Those who have had/are having Breech babies - what are the signs?

[Wholelottalove]

Hello. Just wondering if you've had or are having breech baby what the signs were/are?

I'm 36 + 5 today and just seen midwife who has said she thinks my baby could be breech. Basically she can feel a lump in my pelvis and a similar hard lump up on the right under my ribs. All previous appointments MW thought baby head down, but this was a different MW today. I am booked in for scan Friday to confirm.

MW heard heartbeat at equal strength on both lumps to add to the confusion and couldn't feel what was what with the limbs. It feels to me like there is a big lump on each side plus one at the bottom of my bump (maybe the baby has three heads!). I assumed the baby back to back with me like DD was as feeling lots of movements out front. I also feel hiccups quite low, in line with my hips and sometimes in middle and sometimes on the side.

Obviously scan will tell but I am v anxious in meantime so would appreciate some stories of what breech felt/feels like.
TIA

Mean to say hard round lump in pelvis and at top. Apparently some babies do clench their bums when bump being prodded. I do think going by intuition it could well be breech as have felt something wrong with the lie of this baby for a bit, but assumed it was an OP lie.

My baby is breech - still very early days - 28 weeks - but although he kicks and wriggles he doesn't seem to move dramatically and each scan I have (I have had a few for other reasons) shows he is breech.

All my kicks are very low (have never felt a kick below waist) and I have something hard and uncomfortable up under my right ribs which I am assuming is the head.

Hmm, my movements are all over the bump! There is a hand or foot above my left hip a lot, plus a lot accross the front over my belly button, plus things emerging at the top occasionally! It is a bit confusing and has obviously stumped the MW.

My baby was head down the whole way and then at 36 weeks it went breech.. when it was breech felt the exact same movements as now so i think it's tricky to tell.. my baby was breech with legs curled up towards the top even though it's head was at the top.. now it's head down it's legs are back at the top so the movements still feel the same if that makes sense..

I had an ECV at 37 weeks and they managed to turn the baby back to head down so all systems go now for labour!

best of luck

My breech baby was totally different! He was breech all the way through but facing inwards so I never got any kicks on the front of my belly! Could definitely tell he was breech though as hiccups all quite high up and head stuck under my ribs was painful at times.

ooh, good to know the ECV worked HappyGirl1. I think I will ask about that if this one is breech after all.

Choccyfiend - hmm, hiccups are definitely not high, maybe that is a good sign (clutching at straws!)

was your baby engaged at all? as far as I have heard, it's easy to confuse a breech baby and one that is deeply engaged.
Generally, when trying to assess positioning, midwives look for the main difference between the two hard lumps: A head is obviously attached to the body by a neck and should therefore be able to be moved gently, then kind of bounce back, which is one reason for the way they palpate your lower abdomen with one hand like that. A breech is harder to move, because there os obviously no connection like the neck to make it movable.

When DS was posterior I could feel most of his movements on the front, which is what your description sounds like.
Ultimately, though, I think a scan is the only 100% reliable way to tell whether your LO is upside down or not.

A head stuck hard under my sternum. It was there for weeks - never shifted from that position - and was obviously a head as it turned from side to side. You can't do that with your bum! Also tap dancing on my bladder - footling breech - and never got kicks high up. If it's any help the first Dr I saw at the hospital told me I was talking rubbish when I told him I thought the baby was breech. His reasoning? He could find a heart beat low down. Well, so he might have done, but that didn't mean the baby was head down. It took a trip back to the MW (who prodded and agreed with me), a referral back to the hospital and scan for them to believe me.

ECV is like being in the middle of a rugby scrum. Very odd. Some people reckon it hurts, but my experience is that it's just uncomfortable. And in our case unsuccessful. We opted for an elective which was absolutely fine if not quite what I had planned.

When he was actually turning breech I had a lot of pain then whilst he was in that position my bump was "wrong" and I had a lot of pain in my ribs.

At 36 weeks, it's still the case that about 10%, or a little less, of all babies are breech. This goes down to 3% at term, so the chances are it'll turn!

I am 35+4 and mine is breech. Has been for weeks now. I felt a burning sore spot at top of bump for weeks, which is now explained. My hiccups also pretty high. Found out at a 33 wk growth scan. He is fully extended breech - ie, sucking toes. Most of breeches are like this but if yours is flexed (like cross-legged) he may turn easier on his own.

Since then, have been trying inverted postures from BabySpinning. Best done in a swimming pool as very uncomfortable otherwise! Also burning moxa by little toe, and will opt for ECV at 37 weeks + if he's still bum-down.

Goood luck!

Thanks everyone, good to have your experiences. From what I've read I think there is a 50:50 chance it is breech. RWD - that's reassuring about the baby still having time to turn.

Once I know for sure I will be on to the positioning and things. My doula also sent me something about moxibustion (can't remember if that's how you spell it!)

If it's breech, it's breech. Completely not what I was hoping for, but as long as everything is ok I will just have to make the best of it.

Just in case anyone searches and gets this thread, thought would update to say I've had scan and baby is not breech but head down. Was told if they're really scrunched up the bum can feel quite hard and like a head.

RWD - hope your baby turns for you soon.

That's good news! Mine is still breech according to the scan I had on Tuesday but she's been wriggling all morning (very uncomfortable whilst I was stuck in snowbound gridlock!) and I've taken every opportunity I can to go on my hands and knees/bouncing on my ball to try and shift her.

I have to say I had no idea that DD was breech and neither did any of the healthcare professionals I saw during my pregnancy. Didn't find out until I was fully dilated. Ouch!

With hindsight I can say that rib agony is a good indicator!

Do plenty of yoga exercises and get on all fours rotating your hips to help the baby get into position.. Worth a try!

DS was breech all the way through my pregnancy. His head was on the left under my ribs, bum down at the bottom and feet up over on the right.

The reason he wasn't able to turn was because I had an undiagnosed bicornuate uterus and his head was sort of trapped in one of the two 'horns' at the top.

So GMajor7 did you proceed with a vaginal birth then? How was it?

WLL, glad he's bum-up now!

DHs cousin had terrible pain under her ribs at the right.

She kept telling the midwife but she poo-pooed it.
She went into labour, tried and tried to push baby out, wasn't progressing, MW did an internal only to stick her finger up the babys' bottom.

She then had an emergency section.