Natural birth in squatting position

🌟BRAZIL, 1979🌟

It’s no secret, I’m in love with vintage birth videos. And I found this gem today. It displays a beautiful deep squat with minimal assistance from care provider. It also displays a hands-off physiological birth of the placenta.

Truth is, in modern medicine, mothers are placed in positions that best suit the care provider. Prone and semi-prone positions make it easier to use instruments such as forceps, stirrups, and vacuum extractors or medications such as epidural anesthesia, or to perform an episiotomy. Squatting offers great advantages but is often ignored.

BENEFITS OF SQUATTING:
⚜️Increases pelvic diameter
⚜️Shortens the time spent pushing
⚜️Shortens the depth of the birth canal
⚜️Utilizes gravity to bring baby down
⚜️Tilts the uterus and pelvis forward which aligns the baby
⚜️Strengthens the intensity of contractions
⚜️Relaxes and stretches the pelvic floor muscles ⚜️Reduces the need for forcep, vacuum and episiotomy

Some babies are in positions that do not benefit from the squatting position.

And I also want to make clear that some mothers CHOOSE to birth on their backs because it’s comfortable for them or because mom/baby need some extra assistance. But the squat position should be made available when circumstances are good.