The number one reason for first time birthing people to have a cesarean is “failure to progress”. Failure to progress is defined as a labor lasting 20 hours or more for first time parents. However, labor is not always linear and can have variations. Back in the 1940’s the Friedman Curve was introduced in hospitals as a means to determine how quickly a laboring person should progress in labor, approximately 1 cm per hour. Research now supports the importance of disregarding that estimation and recognizing other factors like, epidural use, fetal position and emotional components, can prolonging labor.
For those who wish to avoid an unplanned cesarean due to being labeled “failure to progress” this episode will resonate with you. I speak with certified professional midwife (CPM), the co-founder and director of Healthy Mother Sanctum Natural Birth Center, and the leading official Lamaze-certified childbirth educator, Dr. Vijaya Krishnan. Vijaya offers solid advice and tools for how to handle a slow labor, factors that can be causing an arrested labor and options to help move the labor along.
For the full show notes including how to connect with Dr. Vijaya and resources mentioned in this episode visit: prenatalyogacenter.com
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