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Not all babies march to the same beat! There is much talk about positioning of babies these days – and it can put mothers under a lot of undue stress. We must remember that in previous generations, mothers didn’t even know what position their baby was in until the birth. Often mothers now don’t know that their babies are breech until their caregivers notify them.
Most babies do actually turn into what is considered to be the ‘optimal position for birthing’ before their birthing day. However, sometimes the baby is born facing forward (posterior) or in a bottom-first or feet-first position (breech). This is often referred to as a ‘variation of normal’.
The most important thing to remember is ‘not to worry’. There are many non-invasive ways that babies can be encouraged to turn around, and worrying is counterproductive.
Some of the medical procedures associated with turning breech babies, like external cephalic version (ECV) can involve risk to your baby, so it is important to be informed and aware of all of your options.
Vaginal breech delivery is becoming more available as a choice to mothers – however, you really need to do your homework to find someone who will support you, as the numbers of those obstetricians and midwives choosing to attend vaginal breech birth are still low. The number of doctors and midwives who have practical training and skills in vaginal breech delivery has dropped significantly in recent decades – with the increase in caesarean delivery for breech.
Your instincts are sure to guide you in making the right decision for yourself and your baby.
Here is some advice regarding getting Bubba into the head-down position for birth –
Firstly, please ensure that you have a visualisation of your baby in the Perfect Position for Birthing up somewhere you see it and keep focusing on it and talking to your baby.
Sit forward as much as possible and start getting into the hands and knees Polar Bear position – with the knees as wide apart as possible, and the head and arms resting on the floor for periods of time each day.
Hypnosis is a very powerful tool that can used to encourage baby to turn to the optimum position for birth.
You may like to download our Breech Turn track (which is suitable for both breech and posterior). A hypnosis session can assist you to completely relax and let go of any underlying concerns or fears leading up to the birth.
Continue to listen to Affirmations and other hypnosis tracks that are available for purchase from our website shop. Visualise your baby turning in a pool of water, turning into the vertex position each time you take a deep breath. Surge of the Sea is a good track to use for this visualisation.
If you have completed a hypnobirthing course – contact your practitioner more support.
We also highly recommend that you look into using acupuncture, chiropractic and other therapies to assist baby in turning.
Here is the link to a great video on YouTube which demonstrates positions for optimal positioning.
There is lots of great information on the Optimal Maternal Positioning and Spinning Babies websites – including details about positioning, exercises, methods and techniques you can try to get baby to turn (i.e. breech tilt, forward-leaning inversion, side-lying, etc.).
It is important to allow your whole abdomen area to completely let go. Often mothers hold their abdominal muscles tightly around the baby, and it isn’t until they put their awareness to completely relaxing that area, that they realise they have been holding the baby in a particular position.
Put yourself in a position that you want your baby to be in – Head down! Spend as much time in complete relaxation in this position. You can do it with a board, ironing board or hard cushions against the couch or bed, where you can lay upside down comfortably. It is important to allow your whole abdomen area to completely let go. Often mothers hold their abdominal muscles tightly around the baby, and it isn’t until they put their awareness to completely relaxing that area, that they realise they have been holding the baby in position, or preventing the baby to turn.
This is a great exercise to encourage your baby to move to the head-down position. You will need another person to support your shoulders whilst doing this. Kneeling at the top of the stairs, with someone below you supporting your shoulders (to ensure you don’t slip down the stairs), start to walk your hands down the stairs as far as you can go comfortably. Keeping your chin tucked in, will prevent tension in your fascia. Stay in this position for as long as you are able.
This is a great position to spend time in relaxing and promotes optimum positioning for breech babies and posterior babies. The polar bear position is basically an exaggerated knee-chest position, with the knees as wide apart as possible, and the head and arms resting on the floor.
Visualisation exercises are very powerful, especially for positioning
It is important to visualise your baby in the correct position right up until the birth. Print a picture of a baby in the vertex anterior position and keep it up somewhere that you will see it daily. Spend time in relaxation visualising your baby in this position, remembering to keep your abdominal area completely free of tension. When you feel your baby move, allow your body to relax more, so that the baby has as much room as it needs to make the position change.
Some parents have been successful in using these simple techniques to move the baby. Playing music or shining a torch or bright light at the lower uterine region encourages the baby to move toward that area. Placing something very cold at the top of the uterus (fundus), and warmth at the bottom of the uterus, so that the baby moves away from the cold area, and moves toward the warmth. All of these can be used together.
Hypnosis is a very powerful tool and is all about deep relaxation. Through getting to this very relaxed state, your baby is guided by your practitioner to move to the optimum position. Often there are concerns and fears that the mother is holding surrounding the birth, that is preventing the baby from turning. Often, once these limiting beliefs have been removed, the baby is able to move to the vertex position.
Moxibustion has shown to be very helpful in flipping a breech baby and can be used for turning babies from posterior to anterior. Moxibustion is a form of traditional Chinese medicine that involves burning a moxa (mugwort) stick near a certain point on the small toe of the foot (bladder 67). You can find practitioners in a variety of settings including the acupuncture clinic and other practitioners.
Acupuncture involves the use of disposable needles. A practitioner will insert them just into the skin to release qi, prevent it from being blocked or help it move. This release of energy is said to help the baby find a better position by allowing mom’s body to move freely and the baby to have the room he/she needs to be well placed in the uterus for birth.
Massage can help your mind and body to remain calm and relaxed to provide the best place for baby to be. If your muscles are tight and tense (particularly due to stress), then this will restrict the flexibility of the muscles and diminish the chances of baby being able to move around easily.
The Webster Technique is used to help the pelvis open and the ligaments soften, allowing the baby enough room to assume a good position in the pelvis. A chiropractor should be trained in this technique but be sure to ask how often they’ve used it. This is not usually a one-time technique, though it can be.
New research into the potential advantages of upright positioning during breech delivery. Click here.
And finally, if you have attended a class with a Certified Hypnobirthing Australia Practitioner or have enrolled in the Online Course, please remember that we are here to help you every step of the way. Please don’t hesitate to give us a call.
I hope that all of this information is of help to you. The main thing I want you to know is that you do have choices and can certainly be proactive in your preparation for birth regardless of how your baby comes into the world. Whether baby arrives head first, bottom first, feet first, vaginally or via caesarean; I truly do believe that baby always knows the safest route out. 😉
You’re going to have a beautiful, beautiful birth!
Melissa xx
The Hypnobirthing Australia™ program is a unique and comprehensive childbirth course catering to Australian needs, that builds knowledge and uses techniques such as relaxation, self-hypnosis, breathing & movement for a safer, easier and more gentle birth.
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