Vertical delivery: what does every pregnant woman need?
Last reviewed: 23.04.2024
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In our days, vertical birth (BP, vertical birth) is considered not quite common practice. Many women have not even heard of such births. After all, we mostly learn about births from their mothers, grandmothers, other women or from films where slips with childbirth slip. And almost always the women in childbirth lie on their backs. Therefore, most people have the impression that lying in a lying position is the only and correct position.
Although the posture is lying on the back and remains so far traditional for modern medicine, one can argue with its physiological and comfort for the woman in labor. After all, the posture lying on the back is convenient for the obstetrician and the doctor. They have more space and convenience of action. But we must not forget that the main characters of the action called "Childbirth" are not doctors at all, but the mother-in-law and her child. Therefore, first of all you need to take care of their comfort and health.
And vertical birth - this is the position in which the woman is most comfortable, painless and physiologically correct to give birth. In olden times in many countries, women gave birth in a vertical position. And until now, less civilized people are women and give birth.
Preparation for vertical childbirth
Preparation is necessary for any sorts, so that this process is not too frightening or painful. What does it include the preparation for vertical childbirth?
As with the preparation for maternal birth, preparation for BP begins with the training of proper breathing and muscle relaxation. Some women experience very severe pain during childbirth. But, more often than not, this pain is not at all caused by the natural physiological processes in you childbirth.
And it is caused by the opposition of muscles. In fights, the muscles of the uterus and peritoneum push the cervix and hip joints apart so that the baby can pass through the birth canal. This process is quite unusual for the body, therefore, unconsciously the body begins to resist it. All the muscles of the body begin to strain and counteract the muscle that prepares the birth canal.
Here, there is a sharp and almost unbearable pain. For this, a woman is taught to relax during childbirth. The ability to relax removes the inner muscle "conflict" and significantly reduces pain in bouts. With vertical birth, a woman can easily relax in a fit sitting on the fitball. She can do rotational movements of the pelvis during labor. They knead and relax the muscles, which makes it possible to reduce pain during contractions.
The choice of the posture for vertical childbirth is another important element in the preparation for them. The mother can stand, sit on a special chair, kneel or squat during BP. It is very important to learn all these postures before the onset of labor to avoid injury or panic.
An important part of preparing for a vertical birth is the choice of a maternity home and a doctor. It's no secret that not all maternity hospitals can offer you to choose the pose for delivery. In most cases, they only practice traditional recumbent births. In many maternity homes there are not even any special seats for BP.
Therefore, if you decide to give birth in an upright position, you need to choose in advance a suitable maternity home and a doctor who has experience, and who knows how to take birth in an upright position. At birth, a positive attitude and understanding between the patient and the doctor is very important. Not all doctors are ready to take vertical labor and are well treated with this practice. Therefore, it is important to choose an experienced and positive minded doctor.
Rhodoma using vertical labor
Not all maternity hospitals practice vertical childbirth. Therefore, if you decided to give birth in an upright position, and not lying down, then you need to find a maternity home in advance, where you will be accepted to take such births.
It is worth noting that in most maternity hospitals doctors are not at all against the vertical position of the mother in the first stage of labor. That is, when there are fights. A woman can be allowed to walk, stand or sit. She can choose the most comfortable posture in which contractions will not be so painful.
But here the second and third phases of childbirth in most maternity homes are held in the supine position. To this position of the woman in childbirth, the armchairs on which the women lie are leaning with their feet and holding hands on the handrails during fights. No doubt, such chairs are very convenient for the doctor and midwife. But not always they are convenient for the woman in childbirth.
Therefore, if you are looking for a maternity hospital, you need to find out if BP is practicing it, and what equipment they have for such births. First of all, the maternity hospital should have a special chair for vertical delivery. Unlike the chair for lying down, this chair allows the woman in labor to sit even during attempts.
