During labour our baby needs to make a number of different ‘cardinal’ movements to navigate the pelvis. To be able to make these rotations they need space to move and space to chose the optimal way to make these movements.
The pelvis has three sections the baby has to pass through. The inlet, the mid pelvis and the outlet. Ideally the baby needs to pass through these and be able to make the required movement so we need to give the baby as much space and room as possible. Any restrictions or tightness in these areas can slow the labour down or even stall it completely. In fact, babies move away from restrictions so this could hinder the labour.
Ideally during Pregnancy you will be learning stretches and movements you can use that will benefit the build up to labour as well as labour itself. If this isn’t something you are aware of, have a look at my short courses to help prepare you more.
The inlet:
The inlet is the area of the pelvis where the baby enters into it as you can see in the diagram above. To open this area up, we want to tuck the pelvis so tucking your coccyx under and externally rotating the legs which means bringing the knees out away from the centre of the body. So for here, practising squatting, sitting on a ball and rocking from side to side with legs wide or even leaning on a ball in kneeling position and rocking. All these would help to open up the inlet.
The Mid pelvis:
As the baby rotates through this section helping them by having asymmetry to the pelvis is key. This means having one side of the pelvis slightly higher or further forward than the other will help. This section can be where some babies may hang out a little longer so the more we can help them the better. The baby needs to rotate to accommodate the bony parts of the pelvis to be able to move further into the outlet. To help them here we can walk sideways up stairs, or use the pavement and have one foot on the pavement and one in the road so you’re hitching one hip up and down. Try going onto your knees with one knee on a block or cushion so its slightly higher than the other and rock forwards and back and side to side, almost as if you are ‘jiggling’ them down!
The Outlet:
At this stage we want to internally rotate the legs and untuck the pelvis by raising the coccyx up if we can. We can do this side lying with the Birth partner supporting the upper leg and rotating the knee in towards the body, or on hands and knees or leaning against a ball or bed, bringing the knees towards each other so the feet turn out, and again rocking forwards and back.
When we know what we can do to help the baby it empowers us as well as assists them in their journey.
For more information on this you can join my Pregnancy Exercise Classes on a Wednesday at 6pm and they can be accessed in person or through zoom. A great way to exercise, get prepped for Birth and find some time for you!
You can book onto a 6 week block here. You have 9 weeks to use the block so don’t lose out on a session if you’re too tired to join us.