best positions for labor?

Labor Positions
Medically Reviewed by Mark Payson, M.D. on May 12, 2020
Leilani Rogers
labor positions
Learn more about the best labor positions for a comfortable delivery of your baby.
In This Article

How are labor positions handled in the delivery room?
What labor positions might a pregnant mom try when delivering her baby?
What labor positions are most comfortable?
Are there any risks to any labor positions?
Do any labor positions make childbirth easier?

How will you spend your labor and delivery?

Maybe you’ll walk around and then switch to squatting to push out your baby. Maybe you’ll lie on your side during contractions and then get on all fours when baby’s ready to make his appearance. Maybe you’ll rock on a birthing ball when those contractions are coming fast and furious and then choose to recline in your partner’s arms when it’s time for delivery.
Health Benefits of Pregnancy and Motherhood

Or maybe it’ll be a combination of all the above … or just one of the above.

Happily, it’s your labor, your way, and getting a move on during labor by varying your position may not only ease those labor pains, but could also help speed along delivery.
How are labor positions handled in the delivery room?

No need to take labor lying down anymore. These days, expectant moms are encouraged to labor any way in which they feel comfortable, change positions as often as they like, and deliver in positions far different from the traditional flat-on-the-back pose.

And for good reason. Lying flat on the back is the least effective delivery position of all. In fact, any position that enlists the aid of gravity is likely to yield speedier results.

Barring a high-risk condition that might keep a mom-to-be in bed or keep her from trying certain positions, today's laboring moms — even those with an epidural or continuous fetal monitoring — can choose from a variety of labor and delivery positions.
What labor positions might a pregnant mom try when delivering her baby?

Try any (or all) of these labor positions:

Standing or walking. There’s a great reason to get vertical: It helps you work with gravity, allowing your pelvis to open and your baby to move down into your birth canal. Walking is something you'll be more likely to do early rather than later in labor since it'll be harder to head for the corridors for a few laps once the contractions are coming one right after the other. Standing, however, is something you can do at any point during labor. Leaning against a wall or your partner for support during contractions is best, since it's not that easy to stand up straight when you're getting squeezed down below. Can you stand up and deliver? Gravity aside, that would be tricky — but you can squat (see below).
Rocking. Rocking, either on a chair or swaying back and forth, allows your pelvis to move and encourages the baby to descend (down, baby, down!). And the more upright you are, the more gravity is able to help you out.
Squatting. You’ll probably use this position only late in labor or during delivery itself. Like standing, squatting also employs Newton's finest while opening up the pelvis to give your baby more room to move on down. You can use your partner for squatting support (you'll probably be a little wobbly, so you'll need all the support you can get), or you can use a squatting, or birthing, bar, which is often attached to the birthing bed (leaning on the bar will keep your legs from tiring out as you squat).
Sitting. Sitting — in bed, in your partner's arms or on a birthing ball — can ease the pain of contractions and allow gravity to assist in bringing your baby down into the birth canal. Sitting also helps to open up your pelvis, and it's a lot easier than squatting for long periods.
Leaning over or kneeling. Leaning forward — over a stack of pillows on a bed, for instance — or kneeling over a chair or birthing ball can be super helpful when you have back labor (when the back of the baby's head is pushing against your spine) because it encourages the baby to move forward, taking the pressure off your back. Alternatively, you can lean over your partner's shoulder to relieve some of that pressure.
Hands and knees. Going on all fours is another way to cope more comfortably if you're experiencing back labor. This position allows you to do pelvic tilts for comfort, while giving your partner great access to your back for massage and counterpressure (you'll want it, big time). Many moms like to deliver in this position no matter what kind of labor they're having, since it opens up the pelvis and uses gravity to coax baby down.
Side-lying. Better than lying on your back because it doesn't compress the major veins in your body (which could compromise blood flow to your baby), side lying is a good option if you’re too tired for squatting or sitting. Lying on your side also puts your partner in a good position — he'll be better able to put his best massage techniques to use. Side-lying can also be a good delivery position — it can help slow a too-fast birth (yes, there is such a thing), as well as ease the pain of some contractions.

What labor positions are most comfortable?

The most comfortable labor position is the position that you feel most comfortable in, and, according to the research, there is no one position that is best. That said, there are some positions that may be extra helpful in certain laboring scenarios:
Read This Next
10 Signs of Labor
Delivering in a Hospital: What All Moms Need to Know
What Is Pitocin Induction?

If you have back labor: Leaning over, kneeling, or getting onto your hands and knees can help relieve the pain that comes from back labor.
If you have an epidural: You won’t be able to walk around with an epidural, but there are plenty of labor positions you can assume, including sitting or lying on your side, even when you’re numb from the waist down.
If you’re being continuously monitored: You can rocking, squat, sit or lie on your side during labor even if you’re being monitored for contractions and fetal heart rate.
When you’re delivering your baby: Semi-sitting or side-lying may be the easiest delivery position for your practitioner, but it may be more comfortable for you to deliver while squatting or on hands and knees.

Are there any risks to any labor positions?

Lying on your back with a full-term baby inside your uterus can put pressure on important blood vessels, possibly compromising blood flow to the baby — which is why the flat-on-your-back position isn’t recommended.

Still prefer to be in bed when laboring? Semi-sitting or lying on your side can reduce any risk while still keeping you comfortable and your baby safe.

During labor, your doctor or midwife might find that certain labor positions are causing changes to your baby’s heart rate. If that’s the case, your practitioner might ask you to change positions, which can often make a difference.

She might have you switch from one side to the other, for instance, or have you move to all fours, which can decrease pressure on the umbilical cord.
Do any labor positions make childbirth easier?

An analysis of medical studies shows that upright positions — standing, walking, squatting and sitting— may shorten the first stage of labor by approximately one hour and 22 minutes. Studies also show that women who spend part of labor in an upright position are less likely to end up with a cesarean delivery.

Remember, you can spend your labor your way, changing positions as often as you’d like and to whatever position works best for you. As for delivery — whatever works is the best position for you (your body will clue you in if you listen).
Don't feel compelled to squat when semi-sitting's doing the trick (and making you less inhibited about pushing). Read up on the different positions ahead of time and even give them a trial run, but remember that until you're actually in labor, you won't know what'll best bring you the relief — or the results — you're looking for.