Why vaginal birth?

[SantaSusan]

Inspired by another thread. I'm really interested to understand the reasons for most women opting for a vaginal birth.

Disclaimer: I really, really want this thread to be a nice discussion to share views. I'd hate for this to descend into a judgy or unkind thread! Obviously, however anyone chooses to give birth is their choice alone. And as long as your precious little bundle arrives safely at the end, then who cares how they got there!?

I ended up with an elective. I never in my wildest dreams thought I'd have anything but a vaginal birth. However, for reasons I won't go into, it was decided during my pregnancy that a c section would probably be the best option for me. Everyone I spoke to absolutely loved their c section experience, and 99% of the comments online were so positive, so I wasn't worried about it at all once it was decided upon.

I had absolutely no pain during my c section or during recovery. I breastfed right away. I was up and about pretty much immediately. This seems to be the experience of most women who've had elcs. I would have an elective section again and again. If I'm lucky enough to have another baby, it'll be another section.

As such, I often wonder why more women don't choose to have their babies this way. It's so common in other countries. I think there's a lot of misinformation around c sections. The risks are also lumped in with those of emergency c sections, so electives are often painted to be riskler than they actually are.

You often hear people saying it's major abdominal surgery' in quite a judgemental way, which of course it is. But as far as surgical procedures go, it's generally very straightforward and in most cases, is easy to recover from.

I also repeatedly hear that vaginal is best as it's the most natural. But just because something is the 'natural' way to do something, doesn't necessarily mean it's the best. There's lots of things we do now with technology and with medicine that isn't the 'natural' way, and nobody bats an eyelid.

I can't quite put my finger on why I was so opposed to c sections previously. It's like it was subconsciously ingrained in me for no reason other than popular rhetoric. Which is why I'd be interested to hear why others decided a vaginal birth was best for them? Or why others knew they wanted an elcs? Has your subsequent birthing experience changed your minds at all?

I had two quick labours and VBs with just midwives in attendance and no medical intervention required. I am sure this must be the best way for most women. However, I completely understand that a c-section may be necessary in other circumstances, but the women I met who had c-sections around the same time I had my DCs did suffer much more in the weeks afterwards. One woman also had issues with her second labour as a result of the scar tissue from the first c-section so it appears to come with certain risks so I would only recommend that someone had an elective c-section if there was a medical need for it.

I've had 2 vaginal births, one of which was in theatre, so very very nearly had to have a c section.
I think that there's always been a fear of the pain afterward. I've heard lots of ladies say that C section healing is very painful and I'm inclined to think that a C section MUST be worse than my vaginal births, as the pushing stage tends to be quick for me and I havent torn either time (let me say that, and it change when I have my next baby in a few weeks time!)

I'm also a little more nervous about a c section because I have a "shelf" of stubborn fat and loose skin after weight loss, so if I had a C section I'm concerned I'd have the mother of all infections from the area being warm and moist.

I think that however a child enters the world is beautiful and the safer for the mother and baby the better. However that appears at the time.

Because the baby would struggle to come out of my ear!

I have 3DC, all vaginally. My youngest was a high risk pregnancy and I assumed they were going to recommend a C section - in fact, I had pretty much accepted this was going to be what they said. But when I saw the OB, who was one of the top ones in my whole region, I was very surprised to hear them say that vaginal births are actually safer for mother and baby and that it would be better for my baby to be born vaginally.

The OB explained that babies born by section are more likely to have lung issues after birth (because vaginal birth is the ‘finishing off’ of the lungs and without that they don’t work as well) and that they’re at potentially greater risk of a number of conditions, including diabetes, asthma and a few more I’ve forgotten. But their basic message was a vaginal birth was better for us both. I asked a lot of questions about this because I was very nervous due to my high risk pregnancy, but the OB answered them all, with evidence.

So, nobody goes with a vaginal birth because they’re hippies and it’s natural, it’s mainly because it’s safer for baby and mum. Obviously if there are special circumstances or conditions, for that individual badly, a section might be best, but barring that, a vaginal birth is best.

As for recovery, I was up and about immediately after the placenta was out and I was clean. I felt completely and utterly normally. That’s in contrast to the women on my ward who’d had to have a section. You could spot them without anyone telling you because they were hunched over and didn’t look comfortable. One poor woman got an infected section scar through no fault of her own and was in a fair bit of pain.

The not being able to drive thing is annoying; the major abdominal surgery thing is annoying and worrying; the ‘tummy bum’ is trivial but not something I’d want - but I’d have had a section in a flash if it was best - but it wasn’t. To hear that message so emphatically from my OB was a real eye-opener.

