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 was induced and my DD was born just before 11.

11pm that is.

There were 2 midwives and 2 doctors in the room at the end. So it doesn't work for the NHS.

I'm aghast that any woman didn't realise this.
I had my babies in the 90s and it was normal practice to have your baby in whatever position was comfortable for you. Unless there was considerable medical intervention, then it was your choice.

Kneeling, standing, squatting and birthing stools can all result in a lot more blood loss AFAIK.

When I had DD2 my husband had to call an ambulance as she was a bit eager. The call handler asked him to get me on my back. When I refused she seemed unable to proceed past that section of whatever algorithm she was following, she repeated herself ad nauseam until the ambulance arrived 🙄

I was too knackered after 3 hours of pushing so was lying down, just as well because DD shot out like a bullet. She was back to back and I was up on my feet pacing for most of my 18 hour labour.
DD gave birth upright in a pool at the MLU precisely 5 mins after getting in! She only laboured for 5 hours, if the hospital had been any further away she would have given birth to DGS in the car.

Yep, I was encouraged to lie on my back ‘because of the epidural’ during my labour and the midwife didn’t make a single effort to help me into any other position. Surprise surprise, forceps

You’ll only get all those bells and whistles if you meet the incredibly narrow criteria for a MLU. Most women give birth on delivery suite - no pool, no fancy bed, continuous monitoring and frequently some kind of drip as well.

My first (and so far only, due again in spring) labour was the full medical shabang- 3 weeks early, induction, crap epidural that didn’t work, made to lie on back throughout, drip in each hand, clip on baby’s head to monitor her and eventual forceps.

Until they find a way of inducing without a drip and monitoring without wires etc, nothing will change and our maternity care will never be up to scratch.

I was unable to stand at all, not a good feeling at all.

Really? Coz that’s what’s available on delivery suite in out hospital though granted I got two of the rooms have birth pools in consultant led and two in midwife led. Our hospital is shite too, the actual pits, so I’m a wee bit shocked to hear that.

source?

interestingly I recently saw a women's health physio and she was saying it is entirely possible to do an instrumental delivery with the birthing woman kneeling, squatting or standing - more difficult for the doctor and they're not trained for it, but it should be possible. I spent most of labour upright and when I was made to lie down on my back for monitoring & then forceps, the pain of the contractions was immediately ten times worse and it was very frightening

My hospital was huge and very busy. I was ok at the time but looking back my care wasn’t good and was very rushed. Some things can’t be avoided of course, but I made it clear I wanted the most effective pain relief possible and when my epidural didn’t work (as in, at all!) they just shrugged and didn’t bother trying anything else. I figured if I was going to have a very medical experience I may as well have the ‘good’ medical bits in term of pain relief but I didn’t even get that!

I didn’t even get that I was a GA section but there was no room in postnatal for me after delivery so spent two nights on consultant led unit delivery room and it was pretty well equipped. Even better than 11and 8 years ago. There was only one birth pool in each unit (mlu and clu are on the same corridor but just different ends) and there were birth balls and the beds moved and wireless telemetry for monitoring but no peanuts or birth stools and I genuinely don’t know what that rope pole thing was but it wasn’t there before either.

I've caught up and the pp above shows another concern that care between hospitals is so different. The maternity ward me and my friends were born in doesn't even exist anymore due to funding cuts. We have to travel at least an hour in a car to the next county over.

@Cuppasoupmonster they can monitor you with wireless telemetry. If you have a longer Labour they may have to plug in and charge the batteries but it’s still a thing. Do you not have that option? Could you ask about it? Like I said my hospital is guff, small, underfunded, catchment from the towns and cities to the tiny villages in the back of beyond and we have it

I imagine it’s because instrumentals can be so excruciating they run the risk for mum fainting/collapsing, which could harm the baby on their way out! You can’t have a spinal and stand up either. I really wouldn’t have wanted a
forceps delivery standing up 😱

You’ll only get all those bells and whistles if you meet the incredibly narrow criteria for a MLU. Most women give birth on delivery suite - no pool, no fancy bed, continuous monitoring and frequently some kind of drip as well.

This isn't necessarily true. I didn't meet the criteria for MLU as I was "high-risk" so had to be on labour ward but still had access to a birthing pool, birthing stool and birthing ball and was encouraged to move around in labour. I spent most of my 19 hour labour on a birthing ball but when it was time to push I was encouraged to get into whatever position was comfortable for me and I instinctively wanted to be on the bed, on my back but sitting upright. Despite so many posters on this thread insisting that's the 'wrong' way to give birth, it worked for me. Just ten minutes of pushing and DS was out with no tearing.

Had my first 30 years ago ( UK, NHS maternity unit of big London teaching hospital ) and was encouraged to be active , move around, get on hands and knees - whatever felt comfortable and was going to keep things moving onwards. Delivered in semi upright position because was v tired by then.

I’d read all this stuff during my pregnancy about not giving birth on your back, go on all fours, etc etc. in the end as soon as the midwife said I was 9cm and could push I collapsed onto the bed on my back and stayed there until she was born (very quickly!) 20 minutes later.
It felt most natural to me to be on my back and didn’t seem to cause a problem with anything at all 🤷🏻‍♀️

My mum has always said this to me, she can't get her head round it at all. I remember being forced by everyone to move onto my back to push my son out and I remember crying begging not to as it was so painful. As far as I remember there was nothing wrong or urgent happening and I was perfectly comfortable how I was! It was made out to be life or death situation. Quite baffling

I like to think I'd have given it a go if I'd been supported (physically and emotionally lol) and known it was an option. I didn't have a spinal just g&a and local anaesthetic. The forceps going in wasnt pleasant but for me it was the contractions while lying down that nearly made me lose my mind with pain. Someone needs to design a birth stool where you can lean forward like a massage chair!

Anecdotal from my MW when I asked her about having a birthing chair/stool. It sort of made sense to me.
Although I spent a huge amount of my active labour under the bed which pissed her off. I just needed to be there iyswim.

The What is New Section is interesting re blood loss, tearing, outcomes....

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6839002/#__ffn_sectitle