Tips for supporting a quick and straightforward childbirth experience

[Shopaholic100]

If you had an easy/quick birth what are your top tips. What do you feel helped and what didn’t? I’m going to be a birth partner soon and would welcome any advice. Thanks

I don't think there's anything at all you can do to make a quick and easy birth much more likely. I also don't know anyone who would describe a birth they had as "quick and easy".

So much of it is luck at the end of the day. I had a textbook pregnancy, drank gallons of raspberry leaf tea, did all the squats, swimming and pregnancy Pilates and still ended up with a 40hr labour and assisted delivery. So actually the best thing I did during pregnancy was mentally prepared for the fact that things might not go the way I hoped.

It's down to luck, I can't think of anything you could do to increase the probability.

I'd say two of my three births were fairly quick and easy. One was sudden and quite dramatic but that was a matter of chance.

Lots of exercise-obviously midwife recommended only, and keeping busy, if you can. Of course, not everyone can do this, and some people are put on bed rest, but those who keep going aand moving a lot during pregnancy tend to have easier births-yes, my mw told me it makes a massive difference.

I really didn’t go in with a firm plan, I didn’t know what would happen and didn’t want to script myself into disappointment. I had some things I knew I would prefer not to happen and made sure DH understood my feelings on that so he could advocate for me if I couldn’t do it myself so would recommend you take some time to talk that through with the woman you are supporting in advance of the birth.

Honestly the best thing DH did as my support was to try to be as invisible and agreeable as possible, he didn’t joke around unless I started it, he stayed out of the midwife’s way, he got me anything I asked for, he stayed quiet when I needed quiet etc

The best thing you can do as a birth partner is to practise coaching slow 5-count breathing as if you’re calming someone down from a panic attack, and then prepare to do that for maybe hours at a time. Or to do nothing but watch, depending on what partner wants.

And put drinks/snacks you can eat one handed in every pocket you have, you may not be able to get up easily at that moment when you’re hungry/tired.

Also be ready to talk through decisions with partner/medical staff using BRAINS technique to give you the right info you need.

I agree that it’s mostly luck. I had two completely different labours - one where I was on constant monitoring and in agony even after an epidural (I don’t think it was administered right, in hindsight), culminating in a ventouse delivery. And one homebirth, which was much less painful than my hospital one, and was also much faster. I didn’t do anything differently across the two pregnancies / labour preparation / early stages but somewhere between my body and my sons’ positions / progression etc they played out hugely differently. I think the best thing you can do is focus on staying calm and advocating in whatever situation happens.

Pay for a private c-section would be the only way of guaranteeing this. My planned waterbirths were scuppered both times…

Look up Optimal Fetal Positioning. Don’t do squats. They squish the pelvis shut! AFTER 34 weeks - Lie on the left side ONLY. lean forwards ALL THE TIME. don’t lounge on the sofa leaning back EVER.
drink raspberry leaf tea ( not tea bags- the real thing). Go on all fours on the floor.
Get that baby in the LOA position BEFORE it engages. Once it’s in, it’ll fall out!
midwife of 30 yrs
1st labour 2.5hrs
2nd labour 1hr 23 mins
3rd - twins - 2.5 hrs
never went overdue

good luck!! 😁

I had awful labours. Communication was the main issue though. I'd have loved the midwives to talk to me, they just ignored me. When I called for help I had to wait for an hour. One told me to start pushing and then left for 40 mins etc. The trust is in the news again this week for excessive baby deaths (thankfully we were 'lucky' that we left with a healthy baby). So my advice would be to be the translator and advocator. What is happening, does the mum know what is happening and why? Does she need to tell the healthcare team anything? Does she need help to do that?

Never, at any point, tell a woman who is giving birth or has just given birth that you’re ’feeling a bit tired now’.

Both my births were quick and easy.

I think the only tips I would have is to encourage the woman to stay as active as possible in labour (may as well make use of gravity) and encourage her to get into whatever position she finds comfortable and relax as much as possible. It would probably help to practise relaxation techniques.

Totally agree. ExDP did that. Note the ‘wx’.

However, do take in food and drinks for yourself ! I supported someone from 7am till midnight and I was absolutely starving.

My two elective sections were quick and easy, but I’m guessing that’s not what you meant!

Plan a home birth! If not then stay at home for as long as possible. The first intervention is stepping outside your house.

Not sure there's any way of guaranteeing quick and easy, but would highly recommend the book "The Birth Partner" by Penny Simkin.

I had 2 sections so can’t comment on the ‘quick and easy’ birth but also remember it’s important to be around afterwards. Even just to hold baby a bit so mum can rest.