May I ask what happened to your mum that put you off a vaginal birth?

For me it was like - why would you run a marathon if you can take the bus. Yes you definitely can take the bus but I don't think it's the same feeling when you get to the destination. I've never felt more empowered and exhausted 😂 than after giving birth. Also, there are studies that are showing that there benefits for the child to be born vaginally. There is one specific bacteria that we need that babies that are born via C-section lacking and need to build up. Anyway, I think everyone can decide for themselves but for me it was an experience of a lifetime and I didn't want to just skip over it by choosing C-section.

Quite simply, I didn’t want to go into hospital. I was fortunate enough to have the planned home births I wanted.

As long as baby got out safely and I wasn’t turned totally inside out, I have left those decisions up to the experts.

1. Because it's better for health outcomes for both mother and baby
2. Because I am vain and got through 2 pregnancies without stretch marks and wanted to wear an isty bisty bikini again
3. Because I didn't fancy the potential side effects of an epidural
4. Because I wanted to see if I could
5. Because I wanted to know what it felt like.

I am sure there are more.

DC1 emergency C-section. All fine. Lost quite a lot of blood. Stayed in hospital for 3 days which was awful. No pain but took quite a while to recover, about 8 weeks to feel normal. Breast feeding took a while to establish.

DC2 VBAC (vaginal birth after C section). All fine. Was sore down there for a week. Healed very quickly, back to normal very quickly. Breast feeding easier to establish.

Positive experience of both and would do either again (although I won't 😂).
On balance vaginal birth was easier, particularly healing, feeling 'normal' and getting out and about again.

VB, forceps and 3rd degree tear. I couldn't sit down for two months without needing a cushion. I'm not sure if it was the stress of giving birth at the height of the first covid wave that led to interventions or what. I'm now a bit concerned about the incontinence issues after menopause - that wasn't mentioned in the antenatal classes. Considering c-section for next time.
Edited to say that I think it depends if you have a good VB then you're much more likely to advocate for it and same with a C-section. It's annoying that you don't have a crystal ball to see how the other option went.

I had an EMCS (turned out to be unnecessary but I won’t go into it!) and my experience was a lot like yours, however I did want a vaginal birth because I didn’t want so many interventions, nor did I want major abdominal surgery with the risks that entails. But life doesn’t always work out the way you want 🙃

From my experience, elective c sections were not at all actively discussed during my first pregnancy. Consequently I did not perceive this as a birth plan option even. I had a straight forward pregnancy and at no time did I imagine anything else but a nice warm birthing pool and perhaps gas and air pushing that precious first born out….

You max guess it: I ended up with an emergency c section but this did not stop me from trying all avenues towards a vaginal birth second time around.

Had it not been for my midwife urging against it on back of my notes from the first delivery, I would have tried. No question. Interestingly the consultant was still pushing hard to convince me to try but I listened to my midwife in the end.

In my experience indeed planned cannot be compared to an emergency C section. Whilst I had multiple blood transfusions first time around and looking at pictures of me in the first few weeks after birth, looked as awful as I felt, my planned c Section was an absolute doddle in comparison. I recovered so fast and even on the first photo holding my newborn I look a picture of heath.

Based on my experiences, I would never encourage one option over the other and instead encourage to do research, speak to the midwife / consultant asking probing questions and go for what they feel is the right choice for them. There is no medal for that vaginal birth nor for successful breast feeding. Full stop.

I've had one of each. Absolutely would pick natural vaginal birth every time!

I had a forceps delivery with 2.1. l blood loss with my 1st, C-section with my 2nd after unstable lie and C-section with my 3rd after failed VBAC.

In my case the C-sections were much easier to recover from than my 1st birth, but that was due to my massive pph after my 1st birth.

My sister however had two straight forward vaginal births.

I think straightforward vaginal births are always preferable to major surgeries.

I think there's a bit of survivor bias either way. You had a very successful c section so can't see why anyone would do it any other way. I would be on the opposite side of the fence. But there would also be people who have had very bad c section experiences, and very bad vaginal birth experiences.
Personally though, I felt like an absolute superwoman after my non medicated VB. I would do it a million times over (if I could afford the DC it would result in!) It was a very primal feeling of womanhood (maybe? Not sure that's the right word) No idea of the same feeling could come from a CS (and I'm not saying it can't)

My c section was brutal compared to my VB. Took me months to recover, my milk didn't come in, didn't feel as bonded to baby, the list goes on.

