Yoga poses for breech baby are great for helping turn baby. In this article I explain the causes, as well as yoga poses that can encourage baby to turn. Plus tools and tips to gain better positioning.
Common types of breech baby?
“While most babies are usually lying head down by the end of pregnancy, about 3% to 4% are bottom down, in what is know as a breech baby”.http://www.nct.org.uk/labour-birth.
There are various types of breech baby.
- Complete breech,
- In this position, the baby’s feet are near their bum and the legs are crossed in a head up position.
- Frank breech–
- babies feet are at their face
- Footling breech
- babies feet are lower than their bum.
There’s an amazing explanation image, showing these 3 breech babies, as well as great information regarding other baby positions in this article here https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/323099#positions-in-the-womb
Main causes of a breech baby
The reasons why a baby can be in a breech position and the most common reasons are:
- There is too much amniotic fluid around the baby
- There is more than one baby in the womb
- The mother has an anomalous shaped uterus
If you are wanting further information, please check out this great article I found, regarding breech babies and more https://www.healthline.com/health/pregnancy/breech-baby#diagnosis
Anterior pelvis tilt
Remember our baby moves how we move.
I had and admittedly still can, if need be as seen in this photo, an exaggerated anterior pelvic tilt.
This can encourage a back to back posterior baby position, which I was blessed with birthing.
You ever watched woman in high heels try to walk?
The height of the heel, naturally creates weight to lie in the toes and to shape this anterior pelvis tilt, which creates the bum to stick out and the boobs to push out
This pelvis tilt can be very natural in pregnancy because the belly is growing.
The spine and pelvis then try to counterweight the changing gravity body field.
The easiest and most natural option, is an anterior pelvis tilt.
This then adds to a compression in the lower back.
Aiding back ache along and relaxing the pelvic floor muscles.
This is why getting in tune with pelvic floor muscles is so key in pregnancy.
By practicing these exercises in pregnancy it will strengthen your recovery postnatally.
Check out the subtle change of the 1st two photos above. It’s simple, subtle, intricate muscle movements, that pelvic floor muscles work.
Yoga poses for breech baby
- Melting heart
- On all fours
- Extend your arms forward on the ground
- Melting your heart (chest) to the floor
- Your bum will be high and your chest low
- Use cushions for the head if need be
- Benefits of this pose
- Helps baby to turn as baby belly is upside down
- Lengthens the back
- Releases the hips
- Wide crawl
- On all fours crawl like a baby with a wider framed hand and knee position
- Look in-between your hands
- Breathe
- Benefits of this pose
- This lengthens and releases the back
- Creates space for the hips
- Gives baby room to move
- Down down pose (Adho Mukha Shvanasana)
- From all fours crawl, lift your hips to the ceiling
- Press hands into floor
- Bending your knees
- Creates space and length for the back
- Loosens the hamstrings
- Have your hands and feet as wide as you feel you need
- Breathe for 3-5 breathes
- Benefits of Down dog
- Being upside down shakes the ‘diva drama nonsense’ out
- It also helps baby turn
- Creates room for baby to move
- It strengthens the birthing muscles
- Creates space in the hips
- Lengthens the back
- It is an all round body strengthener
- Lunges
- Standing place one foot as far forward, as is comfortable, stable and strong.
- Bend the front leg
- Have the knee above ankle
- If it goes over the ankle, widen your stance
- If it goes not enough to the ankle, shorten your stance
- Breathe for 3-5 breathes
- Switch leg
- Benefits of this pose
- Open hips
- Strengthen labour muscles
- Help baby into position
- Bridge pose (Setu Bandha Sarvāṅgāsana)
- Lying on your back, use cushions if need be
- Bring your feet as close to bum as you can
- Have your feet at whatever distance apart you and baby need
- Lift your hips to the ceiling
- Hold for 3 breathes
- Lower gently
- Benefits of this pose
- Strengthens the gluteal muscles, hamstrings, back and pelvic floor muscles
- Stretches the hips, neck, chest and spine
- Creates a 45 degree angle of belly helping baby to turn
- Calms the central nervous system which helps alleviate stress
- Improves digestion
Birthing ball sequence for turning breech baby
- Using a yoga ball and being on all fours
- roll the ball forward with your hands, extending your arms out.
- Head is looking in-between your arms
- Breathe for 5 breathes
- If this is too much, simply using the ball as a pillow and being on all fours, can encourage baby to turn.
