Spinning Babies is more than Optimal Fetal Positioning.
OFP is a break-through concept in childbirth. Read what Optimal Fetal Position is and who began it on the Optimal Fetal P0sitioning article.
Spinning Babies brings these concepts and more to light with explanations and illustrations. Spinning Babies adds the concepts of Body Balancing through body work and a woman's own activities. Spinning Babies adds the trust of birth through traditional midwifery skills for the long labor.
Spinning Babies hopes to prevent common problems from malpositions of
the baby's head. Malposition is a harsh word meaning the head is, either, not coming
into the
pelvis first, or not coming in the easiest way to mold, or shape, itself
to fit. When
the head is at a difficult angle, especially when mother’s muscles or
pelvic tendons are tight, hours or even days can be added to the length
of labor.
Please remember, some of these babies who are labeled as
“malpositioned” are born with little trouble and no interventions.
But,
because a large minority of posterior and breech babies (and all babies
lying sideways in a transverse lie) may need surgery to get born,
Spinning Babies Website presents a way to help you reduce complications
due to fetal malposition.
Fetal positions defined. Read the Anatomy of
Spinning Babies.
Childbirth educator Pauline Scott coined the phrase Optimal Fetal Positioning to describe the work of Midwife Jean Sutton. These two women published Understanding and Teaching Optimal Fetal Positioning in 1996.
Two facts will help you to understand why fetal position is important:
Baby's rotate to come from the womb through the pelvis and out.
Fetal position effects fetal rotation and descent.
Optimal Fetal Positioning aims to help a fetus into the occiput anterior position for
labor by giving the mother guidelines for maternal positioning in
pregnancy and during labor. Many studies
show that posterior labors are more complicated for mother and
baby-in general. Of course, some women have short and rather easy
posterior births. But, more posterior babies have cesareans than anterior babies. And, more posterior labors are longer labors than are anterior labors.
The idea is that the baby's position will have an effect on the course of labor. The angle of the baby's head changes the diameter of the head. So that a baby facing the mother's back most often fits the pelvis more easily than a baby who faces the front. The back of the baby's head is the landmark, however, so that the baby facing the back is in the "anterior" position. The baby facing the front is in the "posterior" position. The baby facing the right hip and coming into the pelvis from the left fits more easily than the baby whose back is on the mother's right.
Now this last detail is a clue. If the pelvis was the only factor in fetal positioning concerns, then left and right would simply be mirror images and of equal ease (or challenge) during birth. But other anatomical features play a part in fetal position. The mother's liver and spine can make the baby's whose back is on the right have a more extended chin. This puts the top of the head at the pelvic brim. The top of the head is longer than the crown of the head. The baby can't help with the birth as well as the baby whose chin is tucked close to the chest.
Spinning Babies approaches Optimal Fetal Positioning with more focus on the mother's body than her posture.
Posture is important, I agree. Good posture will help a baby into a more optimal position unless there is a twist or significant tightness in the broad ligament, pelvic floor, or other soft tissues of the mother's reproductive anatomy. In other words, some women need more than gravity to help the baby into a good position. That's why I start with Balance as the first Principle of Spinning Babies, and have Gravity as the second principle.
Jean Sutton's little book has become the diving board for my life's work. Its amazing to me how the circle widens. I didn't see this coming in my life. I thought I'd like to be a paperback writer!
Maternal Positioning is a term used for talking about the
posture and positions women use in pregnancy and in labor for comfort and labor
progress. The 2nd Principle of Spinning Babies is Gravity. Maternal positioning uses the 2nd Principle of Spinning Babies: Gravity.
Most posterior babies rotate in labor.
But, how do you know whether your baby will have a difficult time rotating or
fitting through your pelvis?
Some people are quite concerned about baby's position and some people have a wait and see approach. Which is right?
Birth offers a spectrum of possibilities. Like a rainbow, the statistical tool called a bell curve is highest in
the middle. The bell curve illustrates that most people experience something similar to each other. The less usual variations are on either end of the bell curve, where people experience the unusual.
Most women experience childbirth as more work then they expected.
That's why we call it "labor." For a few women on the near end of the
spectrum labor seems easy. And on the far end there can be quite a lot more challenging than expected and sometimes quite a lot of surrender to
finish the birth.
Information about fetal positioning is given freely throughout the many articles
of the Spinning Babies Website. Perhaps this information made a difference in your birth. Perhaps you refer the families you work with to Spinning Babies. Please donate if and when you can. Each occasional donation is a
big boost!
Childbirth educator Pauline Scott coined the phrase Optimal Fetal Positioning to describe the work of Midwife Jean Sutton. These two women published 
Most posterior babies rotate in labor. 