have you heard about the birth sling now I have just purchased a birth sling and in this video
we are going to discuss why it's something that you might want to consider purchasing to use in
your own birth or if you are a doula you might want to consider purchasing one for your Doula
bag we're gonna go through some of the different positions and ways that you can use this product
now the act of dangling or hanging in labor is something that was done long before the invention
of the birth sling so if you ever read any kind of text about different cultures giving birth
or birth from long long ago you will usually see a depiction of a woman holding on to a rope that
is tied to a tree so in many cultures this was done some cultures still today present day silks
and different types of pieces of cloth that are anchored into ceilings in labor and delivery rooms
of some countries like Ecuador many Netherlands not all but some and some birth centers in the U.S
even have something like this set up to be used by their laboring patients but access to a tool like
this it's just not common in Hospital Labor and Delivery my guess is the makers of the birth sling
saw this need and created this product now in my Doula bag for the last 17 years I've been carrying
around this black and white cotton baby wrap that I use and I put a knot in it and I put it on the
other side of a locked door and my clients have often enjoyed hanging from it and helping to squat
in this position because my clients have really enjoyed using this in labor that's what really got
me interested when I saw the birth sling I feel like it's going to be a major upgrade to the tools
that I offer my clients in labor now I like this product so much after I tested it that I became an
affiliate and I have a coupon code to pass on to you if you're interested in getting one yourself
all of the the information the website and the coupon code can be found below this video in
the description okay so in order to properly test the product I had the help of a local pregnant mom
Amy she was willing to be willing to be my test and my model so the product comes with a ceiling
anchor but we didn't use that we used the over the door hanger I think that's the one that would be
used most and setting it up is really easy but it does require that you put it in a door that
can be closed tightly and locked if possible so for our test we locked the inside of the door I
can imagine if you're using this product in a hospital that an ideal location would be on a
bathroom door because an inside interior bathroom door you have the knowledge that no one's going to
be inside the bathroom opening it up when you're using it so if you're where you're giving birth it
would be good to identify whether or not you might have a door available to hang the birth sling I
know some of the hospitals that are locally at least one has more of a sliding barn type door
in the bathroom so that wouldn't be ideal so which door you put it on is really important
now my husband who's an attorney would like for me to recommend that you follow all of
the instructions given by the manufacturer and not rely solely upon the instructions that I'm
giving you in this video so after our sling setup was tested then we were able to move through some
of the various position and ways that you can use the birth swing a deep squat is the one that my
mind goes to First this can be a great position for labor but it's really hard to do it on your
own but the birth sling can make this position easier it can take some weight off your legs and
in addition to the main sling that you see Amy using here there are also two pieces of fabric
on each side of the sling that you can use to grab and pull on so Amy here is twisting the fabric in
her hands to get a firm grip and from that deep squat Amy is moving into sort of a standing up
and backwards Ling this position can facilitate movement again it takes some weight off your feet
another position is the forward lean now for this one Amy wasn't as comfortable she said
as the squat or the Back Lean but it might be different for you it's something to definitely
try and test out now I think when I have a tool like this it's best if you can test it out before
Labor begins and get a feel of how it's used so then when labor starts you'll be more likely to
make use of the tool if it's the first time you've ever tried it it you're I think in labor you'd be
a little less likely to give it a full go so the next position that I'd love to look at is
something a little bit different and that is one that you're done kneeling so kneeling can
be done in two different ways I would say make sure you have a pillow or a mat on the floor to
make it easier on your knees now after Amy got into this kneeling position she was with the
sling she was able to dangle in a forward-ling lean A variation on this that I really love is
an asymmetric meal so the asymmetric positions are great to allow for a bigger change in your
pelvis on one side and then the other don't forget to switch sides now in all these positions you can
always add that gentle sway back and forth layering on Rhythm to your coping techniques
if any of these look exciting to you hit the like button let me know is this something that
you might like to use in labor don't forget I have that discount code in the description and
a link to the birth sleep now another asymmetric position that you can use if you've watched any of
my videos you probably know I love this position and that's the Captain Morgan so you can use that
standing lunge the Captain Morgan pose with the birth sling again the sling takes a little bit
of weight off and allows you to really relax into this position and one exp unexpected position that
we tried out on the birth sling is using the birth ball so we got on the birth ball Amy did a forward
Lane and she actually found it very comfortable so all of these are several ideas on how you can use
this tool for labor of course it is not the entire list of options I think there could be many more
and creative ways to use this tool people in labor really get creative with their coping strategy
so if you if you've used a tool like this or something similar please share your experience
in the comments I would love to read about it and we can all learn from each other now if you
love learning as much as possible before Labor begins then make sure you click on
my must watch before birth playlist this is a list of hand-picked videos that I really
think will make the most impact and make the most of your time so see you next time bye