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Story summary
- Historically, women have given birth in upright positions, which are safer and more effective.
- That practice changed after a Frenchman prioritized men's convenience.
- Janet Balaskas, founder of Active Birth Centre in United Kingdom, says professionals and pregnant women misunderstand birth physiology.
- Her 1982 Active Birth Manifesto states that women have traditionally labored in upright or crouching positions.
- Balaskas argues these positions use gravity and widen the pelvis to ease childbirth.
