If you're having a vaginal birth and it's time for that baby to make itself completely earthside, you have to get that baby out of your body through some form of pushing. The pushing phase of labor is often the portion of birth we see in movies and tv. Frequently we see a birthing person laying in a hospital bed crushing their partner's hand, screaming things like "Get this baby out of me." It doesn't seem particularly pleasant and might leave you wondering, is that what the pushing phase of labor really looks like? 

To talk about talk about the top tips for the pushing stage of labor on this episode of Yoga | Birth Babies I have Liz Wade and Shaina Bricker. They're the hosts of The Birth Nurses Podcast and labor and delivery nurses with over 40 years combined experience. We cover the most advantageous positions to birth a baby (even if your care provider's not keen on having you in a variety of positions), getting around being told you have to birth on your back, and navigating a conversation with your birth team to help support what best serves you as the one pushing. We talk about adverse outcomes of pushing ineffectively like purple pushing, perineal tearing, arrested descent, and cesarean. 

I truly enjoyed this conversation. Additionally Liz and Shaina shared their personal stories of pushing during their labors. It really highlighted how our bodies and babies often have their own ideas of what will work, no matter what our preconceived ideas of labor are. Personally, I thought I would just breathe and my baby would walk right out, it was not that smooth and I relied on tools I never thought I would use. There is so much wonderful information in this episode, I hope this conversation will add a few more tools for you to take into your birth.

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