shocked that giving birth lying down is for doctor's benefit?

[Pepsipepsi]

I've not given it too much thought before now but just came across a video saying that giving birth kneeling/standing/squatting are better birth positions than laying on back, as it opens up the hips and gravity helps.

So I Google why reclining is such a common childbirth position. And the answer basically is because it helps the medical staff see what's going on but can contribute to more pain, contractions stopping, and a longer labour. (Also some theories about how Kings used to want watch childbirth and lying down then became popular if it was seen good enough for the Royals. Could be a urban legend!)

I've read a few women's experiences agreeing with the above theory, and it's just made me feel upset and angry. Why are women suffering for medical staff convenience?
Why are we not giving women more birthing options?

Voting = YANBU giving birth using gravity makes more sense
YABU = modern medical science has come a long way and lying down is fine

I found being on my back the most comfortable position and so refused to move into the 'better' positions to give birth!

And mostly still is, unfortunately.

The research is there for anyone to find. Nobody should be going into birth blind so they should already know it is better to move around if able.

I thought it was to keep the heart rate monitors picking up properly?

It’s definitely bad practice if midwives are telling you which position to be in if no need for monitoring as surely they know different women are comfortable in different positions. Mine were pretty hands off until the obstetrician was called and even then bless ‘em, they were very polite about trying to get me to lie down on try back.

If you get a horrid midwife during labour (we did) tell them to sod off

I was able to get in whatever position I felt best. For one birth I was on the floor on a mat kind of on all fours alternating with kneeling 😀 Giving birth actively has been around for years in the U.K. I remember loads of books about it and lot of pictures of various positions.

I wanted to lie on my back with both mine. I had a fear of my slippery newborn being dropped. 😂😂😂

The AMA in the USA made it their personal crusade to eliminate midwives, nurses and other "irregular" health care providers as well as criminalising abortions. They wanted the male physicians to be solely in charge of healthcare for women. Horatio Robinson Storer was one of the key nutjobs behind it.

That was certainly my experiance.

I'm also a big advocate for not pushing, it's really not necessary unless something is going wrong (or you want/need to). But then that doesn't free up beds/staff.

For me personally, lying on my back was the only position that worked. I'd read up beforehand on gravity etc, but I was stuck on 8cm dilated for ages and only started making progress when I lay on my back. Same with DC2 and DC3 as well.

As a midwife of nearly 20 years I can promise you this is very common. I spend an awful lot of time gently encouraging women to be in better positions and it can be a real struggle. I understand women get tired, etc and it seems easier to them when tired to lie down. But women can be reluctant to lie on their left lateral. Midwives are well aware of the benefits of being mobile and upright in Labour and it’s also in the midwife’s favour for the woman she’s look8ng after to have an easier, shorter Labour. 🤷‍♀️

I feel you; I was enraged by this too.
For what it’s worth, I was encouraged to keep mobile and find a position comfortable to me. Unbelievably, I found on my back the most comfortable despite being determined to be on all fours or leaning over the bed 😂

My 2nd was standing up throughout and it was loads better

Ditto. I moved around during my labours but I felt more comfortable on my back. I think in part I was better able to concentrate on things that way

My children are 3 and 5 and gave birth. My eldest I was on my knees in a birthing pool and my second I was on all 4s on the bed. My second I was also hooked up to fetal monitoring so had originally been on my back, but I ripped off the leads so i could get onto all 4s. All the dr said was that if baby took a while to come out, then they would have to try hook me up again to monitor baby.

Midwives and Doctors should be issued with mechanics wheels to access birthing mothers undercarriages. Could get messy! 🤣

I gave laboured on my back due to unavoidable monitoring/interventions and it was horrendous. With a 9lb 10oz dc I certainly would have benefitted from some help from gravity!!!

I think individuals should have the choice about what works for them without any specific position being put forward as "the best". I tried all different ways with my VBAC but could actually only manage the pushing on my back with feet in stirrups.

About half of doctors are women.

Doctors are there when you give birth for your/ your baby’s benefit.

Advice to lay on your back during normally progressing labour is well out of date and not how it goes in most delivery settings nowadays.

If you need to be examined because of an issue then logically you may need to be lying down in a bed for that to happen.

I was on back both times, were both inductions and needed to have constant monitoring. Any movement and they belts slipped off so laid there for hours.

18 years ago with my 1st I really wanted to be on all fours but they were having none of it and forced me on my back. At one point two of them held me down from moving but it really didn't feel natural and eventually I had forceps as I couldn't push him out.

Wish they'd have let me try and I was too scared to ask afterwards why they didn't.

I got on all fours leaning up against the pillows with my hands and got told to lay on my back, I wasn't happy at all!
I was very comfortable and it was so uncomfortable even getting into the position of lying on my back.

Man here, so ready for a roasting.

Thirty years ago, I read about an American anthropologist who fell in love with an Amazonian woman who returned to the US with him. Giving birth in a US hospital, the doctors pronounced that the birth was 6 or 8 hours away. The mother then stood up on the bed, squatting after gravity had helped things along and delivered within half an hour.

During my wife's long labour (hampered by more than a dozen women simultaneously needing the attentions of the available anaesthetists making the 20 page birth plan redundant) I asked if a 'see-saw' bed that could be tilted to allow gravity to give nature a helping hand would help. I was told that it would compromise health and safety, but later, a former midwife suggested that it would greatly increase the cleaning needed in Maternity, so would obviously be a non-starter.

I’ve wondered this too but in order for midwife to get a good view and check for cord or baby in distress or breach etc how would they be positioned if we were squatting, maybe on raised platform with an hole underneath so they could see.

I’ve no idea but will come on any committee to make the birthing less painful

Yes, its sickening. Your coccyx cant move which can make the birth canal smaller by up to 30 percent.
At least in the UK women give birht in bed, in my home country they are on the chair with legs in stirrups and are sometimes physically pushed onto that chair.