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Connect with mums-to-be with similar due dates to share experiences and support.

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Original poster

VBAC - for anyone out there who's giving it a go....

85 replies

feedmenow · 05/01/2007 16:56

Was just wondering how many others out there are hoping for a VBAC or VBA2+C? Have come across a couple of others since yesterday and thought it might be nice to have somewhere to compare opinions/experiences/disapproving comments from Docs & MW's!!! Maybe we can help each other achieve what we want to acheive?

OP posts:

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hertsnessex · 07/01/2007 18:07

liking the sound of where you work mears!! my last lady birthed in a hospital which offered drugs like water and thought she was mad when she refused the nice cocktail they wanted to give her!

hertsnessex · 07/01/2007 18:07

liking the sound of where you work mears!! my last lady birthed in a hospital which offered drugs like water and thought she was mad when she refused the nice cocktail they wanted to give her!

lulumama · 07/01/2007 18:15

i had to expalin at every antenatal appointment with every different midwife that i wanted a VBAC, not an elective.even though there was no medical reason to have a c.s

mears · 07/01/2007 18:44

That is so sad IMO. Gives the health service a bad name.

ivelostmyboobsboohoo · 07/01/2007 19:01

hi, just to add to the list of victorious vbac mummies- i had a vbac (7 hours, no drugs!) i had to be continously monitored which was a bit rubbish but i didnt care when i managed to go the whole time without pain relief and push her out on my own. what a brilliant feeling!!!! afterwards i felt like i could do anything. i then started thinking i'd had assisted, a c-section and then a vbac.... quite like a baby no 4 now so could try a vbac at home! though ds had snip now so no chance of that : (

CorrieDale · 07/01/2007 19:32

Well done ILMBBH!

I'm nearly 16 weeks and working on getting a Home VBAC - waiting for my copies of Ina May & Birthing from Within to arrive! The MWs here are supportive of HVBACs, all being well, which means I have to watch my blood sugar like a hawk so I don't get GD (teetered on the edge last time).

If it doesn't work out, then I'm afraid I'll be having another elective because I'm not sure I'll be able to labour effectively under the kind of conditions outlined by Feedmenow. Especially the 12 hour labour thing. I'll be 40 by the time this baby arrives, and although I'm on a campaign to get fitter and am going to do everything I can to get my body ready for birthing my baby, I can't see me coping with the time pressure, especially while being constantly monitoring.

3flightsofstairs · 07/01/2007 21:24

Hi ladies, Here goes with the birth story...

I was having 2 or 3 contractions every 5 mins (I think) when I went to hospital at 7am and was 3cm dilated (I think) when I got into the birthing pool at 11am and 10cm when I got out 4 hours later. Was having entonox (sp?) and doing (in my not done anything like this before or since opinion) OK! Felt no urge to push and started bouncing on the birthing ball, was on hands and knees, walking around etc. until 7pm-ish when the consultant midwife broke my waters (ouch - the thing i'm most annoyed about out of everything! she didn't tell me what she was doing) and they then had me dancing around on one leg and then the other, sitting on the birthing stool, swaying against my DH trying to get the baby's head to move as they said that's why I wasn't feeling like pushing.

New shift arrived at 8pm (Scottish midwife telling me to "give it some wellie" - I'm Scottish too so she made me laugh between contractions!) but didn't really have as much patience as the dayshift and suggested a c-section/forceps within the hour. I was flummoxed about what to do but by now I was feeling the pain and saw no end to it and didn't have anyone who could give me any advice. So went with what they were saying and was wheeled round to the medical side of the ward (I had been in the home-from-home non-medical side being monitored by a hand-held thingy) where I was monitored constantly (baby was fine and had been fine throughout). Couldn't get an epidural at that point as the 2 anesthetists were in theatre with 2 other c-sections. So was left to labour until around 11pm (baby still fine) still with no desire to push - even tho I did have a go. Still no head in sight.

Beautiful DS born at 11.59pm by c-section. And don't feel cheated out of birth or anything like that. Feel like I had a fair crack at it - just wish that I'd had a private midwife or a doula with me. But thought that's what the MWs at the hosp would do. Do remember saying to DH at 3pm - "we'll have a baby in an hour - wow". How wrong was I????!

Sorry for long post!! But I'm sure you lovely ladies will be more help than my meeting next month

lulumama · 07/01/2007 23:12

just seen this...will read and digest tomorrow , when not so tiredx

ivelostmyboobsboohoo · 08/01/2007 13:07

i didnt get urge to push either- but midwife said i could push whenever i felt like it, so i just did anyway. 20 mins later she was out. mind you, thats a 3rd baby!!!! 1st one i had epidural, pethidine evrything and obviously couldnt feel anything anyway let alone a pushing urge- pushed that time for 2 and a half hours and still no sign. a botched forceps followed quickly afterwards- turned out the cord was round his neck 3 times (how could they not notice that?!) and then i hemorrhaged (cant spell that sorry!). subsequent birth i opted for what i believed to be the fail safe pain free option and had elective ssection- which was fine til i realise i could actually feel it and they had to knock me out. which is why i was then so pleased after my vbac!!!

Original poster

feedmenow · 08/01/2007 13:37

iSN'T IT GREAT TO HEAR SUCH LOVEL STORIES OF PEOPLE THAT HAVE MANAGED THEIR VBAC! Oops, sorry about CAPS there!

