Understanding Birth, the physiology, physical and psycology.

Birth is three things.

Physical.

Physiological.

Psychological.

One thing cannot exist without another. When you are in labour, each aspect needs to be cared for and considered equally.

Physical Aspects of Birth

The 'physical' encompasses the feelings in your body, the positions you adopt, the movement you make, the position of your baby, the rotation and descent of your baby, the stretching of your body, your energy levels, the releasing of your muscles and the Birth itself. Generally any complex medical factors will sit in the 'physical' too. We can care for the' physical' by adopting positions that we find comfortable, resting if we are tired, finding an upright or forwarding leaning position to help our babies into a good position for birth, breathing deeply, staying fed and watered, reaching for a variety of comfort measures like massage or water or sometimes medical forms of pain relief may feel like a good choice too.

Physiological aspects of birth

The 'physiological ' encompasses the hormones your body makes, the build, the rhythm, the pattern, of your surges, the influence of the environment and care on this and the point of birth itself. We can care for the physiological by reaching for tools that hell us feel safe, relaxed,. Unobserved and undisturbed--dimming the lights, having a bath, playing music, avoiding conversation, having a supportive team around us, deep breathing, physical touch, a kiss and a cuddle!

Psychological Aspect of Birth

The 'Psychological' encompasses all your emotions, how you feel, whether you feel safe or afraid, what your head is saying to you in labour, managing the feelings of birth. We can care for the Psycological by having a supportive team around us, being heard and listened to, using positive affirmations, getting informed about our choices and options, having a cuddle, someone holding our hand.

So often, particularly within the healthcare system, one or 2 of these aspects gets lost. And they simply CANNOT. These are not three seperate approaches, but they are intricately laced together, one influences and other which influences another. If we aren't feeling good physiologically, our physiology is affected, if we aren't supported physiologically, no amount of good positioning is going to work. You simply cannot disconnect the three.
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So if you are pregnant or caring for a woman in labour, stop and think-- are all these needs being met? If not, what can we do to make sure they are?!