to contact midwife over this?

[CherryAide]

In currently 32 weeks pregnant. Baby has been head down the whole time. I am having regular growth scans every 4 weeks to check baby is ok as they found an anomaly on the 20 week scan. It’s likely however that everything is fine. I feel like the baby has turned, as the hiccups I usually feel low down I am now feeling high up. I’m also feeling kicks against my bladder which I usually feel high up.

It might just be my imagination but I am really worried the baby has turned breech.

AIBU to contact my midwife about this? I know it’s not the end of the world if baby is breech but I am aware that you can do certain things to get baby to turn if it is? Is there a way of me working out myself if the baby has turned?

I suffer really badly from general anxiety and OCD and the anomaly and lack of control in pregnancy is hard. Very hard. I liked knowing that baby was head down, however it is making me anxious and unable to function not knowing which was up he/she is now. I just feel like they are breech and it’s stopping me from sleeping.

I feel that this is far more about my anxiety about childbirth and my intrusive thoughts than anything else. I just need to know baby is head down or what I can do to turn baby head down.

AIBU to contact midwife or would I be entirely wasting their time? Anxiety through the roof!

it’s not worth calling the midwife about. baby could still flip back round and i dont think they worry too much about it until closer to your due date. maybe google some exercises you could do, do you have a birthing ball as regular exercises on that can coax baby into the correct position. i’ve heard of babies flipping the right way as late as the day before giving birth so try not to worry there is still time

So fed up of this anxiety. Something like this is enough to send me in to complete panic and melt down. Pregnancy is so hard when you have poor mental health

DD3 flipped back the day she was born. Do try not to worry if you can.

Midwife here. As long as you are not in labour it doesn’t matter if baby is head down or breech until 36-37 weeks. There is still plenty of room for them to flip. Try and relax.

It's so uncomfortable. I'm not used to baby feeling like this. I feel so out of control and every time I mention my anxiety to my midwife she just says 'anxiety is normal in pregnancy' - so stressed.

Thank you @SkippedALightFandango - had so many scares and I've convinced myself I'm not meant to have a baby. Severe anxiety that I haven't addressed properly throughout my whole pregnancy. So hard to calm down sometimes.

Antenatal anxiety and depression are real conditions and I don't think your midwife should have been so flippant. Can you try and see a different midwife and have a chat with them?

You have time for your baby to flip back and if they have moved the midwife will pick it up at your next check. No need to worry now.

Is this your first pregnancy? It really does get very uncomfortable in the final weeks, that's normal.

It might be worth a trip to your gp if you feel your anxiety is more than normal new Mum worrying. It’s a very vulnerable time and if your mh is not good a little extra support might be a good idea.

My first baby had a fairly serious physically anomaly found at the 20 week scan, and I literally felt so out of control I spent the next 14 weeks (she was born early) Googling and worrying; I requested counselling from GP but there was no services in the area. It was honestly the most upsetting experience and I developed some anxiety that I still suffer with now (no previous mental health challenges). I would see your GP and see if your area offers any counselling it could be helpful. I don’t think you need to worry about baby being breech as makes no difference at this point.i hope everything goes well for you and your little one (mine is now 3.5 and despite us being told she would have serious mobility problems she manages to keep up with all her friends and doesn’t seem to notice having a difference!)

My baby was breech at 32 weeks and I panic googled obsessively but it turned a few weeks later. There's still time. Talk to your GP about your anxiety, don't suffer alone (fellow sufferer here)

I've genuinely given up on mental health services. I've been trying for years!

Thanks everyone. I think I'm just going to anxiously wait until my next appointment. Will be crawling the walls mind.

cherryaide as far as your mental health goes you will be a priority once postnatal and may be one antenatally so bear that in mind. There are things they can do to help you.

I don't think mental health is taken seriously during antenatal care at all. Not by my midwife anyway. I've stopped telling her how anxious I am. I think a trip to gp may be a good idea...

If you believe baby is breach at the moment try crawling on the floor. This worked for me as mine was breach for one appointment and the right way around for the next.

See if you can self refer to IAPT in your area. Midwives often don't actually have any access to mental health services unless you're severely mentally ill and anxiety doesn't score highly enough to trigger the things a mw can refer to unfortunately.

She's right though, nothing to worry about re position till 36 weeks. But have a look online for positions to help baby turn, they've got plenty of room in there at the moment. That's why they don't do ECV before 36-37 weeks or it might just flip back!

Also a midwife. Ask to be referred to the perinatal mental health team / midwife. Anxiety should be taken seriously and there is support available, if it’s not already been suggested ask for more support.

Its difficult to fight anxiety, so can you work along side it. You may have a little gymnast in there, can you try to bet on when s/he will do another back flip? Will it be next week or the one after, maybe there will be 3 more flips before the birth, maybe just 1. Try to take what is making you anxious and normalise it with narratives that are engaging and light hearted. It might be hard work at first, but if you really try, it will become easier and may help alot

The perinatal team I'm aware of would categorically NOT see someone with mild to moderate depression or anxiety. OP you say you suffer with OCD- if that's diagnosed, I'd suggest going back to your GP and engaging with CMHT that way. Different places operate differently of course and it's worth asking but I don't want to get your hopes up that the perinatal team would be able to see you because they might not. Unless you ask the GP or midwife you won't know though. If they won't see you it isn't because you've got a 'horrible midwife', sadly services get cut to the point where they can only cater for the most severe cases which is crap for those who have what's termed as mild to moderate depression and anxiety because it certainly doesn't feel very mild to the person going through it.

One of mine flipped repeatedly between 32 and 34 weeks, and was transverse (sideways) at 36 weeks. There was some talk of a C-section, but he went head down a couple of days later and stayed that way, so the birth was totally straightforward. So yes, they like to turn but they usually end up head down eventually.

I do hope you can access some help for your anxiety.

I would strongly encourage getting help for your anxiety.

As far as the baby being breech, at this point they likely won't do anything. Babies flip around a lot. If it persists until 36 weeks then they may consider trying to turn baby, but prior to that point there's little purpose as baby will likely turn anyway.

Get yourself onto the birthing ball. Bounce all day if u have to.
Listen to hypnobirthing cds. It may help the anxiety.
If you're really worried, give mw a call? A call wont hurt, she might even be helpful.x

I wouldn't contact midwife over this, I'd wait until next appointment or scan.
I was told with dd1 that she was head down when she was actually breech and I was told with dd2 she was breech but she was actually head down

Thanks everyone.

@RubiksQueen what about someone who has severe GAD and OCD tendencies (counting mainly) and possible PTSD regarding something completely unrelated to pregnancy/childbirth?

I've been seeing doctors on and off for anxiety for years. Put on medication, then a different medication, then a different medication but never really been given any true significant help. Never been under a team. Had counselling which I had to stop and was told by the last people I spoke to that if I really want to heal I would have to pay for better counselling as the NHS services for this are 'rubbish' (not my words).

I stopped trying eventually...

My DH has OCD, which was triggered by the birth of our son - I'm so sorry you are suffering in this way. Are there any charities in your area? I am aware of Glos based charities such as Independence Trust and Lifting the Blues, and whilst you might not feel you need their services as such, they will understand and be able to offer some support, guidance or reassurance. If you are able, mention the intrusive thoughts as they are the key indicator for OCD, and any good professional will know that those thoughts are not you. My husband has a private therapist (well aware that we are lucky enough to afford it) and she has been amazing for him - his OCD is never completely gone, but it is becoming a footnote rather than a headline. A lot of therapists offer low cost spaces - don't be afraid to ask about then if that could be an option for you.

All the best.