Breech Baby Support

Is your baby in a breech position? are you looking for a more natural and holistic way to help them turn?

Then you're in the right place!

Whilst it is common for babies to be breech (bottom or legs down) earlier in pregnancy, if a baby remains in a breech position beyond 34 weeks of pregnancy, they may benefit from a bit of help to turn.

Balancing Birth offers a unique package of techniques to encourage your baby to turn head-down, using a combination of:

Each of these techniques individually can help babies to turn, but this powerful package can significantly increase your chances of baby choosing to flip head down ready for birth*.

During the session you will also have the opportunity to discuss your birthing options in relation to having a breech baby.

Your investment

90 minute session - £90

*This package of treatment can offer no guarantee that your baby will move to, or stay in a head down position, as there can be many factors involved in a persistent breech position. Ultimately, baby decides what position they want to be in. These techniques aim to optimise the environment to encourage baby to move if it is the right thing for them to do.

What is Breech Presentation & why is it important?

If you have found your way to this page, it is likely that you have some awareness of what breech presentation means, and it's implications, but it's always helpful to have a quick summary, so here it is!

A baby is described as being breech when they are positioned in the uterus bottom (or sometimes legs or feet) down. Babies often start out in this position earlier in pregnancy, with up to 25% of babies at 28 weeks being in a breech position, but by the end of pregnancy this goes down to only around 4%. Breech is a variation of normal, however for a number of reasons, the amount of birth attendants experienced in supporting breech birth is now very low in many modern western maternity settings, meaning that options for vaginal breech birth can be limited.

The reason why some babies remain breech is not fully understood, but possibilities include variations in uterine or pelvic anatomy, multiple pregnancies, the location of the placenta, or baby having a short cord. Breech presentation can be found by chance on an ultrasound scan, or if a midwife or doctor may suspect a breech position from feeling your abdomen, a scan would then be arranged to conform this.

Baby's position is important because if baby remains breech beyond 36 weeks of pregnancy, it can impact your birth choices. Initially you would be advised to discuss a plan of care with the obstetrician. This will usually involve being offered an External Cephalic Version (ECV), where the doctor gives medication to relax the uterus, then manually attempts to turns the baby by firm rotational massage of the abdomen. This procedure is only about 50% effective at turning babies head down, and comes with possible risks including pain from the procedure, as well other small but important risks of causing bleeding, waters breaking, or placental abruption (detachment).

Usually if a baby cannot be turned, then birth by Caesarean section is advised. Vaginal birth when the baby is positioned breech is possible with experienced and skilled birth attendants. However, not all hospitals will offer vaginal birth to women with breech babies. It is important to remember though that with all maternity care, even if something is being advised, the choice is always yours whether to accept, or choose an alternative option that is right for you.

These interventions aren't your only options. The package of support that I offer can be used instead of, or complimentary to usual care. Read on to find out about the different elements of the package.

What is Moxibustion?

Moxibustion is a treatment method originating from traditional Chinese medicine, which has been used for over 1300 years. It consists of burning a herb called ‘Artemisia Vulgaris’ or more commonly ‘Mugwort’ in the form of a moxa stick. This stick is made from the dried leaves being made into a compacted roll similar to a cigar. The moxa stick is lit and burned near the skin at the acupupoint called ‘Bladder 67’. This is located at the outer aspect of the tip of the little toe, in both feet. The activation and heating of this point can trigger rebalancing of the body's energy (Qi) and blood flow, resulting in optimised hormone release, uterine muscle response, and increased fetal heart rate and movement. These responses can lead to the turning of baby from the breech (or transverse) presentation to being head down (Vertex).

Various research studies have investigated the effect of using moxibustion to resolve breech presentation. These report varying success rates from 66.6% (Cardini & Huang 1998) to 92% (Kanakura et al 2001). Not only has moxibustion been shown to help turn the breech presenting fetus independently, but it has also, when used prior to External Cephalic Version (ECV) it resulted in increase success rate of the procedure (Manyande and Grabowska, 2009).

The Moxibustion Procedure

Moxibustion treatment is non-invasive and no significant complications have been reported after its use. It is best used between 33-35 weeks but can be attempted after this time, up to 40 weeks.

During your session I will provide your initial Moxibustion treatment, demonstrating and teaching you and your partner/helper the correct technique and safety aspects so that you can then self treat for the remainder of the course.

It is sometimes possible administer the treatment on yourself, but it is recommended (and has been found to be more effective) for someone else to do it for you - your partner, a friend or a family member.

The procedure involves holding the lit (smokeless) moxa stick near the Bladder 67 acupoint which is on the edge of the little toe, for approximately 20 minutes a day, on each foot. With a bit of coordination both feet can be treated together, but it is safer to do one foot, then the other. It’s important to ensure that you are in a comfortable position, that your bladder is empty, and ideally wearing loose, comfortable clothing. The lit moxa stick is held close to the skin until it feels quite hot but not burning, it is then moved gently in and out using a pecking action. The recommended duration for the course of treatment is 10 days. This treatment length can be extended if needed.

You will be supplied with enough moxa sticks to cover the duration of the treatment course, and you can contact me any time if you have any questions or concerns about your treatment.

Body Balancing for Breech

During your session I will be guiding you through positional techniques that will help balance and align your pelvis. These positions can then be practiced daily to further help your breech baby to turn.

Breech position can be the result of imbalance or tension in the muscles or ligaments of the pelvis. Babies will always find their way to an optimal position where they have the ability and space to do so unrestricted. We can help baby to find their best position by creating more functional space by balancing the pelvis, and also adding in gravity to encourage baby to turn in that newly available space, into a head down position.

There are many factors (past injuries, sporting activities, sedentary jobs) that can lead to these imbalances, but it's important to acknowledge that it isn't your fault if your baby ends up finding a breech position. It is often just the world we live in and our modern lifestyles that can lead to these imbalances. The important thing is that there are things we can do to help correct these imbalances and help your baby to turn!

Hypnotherapy for Breech

At the end of your session with me, you will supported to get comfortable, and be guided into a beautifully relaxed, hypnotic state where your subconscious mind becomes open to suggestion through hypnotherapy. Your subconscious can be directed to make changes in your body, releasing any fears that may be causing you to hold constriction in your muscles. Your body relaxes and your subconscious mind communicates directly with your baby, allowing your baby the space and permission to turn head down.

Hypnotherapy for breech is powerful and effective. One study that researched the effectiveness of hypnosis to convert a baby in breech presentation to a head down, found that 81% of babies in the 'hypnosis combined with usual care' group turned, compared to only 48% in the comparison group who only received usual care.

You will be provided with a recording for the breech hypnotherapy script to continue listening to daily following your session. You can listen to it at any time you are able to sit or lie down comfortably without distractions. Don't worry if you fall asleep, as your subconscious will still be listening.