Labor and Delivery How to Push Your Baby Out With an Epidural By Robin Elise Weiss, PhD, MPH Robin Elise Weiss, PhD, MPH LinkedIn Twitter Robin Elise Weiss, PhD, MPH is a professor, author, childbirth and postpartum educator, certified doula, and lactation counselor. Learn about our editorial process Updated on June 14, 2021 Medically reviewed by Rachel Gurevich, RN Medically reviewed by Rachel Gurevich, RN Facebook LinkedIn Twitter Rachel Gurevich is a fertility advocate, author, and recipient of The Hope Award for Achievement, from Resolve: The National Infertility Association. Learn about our Medical Review Board Print KidStock/Blend Images/Getty Images Epidural anesthesia is the most common form of anesthesia used in childbirth. Since an epidural numbs the entire area between your breasts and knees, you might wonder how you can push your baby out during labor. Some studies have looked at whether or not having an epidural alters how you push your baby out. However, the results have been mixed. A 2017 review of those studies found that for women on epidurals, delaying pushing during the second stage of labor increased the stage by 56 minutes. Overall, however, it was unclear whether the timing of when to start pushing had any lasting impact on moms or babies. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists has since changed its stance on delayed pushing. They now favor pushing based on cervical dilation. Getting the Most out of an Epidural in Labor The Urge to Push With an Epidural Near the time of birth, laboring women experience the urge to push. Sometimes this urge is overwhelming and women describe it as something that their body is doing and they have no control over it. Other times, it simply means that it feels better to push, particularly at the peak of a contraction, than it feels to not push. For some women, an epidural can dampen or eliminate the urge to push in the second stage of labor. This lead to the theory of laboring down, a term that describes waiting to push until the baby is fairly far down into the pelvis. This allows the mother to rest and was thought to prevent: Fetal distress Prolonged pushing Some fetal malpositions or allow the baby time to rotate into a better position The mother from feeling incredibly exhausted from pushing efforts As of 2019, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists no longer supports the practice of laboring down and suggests a woman starts pushing when her cervix is fully dilated. Pushing Positions With an Epidural Since an epidural anesthetizes the mother, she may not be able to assume as many positions because of the lack of feeling. This puts a limit on the number of possible positions, which can hinder progress during labor. This varies from mother to mother. Some women will have more movement than others, and while this might alter what positions you can use, it will still usually require a lot of support from those around you. With good support from your partner, a doula, labor nurses and others, there are several effective positions the mother can use for pushing including: Kneeling at the foot of the bed, leaning overSemi-proneSemi-sitting with leg supportsSide-lyingSupine with stirrups or leg supportsSupported squat Use Caution One thing to keep in mind when helping a woman with an epidural is to be careful never to over-extend her legs or other joints. It is possible to cause harm to the mother's body because she is not able to feel pain, and may not know when to tell you to stop if her joints are overextended. Labor Positions With a Partner Epidural Complications While the reduction of pain is a benefit of an epidural, this medication also increases the risk that you will: Increase the length of the second stage because your muscles are less able to help rotate your baby into preferred positions for childbirth Have an episiotomy Need forceps or vacuum extraction Need more time for pushing than you would otherwise Need Pitocin, the synthetic form of the hormone oxytocin The use of an epidural will most likely not have any great effect on your ability to push, with the most likely complication being a lengthier pushing phase. That said, many women gladly trade a few extra minutes of labor with the pain relief provided by the epidural for the alternative. A Word From Verywell If you are planning to have an epidural, talk to your doctor and doula about how you want to handle the pushing phase of labor. Knowing your options and having a birth plan in place can help you make the right decisions about this aspect of labor and delivery. Epidural Recovery After Labor 5 Sources Verywell Family uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy. American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. Medications for Pain Relief During Labor and Delivery. 2017. Lemos A, Amorim MM, Dornelas de Andrade A, de Souza AI, Cabral Filho JE, Correia JB. Pushing/bearing down methods for the second stage of labour. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2017;3(3):CD009124. doi:10.1002/14651858.CD009124.pub3 ACOG Committee Opinion No. 766: Approaches to Limit Intervention During Labor and Birth. Obstet Gynecol. 2019;133(2):e164-e173. doi:10.1097/AOG.0000000000003074 Osborne K, Hanson L. Labor Down or Bear Down: A Strategy to Translate Second-Stage Labor Evidence to Perinatal Practice. J Perinat Neonatal Nurs. 2014;28(2):117-126. doi:10.1097/JPN.0000000000000023 Walker KF, Kibuka M, Thornton JG, Jones NW. Maternal position in the second stage of labour for women with epidural anaesthesia. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2018;11:CD008070. doi:10.1002/14651858.CD008070.pub4 By Robin Elise Weiss, PhD, MPH Robin Elise Weiss, PhD, MPH is a professor, author, childbirth and postpartum educator, certified doula, and lactation counselor. See Our Editorial Process Meet Our Review Board Share Feedback Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! What is your feedback? Other Helpful Report an Error Submit