Yoga | Birth | Babies

“I would like a deep, painful tear of my perineum” said NOBODY! Pretty much in every movie or TV show where birth is being portrayed, we see the birthing person flat on her back, legs spread wide and people are yelling at her to “PUSH!” It’s no wonder that is how people think they should approach birth. But let’s pull back the curtain a bit of after effects of pushing in such a way. Have you ever thought what might happen to someone’s perineum if they are pushing a baby through a taught, overly stretched pelvic floor? In this episode of Yoga | Birth | Babies, I speak with midwife, author and Senior Lecturer and Discipline Leader in Midwifery at the University of the Sunshine Coast, Australia, Dr. Rachel Reed. Rachel talks about best practices to protect a very important part of your body, your perineum. She explains which pushing positions are less likely to create tears and dispels the myth that supporting the perineum or massaging it during crowning lead to better outcomes. She also explains why informed co