Head down is not enough!
Many parents think that as long as the baby is head down in the womb the baby is ready for birth. Head down is only half the story.
It is a big relief to find out
the baby is not breech (buttocks coming through the pelvis before the
head is born). Especially when so many breech babies are born by cesarean these days and so few doctors and midwives understand spontaneous breech birth. But being head down is only the first step. For the best chance at a natural birth there is more preparation. Baby should have his or her chin tucked by 38 weeks or so. For a first time mother, the baby is expected to engage in the pelvic brim (dip into the pelvis a bit) by 38 weeks. A second baby or more, may wait above the brim until labor begins, or even gets rolling. Then, if we can help the baby's back get to the the mother's left with baby's feet to the right side (only). Otherwise, labor often rotates the baby into a better position when women use active birthing techniques.
