To pay for a baby positioning scan at 39w?

[pandarific]

I'm 39+2 with my first baby and I'm very paranoid he's back to back.

At my last 3 mw apps they've said my stomach muscles are very tight and had a bit of trouble telling which position he's been in, aside from head down. I've been on spinning babies and been tracking where I feel movements etc and I am worried that it seems like he probably is b2b. I'm currently booked in for a homebirth though am only 5 mins from the hospital by car so if I did need to transfer in for an epidural it should be okay.

I'm doing the spinning babies exercises but am getting a bit anxious about it; I've seen there are scans locally I can pay for, but they're £89 so a significant amount! I can afford it with a bit of a squeeze but I'm getting conflicting views from my community mw - 'a stubbornly posterior baby isn't likely to change position, though some do during labour' - vs hospital mw who I called to ask 'no point in a scan as they can move multiple times before birth'. Both have advised doing the exercises which I'll keep doing, and I'm religiously lying on my left hand side etc. I'm otherwise quite positive about the birth, I'm just nervy about this one thing - wish my stomach muscles would play ball!

Should I just say sod it and book the scan or am I being pregnancy-induced-daft? WWYD?

I wouldn’t- what are you going to do if you’re told he’s b2b? Will it change anything- you seem to have a plan if you’re finding things challenging anyway?

I had a four day labour with a b2b dd. It wasn’t a barrel of laughs, but I got through it despite being a wimp. BUT if someone had told me that’s what would happen beforehand, I would have got in my own head and worried when worrying wasn’t going to make her turn!

I wouldn’t bother, back to back is fairly common and I don’t think it will make much difference to you?

I wouldn’t- what are you going to do if you’re told he’s b2b?

Panic probably? 😅 Spend the rest of my pregnancy standing on my head / obsessively googling for positive back to back birth stories?

Maybe it's a bad idea, I'm just so tempted by the idea that I could be told it's all fine!

But there’s nothing bad about being back to back. It really doesn’t mean much. Both of mine were back to back. I had two lovely home births, one 11 hours from absolutely nothing to her being born and the other 9 hours. I didn’t even use gas and air with the first one, did with the 2nd only really for about the last 15 minutes as it was much faster. It was perfectly fine.

My baby was definitely OA (ie. not back to back) up until my waters broke and then for some reason decided to get himself into a bloody awkward position. I honestly wouldn’t bother paying for a scan.

You may have a tilted uterus, which makes it harder for MW to feel the baby's position. I do, it just meant tgat I had more pain in the back than the front during Labour. I used a tens machine throughout, which really helped. As someone else said, it won't change your plans if the baby I'd back to back. Good luck with the labour regardless, wishing you all the best

is back to back

Even if baby is back to back there's a 99% chance baby will turn before and during early labour. Stop stressing yourself out.

Don't waste your money!!
If it is b2b, there is little you can do to change it.
I had a b2b, it was a better birth than the 'normal' presenting one.

If you’re going to spend money I’d spend it on a pregnancy chiropractor who will be able to tell you where the baby is lying and also potentially help get it into a better position.

I really would just save the cash tbh. Even if you know, and if you do those exercises, you can't really control anything.

I had 2x b2b babies. One was kind of diagonal too so got a little stuck and ended up being born by c-section. The other was born vaginally and was a relatively painless birth. That baby was in the "right" position all the way up to labour and then did a massive flip to face the "wrong" way.

I wouldn't bother. Babies can change position mid labour so even if baby is back to back now he might turn at the last min and vice versa.

B2b isn’t a problem; baby will turn before or during labour. I paid for 2 private positioning scans but a) baby had been breech, I turned her at 33 weeks but then was totally paranoid about her flipping back because I wanted a VBAC and b) the scans were only £30 each.

In your situation I wouldn’t pay.

Babies can shuffle around so they may get into or out of back to back before or during labour.

Both of mine were back to back. I don't know whether my mobility being very compromised by SPD contributed, or whether it's my build. I was keen to do what I could for a better position the second time. I laboured in a more active position over the birthing ball and used hypnobirthing tracks on loop and managed to labour on G&A. I didn't realise I was in labour until quite well in to labour until late on because on because the horrid backache was easily explained by heaving myself to the MW appointment on my crutches earlier thst day. It felt different to the abdominal cramps of first time.

My DS was back to back and i knew - midwife told me at every appointment from about 38 weeks. I did every exercise recommended and spent hours on my hands and knees trying to get him to turn but he remained stubbornly in place. So I’d save your money - nothing you can do about it if your dc is!

One tip if you haven’t already - get a TENS machine. My labour was completely in my back - I didn’t have any pains across my stomach at all, it was bizarre. The tens machine was a godsend.

Totally agree with pp, it's a waste of money. Absolutely nothing you can do if it is b2b, other than worry, which, although understandable, isn't exactly helpful!

If you don't have one already, I'd spend the money on a tens machine. I had b2b with my first and the machine was brilliant

I gave birth to my son who came out back to back (didn't budge the whole time) and in all honesty it was absolutely fine and I didn't have any problem at all (no pain relief and I was in an upright position which I think helped). Please try not to worry. Good luck!

My third was back to back.

I was fully dilated and told to push but it didn’t feel right so I stopped. 40 mins later I felt the urge to push, baby had turned and came out easily.

Save your money. Even if baby is b2b there’s nothing you can do. My first was b2b, didn’t realise I was in labour for the first four hours as all I had was back pain , not actual contractions. She only turned herself as she was crowning. From first back ache to delivery was 18 hours and 26 mins. No pain relief, no interventions. Stop getting yourself in a tizz and enjoy your sleep whilst you can xx

If I have DC #2 I would consider paying for a late presenting scan as well. My DD was back to back (and I now suspect she was the whole time). My stomach muscles were very strong so the Midwife always struggled to feel where the baby was. No one ever commented which way round she was apart from head down until I was scanned at the start of my induction.

Of babies that are posterior (back to back) at full dilatation, nearly half are anterior (front to back) at the start of labour. Little beggars.
There was a study a few years ago that scanned women in early labour to check the outcome of posterior babies. They were surprised by how many turned the "wrong" way!
The best way to prevent this and encourage turning is upright labour.

Nah I wouldn’t get this scan. I’m dd was b2b. I did everything to try to persuade her to rotate. Nothing worked and I tried for bloody weeks. Knowing it ain’t going to make the difference.

Babies rotate through the birth process. You can’t do anything at this point. Anxiety is much worse for a good labour than B2B baby.

I had a b2b and in all honesty was no different than the other two labours.

I think 70% of b2b babies turn in labour from what I read.

We thought my son was b2b until a positioning scan at 37 weeks, he was actually breech. I would insist on a scan from the NHS if you had risk factors for breech, not for b2b.