Tag Archive for: pregnancy tips

Top Positions to Try During Labor

Our top positions to try during labor? Childbirth is a process that can last a varied amount of time based on many factors. During labor, the birthing person might need to try a variety of different comfort measures. Even moving between each of these positions can help ease discomfort and be a welcome distraction. We’ve put together a guide on some of our top recommendations complete with variations and things for a support person to consider.

Positions for laboring in bed

Throne

Description: Throne position is a secret weapon of doulas everywhere! This position utilizes the movement of hospital beds to get the laboring person into a comfortable position for resting or waiting. This one is easy to remember, since the very idea of the position is in the name. We’ll be putting our birthing individual on a “throne”.

How to Get There (hospital bed): Have the birthing person sit in the bed. Using the controls on the hospital bed, raise the back up between 45 and 90 degrees. Have the birthing person lean forward for the initial adjustment and lean back to raise or lower the back to a comfortable position. Drop the lower part of the bed all the way to create a “throne”. The goal is a seated position.

Especially Helpful for: After an epidural or medication! This position is perfect for when you’re waiting for dilation but are comfortable enough with medication on board to rest. This is also helpful for getting baby to descend by letting gravity work its magic.

Variations: While this can be great for medicated births, this seated position is also excellent for non-medicated births in other spaces. One notable variation is sitting backwards on the toilet! Since our pelvic floors are trained to relax on the toilet to allow us to use the bathroom, often we’ll use this position to move dilation along. Note: this position can get intense very quickly as baby descends, make sure someone is nearby to help the birthing person off the toilet quickly if needed.

Side Lying

Description: As the name suggests, this position is very simply lying to the side for the birthing person. Another resting position, this helps take the pressure off of the pelvis and back for the birthing individual. We highly recommend a pillow or two between the legs. This one doubles as an excellent pushing position! The top leg can be held by the individual, their birthing partner, a nurse, or a doula to allow the pelvis to open in a more comfortable position.

How to Get There: Simply turn gently to one side or the other! To keep labor moving, a great idea is to move from one side to the other periodically.

Especially Helpful for: This is a great position for early labor, resting after an epidural, or while waiting for pushing urges to emerge. 

Variations: Adding a peanut ball or a stack of pillows that brings the upper knee facing upwards is a surefire way to help with dilation and progression of labor. This position is well-loved by our clients who choose medication as it allows them to rest well while laboring down. This can also be used for an unmedicated birth but, just as with the throne position on the toilet, it can get intense very quickly. Ensure someone is nearby in case a shift needs to happen quickly.

Hands and Knees

Description: Put those arms and legs to work! Laboring on all fours is an excellent way to open the pelvis. This position also could be great for getting baby oxygen and some physicians recommend it for easier positioning of monitors.

How to Get There: Very simply put, this position is fairly simple to get into! In the bed, rotate a little bit at a time with some support on one or both sides. Have someone nearby to move pillows or blankets as needed until the birthing person is in position.

Especially Helpful for: Active laboring! This position is a very active one and gives the birthing person the sensation of doing something instead of being swept away by laboring. Note: this one can get tiring! This is a great position to prepare or “train” ahead of time by lifting light weights or doing movements that strengthen the arms.

Variations: Lean over something to give your arms a rest! Our best suggestions are a stack of pillows, a birthing ball, or the back of the hospital bed. This position could also translate well to water if choosing hydrotherapy with the birthing person leaning over the side of the pool or bath.

Positions for out of the bed

A partner works with their pregnant partner to support them during labor.

Partner Supported

Description: Lean on me! Standing can get tiring but letting gravity do its job can be very helpful. Enter: partner support! Whether you lean on someone standing in front of you, behind you, or use a bedsheet or rebozo, getting support from someone else can make standing or squatting much easier.

How to Get There: For partner-supported sitting, simply have the partner stand in front of or behind the birthing person to support. It may be helpful for the partner to have their back supported against the wall.

Especially Helpful for: Taking a break from walking or while a contraction is happening. 

Variations: Use a bedsheet or rebozo under the birthing person’s arms to offer extra support that is easier to manage for the partner.

 

Hands and Knees Redux

Description: This position is a great one to do outside of the bed as well! Enjoy all the same benefits of hands and knees in the bed but with more freedom of movement.

How to Get There: Simply sit on the floor swinging legs around and using support to evenly distribute weight onto both hands and knees. Consider putting down a yoga mat or folded up blanket to support the knees and soften the surface.

Especially Helpful for: Active laboring and hip squeezes!

Variations: Lean over a birthing ball or chair to ease the strain on wrists.

 

Birth is not a one-size-fits-all and your comfort is a top priority. When practicing these positions, take note of what feels comfortable and what feels like too big of a stretch. Remind yourself and your birthing partner that what feels good outside of labor may change very quickly and vice versa. Stay in tune with your body as labor progresses and move naturally. Your body is wise!

Nausea Beyond the First Trimester

Nausea in the first trimester is pretty common. From strangers at the store to your family members, you’ll often hear, “Are you having morning sickness?”

A misnomer, many pregnant people are shocked to find that their “morning sickness” hits at lunch time or persists into the evening. Accompanying every interaction is likely to be a reassuring “At least it’s almost over! A few more weeks and you’ll feel much better!”

However, the truth is a little more complicated than that.

Why isn’t this nausea going away?

For some with “morning sickness”, they will indeed find that it resolves as they enter the second trimester. On the other hand, some will experience nausea that continues for the duration of the pregnancy. Alternatively, many will find that it fades for months and returns in the third trimester.

