36 week scan - what do I do now?

[Coops79]

I'm 36wks +5. Was booked in for a scan today because I had a marginally low lying placenta at 20wks and a small fibroid. I'm planning a home-birth with minimal interference as far as is humanly possible. Firstly, I'm still reeling from having a probe shoved up my lady bits but more seriously it appears that a small part of my placenta is slightly over my cervix. I'm afraid I didn't really listen very hard to what they were saying as I was busy panicking but 3.5 came up (milimetres perhaps?) Anyway, I stupidly told them that I had a consultant appointment booked for next Thursday so they wouldn't offer any guidance then and there as to what this means.

I want to have my baby at home but I'm not going to take stupid risks. My husband has already booked the pool and is going to be furious if he has to cancel it (he was never that keen on the home birth thing anyway) - I know that's not really the point but it's in my head as "another thing to worry about". Mainly I want to know what's happening. My midwives don't appear to want to answer the phone. I just want to know if it would be most sensible to abandon the homebirth thing and just start mentally preparing myself for the Birthing Centre (I can't even begin to contemplate a proper hospital or a Cesarean).

I'm just so angry with my stupid body. I've tried so hard to be healthy and sensible throughout this pregnancy. I used to be a smoker until about 4 years ago, plus I had a termination 8 years ago (I'm sure you're building up a mental picture of the classy sort of bird I once was) and I can't help but think that these problems are a result of my past stupidity.

Any advice/experience/thoughts hugely appreciated.

Bump (sorry but I'm desperate!)

I have no idea about the course of action you'll be offered guidance about in terms of having plancenta over your cervix but wanted to jump in straight away to say STOP FEELING GUILTY about the past!!!!

I can't imagine for one second that any of the things from your past have anything at all to do with this current physiological issue.

Please don't blame yourself, it's just one of those things affects lots of women with every kind of lifestyle.

Hopefully someone with experience of low lying placenta will be along with wise words in a minute but in the meantime have a cup of tea and some chocolate. One way or another your baby will soon be here and even if baby doesn't arrive in the location or by the method you'd most hoped for it's still possible for you to have a positive birth experience.

Very best wishes x

I don't have any experience of your situation but didn't want to leave yo uunanswered. I suspect the low-lying placenta will mean that there's no chance of a safe homebirth. I would begin to make alternative plans tbh.

Ok, I can't be much help regarding the consequences of this but just really wanted to reply and say that the position of your placenta has absolutely nothing to do with your previous lifestyle, where it ends up is just completely down to random chance, so please banish all thoughts of that out of your mind.

It's completely crap that the person scanning you was really unhelpful about answering your questions. Were you able to leave a message for your midwife?

This thread in pregnancy may be of some use in the meantime Placenta Praevia Support

Thank you all. Feeling quite overwhelmed by the whole thing. DH not home yet and really don't know what to tell him. I hate being in limbo, if I could just know properly what was going on it would help. They've not even written anything in my notes (at least nothing I can find). And thank you thefurryone I'll take a look at the thread now.

If your placenta is actually on your cervix then it will usually be a cs for delivery.

I'm sorry you feel so panicy, can you get hold of your midwife tonight or if not tomorrow so you can talk this through properly.

Please don't even think of blaming yourself, the best laid plans etc, it is just one of those things.

I'm not totally clear, you do actually have a consultants appointment for Thursday don't you?

I hope everything goes really well for you.

How and where your placenta decides to plant itself is nothing to do with previous lifestyle choices, so stop going down that road for a start. Tbh the risk of adverse outcome for the baby with placenta praevia (if that is indeed what you have for sure) is not worth a natural birth and I would imagine homebirth is right out, but this is something you need to discuss with your consultant.
C section is the usual advice, depending on the degree of praevia, as hemorrhaging can be a huge risk, for both mother and baby.
Best of luck and hope it goes well with your con thursday.
Don't worry about the blimmin pool, they get cancelled all the time!

