How and Why to Use a Squatty Potty to Prepare for Birth | Mother Rising
There are many ways to prepare for having a baby - reading the best pregnancy books, taking a childbirth class, etc. This post, however, is all about how and why to use a Squatty Potty to prepare for birth. Let's dive in!
Prepare for Birth with Body Balancing
Throughout pregnancy women learn many ways to prepare the body and mind to give birth. According to Gail Tully of SpinningBabies.com, one way to prepare the body to give birth is to bring balance through tone and alignment, which often increases the chance of an easier birth and better sleep during pregnancy. ()
(Hello??!! Who doesn't want to sleep better during pregnancy and have an easier birth ?)
There are many ways to promote body balancing during pregnancy, and an amazing resource I use personally and professionally is the Spinning Babies' Daily Essentials video which gives clear and simple daily activities that any pregnant woman can do at any point in pregnancy.
Using a Squatty Potty to Prepare for Birth
One of the activities mentioned in the Daily Essentials film is to use a Squatty Potty when you poop.
I was a little surprised the Squatty Potty was mentioned in the film, not because squatting while pooping was a foreign concept to me, but because I never thought that it played a part in helping women prepare for birth.
After watching the film I was eager to apply what I learned to my life so that I could teach this information to my childbirth classes but also so I could apply this information to any of my future pregnancies.
Ask Gail Tully of Spinning Babies
Next on my to-do list was to contact Gail, the midwife behind the Spinning Babies website, and have her elaborate on why squatting, specifically while pooping, is helpful during pregnancy to prepare for birth. This is what she said about using a Squatty Potty to prepare for birth...
Squatting encourages elimination by lining up the body for the job.
Squatting is an important movement in a pregnant woman's everyday life - yes movement, not exercise or maternal position.
Women aren't always ready to go right into a deep squat. Take it easy to begin by hamstring lengthening stretches (ok, these can be called exercises). No reason to pain yourself or do 100.
Gradually moving into a movement (as in bowel), by using the squatty potty gives a supported method for the squat to pot movement (as in social trend).
Proper squatting lengthens the pelvic floor for benefits of both muscle control and muscle relaxation. In other words, less urinary incontinence and easier fetal descent in birth.
As you get comfortable squatting with your feet parallel you might begin to squat to scrape and cut your veggies (use a low cutting board table!) and scrub the corners of your kitchen floor. You'll love the freedom you have to get to low places and up again with ease.
Squatting on a Squatty Potty is an American answer to the absence of squat toilets that we still see in use in Asia. The Squatty Potty Company not only supplies an attractive foot stool (check out the bamboo one!) but also an educational website answering questions we didn't know we had.
The key is to lengthen the hamstrings, put the sacrum to work and let your bottom swing out in the position that if you do squat on the ground to pee you won't splash your feet. (Actually peeing in unusual places is a simple exercise to help women let go when they are preparing for a hospital birth, especially a VBAC. But that's another blog post.) You can find more about squatting at KatySays.com and at SquattyPotty.com itself.
How to Use a Squatty Potty
Using a Squatty Potty to prepare for birth is pretty simple. Simple buy a Squatty Potty and place it underneath and back against the toilet bowl when not in use (see below).
During a bowel movement simply pull the Squatty Potty forward and place feet flat on the stool. It's pretty straight forward!
In the picture of my postpartum survival kit below you can see my bamboo Squatty Potty all tucked away. Isn't it pretty?!
My Experience Using a Squatty Potty
In a nut shell, pooping on the Squatty Potty feels easier on my body. There is no straining. Everything literally feels "lined up". When I am away from home I am sad that I don't have my Squatty Potty.
Another benefit I noticed is that it has resolved any constipation issues I may have from my rectocele which I developed after delivering my second child.
One last thing is that I really love how pretty my bamboo Squatty Potty is. I'm such a hippy.
Leave a Comment
Do you own a Squatty Potty? Leave a comment and let me know your experience with a Squatty Potty. Did you use a Squatty Potty to prepare for birth? Let me know! 🙂
i have been wanting to get a squatty potty for a while now! Just this evening I propped my feet up on my trash can in my bathroom to achieve a better position. Pick me, I'm desperate! LOL!
This sounds so cool, I would love to know what 'normal' pooping is like lol. The Chinese women at work always try and squat ON the toilet, and I never understood why...it must be way different (better??) if they're willing to go to all the trouble to literally climb onto a toilet to do their buisness.
Oh man I have been using an upside down wicker basket to help me out after reading about it online. I need this item!
I'm due in MAY and would love one of these to help prep my body for my HBAC. I also think it would be helpful for my toddler to use since our toilets are so tall. She props her feet up on a kiddie chair to get better position. Lol!
I need a squatty potty so that I can give my kids back their "stool" for the bathroom. 🙂
I would love to win a Squatty Potty! I've been researching the benefits and I need this in my life! I'm always propping my feet on something when I'm in the bathroom. I've been known to stack 5 beach towels under my feet before! LOL!
Oh pick me! I've wanted a Squatty Potty for several years, but I haven't been able to sell my better half on the benefits 🙁 Perhaps if there was one here he'd be tempted to try it...
We love our squatty potty too! And it's helped my constipation (from rectocele) issue as well. They are amazing!
I want to win because I think I have a rectocele too. 🙁
And everyone should have one of these because it's the natural way to poop, obviously.
My sister went through a non-toxic cancer healing protocol and used the squatty potty as part of her healing. I'd love to have one to "aid" in my morning routine. Thanks for considering!
I have heard of the squatty potty before but never connected this tool with birthing women! Fantastic idea! I will be recommending this to all of my doula clients and childbirth ed students' tool boxes!
After the traumatic delivery of Teague in 2010, not only did he sustain permanent brachial plexus injury, but I also suffered rectocele to stage 2. Ever since, I have had problems but have not had the time or money to deal with my own issue due to following up on the therapy and surgical needs of Teague instead. Well, two pregnancies later (2012 and 2013), the pressure on my injury has only made it worse. Only recently (in 2015) have I begun to seek pelvic floor therapy for myself. And I'm finding it still difficult to get my own medical attention when the kids need so much of theirs. Well, on one of my therapeutic visits, my PT said that I NEED to get one of these! Problem is... no funds. I only work part time and hubs has been looking for work for over a year. I've tried using the kids tiny step stool for the sink, but it's just not cutting it. 😉 Would love to get this.
Thank you for taking the time to write these words of wisdom for all of the Moms out here! I have 6 amazing kids, 5 of which are boys!! Yes, it's loud and crazy around here. I am pretty new to the whole wellness idea and natural healing but I have been so impressed with the outcomes we have had in our home. I am in my early 30's and have had digestive problems since my late teens. I was also told recently by my gastrologist to live as if I was at high risk to develop colon cancer. I also have developed gestational thrombocytopenia with my last two pregnancies, which makes natural delivery my only option. I have implemented many of your recommendations from your " Morning Sickness Remedies" eBook ( Baby #7 is NOT on the way) and have already seen major improvements in my over all health. Just wanted to share my story!!! I have already clicked on your link above and ordered my squatty potty! I am thankful for your work and know how difficult it is to find the time to put words together when you are running around with little ones.
I
I am so into this! I am pregnant and I love anything that will help make birth easier! Also I'm a huge fan of Katy Bowman!