Following instincts in birth

Healthy birth practice #5: Avoid giving birth on your back.

I was just thinking about this recently as I reflected upon the birth of Theodore. I pushed for a solid two hours, squatting, kneeling, hands and knees, side-lying, and finally sitting up**. It took A LOT of effort to get his tiny body down the birth canal, and I'm positive that if I had been working against gravity, we might have ended up with a c-section (or forceps/vacuum assistance) after so many hours. And looking back, I can't imagine pushing any other way. I was " in the mode" and did what my body told me too, and luckily, I had a supportive midwife/husband/doula/nurse that encouraged me throughout the process. I wonder how it would have felt to be discouraged from doing what my body demanded and forced to lie flat. That position seems so... convenient. Unnatural. Contrived. I also did not have anyone chanting numbers or telling me how to push. They were encouraging, yes, but not controlling. I was the one in control, and I think that's the way that worked best for me.






** I would post pictures, but I was completely in the nude.