Breech baby - tell me good stories of them turning by themselves!

[hunkermunker]

Am nearly 32 weeks pregnant and baby is breech. DS was wedged head down from earlier than now, so am not holding out too much hope of this one turning - plus DS was 8lb 10oz and this one looks like being similar or more and I'm not tall, so there's not much room in there!

Am doing some research because I like to know things so I can ask the right questions (or at least not mental ones) of consultants. Am not one of those people who assume that just because I've read something it will happen to me

Who's had a breech baby, and what happened? Did it turn naturally? Was it turned? And if so, how? ECV, or other method? Did it result in an emergency c-section? Or did you opt for a c-section and what was that like?

Thanks!

[KristinaM]

HM - I am 39 weeks preg and had a breech baby turned by ECV about 2 weeks ago. Details on due in November thread if you are intertested

[Nemo1977]

hunker my baby was breech until this week and am 35wks [nearly 36wks] I really wouldnt stress. Baby turning was a bit bleugh as in felt like my skin was going to explode. Now baby has its head in my hip.

[edam]

Hunker, I guess you've tried all the optimum fetal positioning stuff, sitting backwards on kitchen chairs, getting on your hands and knees a lot, not crossing your legs (and never letting your knees be higher than your bum when you are sitting)?

Fingers crossed for you.

[pupuce]

15% of babies are breech at 34 weeks.... and only 3% at term.
A second baby has much more room to turn!
Get the AIMS booklet on breech - worth the reading www.aims.org.uk

and BTW - as a mother of one baby (who I presume was born vaginally) you would have too much problem getting a vaginal birth as your body has done it once.

[hunkermunker]

Oh, I'm not stressing about it - I'm just fact-finding

KM, I'm 37 weeks on Christmas Eve - so that could be fun! WIll check out the Nov thread - glad it went well for you.

Edam...had been doing some of that, but not all - hadn't known which way up the baby was until yesterday! Having a scan in early December (a growth scan - I also have gestational diabetes - this pregnancy's been fun-fun-fun ), so will find out for sure then!

[hunkermunker]

Nice statistics, Pupuce - good to hear Will check out the aims booklet. Thank you.

[Frizbe]

15 mins a day on all fours did the trick here!

[KristinaM]

HM - it went well in the sense of baby turned ok and is now engaged so unlikely to turn back. However will hold off judgement on whether or not it was the "right" decision until after the birth!!!!!!

[hunkermunker]

LOL KM! Yes, am wondering about the whole thing of "having to give birth again" myself - like being at the top of a roller coaster you've ridden before and knowing what the drop's like, I guess!

[pupuce]

you would not have

[pupuce]

Hunker - you cna try Pulsatilla 200 at 36 weeks (three times: one AM, one PN, one AM) or you can try moxi-bustion (accupuncture).
Both are well known to work... it is still too early though.

[hunkermunker]

Yes, honestly am not stressing - just want to know what might happen. I feel better then than if I don't know anything

[dramaqueen72]

oh you could be me writing this!!LOL
this is my fourth baby, and all the others have turned at 20something weeks and breech was something I never even had to think about........
but at 32wks this one was still breech too.
I seriosuly DID stress over it, going from a 'quiet home birth' option to a c-section is not one i took very well at all, even if they- drs/midwives/scanning people ETC all started the conversation with 'its still early but............'
i had acupuncture at 32.5wks (they would do it from 28wks, -it doesnt start labour at all, or anything that feels like labour btw) and felt massive weird rolling- but not stressed and kicking type- movements from baby afterwards. I am now 34wk+ and have to wait until 37wks for a scan to confirm up or down..(am chewing nails).. but I'm getting more confident its head down now -fingers crossed!!
have a turn booked straight after the scan if its not, am apparently good case for turn if tis still breech due to 'soft' (polite term for saggy!) uterus from three previous children (-anything to help towards home birth!)
(and also have acupuncture man on standby)
the one thing I cannot organise is a vaginal breech delivery........my midwife told me in no uncertain terms no midwife, and no dr at our local hospital would attempt one this makes me very sad, i dont want to put my baby at risk (what they told me i would be doing by this) of course, but feel its such a shame due the number of c-sections done for breeches 'just because' that they now have nobody skilled in breech deliveries. I was told i could hire an independant midwife if I wanted to 'push the matter' but I couldnt afford to do so anyhow.
so its willing baby head down and lots of crossing fingers for me right now -and you too!
may all your babies be head down.........

[Janh]

thread for you, hunker

Pamina's turned - get your head down and some frozen peas out!

[pupuce]

Dramaqueen.... believe me you don't want a breech delivery.... you'd opt for a breech birth.... not the same !
That AIMS booklet is really good.
There are babies who turn hours before or in labour too... especially with a saggy uterus!

[Bugsy2]

My second turned two days before I was 38 weeks pregnant & due to go in an have an elective caesarian So, you have plenty of time yet HM.
It felt like I had a herd of elephants inside me when she turned. I was driving and I had to pull over and get out of the car! She was born at 8lb 6oz, so she wasn't exactly small either.
Hope yours turns too.

[Pruni]

Message withdrawn

[hunkermunker]

Just spoke to my mum and she said I did that too - turned late on. Sounds like it's hereditary awkwardness and I only have myself to blame

Not sure that the hospital will want to do a vaginal delivery if I'm still breech at term though. When I had DS, their c-section rate was sky-high for the month before, because they'd had loads of breech babies.

[SackAche]

Hunker - ds was breech up until 34 wks. I can remember him turning like it was yesterday!! It took him a good 2 hours (1am - 3am) to turn.... and my back hurt so much I thought I was in labour! Next day at midwives appointment he was head down.

[hunkermunker]

Sounds like I have a lot to look forward to, SA (love your festive name, btw )!

[fennel]

dd3 was breech at about 34 weeks. i did rather hope she'd stay that way so i could qualify for a c-section but she turned in the next couple of weeks and so i had to do it the proper way, home birth without intervention

so there's hope for you hunkermunker, lots of chance of it turning yet.

[fennel]

dsis had a breach baby at about 35 weeks, she went in for it to be manually turned. they did it in a few minutes, and it stayed turned.

however she ended up with a 40 hour labour and painful forceps delivery, she couldn't sit down for a month after that, so i think she might have been better off really with an elective section for breech.

[mazzystar]

Ok.

DS was breech at 36 weeks. But had turned by himself and was 2/5 engaged at 37 week check.

Have you thought about trying reflexology, they reckon they can turn them....

Also acupuncture/moxibustion. Got to be more pleasant than ECV

[hunkermunker]

Will leave it till my growth scan to check baby's still breech (34 weeks), then try everything to avoid ECV

[fennel]

about my sister's ECV. in the end her baby was OP deflex (?) i.e. head back, body slightly skewed, back-to-back presentation. hence the long ineffective labour and forceps. She does wonder if, in retrospect, the ECV turning maybe wasn't such a great idea, as the baby was still badly positioned and led to an awful labour and birth experience really.

at the time she was very set on a home birth, or a low intervention birth, that's why she went for the ECV, and she did try to have a home birth for 30 hours or so til they dragged her in to hospital (dsis is very stubborn, as well as being a medic and very over-informed on all matters of childbirth). but afterwards she did wonder if turning a baby which is set on being in an awkward position actually worked, even if it seemed to at the time of the ECV.