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When should you try to get breech baby to turn?

421 Views 3 Replies 4 Participants Last post by  pamamidwife
My sister is pregnant with her first child and is currently ~20 weeks. She visited her doctor last week and he told her the baby was breech. Of course that scared her and she is all worried about a c-section! I told her that there was no need to worry yet, that the baby is still moving all around this early. (Yes, I wish she had a midwife, but that is a different issue)

Anyway...she wants more info....when should she start to try to get the baby to turn? I told her she really can't do anything now because the baby can easily just turn again.

Thanks for any advice!
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As you have said, certainly 20 weeks is not a point to worry. However, it is never too early to start natural techniques that may help a baby turn as they may relieve any torsion to the pelvis and/or uterus. And this is ALWAYS best to get resolved as soon as possible, even if there isn't a direct known effect to the baby. Problems or potential problems are more easily corrected if detected and treated early rather than at 39 weeks!

Remember that a term baby is breech for a reason! The techniques that help turn the baby actually help relieve the cause of the malposition, if possible, which allows the baby to then instinctually turn itself into the proper position. This is what chiropractic is so powerful for - looking for the cause of pain and disease instead of treating the symptoms, or effects, themselves.
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20 weeks is way too early to worry about position. The baby is less than 1 lb right now and will be moving around in there for the next 10-15 weeks!

Around 32 weeks is when acupuncture/moxibustion is used to turn breech babies. By then the baby is large enough that it tends to stay in one position, but not so large that turning from breech to head-down (vertex?) is uncomfortable for the mom.

I think by about 36-37 weeks, it's "too late" - that is, the baby's too big to turn.

I'm 29 weeks pregnant, and at 27 weeks my baby was not yet head down. At 31 weeks if she's still not, we'll go for the acupuncture. (DD1 was head down at 26 weeks or so and stayed that way.)
I usually start suggesting things to turn breech babies at around 34-35 weeks.
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