10 interesting (sometimes surprising) facts about pregnancy and labour

a beautiful magnolia bud starting to bloom

I don’t think I’ll ever tire of teaching yoga to pregnant women; strange considering that I tell the same stories and share the same information over and over and over again. It’s quite an honour to guide a woman through her pregnancy, to encourage confidence and trust in the face of the unknown.

Many of my students are first-time mums and as we sit together in the first class of each six-week block I introduce myself and talk a little bit about what they can expect from the practice: asana, breathing techniques, relaxation and the truth – honest, no-frills information about pregnancy, labour, birth and the newborn phase.

Over the years there has been a few things that genuinely surprise (sometimes shock) first-time mums. Information that seems so normal to me is often met with a look of disbelief by my students and they often remark: “I had no idea!”.

Here’s 10 things that may surprise you about pregnancy and labour:

you can prepare for birth but you can’t control it : we control many aspects of our lives and yet when it comes to conception, pregnancy and labour there’s a lot that is out of our hands. Many of my students admit to being control freaks (especially if they have careers in the corporate world) so I always encourage them to really work at letting go of it…even if their birth does go to “plan” I assure them that motherhood is beyond control – completely. beyond. control.

think: acceptance, acceptance, acceptance : it doesn’t matter how fit you are, how tall you are, how wide your hips are, how many times you have visualised your birth, how many children you’ve had and how precise your birth plan is….when it comes down to it you don’t know how or where you’ll give birth and hence the best thing you can do is embrace acceptance. With this in mind I encourage my students to create a birth intention in lieu of a birth plan; you can take an intention with you regardless of how surprising your labour and birth may be.

an empowering birth can happen at home, in the car, in a hospital birthing suite or in theatre : put simply, if you take responsibility for your birth by preparing for it and owning your decisions, the experience can be an empowering one. And if you don’t care for an empowering birth well….own that too. I always say: “It’s not your midwife’s birth, it’s not your OB’s birth, it’s your birth,” – take responsibility, get informed (and encourage your partner to do the same), chat honestly and openly to your caregiver and if in doubt ask: what is the medical reason for your decision?

there’s a neuro-muscular connection between your mouth/cervix, jaw/pelvic floor, throat/birth canal : which, in lay terms means that if you soften and relax your jaw your pelvic floor will soften and relax, too. One of the most common phrases I use in my classes is: soften your lips, relax your jaw (I hope to ingrain in it my students’ minds so they’ll instinctively do it in their labours). When we’re scared, stressed or anxious we naturally hold a lot of tension in our jaw and throat (and even down to our shoulders) so keeping this area relaxed during labour is essential for dilation and delivery. At the end of pregnancy when the weight of baby is profound you can really experience the jaw/pelvis connection by lifting your chin (you should feel baby lift) and then lowering your chin (you should feel baby’s weight fall into your pelvis). With this in mind…..if you’re on the way to the hospital and baby is coming fast you would lift your chin and breathe up and if you’re ready to birth baby you would tuck your chin towards your neck and breathe down.

sound is the most powerful technique you can use in your birth : forget the Hollywood scream, think primal moans and groans akin to a cow or a lion. How on earth does that work in labour? Well, it helps keep your mouth/jaw/throat open and relaxed as mentioned previously, it lengthens the exhalation (the relaxing breath) and the vibration of the sound helps to soothe the nervous system. This technique is also incredibly helpful in a cesarean birth to help you stay still (for the spinal block) and relaxed during the operation.

you will feel a contraction from the soles of your feet to the crown of your head : when I ask my students where they think they’ll feel a contraction most of them point to their lower abdomen so they’re genuinely shocked when I tell them that the core of the contraction may be there but the pain/pressure radiates throughout the whole body. The core of the contraction will eventually shift from the abdomen to the lower back and eventually to the buttocks/pelvis as labour progresses. During transition the pressure is intense; like pummelling thunder.

when it’s time to push it will feel like your baby is coming out of your bum : yes, it really does feel like that but I promise, it won’t! It’s why so many women tell their midwife that they need to go to the toilet when, in actually fact, it’s the baby ready to descend into the birth canal.

your partner can catch your baby : in fact, many Australian hospitals and birth centres encourage it. Daniel caught both our babies and I’m really grateful that he had the honour of being the first person to touch them. For your partner, having the responsibility of catching baby is incredibly empowering. However, some women can’t stand the thought of their partner being “down there” and that’s perfectly fine, too.

you will still have contractions after you have birthed your baby and the placenta : it’s true and yes, they are painful. Once the placenta is delivered your uterus needs to contract back to the size of your fist (the size it originally was before you conceived baby) so over the days following birth you’ll experience contractions at sporadic times throughout the day and night but especially when you’re breastfeeding (not entirely convenient). Unfortunately the after-pains get more intense with each baby (I was completely and utterly shocked by the intensity of them after Poet’s birth).

it can take 6-8 weeks to establish a breastfeeding rhythm : patience is key here, as is perseverance. For the first few days after birth your breasts will produce colostrum for your baby (the most nutrient rich food it will ever have) and on day three you’ll cry rivers (just go ahead and sob, it will feel good), your milk will come in and your breasts will be huge, hard and really lumpy. The first few weeks of breastfeeding are painful and a little bit uncoordinated as you try and find a position that suits you and baby. Basically, your breasts will be sucked like they’ve never been sucked before, your nipples may crack and bleed and you may spray milk all over the baby and yourself. I encourage my students to make sure they’re not holding any tension in their upper body before they attach baby (a baby won’t attach to a stressed mama) and practise some sound techniques when/if feeding is painful. If you have visitors you might want to go into your bedroom, take off your top and then start feeding – it is so much easier to feed when you don’t have people distracting baby, when there’s no clothes in the way and when you can completely relax. One of the reasons I stayed at home for the first few weeks after birth was to establish a good breastfeeding routine; I didn’t have to deal with going out so I could easily feed on demand in the comfort of my home (with my shirt off, if need be) and hence when the 4-6 week mark came around I felt confident feeding whilst out and about.I’ve written a guide for dad’s too : 10 Labour Tips for Dads

Tell me, what surprised you most about labour, birth and breastfeeding?

By Jodi