Everyone feels better when a baby is positioned well: head down (vertex) and anterior (with his or her back to your front). Plus, having baby at occiput anterior or left occiput anterior when labor begins is ideal for a smoother, shorter birthing. I'll explain those terms farther down – what you want to know right now is “how do I get my baby into that position?
Most Babies Turn…
…Even during labor!
Before we jump into ways you can encourage your baby to get (and stay) in a good position, I want to point out that most babies turn into a great position. Babies naturally know the right way to be born and they turn the right way to get themselves born.
Babies can and do turn during labor (even some breech babies!). It's true that labor may be longer while you wait for your baby to turn, but going into labor well-rested and relaxed is much better than going into labor tense and worried about your baby's position. A tense, fast labor is not necessarily better than a relaxed labor that takes a couple of hours longer.
Technically the ideal position is LOA or left occiput posterior, which means that your baby's back is towards your front (your belly button) and slightly angled to your left. ROA is also with baby's back to your back, but slightly angled to your right. OA, or occiupt anterior, means that baby's back is lined up right along your belly button.
I tend to worry about baby positioning, so I'm speaking from experience. I've had babies who have been posterior or “ROA” (which often means baby must rotate to posterior, then left anterior during labor) late in pregnancy and it caused me a lot of anxiety. But simple steps turned some babies – and to be honest – a couple of them just turned all on their own. I had smooth labors and none of the dreaded “back labor” problems with a posterior baby because I worked with my babies during labor. It wasn't worth the stress I heaped upon myself at the end of pregnancy – it would have been much better for me just to enjoy those last few days and weeks.
There is so much you can do to encourage your baby into a good position – much of just setting up good habits in your life. But being stressed about position isn't good for you. Plus, your baby feels all your stress – so make changes to encourage your baby to turn, talk to your baby, visualize your baby, etc. But don't worry too much. Babies have an inherent wisdom on how to get born 🙂
With that said, I'll share some habits you can build into your life to encourage good baby positioning.
Understand Proper Pregnancy Posture
Good pregnancy posture may be different than you think (in fact, good posture is probably different than you think).
Fortunately there have been researchers pioneering posture research that goes past what you were told when you were a kid, and their information really makes a difference back health – even during pregnancy. Esther Gokhale and Katy Bowman are two woman leading in the field of back (and foot) health for everyone – and especially for women.
Katy has written articles especially for pregnant women (check out her article on moving well during pregnancy). She notes that you need to think with your heels. When you're stranding, your weight should be firmly on your heels. Your pelvis will be flared out slightly in the back – not tucked under as you were probably taught as a girl. It's not an exaggerated posture, but you shouldn't try to hold or tuck your pelvis in under your body. Esther Gokhale has many photos showing people with this good posture (click here to see some of them, also opens in a new tab). Though they're not generally pregnant women, this posture is appropriate for you, too.
This is the “natural” posture of all humans, and it's the way our pregnant foremothers walked up until around the 1920's. At that point it became unfashionable to walk and sit like peasants and the slouch was born. Thankfully you can go with what not only preserves your back and hips – but it lines babies up.
We were naturally meant to stand with our shoulders rolled back, head back, and pelvis flared slightly behind so that our heels ground our body. Because that's our natural posture, it's what babies expect and encourages your baby to take a naturally optimal position.
Tools that Can Help
Having a couple of tools at your disposal really helps you keep baby in the right position.
A birth ball, also known as an exercise ball, is the easiest to make part of your life. Sitting on a birth ball (rather than a chair), helps align your pelvis well. It's almost impossible to slouch and curl your pelvis under (you'll roll off the ball if you do!). It keeps your belly tilted slightly forward, which makes it into an appealing “hammock” for your baby to nestle down into. A birth ball is a great tool for optimal baby positioning.
You can also rotate your hips in circles on the birth ball, which encourages baby down into the pelvis if you know your baby is in a good position.
A great added benefit to the birth ball is pain relief, especially if you have pelvic girdle pain or lower back pain during your pregnancies. A little while on the birth ball in the mornings (maybe following a walk or followed by a walk) can make a real difference in how you feel.
Another good tool is the rebozo (or even a woven shawl or other piece of fabric). Using a rebozo/scarf to bind your belly can provide comfort and support during pregnancy. If you need to turn your baby, some skilled “shimmies” with the scarf can lift baby's weight up and encourage your baby to turn. This is also very effective during labor. Spinning Babies is a website devoted to good baby positioning – check it out if you'd like to get more info on using a rebozo or need strategies to turn your baby (breech, posterior, or transverse) – link opens in a new tab for you.
Be Active
Getting up and getting going helps baby too. Walking is especially beneficial – and especially if you walk barefoot or in shoes that mimic barefoot walking as much as possible (even simple moccasins work). These shoes let your feet mold to the earth as they were meant to, therefore lining your hips and pelvis naturally, all of which helps line your baby up. Walk as much as you can.
Walking also really helps ease the aches and pains of pregnancy because the better alignment helps your entire body.
Swimming is another great pregnancy exercise that's famed for helping babies position correctly. Many moms with breech babies have found that swimming encourages baby to turn. While swimming your heavy baby belly is almost weightless and your body is able to align naturally and simply.
Belly Dancing feels great – it's a nice way to get your heart rate up a little while pregnant, and prenatal belly dance has a lovely focus on bonding with baby. It's also very good for encouraging your baby to rotate down into an optimal positioning. Once baby is well positioned and you're close to your due date, deep spiraling movements can help to “lock” baby down into your pelvis.
Other activities help in similar ways – for instance, walking up and down stairs can encourage a baby to turn and descend into a good position. Prenatal yoga helps you feel good, understand how your body stretches (and get a feel for tension and relaxation). You can choose poses that encourage your baby to turn the way you want him or her to and build your routine from those.
Remember to Relax
Relaxing and enjoying your pregnancy – while being mindful of good posture – really does help your baby to turn. Baby needs soft, relaxed muscles to turn and to move through during birth. If your stomach muscles are very weak from a previous pregnancy, a rebozo worn daily can provide gentle support and alignment for baby – but understanding tension and relaxation is still beneficial to your baby.
Sometimes tension can hold baby in positions that aren't optimal. If that's the case for you, a chiropractor can really help make a difference. They can help gently align your spine so it's well-positioned, giving your muscles the chance to relax into their proper positions. Sometimes a massage therapist can compliment a chiropractor's work, so feel free to pamper yourself with a prenatal massage.
There are many ways to explore tension and relaxation, and to build relaxation into your daily routine. It makes it more likely that your baby will settle into a great position – and it benefits both you and baby emotionally. Stress isn't always bad for baby, but you want to teach baby (even in the womb) that after a stressful situation there are ways to relax. A solid understanding of tension and relaxation helps baby move smoothly and surely through all the rotations he/she needs to do during labor too – because your muscles are relaxed and soft!
Getting baby lined up is a matter of creating good habits throughout your pregnancy – and a little aid from some proven techniques or experienced helpers can often encourage the most determined babies to turn around and line right up!
(NOTE: Want a Perfect Birth Plan Template? Use this template and step-by-step videos to write a birth plan that gets your birth team on your side for a beautiful birth experience! Get the birth plan kit here.)
