Refusing medical intervention.

[Liliput2013]

Hi, I am 34 weeks pregnant with my second child and feeling rather overwhelmed with the impending labour. I feel I lost all control with my first labour which ended in a forceps delivery. I still don't feel as if I've recovered from it!
This time around I've been listening to natal hypnotherapy CDs and have been researching natural childbirth without medical intervention. I'm hoping to write my birth plan soon and want to refuse as much medical interference as possible.
I don't want to be checked how many cms I am, I don't want any inducing drugs, I definitely don't want forceps.
Has anyone else had any experience (successful or otherwise!) in going against the medical professionals?
I'm having a bit of a battle with trying to get my husband support me on this (I can see why) and my midwife has also mentioned having to push the baby back up (!?) if I do refuse forceps.
Help!

You can refuse to be checked and induction etc but if the baby is stuck, would you rather have forceps to get baby out asap and a better chance of having a healthy baby or risk the worse for you and baby?

So when you says the midwife says that if baby needs forceps and you refuse it, they will have to push bany back up , Then what is she going to do? C section? Isn't that intervention you don't want? Or would you rather go for that from the beginning?

Hypnobirthing is excellent , but don't promise yourself anything as the more you set your heart on a certain birth plan the more upset you will be if things don't go to plan.
Hope you get the birth you want . Best wishes

Hi liliput have you thought about having your baby at home? It is much easier to stay normal and instinctive in your own environment.
What happened first time around?

I agree with rhianna. IME births never go as planned and when the time comes we all just have to go with the flow. if they offer you medical intervention surely it would be because there was a problem that required it?

I hope everything goes well for you and there is no need for anything. good luck.

Yes my birth preferences had refusing stuff. The midwives were very respectful of this. In the end I did have examinations and ventouse but these were done on my terms as necessary due to the specific circumstances rather than just as routine. They did want to put me on a speed up contractions drip which I refused and did an alternative. They also talked c section which again was negotiated to something else. So from my experience by all means have the preferences, and retain the control, alongside recognising that the specific circumstances need responding to. And get a good doula. That was how I was able to manage the process in this way.

I found that with the waterbirth I had (in hospital) they were quite happy to just let me get on with it. They checked.dilation when I first arrived but not at all after that, just told me to do what came naturally and I was fine - sure I would have been less so if they had key checking for dilation. BUT I know I was lucky and if they had suggested for a moment that something was going wrong and I needed intervention I would have let them.

I made it quite clear to my mw I wanted as little 'meddling' as possible. She listened. I didn't get intervened with until the mw thought something might be up with the baby, then I was monitored but she held the thing to me as being on my back was agony. Then suggested a clip on the baby's head.
She was very nice and largely left me to get on with it and just did the entenox canisters after I'd sucked it dry.
I had to have a bit of intervention as dd got a little stuck but my mw was brilliant and I always felt in control and she never did anything to me that felt invasive. I began pushing when I felt ready and she asked to check me and was so gentle and fast I didn't realise she had finished and just told me to go for it.
Tell your mw you want as little fussing as possible and nothing without the reasons explaining to you. I was adamant I wanted nobody touching me but when your waters are more meconium than anything else, your baby's heart rate is dropping and the mw tells you your baby is big and you may need a little help you agree to a lot. The difference is I agreed and had it all explained and until that point I had been left alone.
Explain to your mw and put it in your notes. I know mw often get a bad rep but mine was lovely and really listened to what I wanted.

Hi op.

I have 5 dc. My last 2 dc births were totally unmedicalised births. Water births in a birth centre. I just took it one step at a time. I've also used Natal hypnotherapy.

The way I view it is, giving birth is a natural bodily function. Medical help is a great thing IF you need it. If your left to labour in a calm & stress free way it helps massively but if something goes wrong, medical intervention can mean the difference between life & death.

It can be done! Ask for a debrief on your last birth and a meeting with the supervisor of midwives to write your birth plan.

My first DC was born using forceps.

When I asked about the likelihood of them being necessary for DC2, I was told that it was extremely unusual for forceps to be used following a first birth.

Hope things go well for you this time round.

Please consider homebirth. There is a fab book called the 'Fathers homebirth handbook' that could help to address your husband's fears. look into a hypnobirth class too.