labor and delivery".

Use of the lithotomy position has declined in all industrialized nations with one exception.  Yep, you guessed it - the United States.  

So, what can you do?  How can you avoid being yet another statistic who is forced into this unnatural birth position?

First of all, choose your care provider wisely.  Take the interview process seriously.  You must ask the tough questions and be prepared to keep searching until you find a care provider who is more interested in providing evidence-based care than in sticking to their agenda.

You must also be sure to write a birth plan stating your preferences for pushing.  Remember, if you give birth in a hospital, you not only have to deal with the  doctor's practices, but also be prepared that the nursing staff may not be well-educated in using effective birth positions. Choose midwife, they are highly trained to manage natural birth!!!gn

In most cases, this lack of evidence-based care is due to ignorance, not malice.  Physicians are simply practicing what they have been taught.  Their actions in promoting the lithotomy position are the result of a broken maternity care system that fails to truly educate its students.



Here are some references:

REFERENCES
Seehusen Dean A. et al, Improving women's experience during speculum examinations at routine gynaecological visits: randomised clinical trial British Medical Journal. 2006;333:171 (22 July), doi:10.1136/bmj.38888.588519.55


Anema J. G. ; A. F. Morey, J. W. McAninch, L. A. Mario and H. Wessells Complications related to the high lithotomy position during urethral reconstruction The Journal of Urology (J. urol.) 2000, vol. 164, no2, pp. 360-363 (42 ref.) ISSN 0022-5347.


Cohen, Stephen A., MD and W. Glenn Hurt, MD Compartment Syndrome Associated with Lithotomy Position and Intermittent Compression Stockings Obstetrics & Gynecology, 2001;97:832-833.


Johanson, Richard, Mary Newburn, and Alison Macfarlane Has the medicalisation of childbirth gone too far? British Medical Journal 2002;324:892-895, published 13 April 2002


Bachmann, Gloria, M.D. 2001 The Importance of Obtaining a Sexual History. UMDNJ Robert Wood Johnson Medical School New Brunswick, New Jersey.


Gupta JK, Hofmeyr GJ, Smyth R. Position in the second stage of labour for women without epidural anaesthesia. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2004, Issue 1. Art. No.: CD002006. DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD002006.pub2.


Hunter S, Hofmeyr GJ, Kulier R. Hands and knees posture in late pregnancy or labour for fetal malposition (lateral or posterior). Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2007, Issue 4. Art. No.: CD001063. DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD001063.pub3.

[Skylark]

oh, and I just wanted to say, -- so happy that your daughter has good open minded doctor!

[2010BEBES]

What do you mean by "natural birth laying down". Indeed natural birth can happen in any position that woman would chose to birth. However if you mean that Lithotomy Position = natural, it would be a misconception. Laying on the back for giving birth per se is not natural or normal in itself. ....

...Use of the lithotomy position has declined in all industrialized nations with one exception.  Yep, you guessed it - the United States. 

Thanks a lot Skylark, you know a lot about this subject. Thanks also for the references.
I understand why you say that lithotomy position is not the 'natural or normal' form of giving birth . I shoul have said that it is the most used.
I think not only in the United States but also here in Peru, Ii think the numbers are not declining and especially not only lithotomy but with cesarea is raising up. It looks that doctors are more comfortable with planning the birth time instead of waiting to receive a call at any time of day or night as it use to be in my time.

The thing is that it is one of the most important day in a woman's life giving birth to his child and all the information is welcome.
Thanks you all again

[Skylark]

The thing is that it is one of the most important day in a woman's life giving birth to his child

So true, you are right about that!

[rizoo]

hi bella
 I'm almost 34 weeks now. i want give natural birth u said that u know some book that give information on birth . can u seen name of some good book that i can get information on this.

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