what if i have back labor?
Ah, back labor. The back alley, trench coat wearing hoodlum of the birth world. You are university despised.
Back labor occurs when you feel the intensity of your contractions in your lower back instead of your belly. This is caused by a baby who is positioned “sunny side up” (in medical terminology, occiput posterior, or OP), meaning that instead of their face pointing towards your spine, their face is pointed towards your belly. This causes the back of the baby’s head to press up against your spine, and it is, in a word, uncomfortable.
The best way to counteract back labor is with counter pressure, either with the heel of the hand or a fist pressing back against the strongest point of pressure. It is not uncommon for moms who experience intense back labor to have bruises on their back the next day from the counter pressure. Birth pools and laboring in the shower can also be extremely helpful. You can add all of these options into your birth plan (use my free Birth Planning Checklist for help).
The “cure” to back labor is for your baby to rotate into an occiput anterior (OA) position. This can be done by laboring in various positions that open the pelvis and encourage the baby to rotate. Look up The Three Balances from Spinning Babies for the most common positions used for this.
Here’s the caveat: the best we can do is encourage the baby to move. We cannot guarantee it. Personally, I have about an 80/20 success rate with getting babies to move. Sometimes, babies are the most uncooperative human beings on the planet and there is no budging them.
Your doula can help you with all of the positions to try and encourage your baby to spin, and I’m willing to bet she’s got all kinds of tricks up her sleeve for babies in other wonky positions as well (I know I do!).
Can you deliver a baby in this position? Absolutely. It is a different experience and often takes more work, but it is 100% doable. I’ve even seen OP babies delivered when Mom had zero back labor and we didn’t have any indication that the baby was in that position. I remember one birth in particular when the midwife and I both laughed out loud in surprise when a baby was born facing up. We had no idea, but there he was, happy and healthy.
Christine Rogers is a birth doula and childbirth educator. She is the owner/operator of Draw Near Doula Services and serves in-person in Anchorage, Eagle River and the Mat-Su Valley regions of Alaska, and offers virtual doula services and education all over the United States. A mom of four, she works hard to ensure every client she serves has a positive and empowering labor experience, because no one should have to be afraid of birth. When not doula-ing, she’s a writer, baker, aspiring potter (as in bowls and vases, thank you very much), and her love languages are mason jars, dangly earrings, and Dr. Pepper.
Need a doula? Looking for childbirth education? Find Christine’s services online at www.drawneardoula.com. You can also follower her online on Instagram & Facebook: @drawneardoula .
