breathing while pushing

B

beth

Member
Hi, everyone! I had a question for you experienced moms out there. At my latest childbirth class, we practiced pushing for labor. The instructor said that it helped to hold your breath while pushing, but I couldn't help but exhale while pushing since exercise always tells you to breath out on the exertion. Will it take longer to get the baby out if I breath? Any advice on this or anything else labor related? It's getting pretty close (I'm 34 weeks) and I'm getting nervous. Thanks!
Beth
 
Hi Beth! I couldn't believe it when they told me to hold my breath while pushing during labor. It is the total opposite of what I am accustomed to doing. I tried it through three contractions since they "insisted" on me doing it this way, and I got a major headache and the blood vessels in my eyes were strained. To fill you in, I went into labor a month early at my shower away from home so I had doctors that I was not familiar with. So now not knowing these doctors, I was trying to be cooperative but I finally had to tell them that this holding breath method feels completely unnatural to me and to please let me try to exhale slowly as I went through the next contraction. He agreed since there was no progress up to that point. Well that was the answer. I slowly exhaled as I beared down through the contraction just letting enough air out as if a tire were slowly deflating. I had so much progress that I did just a few more like that and the baby was out. The doctor was so impressed that he joked around after the baby came out saying that he needed me to come back and train his staff with this aerobic method.

I'll let Sheila chime in here if she is reading but, correct me if I'm wrong, I believe the holding your breath method is referred to as "purple pushing" or "valsalva maneuver" and not highly recommended any more. I will look into this for you, Beth, and get back to you.
 
Hello Beth,

I couldn't let this one go by without adding my "two cents" worth. The following is a quote from my "Healthy Moms Perinatal Fitness Instructor Training Manual" with regard to holding one's breath during the second ("pushing") stage of labor.


“Purple Pushing” (Valsalva Maneuver)

Unfortunately, many women are told to hold their breath while pushing out their babies. This “non-physiologic” pushing is known as “traditional” or “purple pushing.” We have all been taught to “exhale on exertion.” Why should women be told to hold their breath during one of the biggest “exertions” of their life? Holding the breath while pushing can lead to the following:

·Decreased downward force leads to less effective pushing
·Abdominals are pushed outward with breath holding
·Pelvic floor reflexively tightens
·Increased blood pressure with brief periods of breath holding and decreased blood pressure with prolonged breath holding.
·Increased blood pressure may burst small capillaries in the face

Need I say more......

Sheila Watkins
 
I agree with Cathe about getting the headache while pushing. I did the purple pushing with my daughter (c-section with my son) and got a huge headache. I pushed for right about an hour which the complemented me on but I really felt like I could have done it faster.

Shelia or Cathe...any suggestions on how to practice the pushing technique other than through exercise? I feel I've been "trained" to do purple pushing and I'd really like to try exhaling while pushing instead. It always seemed very weird to me that they tell us to cut off our baby's oxygen supply while pushing. Maybe that's where the "purple" pushing comes from.

Great topic Beth!!

http://www.fitmomsonline.com/allisig1.gif
Mommy to Zachary, Jillian and Baby due February 24, 2002
...we're half way there :)​
 
As another data point - in both my pregnancies, when it came time to deliver, I didn't even think of it - I didn't pay attention to it - I just did what came naturally, and can't really remember if I held my breath or not. I just ... pushed and nobody really said anything by way of 'advice'. Granted, my first child was born at home (not by choice) , but even for my second one.. nobody really hassled me one way or the other.

I know this sounds kind of icky - but what do you do when you are pushing out a movement? You are engaging many of the same muscles when pushing out a baby.

Leela
 
LEELA

With regard to the movement question, it happens. The nurse does not say anything and it is whisked away without any embarrassment as it is quite common. In the old days, an enema was part of the "prep" for delivery which also included shaving the pubic area. Thank goodness those days are gone!
 
RE: pushing

Wow, thanks for the advice! This makes me feel a lot better. I thought something must be wrong when during practice it felt like it took a lot more effort to do the purple pushing than to just slowly breathe out. I wonder why doctors advocate that?

Beth
 
Hi Alli! Exhaling through your contractions will most likely come very naturally to you since you already do it when working out. During labor, right before your push phase, you will take a deep breath. All you do is exhale slowly during the duration of the contraction. If you finished exhaling yet you are still in the contraction, quickly take another deep breath and continue to exhale slowly. I exhaled with my lips tightly pursed as if I were trying to blow up a balloon. Hope this helps.
 
RE: pushing

Hi Beth! I'm sort of late in responding here...

After I read about this on the forum a while back, I talked to my doc about it. He admitted that he always encourages the purple pushing, but that I could do as I wish~ the toughest obstacle is often the nurse in the room, who will be throwing directions your way. I'm planning to discuss it with her BEFORE the pushing begins, telling her I've already discussed it with my doc, and go from there. :)

I'm also planning to do my pushing in a position OTHER than supine. It never makes sense to me why we wouldn't use the blessing of gravity to get the baby out, and instead we often have our feet in stirrups, pushing UPHILL (my doc's words, he agrees with me on this one).

Michelle in So Cal
due 1/6/02
 
I find it hard to believe you were told to hold your breath! That is completely contrary to the stuff I was reading, and, from what I've read could be worse for you.

The book I found incredibly helpful (bought it about 2 weeks before the baby came) was Mind Over Labor. When I read the book, I thought some of it was kind of cheesy... but when I was actually in labor, well... different story! I found myself using a couple of the techniques they talked about... and they were EXTREMELY helpful.

Good luck.
Zoelda
 
RE: pushing

Pushing in oxygen takes practice... practice in using your ab muscles, practice in RELEASING your kegels, practice in exhaling (which fitness people are more used to doing...). Putting together all of those elements is sort of like rubbing your stomach and patting your head -- it takes concentration!

If you come into labor with no idea of how to push in oxygen -- which don't you imagine that most women are not trained to do this??? So many women don't even exercise at all during pregnancy -- it'd probably be difficult to teach someone in the delivery room... so bearing down/holding your breath becomes the easiest thing for the labor & deliery folks to tell a woman.

Susan
 
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