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Childbirth

Share experiences and get support around labour, birth and recovery.

Original poster

How can you tell if baby is back to back?

32 replies

Firsttimer16 · 18/02/2019 17:30

Will this be obvious on scans / can the doctors midwife feel to check? I see a lot of threads where people say they discovered their baby was back to back in labour - but i was wondering why it isn’t checked for before hand?

OP posts:
Notquiteagandt · 18/02/2019 17:56

I had no idea. Until my labour ended in an emergancy c section. When she came out she had a little scratch on her from the scaple. The surgeon said he opened me up and she was looking at him 😂 and he said she was back to back.

PickettBowtruckles · 18/02/2019 20:15

I had 12 scans during pregnancy (lots of Growth scans due to concerns about baby being small, she was fine but they were cautious!) with my latest scan at 38wks. I went into labour 10 days overdue and found out then she was back to back, I still don’t know if they just didn’t mention this on the scans or whether she moved in those three weeks.

Sunshinewithshowers123 · 18/02/2019 20:26

I had no idea either at the time but now having had further pregnancies there were differences. I had none of the large movements in late pregnancy where the whole bump could be seen shifting or hands/feet poking out. I couldnt sit or lie down in the days leading up to labour as I was very uncomfortable at the base of my spine. The labour itself was very start/stop too.

DelurkingAJ · 18/02/2019 20:28

They didn’t realise until they tried to pull DS1 out using a ventrouse. Did get him out with forceps but the Dr they summoned was beside himself that they hadn’t done a scan earlier...so it needs a scan. Long labour but we were both fine (he cane out ‘sunny side up’ as his umbilical cord was too short to rotate him).

MrsTerryPratcett · 18/02/2019 20:30

The surgeon said he opened me up and she was looking at him and he said she was back to back.

Mine too. He said she was the most perfectly posterior baby he'd ever seen.

Angelmiracle · 18/02/2019 21:21

I came out of my scan 2 weeks ago and forgot to ask. So asked MW at appointment today - she said it's hard for them to tell. She got heartbeat on Doppler down at the left of my tummy and it was clear so she thinks baby is the right way. And commented my bump isn't the 'typical shape' of a back to back baby. Whatever that looks like!! Although subsequent pregnancies babies have scope to move right up to birth.

Livedandlearned · 18/02/2019 21:24

I didn't know either until after a long and painful labour when my midwife told me it was because the baby was back to back.

I've always wondered if she didn't know until the actual birth or she knew but didn't say.

TortoiseLettuce · 18/02/2019 21:26

Cos it bloody hurts, that’s how you know!

IVEgottheDECAF · 18/02/2019 21:28

My fourth was b2b, this wasn't discovered until id had been in labour a good couple of hours

meepmoop · 18/02/2019 21:31

My midwife told me at one of my later appointments, she just felt around and said. DS came out back to back so she was right

darceybussell · 18/02/2019 21:31

I turned up at the labour ward and was told by the midwife who examined me that DS was in the 'optimal' position. A few hours later he was back to back. So I think it can change pretty quickly!

LegoPiecesEverywhere · 18/02/2019 21:31

I could tell because it was sorer than normal. I didn’t want to lie on my back at all. I had to go on all fours.

SnuggyBuggy · 18/02/2019 21:33

My DM never got engaged heads with her babies, some women don't. To be fair she had an easy drug free back to back birth with her second baby

Shelbybear · 18/02/2019 21:42

Your midwife can usually tell when she feels your bump. Ask when you have an appointment.

My girl was right way round all through pregnancy and turned in labour 😢 I'm convinced it was all the internal examinations (I had 6/7 different ppl do one during labour) midwives/student midwives and doctors, they were touching her head and she kept jerking and moving about like she didn't like it.

I saw my community midwife at home after the birth she was 😮 that baby was back to back, said even the day before I got induced she was correct way round.

Original poster
Firsttimer16 · 19/02/2019 17:34

Thanks all! Thought it’d be something more obvious earlier on but sounds like a mixed bag!

OP posts:
DaedricLordSlayer · 19/02/2019 17:45

The midwife should be telling you!

they can feel which way round they are. The reason they should be telling you this, is so you can adjust the way sit, sleep and do exercises too, like on your hands and knees, leaning forwards on to work tops ect.. especially in the last few weeks, as these all help to encourage the baby turn so they are not back to back and reducing the risk complications and having to have emergency C sections.

I am shocked that women are not been told this.

RestingBitchFaced · 19/02/2019 18:05

Both of mine were, I would advise an epidural 😬

cja06 · 19/02/2019 19:23

Went I went into labour, I was told my baby was back to back. They did feel the baby but also mentioned they could tell by the look of my tummy... it sort of dipped where my belly button was as apposed to being rounded.

Yes it does hurt too, pain in your back is the biggest giveaway.

SweetheartNeckline · 19/02/2019 19:27

My third was back to back but I had an anterior placenta so didn't think much of it and didn't know until I was in labour. As PP said they can turn at any point in secons or subsequent pregnancies. delivered her reasonably easily but it was much more painful than my other two. That's what pain relief is for!

twoheaped · 19/02/2019 19:32

I used to get really uncomfortable and breathless when I lay on my back.
At ante natal classes we had to lie down and I told the mw I found it really uncomfortable, she said then, oh, you'll be back to back. And she was.

babycatcher411 · 19/02/2019 19:41

@DaedricLordSlayer

The midwife should be telling you!
...
...
I am shocked that women are not been told this.

It’s not entirely that straight forward, baby’s move all the time, I could tell you one minute what position your baby is in and tell you in a hour that it’s changed.

Advice on optimal positioning should be given to all women (ie, upright, bump forward over your hips/knees etc), not just on the basis on what position a baby is in at any given time. Likewise, doing some reading about these things is also good!

It’s not always possible to tell what position a baby is in, this can be affected my a multitude of factors, inc maternal size, muscle strength, number pregnancy etc. So it’s simply not the case that the midwife should know and tell you.

EverythingNow · 19/02/2019 19:47

My MW told me with all three of mine and they also didn't fully engage til labour.

Dd1 was ventoused out but 2&3 turned in early labour so came out the right way.

justasking111 · 19/02/2019 19:51

Had no idea until he was born. The labour was no worse than normal I think. But I had awful back trouble afterwards.

Kedgeree · 19/02/2019 19:53

Both of mine were, nobody told me, or they didn't know, until labour was well established. Definitely go for the epidural.

CocoLoco87 · 19/02/2019 19:59

Labour was utterly horrific both times. Both back to back. A family friend looked at me across the room for DC1 and said 'he's back to back, do whatever you can to turn him.' Ultimately of they don't turn then they don't turn!