Prepare for a Positive Birth with THE BIRTH CLASS
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The Two Week Wait
Thoughtful Christmas Gifts for your Pregnant Friend.
What is Pre-eclampsia?
Positions for labour and birth
What is Shoulder Dystocia?
Cracked Nipples: Causes, Treatment and Prevention
5 Tips for Travelling With Kids
To determine if you are using the correct size yoga ball, for pregnancy try sitting on your birth ball, and place your feet flat on the floor in front of you. Your hips should be either exactly even with your knees, or a little higher- approximately 5-8 centimetres higher, according to experts.
This position brings the weight of the baby forward, giving relief from back pain and general discomfort associated in pregnancy. This position also helps keep the pelvis open and relieves some of the pressure on your lower back during your labour and contractions.
If your hips are lower than your knees, it’s not only uncomfortable, but it narrows the pelvic opening- which isn’t good for the baby’s positioning.
As a general guide, the following-sized balls are appropriate for these nights.
During labour, the exercise ball can help to reduce the pain of your contractions. You may find you instinctively sway and rock in rhythm with your contractions and a birthing ball gives great support for this. Keeping you actively moving and supported.
The gym or exercise ball can also help you maintain upright positions, which lets gravity take some effect. Sitting on the ball with your legs wide apart can help open your pelvis ready for birth.
A peanut ball is a yoga ball that is shaped like a peanut. It has two larger ends that taper in at the middle. During labour, you place a peanut ball between your legs to help you progress through the stages of labour.
Using the peanut ball is particularly helpful if you have had an epidural as you can rest your legs on the ball to keep the pelvis open. A peanut ball’s curves help to encourage your body to relax in a way that speeds up the dilation of your cervix.
Semi-reclining position. Using a peanut ball while you lean back helps you to dilate and your baby to drop lower. In this position, you place one leg over the peanut ball and your other leg to the side of it. You can alternate positioning each leg on top or to the side when you need to move.
Side-lying position. This position is a great way to encourage your baby to move into an optimal position for birth. Lay on one side or the other and place the ball between your legs with one leg propped up on top. Your midwife may bend your top leg over the narrow part of the ball to open your pelvis more.
Episode 163
birth · 45min
Episode 1
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birth
If your birth education has been limited to movie scenes on the hospital ward, chances are you presume that most women labour on the bed. However, if you’re interested in having a physiological birth (without pain relief or intervention) and you want to work with your body to navigate the intensity of contractions, the advice of almost every birth education, doula and midwife will be simple: don’t get on the bed.
Shoulder dystocia occurs in a vaginal birth when the baby’s shoulder is stuck behind the mother’s pelvic bone but the head has already been birthed. It’s considered an emergency but your care provider will be trained in navigating the complication to ensure your baby is born promptly and safely.
If you’re currently pregnant, you may be feeling quite overwhelmed by the advice that everyone seems to throw at you. It’s a lot, isn’t it. And while it’s well-meaning, it often leads to confusion rather than clarity.
Regardless of where you’re birthing and your intentions for pain management, it’s a good idea to educate yourself about the benefits and risks of each intervention so you go into labour aware and informed, with a strong understanding of the options available to you and how they can help or hinder your labour progression, birth and recovery.
As you get closer to your estimated due date (EDD), ideally your baby will be in a head down position. If your baby is upside down - with either their bottom or feet closest to your cervix and their head up towards your ribcage - they are in a breech position. It’s very normal for your baby to turn from breech to head-down throughout your pregnancy.
Choosing the correct size birthing ball for pregnancy can be tricky. Here are the key things to keep in mind for choosing your yoga or exercise ball for use in pregnancy or birth.
Birth can be a positive, empowering experience. However, for some women, labour and birth (both vaginal and caesarean birth) can be traumatic and can lead to both physical and mental trauma.
An episiotomy is a surgical cut to the perineum during the second stage of labour that’s performed on around 24 per cent of Australian women during a vaginal birth. Episiotomies are used to enlarge the vaginal opening, particularly if a baby is showing signs of distress and needs to be born quickly. It may also be suggested if your care provider believes you’re at risk of a severe tear.