Usually the reappearance of nausea is benign and does not signal a cause for concern. Since late nausea may be a sign of Preeclampsia we still recommend discussing any new symptoms with a trusted healthcare provider.

Please note that this blog covers typical nausea or “morning sickness”, and not the more serious Hyperemesis Gravidarum. HG occurs in up to 3% of pregnancies. If you suspect you have HG we recommend contacting your provider immediately to receive care for this severe form of nausea, dehydration, and weight loss.

Third trimester nausea: Cameron’s story

Cameron experienced nausea in late pregnancy. A mother of three, she had routine first trimester morning sickness with all three pregnancies, which faded away with the first two babies by 16 weeks. With the third pregnancy, however, she had some memorable bouts with nausea in the last 5 weeks before delivery.

“I was so tired all the time, with two young children at home and a traveling husband. I wasn’t taking time to eat well or to sit and put my feet up, so I shouldn’t have been surprised one morning when I had to bolt for the front door and throw up in the bushes.”

Her next unexpected attack was the following week, at Christmas at her mother’s house. With so much going on and a crowded house full of relatives, she and her husband were sharing a bathroom. “He farted in there, and the whole house heard me throw up. Funny in hindsight, but it wasn’t pretty at the time!”

Cameron said she frequently felt queasy during those weeks, and struggled to find enough to eat to fuel her body and combat the fatigue that built every afternoon. In her 36th week she caught a stomach virus. After 3 days of struggling to keep anything down, IV fluids and anti-nausea medication were administered.

Despite the extreme nausea Cameron’s baby was born healthy at 38 weeks after an induction for hypertension, and the nausea disappeared.

What if you find yourself in Cameron’s shoes?

Identifying causes may be helpful so that you can target your treatment, but many times the cause is a combination of hormones and the physical changes when growing a baby. If this is the case, there are many coping strategies but the only real “cure” is birth!

Keep a Food/Supplement Journal

Writing down what you eat for a period of time can be an excellent way to find patterns in your eating and when they correlate with nausea. Additionally, some people find that their supplements (such as a prenatal vitamin) make them feel sick. If this is the case, try taking your supplements in the evening.

Drink Water!

Are you staying well hydrated? Dehydration can worsen your nausea symptoms and, if you are actually vomiting, you’ll be losing a lot of fluids needed for your body functions. Try keeping a refillable water bottle near you full of ice water so it’s easy to remember.

Try Snacks or Smaller Meals

Eating smaller amounts of food more frequently could help keep nausea under control. Part of the reason this works is because it keeps your blood sugars stable. Try making sure each snack or meal has some high quality carbs and protein to assist in balancing the sugars.

On the other hand, if all you can stomach is cereal, eat cereal. Fed is best for you, too.

Buy Yourself Some Candy

Ginger and peppermint have long been touted as helpful things to combat a queasy stomach. There are hard and soft versions of these candies, though many pregnant individuals swear by sucking on hard candies. Alternatively, sour candies have been reported as helpful too.

Above all, finding some time to rest is helpful for coping with nausea, and is also an essential component of preparing yourself for labor. When in doubt, reach out to your doula for suggestions or to discuss steps you can take. Remember, it will end! Until then, you’re doing great hanging in there.

3 Tips for a Healthy Third Trimester

The third trimester is between 28 and 42 weeks of pregnancy, and the final weeks before delivery. While your baby is growing and getting ready for their birth day, you might be experiencing more discomforts. With difficulty sleeping, feeling full after a few bites, heartburn, and frequent urination, how do you have a healthy third trimester? Here are some tips for keeping you and your baby healthy as delivery day approaches. 

Continue eating a healthy and balanced diet–and getting your vitamins and minerals.

During the third trimester, the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion notes that pregnant people may need to consume 450 more calories than their normal diet. They recommend that this come in the form of vegetables, whole grains, and proteins–not sugars and fats. As your baby gets bigger, they may start to compress your stomach, and you can feel full after eating only a little bit. Consider high-protein snacks in between meals if you are having trouble eating what you normally might at a meal. 

You may have been taking a prenatal vitamin, and you can continue that into the third trimester. You want to keep getting proper amounts of folate, iron, and calcium. Check with your care provider about what your diet and calorie consumption should look like during a healthy third trimester. 

Stay physically active for a healthy third trimester. 

The National Institutes of Health recommend that people try to be as physically active during pregnancy as they were before. With the physical changes that your body is going through as you prepare for labor (link to blog), you may find the exercise harder or more uncomfortable. However, studies show that exercise can help reduce bloating, leg cramps, and backaches, and reduce other conditions like gestational diabetes, preeclampsia, and postpartum depression. Consider moderate exercise, like a walk around the neighborhood, a water aerobics class, or a prenatal yoga class. 

Listen to your body and your body’s signals.

By the end of your pregnancy, you may feel bloated, with pains in your belly and back, among other places, and tired from a lack of sleep. You might be uncomfortable, but your body is preparing for birth. While it might be hard to imagine getting comfortable before baby is born, you can try a number of things to relieve the aches. A warm bath or shower can help you relax, and relax your muscles. Pregnancy pillows or other support pillows can make sitting or sleeping more comfortable. Wear loose fitting clothes and don’t be afraid to fan yourself if you are hot! 

Learn more about what to expect during a healthy third trimester in our four week Complete Childbirth Education class or our intensive, one-day Birth Basics.