Hi Gobbler, yeah there is a consultant appointment a week on Thursday. The scanner was making vague noises that the placenta could still move and I could still have a homebirth but I'm starting to think she just wanted to get the hysterical woman out of her room. I really really really don't want a C section.

I'm going to try my midwife tomorrow and see what she says.

You need to stop blaming yourself for things you did in the past and also start being a bit more serendipitous about the birth (and your DH, what a daft thing to get furious about, I hope you are just worrying over nothing in that regard). Baby is healthy, I assume, six weeks from now you will be in the same place whichever path you end up taking (as you said you won't take silly risks). Giving birth is like this and we are lucky to find out about our risks in advance, good luck with the consultant and try not to worry until then, there is nothing you can do, or undo.

Stop thinking you can't even contemplate a hospital birth or section as you might have no choice. If you psyche yourself up for it to be an awful experience then it will be. Hospital births are not bad, ceasereans are not bad. Getting your baby out in the safest way for you both is all that matters.

I really feel for you, it is so hard when it doesn't go to plan.

I can understand you not wanting a cs, but I think you have to start thinking that way. If the placenta does move then it will be a lovely bonus, but I think you should start preparing yourself.

Tbf, even if things had gone to plan you coulfd have started at home and still ended up a cs, birth is so unpredictable.

I good friend of mine had three quick straight forward home births then for her fourth so was blue lighted for an emergency cs. These things happen.

I would definately speak to your midwife though. As you may have got it wrong, with placenta previa they will normally deliver you early so there is no chance of you going into labour. I am surprised they are happy to leave you for the next 9 days.

I echo all those who say that you should stop thinking that a hospital birth or CS will be awful. They won't and what ever happens will happen. If you are this fixated on the type of birth you want you will be at risk of PND if things don't go to your plan. The best thing you can do is try to keep an open mind. Good luck btw however the baby decides to arrive!

I assume your placenta is posterior if you had an internal scan. generally they like the placenta to be approx 5cm away from exit. some consultants are different and will be happy with smaller distance some would want it further.
your previous lifestyles have no influence of the position of your placenta. it is the luck of the draw where ever it decides to form and grow. you have no control. they cannot force you to have a c-section but if they advise it then it's not just because they feel like it on the day.
if you have a consultants appointment discuss it with him as he will be the final decision maker with you. your midwife probably wit be able to help you as its not her call if the placenta is low. you still have a few more weeks to go and t
if they scan you again you will be prepared for the internal scan. generally they should have warned you at your anomaly scan that the tv scan is the best way to assess your placental site at your late stage.
where was your fibroid and how big is it now?

sorry for bad grammar am on my phone !

You've had some good advice already, hope I can add to it.

I have been where you are - planning a homebirth, then told I would have to have a section (strange breach position). It was disappointing and scary, I can understand why you feel worried.

Please don't blame yourself or worry about DH having to cancel the birth pool! I'm sure his only concern will be for the health of you and your baby.

You're only 36 +5, things still change, but as Gobblers says, I think you need to prepare yourself mentally for a section. Keep trying to talk to your midwives (do you know your main allocated midwife well?)

BTW my baby turned and I had a homebirth after all.

Thanks Gobbler - it's the waiting 9 days to see the consultant that's going finish me off. You're absolutely right of course, there's no way of knowing what's going to happen even if the placenta does move and I guess that's the bit that I'm struggling with. I'm a control freak (this does not bode well for impending parenthood!).

Thank you for your supportive words - I'll post again once I've spoken to the midwife or the consultant.

I hope you manage to get some answers soon. The best course of action is likely to depend on exactly where your placenta is. In some cases c-section really is the only way the baby can get out. In other cases it depends on how close to the cervix the placenta is, and a vaginal birth might be fine or the consultant might be OK with a 'see how it goes' approach.

One thing to mention is that although you can insist on a homebirth against medical advice (and I'm not in any way advocating this, and in some cases it could be v dangerous), you absolutely cannot insist on being admitted to a birthing centre. They have strict criteria for referrals/admissions, and if you don't meet them then you have very little chance of being allowed to go there.

