to ask what is the latest you've heard of a baby turning?

[rosepetalsoup]

...still breech at 37 weeks - eek!

Sorry, no way would I allow turning the baby. I second the spinning baby site. Dc2 turned after I did the standing on hands and knees exercise several times a day. Personally I would go for a elcs rather than turning the poor baby.

I have no positive or useful experience of acupuncture at all. Good luck.

40+11. Ds3 was breech, he turned while I was in the shower, just before I went down to be induced. He had been turning fully for a few weeks. Good luck.

thanks everyone - I have an appointment at the breech clinic but think I will let them scan me then refuse the ECV. It just doesn't feel right to me.

My baby was an unstable lie at 39 weeks with cord in my pelvis, 1st baby and so quite unusual. They kept me in hospital as could be potentially dangerous if I went into Labour and the cord came first. He didn't go head down for the full 10 days I was in hospital (was mainly transverse which wasn't the most comfortable! I'm only quite small and you could literally see his head one side of my stomach and bum the other side!) when I was full term they took me down for my c-section, scanned me before they did the c-section to see where he was and he was head down! Hence my c-section was cancelled and they broke my waters and put me on the drip when he was facing the right way!! So yes they can move if they choose to, he was also breach during the week I was in hospital and so literally doing somersaults! Fingers crossed for you, hope everything goes well. My little boy is now 2 and has a ridiculous amount of energy and so I think he was just preparing me before he arrived!

My twins were both breech at 36+3 and so I was booked in for a section.

Both of the little buggers had turned 5 days later.

My DD was breech too. I tried ECV, acupuncture, spinning babies, swimming and continued with my regular yoga class until 39 weeks. There was no moving her, and TBH I could feel her head really wedged up under my rib cage (it had been somewhere between uncomfortable and really quite painful from around 26ish weeks).
Unfortunately some babies just will not turn whatever you try. DD was delivered by ELCS and the consultant said there just wasn't enough room in there for her to have turned. I was gutted as a CS was the last thing I wanted I had visions of a beautifully calm water birth in the midwife-led unit. Ha!, I had had an otherwise perfectly easy pregnancy, and I was terrified of the thought of surgery. In reality it was actually alright. Because it was elective it was really calm, they agreed to a few requests (delayed cord cutting by a couple of minutes, immediate skin to skin, radio on to lessen the 'sucky' noises) and we were up on the ward 1 3/4hrs after we walked into the operating theatre. DD is 9 months now and very healthy, and the only trouble I have now as a result is the initial look from other mums at groups when I say I had an ELCS (I think they assume 'too post to push').
Most babies do turn (only 3% of all babies are breech at 40wks I believe) so there definitely is still hope, but pleased don't worry if they don't as ELCS really isn't that bad. Be glad they've spotted it now rather than when you arrive at the delivery suite however many CMS dilated!
Oh, and as PPs have mentioned ECVs are really painful so be warned, but totally worth a go for me!

Just to say that although not breech my DS was back to back, I had a two day labour leading to an induction, and the pain was like nothing I could have imagined, and all doing nothing as he wasn't dilating my cervix. I got an epidural as I couldn't take any more, and 20 mins later he turned and just slid right out shortly after.

I guess the answer to your OP is 'anytime, right up to the last second'!

Look up Mary Cronk MBE - guidelines for breech birth. She's an amazing (retired now) midwife who has trained many many midwives on how to facilitate a safe vaginal breech birth. There are midwives out there who have experience of breech birth. If you have a midwife like this it's an option.

My twin#2 was born breech vaginally (unknown until in labour). My midwife had attended lots of breech births though so I was fortunate, and it's slightly different in twins as more common for one to be breech, and if it's twin two then the way has already been opened so to speak! (Tmi) reducing risk of head being stuck.

Lots of people have breech births though

Mine was transverse at 37 weeks. I refused an evc so they booked me in for a section. She moved the night before...39+4. Born vaginally, no problems.

Little bugger was transverse. So I swept the floor and he turned. 3 hours later he turned again.

So the next day and every day thereafter I brushed the stairs. Never have they been so clean. And every day he turned and turned back.

Turns out my pelvis wasn't any use.. Poor sausage. Happy ending though eventually. As others say, be prepared.

