Breach/transverse baby at 33+2

[FrancesV83]

What are the chances of him turning?
Has anyone had the ECV procedure?

There's always a chance. My first turned at 36 weeks and my second was breech literally until the moment my waters broke and he went head down.
Look up spinning babies website for positions that can help. Moxibustion by an acupuncturist might help too

DC1 was always breech and never moved. DC2 was breech and then went head down and stayed that way. DC4 was all over the place and in a different position (breech, head down, transverse, oblique, unstable...) at every scan (which I had at least every fortnight) and was breech the week before birth but head down when it mattered.

@whereland There’s still hope yet then! I’ve been doing the positions to try and give him more space to move but nothing has worked yet. He has been in the same position most of the pregnancy so I’m not banking on him moving, he must be comfy!

My first was breach with an unstable/ transverse lie until week 36 / 37.

Personally I would refuse an ECV. The risk for the baby is too high. A c-section is preferable by far - major surgery for you but a walk in the park for baby.

@AllFourOfThem Gosh, babies can be so awkward!! I’m thinking my little one is going to be stubborn (like his mother!) and stay where he is. It’s not nice being kicked in the pelvis though!

My first was transverse until 34 weeks and turned herself (you will know all about it when they do).

I would have refused ECV and insisted on section had she not turned.

@MythicalBiologicalFennel I’m really not keen on the ECV idea, can be painful and won’t necessarily work or he could move again.

For those who’ve had c sections what is the recovery like? I’m worried I won’t be able to be as hands on as I was with my eldest.

@Sadie789 I think my little man is transverse most of the time as I can feel him stretching out fully from side to side. I’m in the same mindset about the ECV, I’ve seen them done on birth programs and it looks horrendous.

Plenty of time to turn. Mine was still breech at 39+2 so after a conversation with the consultant we agreed to an ecv. I was set to refuse but he said mine was very favourable (lots of fluid and fairly small baby). It really wasn’t that bad at all. I’d heard horror stories but it was all fine. Baby turned and remained head down. I delivered vaginally at 39+5 and had a fantastic birth. I was so pleased we went for the ecv! If you get to that point (and your baby may well turn yet...plenty of time!), just go to your consultant appointment with an open mind. See what they think your chances are given your exact circumstances and make your decision then. Best wishes.

DD was transverse at 36 weeks, and we agreed to an ECV. She turned reasonably easily (too easily, it turned out!) and she turned back that evening. I was admitted at 37+5 in case I went in to labour (which I didnt); had an elcs at 39+1. My local hospital (UK) admits those who are transverse, so you may have an exciting 10 days or so in hospital ahead of you (this was 6 years ago; not sure what would happen now). But DD was born safely and my recovery was good, so a successful outcome.

@purplepjs I’m glad you had a positive experience of it and the birth. I will remain positive with an open mind! I wonder if the babies size would make ECV more difficult as I’m already in the 90th percentile.

@bathorshower That’s my concern that he will turn back! He seems to favour this position.
That’s pretty positive about the caesarean, I’m certainly not worried about having a section if needed.

I don’t know enough to say, but that’s definitely worth asking if you get to that point. If baby is transverse that might be in your favour perhaps...less far to move?? It’s a hard choice to make. I posted here and was largely advised against it. But in the end I’m glad I took the advice of the consultant. He listened to my concerns but was able to explain why my odds of success were good and strongly advised me to try. I trusted him and the doctor performing it. Try not to over think it at this stage...you may well not have to worry about it at all if baby turns! But if you do, just ask all your questions and then go with your gut.

@francesv83 section was fine, I ended up having an emcs middle of the night for a different reason but it all went smoothly, recovery was fine. I’m quite “whatever” about operations etc though so depends how you feel about these things.

I was told I’d be admitted from 36 weeks if baby didn’t turn but I expect there’s different policies at different hospitals.

Just try to relax and hopefully they will turn by themselves, that’s the best outcome.

Purplepjs unfortunately ECV's for transverse babies are, anecdotally, less likely to be successful (at least in terms of having the right presentation by onset of labour) - my hospital could only give me stats for ECV overall (50% success rate), but the vast majority are for breech babies. Basically, if the baby 'fits' better transverse rather than longitudinal, then there's a fair chance they'll go back that way. As we discovered.

My ds2 was transverse lie. I was admitted at 37 weeks and had a c section at 39 weeks. No other options were discussed. It was all fine.

You still have plenty of time. I had a successful ECV at 39 weeks and I'm happy I went for it. It is really down to personal choice, but when I weighed the pros and cons for me, I wanted to try to avoid major surgery. You have to trust the consultant and be clear that you can request to stop the ECV at any time. My consultant continually checked on health of baby, had constant ultrasound visibility and kept me in quite a while afterwards, to make sure baby was happy. I did not find it painful, just odd feeling. I also had quite a big baby, but that didn't affect anything. I went on to have a home birth. I would say to find out your hospitals policy. Increasingly they are offering natural breech birth, if they have specially trained midwives. There tends to be panic around breech babies, but a lot of specialists say, 'breech is just another kind of normal.' I would say read all you can, join the Breech Birth UK Facebook group and arm yourself with knowledge before making a decision.

I’m currently 37 weeks and our baby has been breech throughout the pregnancy. I’ve tried exercises and moxibustion with no success. The bigger the baby’s head is getting the more painful my ribs are getting also. I’m going to a breech clinic tomorrow, I’m planning to go for the ECV if they think it’s viable as I would like to avoid major surgery and the risks are extremely small and are in a controlled environment. I will update you tomorrow 🙂