Push or Pant? The Urge to Push...

Momslikeme.com has reprinted a fascinating article by veteran midwife Lydi Owen on experiential evidence suggesting that acting upon the urge to push prior to the standardized '10 centimeter cervical dilation' might actually assist in dilating the cervix. Obstetrical medicine in current practice maintains that women should not push before 10cm, for fear that the cervix will tear. Owen challenges this, pointing to the fact that the foundational studies supporting the 10cm rule were done in the 1950's when women were heavily drugged. Why would our bodies tell us to push if it didn't serve a purpose? The Rule of 10 vs. Women's Primal Wisdom, originally in Midwifery Today, Issue 86, 1998