Fetal positioning AKA Belly Mapping...

What is Fetal Position? And Why Does it Matter?

There are several different fetal positions that your baby can be in, and some are better for giving birth than others. If your baby is in a less-than-ideal position, it can cause painful, long labors and sometimes unfortunately interventions.

These shown diagrams pose as a example visual three-step process for identifying baby’s position in the final months of pregnancy that I learned months back in my @spinningbabies training with Tammy Ryan.

You may be able to identify baby’s fetal position based on his/her kicks or hiccups (kicks should be up high; hiccups down low).

Pretend you can visualize the baby with LOA. The left occiput anterior (LOA) position is the most common in labor. In this position, the baby's head is slightly off center in the pelvis with the back of the head toward the mother's left thigh.

The right occiput anterior (ROA) presentation is also common in labor. In this position, the baby's head is slightly off center in the pelvis with the back of the head toward the mother's left thigh.

OP- I see this A-LOT supporting births and moms complain of severe back pain through contractions and labor. In occiput posterior position, your baby's head is down, but it is facing moms front instead of her back. If a baby is in this position, sometimes it will rotate around during labor so that the head stays down and the body faces the mother's back (OA position).