See what your midwife and consultant say. Your plan to birth at home may yet be fine if your placenta is far enough away from the cervix (you could also ask to be re-scanned in a couple of weeks to see whether anything has changed?), and at least you would go into it with your eyes open knowing the reasons why transfer to hospital relating to your placenta's position would be advised. Alternatively, you and those caring for you might agree that the main hospital unit would be a safer place to try for a vaginal birth in your particular circumstances, so that all the backup is right there if it turns out to be needed. The third option is that you may all agree that a c-secion is the only way to go, and at least you will have time to plan for a positive experience .

Good luck!

PestoPenguin thank you so much for giving me some clarity! I'm starting to get my head round the fact that I can't plan/control what is going to happen, I can only try to be prepared for any eventuality. I won't be silly about a homebirth - if they say it's not safe then it's not going to happen (I reserve the right to sulk about it a bit though!)

Incidentally I was being monumentally unfair to DH who was not at all furious about possibly cancelling the pool. He was however furious with unhelpful scanner people and is threatening to phone them up and tell them off for upsetting his wife. Bless.

Thank you all. It is still possible it'll all be fine but if I have to change things around then I'm feeling a little better about it. Thank you for being nice. :)

You're welcome .

And of course if plans have to be changed and you are disappointed then it is natural to 'mourn' the type of birth you planned and hoped for. This doesn't mean the one you end up with won't be great, just perhaps in a different way.

Take care

Tollyfolly sorry I missed your post. Have just read it; thank you. It really helps to have some insight into how these decisions are made. Feel much better! :)

Hi Coops, to add to the conversation, I had a home birth planned; it was going to be wonderful with candles, massage, aromatherapy, hypno birthing and short of staging a son et luminere show, it was more than well organised.

As it happened, it all went out the window at the last minute, baby was in distress and I was whisked into hospital for the absolute works-epidural and eventual ECS.

If I'd known before I went into labour how it would turn out, I would have been horrified at the thought but the actuality was far different. I didn't care that I'd had a CS, I was just completely in love with my DD, frankly she could have come out sideways (kind of). And that has stayed, I don't regret having gone into hospital and whilst I would still aim for a home birth next time, an assisted delivery in hospital wasn't half as bad as I had imagined.

Point is, it may not be as bad as you think and you don't have to do the hoovering for 6 weeks afterwards
xxx

There is a placenta praevia support thread over on pregnancy if you want to join us.
Unless your placenta moves significantly (mine is posterior and I was told at least 3cm from the os) you will need a cs. Much safer for you both. In the olden days people used to die with pp.
Not trying to scare you- I would just try to get your head around a cs and accept it. If your placenta moves- fantastic!
People talk about the risks of cs but with pp vb is actually much riskier if that helps.

Thanks blacktreaclecat. I've managed to move my appointment with the consultant forward to tomorrow so I don't have to wait another week until I get some answers. In the nicest possible way I'm hoping you're wrong about the CS but if I don't get the answers I want tomorrow I'll just have to suck it up.

Thanks again for your input, I'll check out the Placenta Praevia thread.

I hope you have a positive appt tomorrow. They do keep telling me my placenta might move and are re scanning at 36w to check whether it has. So you never know.

A quick update: saw consultant. Very much good news/bad news. Good news is that there's no need at all for a CS. My clever unborn baby is perfectly positioned and I suspect has been headbutting that pesky placenta out of the way (that's my boy). The bad news is that a home birth is not really an option any more. I'm going to have to go to a proper hospital as there's a significant risk of haemorrage during the afterbirth. If I was close by the hospital I might have risked it but I'm half an hour away so it's just not worth it.

I'm allowing myself today to feel cheated and sad and tomorrow I will start trying to build a more positive mental picture of a hospital birth and forget about all the bits that scare/horrify/irritate me.

Thank you all for your reassurance and support.
x