Hey there!

Did you know September is one of the busiest months for babies to be born??? We are finishing out our busy baby season at work. Send coffee and good vibes to any birth worker friends you know who may be tired, too!

When supporting births, something I always like to do afterward is reflect on what things I could have done differently to support them, or what they seemed to really like.

This has helped me learn and adjust my practice, especially when navigating labor with the pelvic floor in mind.

How can we relax in Labor?!?

During labor, one of the things I always consider is: "Are they softening the pelvic floor or are they clenching?"

Did you know this can affect labor progress??

It could maybe affect how the baby is positioned or how they navigate the pelvis...

It could maybe affect how you cope with contractions, or lead some to struggle if we tense up with each contraction!

In my experience, when someone is pushing for an extended period, I sometimes perform an internal exam (*Always with consent) to see if I can feel tension in their pelvic floor or to see what baby is doing.

In some births, I am able to feel that a portion of their pelvic floor is not softening to allow the baby to come down and finish their rotation. So, I will put them into a position that allows for greater length in the spot where they have more tension, while sometimes applying internal pressure to encourage softening.

Many times, on the first push of the next contraction, we will feel the baby move down into their pelvis because that tense spot has lengthened and moved out of the way for the baby!

But this type of support isn't needed by everyone! We can use non-invasive measures before resorting to internal exams!

In this week's YouTube video, I discuss strategies to help your pelvic floor relax so it can soften on its own, so labor can keep moving, and so contractions feel more manageable. I discuss:

• The jaw–pelvic floor connection, and why a soft jaw helps
• Deep, low sounds instead of high-pitched ones
• Breathing techniques that help you soften and relax
• The relaxation sequence that you or your partner can use
• Comfort tools like jiggling, hip circles, and water to help break the fear–tension–pain cycle
• Why the toilet might become your "dilation station"

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This video is only one small nugget of info to prepare for childbirth. We cover this and SO MUCH MORE in our courses:

In our self-paced Childbirth Education Course, we teach you everything we'd want you to know before labor: when to head to your birth location, labor positions and comfort measures for both unmedicated AND epidural births, what to expect with a c-section, and more. It's the same stuff we teach our in-person classes, and you can watch it on your couch with your partner. Plus, you get lifetime access for future pregnancies!

You can also check out our newly released Pelvic Floor Foundations Course, which covers how to prep your pelvic floor for birth, help it recover after birth, and keep it feeling great outside those periods! It comes with education videos AND follow-along video workouts!

See you next month!

Roxanne

P.S. Want more to prep for an empowering birth? The Childbirth Education Course covers topics like this and so much more!

Stay Strong in Pregnancy and Motherhood

MamasteFit is one of the few facilities in the country that exclusively trains in-person prenatal and postpartum clients and provides hands-on birth support. Every program is tested with those clients and approved by our in-house pelvic floor physical therapists.