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Childbirth

One Born Every Minute - Who's had a Forceps delivery?

282 replies

Treadmillmom · 07/02/2011 23:03

Mum of 3 fortunately all text book natural un aided deliveries.
I've just watched tonights One Born Every Minute and the forceps delivery, I am stunned!
The midwife seems to be putting her back into it, dragging the baby out, is that okay for the baby? How is it possible the baby isn't born with neck injuries?
Also mom, doesn't having 2 metal tongs inside you not shred and bruise you?
Tell me please, I was totally grimacing as if I were there.

OP posts:

Report

LawrieMarlow · 07/02/2011 23:08

I had a forceps delivery. Didn't much like looking at them in One Born Every Minute as I was at the other end IYKWIM .

My nether regions were in a bit of a mess afterwards but a lot of that was due to internal stitching after having a PPH so not directly due to the forceps.

DS didn't have any problems with his neck - he did have some bruises on his head but these faded quickly.

NormaDesmond · 07/02/2011 23:09

I had forceps delivery after episiotemy as ds was 'back to back' and I don't remember much about it....

slartybartfast · 07/02/2011 23:09

i had one, luckily i never knew what an actual forceps looked like before, i was stunned when i did eventually see one, and yes it hurt like crazy,. ds was fine though.

shabbapinkfrog · 07/02/2011 23:11

LOL!!! My firstborn twin (1981) was born using forceps - around his eyes he looked like he had been in a boxing match. Within a couple of days he was fine. My second born twin was delivered feet first [massive ouch emoticon]. However the delivery was nothing like the shock of finding out I was having twins 10 days before they were delivered at 38 weeks!!!!!

I also had an epidural (would never ever have one again) because I had pre-eclampsia and they needed to get my blood pressure down quickly. I went on to have DS3 in 1984 - totally normal delivery and DS4 in 1997 (when I was almost 41) when I was 20 days overdue - he was a ventouse delivery!!

orchidblossom · 07/02/2011 23:12

Gaawd they look like barbecue tools (shock)

slartybartfast · 07/02/2011 23:13

actually dh does mention ds slightly elongated head, but he was perfect in my eyes.

Flisspaps · 07/02/2011 23:14

I had a forceps delivery. DH said it was like sorme sort of medieval torture - the registrar had his foot up on the end of the bed and everything.

I do not really remember. I am glad that I do not remember.

Fortunately I didn't feel any pain afterwards. Even with the third degree tear sustained when the registrar didn't tell me to stop pushing as DD crowned To be honest though, when they've cut your fanjo and stuck a pair of huge salad tongs up there, a bit of bruising isn't really an issue.

I did wonder though about how the babies don't get neck injuries. Poor DD had a horrendous black and bloodshot eye :(

defineme · 07/02/2011 23:16

They turned dtwin with forceps as she was facing wrong way, but I then pushed her out-she had no bruising-the consultant did it.Had an epidural with twins because after ds1 back to back I was never going back to that and certainly not twice!

Ds1 was back to back and came out that way-think that's why I got stuck pushing him out for so long-nothing but gas and air.

littlemisslozza · 07/02/2011 23:17

Yes, forceps delivery with DS1. Didn't hurt as they did a 'pudendal block' - local anaesthetic - so I could feel contractions and feel DS moving through the birth canal which was very weird, but no pain at the 'site of forceps!'

Had an episiotomy (I thnk they always do one?), stitching that wasn't too pleasant as the anaesthetic was wearing off but it healed well once the swelling had gone down.

DS1 had forceps marks on his head for a few days afterwards and was quite battered and bruised. The hardest thing was getting him to feed, it took almost 5 days until he'd recovered and had the energy to.

Forceps birth looks worse than feels IME.

defineme · 07/02/2011 23:17

Nothing obvious except stitches for me either.
Forceps may look brutal but babies died before they were invented-they are a good thing!

MoonUnitAlpha · 07/02/2011 23:18

Yes, ds was pretty mashed up - bruised face, swollen eye and nerve damage in one side of his face.

I had a spinal block and was given a lot of morphine afterwards so luckily didn't feel too much.

sunndydays · 08/02/2011 08:31

I had forceps, no epidural, the massive African Male consultant was pulling with all his strength....back to back baby, had only been allowed to push for half an hour. She had a headache for a few days (apparently) and was a bit swollen. I on the other hand couldn't sit down properly for three weeks

ajandjjmum · 08/02/2011 08:36

Ds was born with forceps but was fine. I'd had a spinal so it wasn't awful. I've still never seen what the forceps actually look like - won't bother looking now.

