Want to avoid back-to-back labour this time

[Fugghetaboutit]

Any tips on this?

I had a very intensely painful labour with close contractions for 24 hours last time, two hours pushing stage. I really want to avoid this again as it was quite traumatic.

[LumpySpaceCow]

Good posture, not slouching on couches (correctly sized birthing balls are good for sitting on to ensure you are in right position), doing things like swimming, walking, certain all fours yoga positions. Have a look at spinning babies x

[Fugghetaboutit]

Thank you, I'm really trying to improve my posture. I've read lying back all the time doesn't help. I guess I won't know until I'm in labour again :(

[Topsy34]

Defo look at spinning babies. I think reflexology and acupressure can help too

[Topsy34]

do you have an anterior placenta?

[ShowOfHands]

I had a back to back baby first time round. I tried absolutely everything going. DD would not shift for love nor money. I was in labour for 31 hours, including an 8 hour pushing stage.

DS was back to back too and I tried to move him. I was careful from the day I got that second line. No slouching, lots of optimal foetal positioning. He never budged either and remained back to back. Second time round however, I knew that there was a good chance that it was something I had no control over so decided to exercise as much control as possible over what I could manage. So if it was as excruciating and traumatic as with his big sister, I would be taking every fecking drug available and screw it. I would not be that traumatised by relentless back to back contractions and 8 hours of fruitless pushing with not even a whiff of gas and air, followed by an emcs and pph. I had a brilliant consultant team second time round who understood and respected this and I knew their thresholds for intervention. It turns out that despite a 38 hour labour with no drugs at all, I experienced no pain whatsoever. However, ds did turn to a transverse position, just like his sister and showed signs of getting stuck in exactly the same position so we moved to emcs far earlier and it was a wonderfully positive experience.

Sometimes, just sometimes, they won't move round.

Sometimes, they stay back to back and labour is utterly straightforward too. My experience wasn't the norm by any means.

[Fugghetaboutit]

Thank you, good to hear experiences.

My placenta is in a normal position according to my scan.

I'll definitely opt for any drugs again if it's the same as last time. Horrific. Sick of hearing friends recommending hypnobirthing, I literally couldn't breathe as the pain knocked the wind out of me with every contraction.

[soloula]

DD1 was back to back. DD2 wasn't. I do think that with DD2 I was more conscious of her position (well, what her sister's position had been and how to avoid it!) so I definitely did sit upright rather than lying on the sofa and spent much more time on the ball too. :)

[Fugghetaboutit]

Good to hear, I feel more aware this time :)

[Whoknewitcouldbeso]

DS was back to back and I had a very active job that saw me running across fields at eight months. So it had nothing to do with lack of exercise or slouching I can assure you!! I did have an anterior placenta though.

This pregnancy the placenta is posteria but low lying so I may have to have a CS. If I end up birthing naturally I'm just gracing myself for agony again to be honest. As long as the baby is fine that's the main thing.

[Whoknewitcouldbeso]

*bracing

[BoutrosBoutros]

OP I am exactly the same. DS was back to back and it was excruciating from the off with 2.5 hours of pushing. Desperate for this one not to be back to back! I've been doing the inversions and rebozo sifting from spinning babies. Also lots of time on all fours and the gym ball. I've also tried the chiropractor this time, to help better align my hips and spine. I'm 37 weeks now and I think he's back to back but on the left, which is slightly better than right or full on! Feeling more calm about what will be will be and knowing that I'm doing what I can but it might not work. Sometimes I think you just need to feel you're making the effort as much as anything! I'm also going to be much more open to drugs this time!! How many weeks are you? I wouldn't advise stressing too much about it all too soon or you'll drive yourself mad! Bear in mind second time there's also a lot more room for them to move and your body knows what it's doing (I keep telling myself!!).

[Fugghetaboutit]

Thank you! I'm 30 weeks now so still some time but worried as baby gets bigger and turns head down I don't have long.

I think ds turned during labour into back to back? Was such an intense awful labour. I'm heading straight to labour ward this time just so the drugs are nearby if I need them!

Can you link to any websites that have anything I can do to help? X

[Runningupthathill82]

I'm in the same boat, Fugghetaboutit - hideous back to back labour with DC1, 24 hours of agony ending in forceps.
This time, if this baby is also back to back, I'm having drugs from the get-go and not spending hours and hours in agony for no real gain.

[Fugghetaboutit]

Good, there's no medal at the end for no drugs!

[Scattymum101]

I had a horrible early labour with dd1. 30 hours of early labour with the last 12 in unbearable pain with mw telling me I 'wasn't in proper labour' yet.
i was terrified. I spent more time on my ball second time around, lay on my left side religiously at night and dd2 was in the perfect position by d day. I had a fabulous labour, home birth in a pool, and can honestly say that I didn't have one minute of labour as painful as the first was for hours on end. It still hurt, believe me, but it felt like a positive pain. The first time it felt 'wrong'.

I thought I had a twisted uterus or something as nothing would shift dd1 from back to back. However it must have just been bad luck as it was fine the second time. X

[boardblonde]

The yoga poses cat and cow can help too. If you google it, lots of pics/videos come up. :)

[DesireeTheDoula]

Good recommendation above :) just to echo elevating your bum as high as possible - again spinning babies is good for info. Generally second time Labour's (I had a back to back with first birth - no joke!) Are quicker and less painful
I would recommend researching your hormones : oxytocin and what a huge part they play in Labour
Keep us posted :) x

[Fugghetaboutit]

I did all the hypnobirthing and yoga last time and know about oxytocin etc. Didn't help with such a painful and intense labour, I couldn't even do my breathing exercises as each contraction knocked the wind out of me, it was horrendous. I had an epidural so I could carry on and let it run out before pushing so I felt that (wish I hadn't due to bad position and compound presentation).

I'm hoping this time is easier. I have my ball now and will look up the poses and practice better posture.

I hope my labour is like yours Scatty :)

[cornishglos]

I am in the same position as you. Such a traumatic birth with b2b dc1. Now I've got the ball and am trying very hard to get the baby in position. But my midwife is adamant that it's much more rare with 2nd babies, and they can turn at the last minute. Good luck.

[StandoutMop]

Agree they can turn last mimute. I had 2 v straightforward births but dc3 was back to back, a fact midwife informed me of when I went in to be assessed after 24 hours of niggly, on-off contractions. I immediately began to panic but mW was confident DC would shift in labour which is exactly what happened - although I was kneeling / on all fours, rather than in a bed, which probably helped.

[Fugghetaboutit]

Thank you for the reassurance. I did go and lie down for the first stage of labour, it's all I wanted to do tbh as it was the evening. I will try and be on all fours or on ball this time l.

[Runningupthathill82]

Don't blame yourself if they don't shift though - I was on all fours for the majority and DS never moved round. I honestly think it's more luck than anything else!

[Quodlibet]

I've heard that chiropractors can help - you can have tight ligaments which prevent the baby moving round and finding the best position.

Mine moved round LOADS in the final trimester - including to breech and back again. I did loads of yoga, spinning babies etc but she was still back to back for most of my 32hr labour, a fact that was only noticed by the consultant in about hour 29! She did turn as she came down the birth canal and was born the right way up.