3 Proven Labor Secrets You Don’t Want to Labor Without!

As a labor and delivery nurse for 20 years I can’t wait to share with you three things that can make labor SO much better. Honestly, these aren’t earth-shattering, for the most part they’re not expensive or take loads of time but they really make SUCH A difference. If you can implement these I really think you’re going to have a better labor overall!

Before we get started, I can also send you my mini class on labor tips I think you’ll like too:

Ok, onto the secrets!

Movement is a Key

I was reading a book the other day about a midwife in the rural midwest during the great depression. She was new to the field, but was having a hard time getting a mother to progress to delivery.

She was able to call her preceptor midwife (who was on bedrest herself) and she said — get her moving. Get her up OUT of the bed and MOVE her.

And guys — I couldn’t agree more.

The other good news, if you have an epidural, you can even move in the bed!

You have to think of labor as some twisty pipes and a very tight-fitting ball that is slowly being pushed down into the pipes, but as you can imagine when you move and adjust those pipes the ball moves faster.

It’s honestly a real shame because when I’m in pain my main vice is to stay still. I don’t want to move and I definitely don’t want to get out of my bed. I tend to curl-up in the fetal position, as they call it…

But, when you take the time to move, even just to adjust how you’re laying if that’s all you can do — it’s really worth it!

This is where a partner can REALLY make a huge difference helping you to move. They can do this in early labor at home, and also at the hospital. They feel part of the team and they’re making a difference!

Here is where I plug continuing movement during your pregnancy.

I read a study on birth trauma (that I link to in that article) that people who exercise are less-likely to have birth trauma. I honestly feel like that’s because you’re willing to push through when your chips feel down.

If you’ve laid on the couch your whole pregnancy you’re going to have a hard time pushing through to move when you’re not feeling your best. Keep moving during pregnancy, ask your provider what’s safe for you to do. Focus on things that open up your pelvis. I talked about it with a pregnant personal trainer on my recent podcast here:

Want to know more partner tips — check out these posts:

• How to Be a Supportive Husband and Partner During Pregnancy
• What To Do About A Selfish Husband During Pregnancy?
• My Boyfriend Says I Feel Different Inside During Pregnancy

Preparation Really Makes a Difference

You rarely see people online saying “my birth was better because I took a class on it” because it is literally the bare minimum towards getting prepared for birth. It would be like you saying you learned to type and it’s made life a lot easier. Yeah, obviously.

Let me tell you about a real phenomenon — it’s called the Scary Stack (I named it that). It goes a little something like this:

You come in and you’re caught off-guard by admitting. They want more info than you thought you’d have to give while you’re in pain. You just want to get to your room….

Then your nurse puts your gown on your bed and you honestly have no idea how to put it on or what to do with it. Undies on and off? What do you do?

Then, the nurse puts you on the monitor and she doesn’t get baby right away — it scares you because your doctor always gets it right off with their doppler. Yikes!

Now the nurse asks if she can check you. You hate getting checked and you’re not sure if you really have to let her do it, but you don’t know how to ask so you just let her do it….

Can you sense how all of this would start to stack up? Not to mention after the nurse finds out she’s in active labor she asks her if she can put an IV in and you’re pretty sure there’s an alternative but you can’t remember what it is or what to ask for.

Think of it as a pile of books that you’re holding. We’re just putting on one new thing after another:

Hitting admitting, the gown, not getting baby, a cervical exam…. you’re carrying all these books. One or two wouldn’t be a big deal, but it seems like it’s new and sort of scary things around every turn.

Let’s compare this to someone who’s prepared.

She hits admitting. She knows they can ask for her name, address and birth date and then she should be able to go back to her room. She’s prepared with all that info and has her partner prepped to help out too should she need it.

She’s a pro at gowns, she knows it opens in the back and she’s saving her own glorious gown to wear after baby is born because she hates laundry. Undies off because it’s WAY easier when you’re standing up.

She’s seen these monitors before and knows it’s an art to get baby on, not a science. She also has been faithfully been doing her kick counts since 27 weeks (not sure how to do those — grab my cheat sheet here):

You’re just as interested as the nurse to know what your cervix is doing and you quickly let her do an exam. You even known to wiggle your toes at the worst parts because it helps your pelvis relax.

You also know that you don’t need an IV yet, but you want a saline lock because it’s safest for you and baby…. The nurse is so impressed by how prepared you are…

You mention you took The Online Prenatal Class for Couples, and that it just took a few hours and was SO much easier than that 9 hour hospital class on Saturdays. Basically, she’s a genius. 🙂

Now, you might be rolling your eyes saying you are more prepared than that girl holding the scary stack, but I’ll be the first to tell you that the hospital can seem REALLY scary when you’re there as a patient, in pain and worried about your outcome.

Studies show that birth classes improve outcomes, including less inductions, interventions and cesareans for those who took a quality class. It’s a proven secret — and it honestly is SO easy to do right here.

Remember What You CAN Control

What can you control in labor? Honestly, very few things overall:

• You get to make the choices and remind yourself that the choices is always yours as the patient
• You get to control your attitude towards what the day (and night) brings

You don’t get to control the baby, your uterus (which is wildly annoying, I know) — but you (as the Beatles remind us) — have the power to take a sad song and make it better.

By making choices that make sense to you, and remaining positive regardless of what you’re facing.

Again, your partner can often take the lead on this (I am a HUGE fan of partners getting prepared and educated, in case you hadn’t noticed)…

• They can REMIND you the choice is yours (medical staff often forget this, so a great partner can be on top of this with you)
• They can help that attitude stay positive by being a support to you (and staying positive on their end).

Too often I see this scenario:

Someone chooses an induction, but she’s not aware that’s probably going to take a while. So, as each out ticks by she’s more and more upset that the induction isn’t going more quickly.

She’s also bothered because, by choosing an induction she can’t make some choices like having an IV (it’s required to have the induction). Her baby’s heart rate also dips a little every now and then and she’s just super worried about that.

After what seems like forever she’s just begging for a cesarean because it’s just taking far longer than she imagined it would be.

Her control was in the beginning when she chose the induction (although, she could change her mind at any time and go home…. the hospital doesn’t always offer that though, a good class always reminds you that’s an option — especially with an induction). Also, making an actual informed consent with ALL The information about the induction — which I help you do here:

Her control was also in staying positive. Other things that might improve her stay:

• Asking for a sleeping pill at night to get some rest
• Asking the nurse to only come in once an hour (or less — unless something is wrong) so they can try to get some sleep
• Bringing a pillow from home that is more comfortable for rest (but getting that thing OFF the bed when baby is born so it’s not ruined).

Those things don’t tend to be options the hospital just offers, but if you’re prepared (see secret #2) you know what your options are and can tailor your birth more to yourself.

So, those are my secrets:

Move, Prepare and Control what you can (and be aware of what you can’t).

Sure, they sound easy — but honestly, preparation is key for all of that. The Online Prenatal Class for Couples comes with:

• Labor movement cards to give you ideas on labor positions
• An expert to give you just what you need to know
• Prepares you to control what you can at your birth and exercises to allow the rest to just happen.

The good news is that the main part of the class only takes a few hours, and it’s split into bite-sized chunks you can easily add to your busy schedule together.

Want to do a vibe check before diving into the whole thing with me? — check out my free labor pro tips. It’s your first step toward getting in the driver’s seat of your birth.