In addition, in the delivery room can be fitball. To give birth to sitting on the fitball is more convenient than lying down or standing. In the delivery room there can also be a special ladder, where the woman in labor can stretch and relieve muscle tension between contractions.
And most importantly, in a maternity hospital using vertical childbirth, there was a well-trained and positive-minded staff. Not all doctors, especially old-school doctors, are well placed to innovate. Therefore, you need to choose a professional who understands all the benefits of BP for a woman and a fetus, and would be willing to put up with some inconveniences of such genera for themselves.
In Kiev, there are several maternity hospitals, in which doctors accept vertical birth. For example, this is the hospital number 3 and number 5 (Railway Hospital). The seventh maternity hospital also practices this innovation.
In Moscow and Leningrad, you can also find maternity hospitals, where you can give birth vertically. In Moscow, officially, BP practices maternity hospital No.4. Still it is possible to address in the fifteenth maternity hospital. And in St. Petersburg you should go to the hospital number 18. Still there is a fifteenth maternity home, under which a center for the preparation for the birth of the Rainbow has been established. There, too, take vertical labor.
Armchair for vertical childbirth
To give birth vertically, it is not necessary to use a special chair for vertical childbirth. Childbirth can be held standing, squatting or kneeling. In this case, the woman retains mobility and can easily change the pose, if necessary.
But, nevertheless, the armchair for BP facilitates this process, both for the woman in labor and for the doctor. Unfortunately, such equipment is not available in all maternity homes. How does the chair for vertical childbirth look and how does it differ from the usual "reclining" chair?
This chair can be called a chair. You can not lie down on it. A woman sits during the birth in such a chair. On it there are handles for support of hands and footrest. Also, in the chair there is a "slot" or recess, thanks to which the pelvis and the vagina of the woman turn out to be on the weight and the child can go out without hindrance.
As a rule, this chair is not very high, which hampers the work of medical staff. After all, the doctor must sit "crouched" near the woman in labor during the attempts. Therefore, not all doctors tend to take BP.
Vertical birth: for and against
Vertical genera have a lot of pros and cons. Let's start with the advantages of this practice. First, the vertical position is the most natural for a woman and for a child during childbirth. Of course, this does not mean that a woman should stand all the time of birth. She can sit, stand, walk or squat. Active movement or change of body posture during fights can greatly alleviate pain and discomfort during childbirth.
The second plus vertical birth is the fetal pressure on the birth canal. The severity of the fetus and uterus help the cervix to open and, so to speak, rubbing the way for the child through the birth canal. Vertical position can speed birth and shorten their time. The pressure of the fetus makes the work of the woman easier, because it moves along the birth canals not only by force, but also under its own weight.
Thirdly, with BP significantly reduces the risk of birth trauma for the child, and for the woman, too. In this position, the placenta is born much faster than when lying down. But it is at this stage that a woman loses a lot of blood. The faster the placenta is born, the lower the risk of bleeding.
Fourth, with vertical childbirth, a woman takes a more active part in the generic process. They all see and control everything, which does not happen when giving birth while lying down.
But in vertical genera there are minuses. Firstly, this process is more active and the mother can not sleep in a break between contractions. But the period of labor can last for hours.
Secondly, the vertical position at delivery is not very convenient for the doctor and obstetrician. Their access to the mother and baby is limited. And not all doctors are ready to put up with this state of affairs. In addition, BP needs other equipment, namely, an armchair, than for horizontal ones. And not in all maternity hospitals it is.
Thirdly, if a woman is heavily stiff with a vertical birth, she may have severe vaginal, cervical and perineal tears. After all, the child goes down not only under the force of tensions, but also under pressure of his own weight. This speeds up the progress of the fetus and can lead to ruptures.
Fourth, giving birth in a sitting or standing position, a woman can not ask a doctor to make her epidural anesthesia. After all, such anesthesia leads to numbness of the muscles of the legs and back and prevents birth in an upright position.
