Totally confused about whether to go for VBAC or not...

[MrsMattie]

I'm soon due to meetthe consultant at the hospital I'm due to give birth at to discuss the option of a VBAC. Midwife advised me to 'go armed with lots of info and loads of questions'. Well, I've researched it until I'm blue in the face and just feel completely confused about the whole thing now. Anyone else? I just don't know what to think and not sure I trust anyone in the medical profession anymore!

[lackaDAISYcal]

I've decided to have a VBA2C this time around after an emergency and then an elective.

I have a few good links or if you look at this thread there are some links on the second page if you have the site in page format.

Lots of support here on MN.

Was there anything in particular that you were worried about?

i bought The VBAC handbook recently. It has lots of good information in it and some case studies as well which I found really useful.

The Royal College of Obs and Gynae Green top guideline No 45 is good as well.

[PollyParanoia]

I couldn't make my mind up the whole of my pg. I think without a crystal ball it's so hard and I felt envious of those who seemed to have strong feelings either way.
In the end I decided (very indecisively) to go for a vbac but put in a c-section date about 9 days after edd. Needless to say, I went that overdue so it felt like a bit of a cop out after all that preparation and psyching myself up.
Good luck with whatever you decide!

[HarrietTheSpy]

I just had a VBAC. Was astonished how indecisive I was about the whole thing - and for how long. My independent midwife basically assumed I was going for it; I confessed to the consultant I had doubts and that I wanted to decide on the day. She wasn't too keen on this strategy...but I have to say I never really waivered in this. In the event various things happened which scuppered this strategy but when the time came to decide, I felt clear I wanted to try for the VBAC. Do you feel able to postpone the decision until quite late in the pregnancy?

[ChirpyGirl]

I had a VBAC after a breach CS and although I said I wanted a VBAC from the start I didn't do anything differently until I was 39 weeks and then asked for a sweep just to 'help' in case things were going that way.
The main reason I had was that I couldn't have faced 6 weeks in the house with a newborn and a 20 month old toddler!

[PollyParanoia]

Sorry, but since when have you had to stay at home for six weeks after a CS?
I worried about having a cs and a toddler to deal with, but in the end I actually think the fact that you're forced to rest up after a cs was a positive advantage. Instead of being all supermum and bouncing around after birth cooking etc, I stayed in bed for a week (plus extra two days in hospital) and made sure that I had organised care for my son (aged 2.5). It was brilliant and I recovered so well generally, it helped with breastfeeding and of course it's the very least that everyone should do, CS birth or not, it's just easier to insist on if you've had surgery.
In fact, it was so blissful that sometimes I wonder whether it's the reason I'm now pg with my third. It's the only way to get a week in bed...

[ChirpyGirl]

Stay home as I couldn't drive and the nearest park/open ground to me is covered in broken bottles and needles.
Also, I have no way of getting organised care, my MIL is quite frail and cannot physically pick up DD1, neither can FIL, and my mum lives 300 miles away and needs to give a weeks notice for leave, so for some of us it is not that easy to do 'the very least that anyone can do'

[PollyParanoia]

Didn't mean to criticise Chirpy, I just meant that generally I think we mothers can be too active after any sort of birth, rather than traditional periods of confinement of other cultures. Plus if you go for a vbac, you can't guarantee that you won't be one in three that ends up with a c section anyway, so you have to at least prepare for the possibility.

[ChirpyGirl]

Sorry, was having bad day. I do agree you can do too much, but the fact that I wasn't going to have a chance to take it easy and needed to be able to lift things was one of my main reasons for wanting a VBAC.