Posture and Pregnancy( How Poor Posture can Affect the Birthing Process )

The female body is perfectly designed to conceive , birth and nurture a child and the baby itself seems to have an almost ' magical ' way of knowing what to do before and during labour to make its entrance into the world .

The normal act of walking forces the baby to adopt what is known as the ' left occiput anterior ( LOA ) position ' ;

You can see that the head is down and facing left , the spine is in the same direction and angle as the mothers and the whole body is turned backward , this is the most comfortable presentation for mother and baby because of the shape of the womb and provides for the best chance of an uneventful and less painful labour and birth .In the past few decades other presentations have increased dramatically resulting in long , slow , painful labours ( for the baby as well ) and women are often told that labour has slowed down or that the baby is too big etc. thus forcing the midwife or doctor to intervene or , all too often nowadays , a C-section is performed .The reason for this is the way we live and work today ;Sitting in cars

Leaning back in comfortable , soft sofas

Forward leaning with office work

Forward leaning with computers / laptops

In general - too much sitting down

Physically inactive lifestyle

This results is what is known as ' Lower-Crossed Syndrome ' ;

This can result in muscular imbalances around the pelvis which places unequal pressure on the ligaments ( which hold the bones together ) which in turn can twist the uterus and reduce the amount of room for the developing baby ( known as intrauterine constraint ) and can even affect the baby's developing spine and cranium ( it can also effect the final construction of the posture from adolescence through to adulthood ) .

As the pregnancy develops the stomach muscles begin to become more flexible to allow for more room for the growing baby if they are already weak they can wander off line from centre . These muscles are an essential part of the support system for the lower back and without it the lower spine begins to bend forward too much ( lordosis ) and tilts the pelvis forward resulting in low back pain .

If you are Planning to Have a BabyTo help guarantee a successful and unremarkable delivery , the baby needs the maximum amount of space at exactly the time it is needed and will make a very determined effort to achieve the correct position for birth but can face resistance if the mothers' posture is not ideal .Have your posture checked if possible at least a year / 6 months before your pregnancy

Get more exercise at least 3 times / week

Spend less time in a sitting position

Val OhalloranMassage Therapist