C-section or vaginal birth after 3b tear?

[Pinkstar85]

Hi at my first birth baby got stuck. I was cut for forceps but stil got 3rd degree tear. I'm now 13wks pg with 2nd and I'm worried il tear again, but worse than last time! I would love to hear from other woman this has happened to, about what you done. Thankyou

Ps 1st baby will be 21mths when I have next one

I'm in the same position at 34 weeks. Consultants are monitoring the size of the baby and we will make a decision nearer the time whether we should go VB or CS. My gut feeling is to go VB because I healed well and quickly last time and I'm pretty nervous about having fairly major surgery and the recovery period.

It's difficult to know what to do isn't it?

I am a midwife and have looked after lots of women who have had normal vaginal births after 3rd degree tears. You might want to look at the Epi-no. This can help a lot.

I am 33 weeks and trying to make the same decision. I had a 3b tear with a 9lb15 baby who is now almost 2. I have healed well although it was all quite painful for a while afterwards. The first consultant I saw suggested I have a cs but having done a bit of research it seems that the chance of having another tear (and one that is worse than the first) is pretty low and this makes me feel more confident about having a vb. I have a scan booked in for 37 weeks where they are going to try and measure the size of the baby and I think I am going to make my decision after that. It's not easy! I'll be watching this thread with interest.

I had a 3rd degree tear which healed well. Two years later I had my second baby by VB and all went well. The consultant had suggested an epesiotomy but after discussions with the midwife (and lots of research) I decided to just see what happened. In fact it was a super quick birth and I was able to go home the same day if I'd wanted (I didn't because I was too anxious about looking after a newborn again).
hth

I was 'only' 3a but had a normal VB with the second one 13 months later (!!). This time I 'only' had a 2nd degree tear - hurrah!

Birth is awesome

On a more serious note, I was worried like you beforehand. DC1 wasn't large, just arranged in a bloody awkward funny way with his hand above his head, which is why I tore. Obviously if you have a history of growing big 'uns then CS might be a better idea.

Also, I know someone else whose DC1 got stuck due to her shoulder size and so had to have an EMCS. She opted for an elective CS with DC2 and said it was the best decision she ever made, particularly as he ended up being quite broad across the shoulders. It made me (and her, presumably) cringe just thinking about how that birth could have gone.

I do wonder when people say things like 'Oh, a positive attitude is all you need' if they seriously think that deep breathing and a bit of Enya will change the size of the baby's bone structure

I'm in a similar position. 3rd degree year over two years ago and now 30 weeks with dc2. I saw a consultant at 16 weeks who seemed to think that I should go for a vb. I think it depends how you heal but as someone else said I don't think the risk of treating again is much higher than I'd you hadn't the first time.
it's a difficult choice though. the thought of having incontinence issues fills me with terror.

Thankyou everyone for your replies. Not one of you has a negative story to tell, yippee! Incontinence issues are my biggest fear, healing isn't as I found I healed fairly quickly and wasn't really that sore afterwards. I did take Nelson's arnica tablets so don't know if that helped. But il def be taking them again this time! DS1 wasn't that big, 7lb12oz but he was long, which is why they think he got stuck. It wasn't a terrible birth, I actually loved it At my check up afterwards they said I should be able to have a VB and on wed I have an app with the consultant and I'm hoping he'll say the same. Fingers crossed! Once again thankyou for all your replies

I went for a ELCS after a 3a tear not because of the immediate recovery ( I recovered well from my tear, although it took a while), but because I read a lot that suggested that the risk of incontinence in later life was far far higher after another tear, even a less major one.

FWIW my CS recovery was a doddle compared to my VB recovery - I genuinely couldn't believe how much better I felt! I did have a cervical tear and PPH to go along with 3a first time round though, which may have made things worse?

I had a 3a tear three years ago, no continence issues but shocking pain for months afterwards. I'm now 10+3 with dc2 and will fight my corner for an elcs.

Thankyou everyone

This has really helped me - I had a 3rd degree 2 years ago and am now 34 weeks with dc2. Starting to freak out about birth! Dd wasn't big at all (6lb 9oz) but came out back-to-back, in a funny position and v fast (I only pushed for 10 mins). Midwives have suggested they'll be better able to guide me this time??

I had a 2nd degree tear with my 1st, hand my 2nd 14 months later. He was 9 pound and I did not tear at all, not even a graze. My vagina didn't even feel sore the day after :)

I had a 2nd degree tear with my 1st, hand my 2nd 14 months later. He was 9 pound and I did not tear at all, not even a graze. My vagina didn't even feel sore the day after :) and I only pushed for 8 minutes :)

I had a 3b tear with DD1, then went on to have DS3 vaginally - and i had a 2nd degree tear with him, which felt like nothing in comparison.

Thankyou. I've got to go have a camera "up there" to see if I'm was damaged at all. Still waiting for appointment date