OP posts:

NattyThomasandBump · 08/01/2007 17:21

nice to read others have been successful. they say your second labour halves in time, so if i got to 9.5cm b4 section in 14hours does that mean i should be aiming for around 8 or 9 (added on couple of pushing hours)? any idea lulu?

Original poster

feedmenow · 08/01/2007 20:05

All this time I've been calling you LulAmama! Saw your website and your dd's name and thought I better double check your mn name, and I've been getting it wrong all along! Oh well, I do that in RL alot as well....

OP posts:

lulumama · 08/01/2007 20:11

don;t worry about it feedmenow! been called worse !

natty......i wouldn;t worry at this stage now about the time it will take..the good thing is you know you can labour, you know you can dilate, and you know you can do it fairly quickly...hold on to that and visualise it when you think about your birth.. i think i mentioned about doing visualization of my cervix opening as i didn;t dilate past 2-3 cm in my first labour..

so concentrate on 'remembering' the dilation and knowing it will happen again..

am just reading 'ina may's guide to childbirth'. it is fabulous and really reinforces the woman;s abilty to birth and the strong connection between the mind and the body, get hold of a copy !

don't think , i'll dilate in 7 hours and push for 2, don;t fix it in your mind, just make it a positive experience, when you imagine it !

Coriander73 · 08/01/2007 22:42

Oh how I wish my VBAC had worked! Had emergency section with DD (now 2) & was desperate beyond desperate for a VBAC with my son who was born 16 weeks ago, alas was not to be as despite waters breaking, having a show, contractions etc just didn't dilate at all...in over 11 hours. Feel very envious of all you lovely ladies who have managed it (& in some cases more than once!)....oh well.....

Original poster

feedmenow · 09/01/2007 11:17

Lula, I have just read that book too. It truly is an inspiration and (as I think it says in the forword) should be compulsory reading for all parents-to-be!
Have now moved on to her Spiritual Midwifery and laugha regularly cos it is much more hiipified, with all the stories having the parents talking about contractions (sorry, rushes) being prychadelic, and making them high!

OP posts:

lulumama · 09/01/2007 18:33

it is more hippified..but the sentiment is the same and the inspiration is still there !

PurpleRabbit · 09/01/2007 20:52

Hi, can I join this thread? Very early days for me - I'm nearly 10 weeks - but definitely hoping for a VBAC. DS went twelve days overdue so I was induced, had my waters broken for me, etc, and never got past 5cm. After twelve hours DS's heart rate slowed and almost stopped, hence emergency CS. Once he was born we found out he has a huge head (on the top line of the centile chart, and we had to take him to the doctors three times before he was 6 months for checks as they thought it was abnormally large). He was never more than 3/5 engaged, even once I was 5cm dilated (I'm only 5ft 1/2 inch by the way). So assuming I'm not likely to have two children with 99th centile heads, I'm really hoping for a VBAC this time, and will no doubt be back for advice!

lulumama · 10/01/2007 09:44

purplerabbit.....i'm sure it is ok with feedmenow if you join the thread!

Original poster

feedmenow · 10/01/2007 14:23

The more the merrier! Purplerabbit, we're both on the August antenatal thread too!

OP posts:

Original poster

feedmenow · 10/01/2007 14:25

Also purplerabbit, the thing about head size....my ds (born by elective section) had a huge head (about 39cm) and I'd always assumed that I would have been advised to have a section on this basis. However, a consultant recently told me that head circ. is quite ambiguous and most women are unlikely to "grow" a baby that is too big for them to birth! But imagine the burn of those 39cms....ouch!!

OP posts:

lulumama · 10/01/2007 14:36

your consultant sounds like he is talking a lot of sense!!

true cephalopelvic disproportion is rare, these days..ie baby's head will not fit through the pelvis.and the notion that some women have a pelvis unsuited for vaginal delivery is also an outdated notion.......the Ina May books have some info about different positions for birthing larger babies, and how the midwives can help the mother by pressing on each hip to widen the pelvic outlet, i think..the 'pelvic press', i think she calls it.....

anyhoo...off to do school run x

ivelostmyboobsboohoo · 10/01/2007 17:50

purple rabbit, my ds1 was HUGe- 10 lbs and a massive head, but my babies got lighter and smaller generally. dd (3rd baby) had a 25th percentile head (she was my VBAC!)... still bloody hurt though and had to have stitches! prob because i have such a mini mini!

Original poster

feedmenow · 14/01/2007 09:45

Wel, I may have started the thread but i won't be carrying on with it....found out yesterday that we've had a missed miscarriage so no point me worrying about a vbac for the time being.
Good luck to everyone that is giving it ago. I'll still read how people are getting on and will be thinking of you all....

OP posts:

lulumama · 19/02/2007 20:30

oh honey ! just seen this as was digging around for inspiring VBAC links...

really sorry to hear that , feedmenow....take care of yourself xxxxx

Doulaklaw · 01/03/2007 18:51

Hello ladies, I am new to mumsnet and have posted a couple of times on other threads.

I have a 13 year old emCS, a 21 month VBAC with forceps and a possible future HWBAC in mind!

My experience and research online has led me to decide to train as a Doula, I have spent a lot of time on another forum and created a resource post there for VBACers. But when I do my surfing it becomes clear that not all boards seem to have as much information to hand. I'd like to offer the benefit of my experience, both personal and anecdotal, opinions and research based evidence. I also want to be able to continue to learn, taking in everything like a sponge!!

I'm not sure of Mumsnet protocol so have emailed asking if I'm allowed to mention my own website etc.

Good luck to all of you ladies in waiting!

sincerely
Karen

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