Bicnod · 08/02/2011 08:44

OP I was totally at the forceps delivery as well. I'm due DC2 in July (I was lucky enough to have no intervention with DS) and spent most of yesterday evening after watching that saying to DH 'don't let them do that to me ever EVER EVER!' Looked terrifying. Really really really hope I get away without intervention again. I'm scared now!

catwhiskers10 · 08/02/2011 08:45

I had a foreceps delivery, DD was fine afterwards and apart from feeling a bit tender, so was I.
Tbh by the time it got to that stage I couldn't have cared less what they were doing to me!

Flisspaps · 08/02/2011 08:47

Bicnod I was adamant in my birth plan that I Did Not Want Forceps. It was the one thing I drummed into DH. I had made the mistake of venturing onto the ragged bits thread one day when pregnant.

By the time the registrar turned up I would quite happily have done the episiotomy and used the forceps myself. Hell, I'd have done it without the pudendal block, anything to stop the pain and get DD out.

BeeBox · 08/02/2011 08:51

I was delivered by keilands forceps and have a scar on my head from them

lol@Flisspaps. I was the same about c-section. I couldn't even contemplate the thought of a section pre-birth. I didn't bother reading the bit about sections in the pregnancy books. The whole concept was unthinkable.

By the time I had been through 24 hours of hard labour and still wasn't fully dilated, the word 'caesarean' was like a beautiful gift. I would quite happily have hacked off my own arm just to GET THE BABY OUUUUTTTTT.

Bicnod · 08/02/2011 08:53

Flisspaps - yes, I do seem to remember not giving a flying f**k what was going on down there at the moment of delivery. After 2 hours of pushing I just wanted him out! Luckily he came of his own accord but I'm sure that next time if it doesn't happen like that I won't care about forceps or anything else for that matter.

Still scared though.

Eek.

Artichokes · 08/02/2011 08:54

I had a forcep delivery. The doctor had to brace her foot against the bed to get enough strength to pull. It was barbaric. DD1 was born with a cut on her head and a bruised cheek but amazingly did not seem distressed. I had a massive PPH (more likely with forceps) and my nether regions took about 8 months to fully recover.

I would never, ever have another forceps delivery. I would much prefer a c-section even after along labour.

TBH I am not sure why forceps are still used. Do the use them in the US does anyone know?

CuppaTeaJanice · 08/02/2011 08:55

Everyone talks about forceps as if they are just one thing. There are different kinds, from ones that just gently lift out the baby and are often used in cs too, to Neville Barnes mid-cavity which I had, where a bit of tugging is required but no 'foot on the bed' business. I managed to cope without an epidural!

I assume the ones you are talking about are keillands forceps, for high cavity extraction and situations where rotation is required. They are the ones that make people scared of all types of forceps, when in reality the first two sorts aren't too traumatic and are a very useful tool.

JetLi · 08/02/2011 09:02

Similar as defineme - they used the forceps to turn her & then I pushed her out. So I wasn't particularly shredded but did have an episiotomy. DD had a mark on her face on one side, but it was gone by the next day.
We went to theatre to have it done as we were a whisker away from an EMCS. So it didn't really bother me TBH - I was happier not to have had a section, having already laboured for more than 36 hours.
That said, I'm hoping to avoid any instruments this time around!

CilantroLarry · 08/02/2011 09:15

They attempted a ventouse with dd so not forceps but the level of effort was the same. She was too high for even high forceps. The surgeon had his foot up on the bed and was swearing with the effort. He pulled me off the bed. DD's head was torn by the cup and she was very bruised (but bruised anyway as she'd been stuck in deep transverse arrest with her head wedged sideways in my pelvis). She had a very bad headache and some muscle damage.

But it was try and get her out instrumentally or her not come out at all. I'd have agreed to them letting a trained chimp pull her out if they'd said it would work.

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expatinscotland · 08/02/2011 09:20

I had H-F forceps with DD1, my first, who was OP and had her hand up cupping her head over her ear.

Other than a slight bruise on one side of her face and a scratch on the other, she had no problems at all.

I had stitches, of course, but no long-lasting effects.

I had an epidural.

You do realise it's not unheard of to use forceps during a CS?

mawbroon · 08/02/2011 09:28

DS2 was a forceps delivery, but I don't remember which type. I was just on G&A and a local anaesthetic for the tiny episiotomy.

It didn't hurt, ds2 was fine apart from a tiny graze on his forehead and my black and blue fanjo recovered in a couple of weeks.

And I am mighty glad that forceps worked because the next option was a cs because ds2's heartbeat had dropped too low.

EarthMotherImNot · 08/02/2011 09:36

We are caring for a baby born by a forceps delivery and watching last nights episode explained to me exactly why he looked the way he did when he arrived at ours the following day.

The side of his face, actually both sides but one worse than the other, was badly bruised, his eyes where puffy and his head seemed oddly elongated so that from the side he looked like a little alien.

As others have said though, he was absolutely fine after a few days and at almost 5 months now, he is an utter joy

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