Normal vaginal birth with breech baby?

[Acrylia]

I'm 38wks with DD in breech position and would like to go for normal birth. Had anyone done this? Please share your experience, tips..

you need tangle !

and google mary cronk, she is the breech guru

A cousin of mine had a footling breach and delivered vaginally. She had no problems at al, but not sure if it was luck or not...footling breeches are apparnetly likely to go wrong, as in one leg coming out without the other...

Have you read anything by Mary Cronk? She is an expert in the field. An Independent m/w thathas a vast experience with natural Breech Births....

you just need a midwife who agrees to deliver you- i dont think many midwives would be willing to do it to be honest

my mum had footling breech, no pain relief, not much difference to other births, physically.

I was told that breech babies either come or they don't - i.e. it's either quick and easy, or they ain't coming at all without a CS.

it is more risky. Yehudi Gordon, a top naturual birth guru and ob is being sued over agreeing to a natural birth for a breech baby who was left brain damaged.

Is it your first child or have you delivered vaginally before? This will make a big difference.

DS was breech and I really wanted a vaginal birth but ended up having a c-section because it was my first. I think I would have felt differently if I'd already been through labour once and knew what to expect.

My Mum! I was breech, 7lb 6oz and delivered vaginally. She did have a small episiotomy but only 2 or 3 stitches and healed well. Get oiling and stretching your perineum Is it your first?

My sis was breech, bum first, and delivered naturally, my DD1 was a fottling and I asked to have her naturally but was told that it was too dangerous due to the position she was in (she had one foot down with the knee out sideways and the other wrapped around her and finishing behind her head!)
I would ask for a scan first and then decide.

I totally don't want to scare monger but a friend of mine lost her baby breech delivery so I wouldn't personally. Childbirth is risky but I'd want to go with the odds. It was awful for the midwives too.

Gosh, it does sound scary but thanks for all info. It is my first baby and I'm 34. So won't take any risks. Had a scan last Tuesday, baby still head up but no more details. Will ask my gyno next time. He delivered breech babies before successfuly but you never know, we are all different.
It's just that it's a long weekend and I feel really funny..pain in the back, feverish, no appetite...it's probably just in my head.
Will let you know how it went.

it's a good sign your gyno has delivered breechbirths before...he might be more objective that way.

I think you should do some research. About 4% of all babies are breech and 4% of the population were not meant to be disastrous births.

Most of the problems with breech births tend to come with the management of them. MWs and Obs have less and less experience of vaginal breech births because women are routinely told to have c-births. This of course feeds into the cycle of only having breech c-births. C-births also have their own risks.

Some information from AIMs here

oh and a top tip (thank you Mary Cronk) is hands off the breech.

Be in the all fours position and allow the baby to come. The baby should be "caught" by the consultant rather than "managed" out.

I have have a natural, vaginal breech.

The key thing is the position of your baby. Some breech babies cannot be birthed naturally. I had a frank breech (baby folded in half), and that was fine. If your baby is frank breech and you are at term, then a vaginal birth shouldn't be any more complicated than if it were cephalic. The bottom is about the same size as the head.

When you are in labour, it is important that everything is totally natural. You must not accelerate - no induction (incl 'natural') or use synto. If your baby gets stuck and you accelerate, its chin or back of neck gets rammed into your pubic bone and labour will not progress but be very stressful.

If the labour goes well, you will know because it progresses. If it stops, then it is time for a c-section. This is the only time anyone should get involved with your delivery - the saying is 'hands off the breech until the nape is visible'.

Do a google on 'Mary Cronk' and 'breech'. She is an old school midwife, recently retired, who is a wealth of wonderful info on breech. She is one of the true experts in the western world.

My ds was a frank breech (bottom first) and I delivered naturally. But I do think this was down to the fact that everyone thought he was head down, and by the time I got to hospital I was fully dilated, they wanted to do cs once they realised but the consultant came in who was approaching retirement and so quite 'old school' and was was happy to give a vaginal delivery a go....although by his time ds was practically out anyway! Did have an episeotomy (?sp) and forceps but SOOO pleased didnt have CS. DS was small though (6lb 5) which prob helped. But because of my postive experience I would say give it a go, but be prepared for an emergency section if things dont progress.

Now I am 36weeks and this one is still breech too - I will try another normal birth if pos, but I guess I know I've done it before which helps - sounds like this is your first breech so I can undersatnd your concerns.

Ultimately it is YOUR decision, they cant make you have a CS if you want to give it a go. Like another poster said, google Mary Cronk, has written loads about breech births, and suggests situations in which she believes it is not advisable.

Good luck!

My ds was a frank breech (bottom first) and I delivered naturally. But I do think this was down to the fact that everyone thought he was head down, and by the time I got to hospital I was fully dilated, they wanted to do cs once they realised but the consultant came in who was approaching retirement and so quite 'old school' and was was happy to give a vaginal delivery a go....although by his time ds was practically out anyway! Did have an episeotomy (?sp) and forceps but SOOO pleased didnt have CS. DS was small though (6lb 5) which prob helped. But because of my postive experience I would say give it a go, but be prepared for an emergency section if things dont progress.

Now I am 36weeks and this one is still breech too - I will try another normal birth if pos, but I guess I know I've done it before which helps - sounds like this is your first breech so I can undersatnd your concerns.

Ultimately it is YOUR decision, they cant make you have a CS if you want to give it a go. Like another poster said, google Mary Cronk, has written loads about breech births, and suggests situations in which she believes it is not advisable.

Good luck!

Ooo, almost everyone has said look up Mary Cronk

Ooo, almost everyone has said look up Mary Cronk

Whoops dodgy mouse button!

Is there no chance of getting the baby turned? A friend of mine whose third baby was breech succeeded, after extensive investigation, in finding an obstetrician who was willing to try and turn him in utero. It was successful and she went on to have a non-assisted vaginal deliver.

but an evc (that is the term for turning Baby ) has it's own dangers hasn't it?

I was 34 and had twins. The 2nd one was footling breech, and after the first one was born, someone stuck their arm up me (just like in All Creatures Great and Small up a cow's bottom!) and turned him round. I didn't feel it, it was fine. They were born 19 minutes apart. They are now healthy teenagers!

So, don't worry - get yourself a midwife you trust & let her get on with it.