- Benefits of this pose
- Relaxes the Central Nervous System
- Lengthens the back
- Creating space for the hips
- Can encourage baby to turn
- Imprint to neutral exercise (Pelvic tilt)
- Sitting on your birthing ball
- Place your hands on your hips
- Breathe in and as you exhale lift pelvis towards baby
- Inhale back to neutral spine
- Exhale the ball rolls slightly forward as the pelvic floor muscles hug baby
- Inhale as the ball rolls slightly back into neutral spine
- Repeat 15 times, with 15 breathe’s
- 3 times a day especially in third trimester
- Benefits of this pose
- Strengthens pelvic floor muscles
- Will help you in labour
- Alleviates embarrassing wet moments
- Pelvic tilt ladies, get in tune with your wonderful pelvis
- It will help you now and forever
- It will help your baby move better
- Circle your hips
- Sitting on a birthing ball
- Circle your hips
- One breathe is one circle
- Inhale as your hips move towards your back and exhale as the pelvis tilts up
- Do ten circles with ten breathes
- Repeat other way for ten circles, ten breathes
- Benefits of this pose
- Loosens the hips
- Creates space in the back
- Focuses on the breathe with each circle relaxing the body
- Great pelvic floor muscle exercise
- Allows room for baby to move
Wall yoga poses for breech baby
- Wall Exercises
- walk your hands down the wall in line with your shoulders
- Look directly down
- Press hands into wall on exhale
- Benefits of this pose
- Lengthens by stretching the back
- Create space in hips
- Calms down the Central Nervous System
- Can encourage baby to turn
- Squat
- Put your back against the wall
- Bend your knees, making sure they are no lower than knee height
- Hold for 3-5 breathes
- Benefits of this pose
- Strengthens birthing muscles, legs, back
- Creates space in hips
- Lengthens the back
- Helps create room for baby to move
Spinning babies shake the apple technique
Im a massive fan of Spinning babies who discuss a strategy which is similar in yoga poses for breech baby aims, called; Shake the apple technique. It’s a technique using a Mexican Rebozo Shawl Blanket Doula that can be given for 20 minutes. This technique can help turn a baby and encourage them get into a better position. Especially if you are aware your baby is in a posterior position or breech.
It can also helps relax mums central nervous system.
Shake the apple technique can help loosen the hips and support length to the back. This can create more room for baby to turn.
Ask your partner to gently assist.
⚠️ Please note, you are gently shaking the belly please watch the video below before trying.
Here’s further directional information from spinning babies https://www.spinningbabies.com/pregnancy-birth/techniques/shake-the-apple-tree/
Another technique spinning babies discuss is using an iron board.
- Iron board
- Lying at an angle of 45 degrees, where your head is lower than your heart for 20 minutes. This position can encourage baby to turn. Please check out this page with a fabulous video, showing how its done https://www.spinningbabies.com/pregnancy-birth/baby-position/breech/
- ⚠️ Do not do this exercise alone
Sleeping position to help turn breech baby
The optimum sleeping position is
- Sleep on your left side with a pillow between your knees.
- This will create more room in the pelvis for baby to turn.
Tips for breech baby
- Keep walking
- even if it is seen as waddling
- Remember to move the way you wish your baby to move.
- This is why being upside down helps a baby get into position.
- Sleep on your left side with a pillow between your knees.
- This will create more room in the pelvis for baby to move.
- If you sit on chairs for long periods of time, it’s important to sit upright. I know how tough it can be, I remember it well, especially as our belly gets heavier.
- Try sitting with the back of the chair at your baby belly.
- Perch your hands onto of the back of the chair for extra support as this will help to support your posture.
- Use a birthing ball it helps:
- Posture
- Distributes weight more evenly
- Aids comfortability
- Helps baby move into birth position
- You can exercise/meditate/relax/watch tv/eat using it
- It can be used instead of a chair/sofa
- Great as a tool in labour
- Fabulous for pelvic floor exercises
- Facilitates and tones the body 3 months postnatal
- Number 1 tool most pregnant woman need.
- They’re many benefits of using the birthing ball
- Do not recline whilst awake for long periods of time.
- Remember baby moves the way we move.
- Keep your feet below pelvis if possible.
- This will aid space within the pelvis
- Encourage better posture
- Create a neutral spine.
Medical Intervention techniques
There are two medical interventions to help turn a breech baby
- External Cephalic Version
- This is carried out by a professional like a midwife, or Doula.
- This ‘manual process’ can flip your baby.
- The Webster technique
- Is a chiropractor sacral manipulation. Please see this medical article for further information https://icpa4kids.com/media/1160/webster_technique.pdf
Products to help breech baby
- Mexican Rebozo Shawl Blanket Doula
- birthing ball
- Liforme Travel Yoga Mat
- Deluxe Comfort Pillow Side-Sleeper Prenatal Pregnancy Unique L-Shaped Design-Superior Comfort-Body, White
- PharMeDoc Pregnancy Pillow
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