Childbirth in an upright position
What is the difference between the birth in the vertical position from the traditional genera lying on the back? Vertical births differ from "recumbent" genera at all stages of this process. As you know, there are several stages in childbirth. The first of these is fights. The woman's muscles actively work and open the cervix to release the fetus.
With traditional "recumbent" births, a woman spends most of the time lying on her back or side. Then, as with BP at the first stage, a woman not only does not lie, but is not at all limited in position or motor activity.
In other words, she can walk, sit, stand or endure contractions while sitting on the fitball. She can even hang on a bar or a special staircase or sit on her lap with her husband, if it's partnering. In addition, when a woman does not lie, but is standing or sitting, her maternal partner can massage her back or lower back, which will help ease the pain in the bouts.
In addition, with the vertical position of the fetus and the uterus do not press on the blood vessels, as happens when lying down. Blood circulation in a woman's body improves and the risk of fetal hypoxia decreases. That is, with BP improves the supply of air to the baby.
In addition, the pain in the bouts is not as strong as when lying down. If a woman is sitting on a fitball, she can make a swaying motion with her pelvis. They massage the muscles, relieve unnecessary tension and reduce pain. In addition, movement at the stage of contractions accelerates labor activity and shortens the period of labor. The cervix opens faster.
Genera in an upright position have many advantages over lying and lying in the second stage of this process. At the second stage, attempts begin, and a child is born. He enters the birth canal and goes outside.
The main advantage of vertical delivery is the naturalness of the posture. If a woman lies on her back, she has to push the child through the birth canal with the power of contracting her own muscles. That is, you have to push hard very much and almost to exhaustion.
When BP, the fetus moves down under the force of its own gravity. The force of gravity helps the child to move down and be born faster.
Even in the third stage of labor, vertical childbirth carries significant benefits. The third stage is the birth of the placenta. Again, it is accelerated by gravity. In addition, in the standing or squatting position, the loss of blood during delivery is reduced.
Contraindications to vertical delivery
Are there any contraindications for vertical delivery? Of course have. For example, premature birth can serve as a contraindication. Another contraindication is the incorrect position of the child. If the child does not lie head down, the doctor will have to turn it inside the mother's womb. It is almost impossible to do this with BP. Therefore, in this case, the traditional horizontal delivery is recommended, where the doctor has more space, convenience and access to the woman in labor.
Another contraindication to vertical labor is the narrow pelvis of the woman in childbirth or the very large size of the fetus. BP can flow faster than horizontal, because the child naturally moves down under its own weight. It is faster and "assertive" reveals the ancestral ways. There is a pelvis narrow or the head of the fetus is too large, there may be strong gaps in the delivery of the child in labor or birth trauma in a baby.
As you know, all repeated childbirths are faster than the first. After all, the birth canals are already "thoriated" and it's easier for an infant to go through them. With vertical birth, the process can still accelerate, which can lead to ruptures in the parturient woman.
Feedback on vertical delivery
Many reviews of vertical delivery are positive. And it's not surprising, because that's how our great-grandmothers gave birth. In the past, women were not ordered, in which posture to give birth and were not forced to lie for many hours during childbirth. As a rule, for childbirth the woman went to the bathhouse, where warmth and water relaxed the muscles and eased the pain.
Moreover, the mother was not allowed to lie down all the time. She walked, crouched and crossed obstacles. This "charging" facilitated the pain in the bouts and accelerated labor activity. Therefore, many women who chose VR, remained very pleased with this process. Especially those who have something to compare.
Many say that the vertical delivery was less painful compared to the usual "bed" genera. And not only during the fights, but also during attempts. In addition, the placenta is born faster, which reduces the time of delivery. And she herself is born and without the painful help of a midwife or a doctor.
According to many women, vertical birth is more convenient and easier, but it is important to find a good doctor to be positive about this practice. After all, the doctor is experiencing discomfort during the BP.