Ds2 was breech at 37 weeks. I was moaning about this generally. One day I was in the bath when Ds1 came in to help (he was 5 and keen to be involved with the baby to be) :-/

He knew that the baby was the wrong way round, and so he got the inside cardboard tube to a kitchen roll, and pressed it against my belly and bellowed "Baby2 - turn the right way round!! "

My belly did a huge jump - then for about 30 seconds or so it felt like my belly was being excavated - I was clinging to the side of the bath by the end of it - but baby2 did indeed rotate into head down position...

He was born the next week - 2 weeks early but at 7lb 8oz so not too early.

I reckon that ds1 gave him a nudge I can hire out ds1 to anyone willing - he's 17 now, and too big to send up a chimney.

I'm almost 38 weeks pregnant and DD2 was transverse up until 36 weeks, I did a lot of walking and bouncing on my fitness ball which did the trick. Apparently it's pretty common after your first because the abdominal muscles aren't as strong as before.

DD turned to breech at on due date. Midwife had visited me at home and sent me in with high bp. She was always wiggly, wiggled a lot on way in and was pronounced breech on arrival! She wiggled back, I went home, but it was the final straw for my planned home delivery as there was concern she would turn during delivery.

She didn't, but she could roll over before she was a month, and climbed before walking

Velvetbee. It could have been me in he next bed.
I was in floods of tears. I was so upset. The baby, DC4, had been breech when they scanned me at 9 am. But when they went to take me down after lunch she had turned. I never felt a thing.
I felt terrible wheeling my little suitcase home and the rest of my kids were waiting to see the baby.

Gosh last minute. Try not to worry. My poor friend it happened to her and I was there. It was abit of a "woah" moment but last minute.

Oldest was breech at 38 weeks. Spent nearly a whole day on hands and knees until she eventually turned.

Unfortunately she was back to back, labour did not progress and she was so distressed she was delivered by ecs at 41 + 3.

I will never forget that weird feeling of her turning though!!

Mine turned about 2 weeks before due, had kept changing position so when midwife said she'd turned and had dropped I was relieved

I've tried everything -- I just wanted to know if there was hope for the baby deciding to do it of her own accord!

I have a stubborn streak a mile wide.

I was breach, my mother's GP 'turned' me, on her way home I turned back. The next day the GP did it again and then had mum lie down for 30 mins, and again on her way home I turned again.

After this happened a third time it was decided to leave me (1960s not sure what the options were re cesarean) and I turned the day before she went in to labour.

I believe this was the first manifestation of my stubborn streak,

On my hands and knees in the bath at 37 weeks. So the bath water was covering the top of my bump. Dd turned, but did a 360 and went right back to breech . She did end up turning and staying the right way, but I have no idea when that happened. I did have an obsession with cleaning the skirting boards though, which may have helped. Good luck getting your baby turned.

I had an ECV at 37 weeks. It wasn't painful but felt odd obviously when someone is turning your baby around for you! I don't know why there seems to be negativity about it, they monitor the baby throughout and check for distress and the end result was a turned baby and a straightforward labour. I wouldn't rule it out OP

Wow, thanks for all these new comments. Baby still feels breech but also like she keeps moving in general. I'm having a scan tomorrow so will get info, but your stories have made me feel much better and like I'm in good company whatever happens! Sending to all you brave mothers! (p.s. I love the story about the DS shouting down a tube!!)

dD was breech, she was and still is a wee wriggly fidget!

My DCs 2 and 3 were both transverse until 37 weeks. Each time I had a positioning scan booked for 38 weeks but each baby did an incredible lurching about movement, which as another poster said made me feel rather sick, my insides felt like they may fall out, but was soon over!
With DC 2 I was confident she'd turned and the midwives confirmed so at the hospital.
With DC3 the whole thing was more panicky as I was much further into labour when we arrived at hospital and also we had a 1:6 chance of Down's Syndrome and there was no way I was going to start pushing until position was confirmed. They must have read my notes, seen my panic and a mobile sonographer came to scan and confirmed the baby was now head down and in a good place. He was born about 2 1/2 hours later!!
Funnily enough all my 3 have been born at 37 wks plus a few days, never made it to 38 wks
Best of luck x