I really wanted a VB but had a crash section with DD1 after being in labour for 12 hours and everything just went downhill quickly. As a result of that birth, I had an elcs for dd2. I definitely did not recover quickly. The second time my scar opened up and it took 3 months of almost daily trips to the nurse to check on my wound and dress it. I couldn't bathe properly that whole time.

Both times I had awful infections, fevers, issues with breast feeding due to the surgical trauma. If I could do it again I would have a vbac but no more DC for me. Definitely would not say that a section is an easy recovery for us all.

Saying all that, back in the day I likely would have died during my first birth. So I am very grateful that both my DD and I made it. I was too scared to try a VBAC with DD2 but I wish in hindsight that I had.

I live in the EU and c-sections are not available here on demand.
They are only performed if medically necessary.
A colleague was so terrified of a natural birth, she returned to her home country in south east Europe for a c-section.

It's lovely to read of such positive experiences of vaginal births! Mine wasn't so great. I had back to back labour and the only pain relief that worked was an epidural. I then had a top up epidural which wasn't given time to work before a high forceps delivery. The pain was horrendous. I thought the doctor had torn my insides out. He hadn't, but it left me with a rectal prolapse which has become worse since the menopause. My 2nd and third births were very quick (though back to back labours again). So - although I seemed to recover fairly quickly after the 1st vaginal birth, I have physical problems over 40 years later. Had I known then what I learnt through the experience, I'd have chosen an elective.

Ew, you sound awful.

As already explained in this thread, NICE guidance is clear that the evidence isn't there to justify recommending attempted VB over ELCS. So the entire basis for that argument falls down. Incidentally, do you think women who are less likely to be able to have a straightforward, cheap VB should have to pay for that too?

The thing is you could have a vaginal birth and have a 3rd degree tear, and take months to recover, along with the mental trauma of it.

You could also have an emergency c section or elective and take months to recover because perhaps you caught an infection or it wasn’t as straightforward as you’d have hoped.

Ive had 3 vaginal births and about to have my 4th (hopefully) but that’s not to say had I had 3
sections the outcome wouldn’t have been the same

My First was vaginal
second ( twins ) was a c section

Recovery from both was awful as I
had a third degree tear with vaginal
and I was in a lot of pain and my muscles cut through during the c section took a long time to work again.
I would say everything was far worse with the c section.

However
I wasn’t aware women could just chose a C-section. I thought there had to be a medical reason for one.
I would vote vaginal is better just because the recovery for most people is much quicker.

OP, Ive had both a VB and an ‘elective’ c section.

aa others have said recovery from a VB that goes fine (and mine was fine - ventouse, PPH, so not issue free) was still a lot easier than the c section

even though c section was fine and I was in the private sector so got great care after.

as you’ve not had a VB you don’t know how much better the recovery can be.

i also get how an elective c section can be cathartic if you’ve previously had a traumatic and or mismanaged labour experience

and ‘great’ if you have nothing to compare it to and / or have issues with VB (previous sexual assault, issues with uncertainty)

however. I found it a much lesser experience

the c section was my second baby and I am stil pissed off about it.

i felt robbed of the intensity of vaginal
birth and that’s despite my first one being tricky and medicalised rather than the euphoric experience a well supported intervention free vaginal birth can be

literally liked I’d blacked out and had a memory missing.

and it lasted for months. My feelings and responses to my baby were much more muted compared to the technicolour intensity of the post natal period after I birthed my first.

i felt incredibly powerful for months after the VB with an intense connection to my baby.

i felt robbed of that with the c section the obstetrician had pushed me into

some women prefer c sections at least in part because they want to avoid the intensity

bit I loved that part of VB and missed it when I didn’t experience it with the c section second time around.

i think the worst of all worlds is long traumatic mismanaged labour which THEN ends in c section and far too many U.K. women end up with that.

my advice to anyone is:

• go for the vaginal birth
• but if they push for interventions decline them all in favour of a c section

I opted against as I was more comfortable with the risks. I personally feel the NHS have an agenda which is to save money. For them a safe delivery is successful (which true it is) but I was worried about damage that would impact quality of life after eg fourth degree test and risk of faecal incontinence. I was concerned about having a higher BMI and needing an emergency c-section. I wasn’t happy with the risk of needing forceps, I was worried about damage to me and also my baby after reading horror stories. I wasn’t happy with any of the assisted birth options. I had an elective in the end, it was a great experience and recovery wasn’t as bad as everyone makes out.