please help me opt for an ELCS! pretty urgent.

[WithRedWine]

Hi all,

Can't quite believe how last minute this all is...

Have been low risk all the way along - planned a hb.

Just been informed baby is big for dates - had growth scan & gtt test yesterday. Looking at chart baby seems very wide - huge head & stomach circumference but average length.

Also have polyhydroamnios so registrar has said hb now off the cards, as is the MLU. She wants to induce me on my due date as is worried about head getting stuck, shouldr dystocia & cord prolapse due to baby not being engaged and risk of excess fluid meaning cord may precede the head when waters break.

Have had a previous traumatic induction & delivery which i didn't really recover from until i had a really great second birth, years later. I can't face going back to square one as had pnd for a year after my first birth.

The thing is, i don't feel like the registrar listened to me yesterday. She seemed really keen on induction, but I just don't get why - seems the intensity of an imduced labour, plus inevitable flashbacks of my first birth is likely to lead to an EMCS anyway.

How do i convince the HCPs to cut to the chase & book me in for an ELCS while there's still time? I feel like crying.

Insist on speaking to a consultant

Insist on speaking to a consultant and if they refuse insisting you a second opinion.

Oh & I'll be 39 weeks tomorrow. That's quite crucial information i've left out! I really am all over the place...

I've also woken up with what i think might be a throat/chest ear infection. Wondering if i can see an out of hours doctor today if he/she might also be able to make a referral to fast track the cs issue - or is there some rule which says they can't do that?

Hi, I was granted an ELCS on mental health grounds after a first traumatic delivery - I had the same concerns of panicking if things started going the same. My consultant was very understanding, spoke to a psychiatrist who thought I had PTSD - anyway, my experience was that concerns about your mental health were considered as valid as physical reasons for an ELCS especially with a history of PND.
Insist on speaking to a consultant ASAP.
You can refuse induction by the way - do not consent, keep repeating you will only consent to an ELCS.

Presumably if you turned up at the hospital for an induction you could flat refuse it and insist on a c-section???

Did any of your other babies have large heads, or get at all stuck?

The scans are notoriously inaccurate.

I've had 4 inductions and 2 were long winded affairs with ARM required the other 2 were absolutely fine - those were the ones when I was induced at 42 weeks rather than 40.

When did you go into labour/induced with your other dc?

Poor you, horrible to have everything change at last minute, it totally throws you.

Can you speak to your midwife today and go in for a chat with them - if they can help back up your request, I can only hope it would help.

Does the consultant work weekends? Or will you have to wait til Monday? My main thought of speaking to the midwife may make you feel as though it's not dragging on.
Also take someone with you to the appt with the consultant/registrar to help you stand your ground and if you find yourself getting upset/stressed, they can ask questions you may forget.

I would go heavily on the previous birth experience of induction and the pnd, you have every right for your hcp to help you avoid that this time round.

Good luck

I also found the fact that I knew the risks of a section and had considered them helped.
I had a fantastic experience with my ELCS, recovery was a breeze compared to my first labour and no sign of the PND returning despite significant risk factors.
I would try and stay calm but determined that you will not consent to induction and want an ELCS.

Op I started a thread about this some time ago. They will try everything to try and get you to have a VB. But, you can't insist and thy have to listen and if they refuse you can insist on a second opinion. They have to give you a very good reason for reusing an ELCS.

PErsonally can't see how they can refuse when you have so many medical reasons to be able to opt for an ELCS. Link to hread. You may find some helpful information from Rocke that have/are going through this. Everyone on the thread that requested a section got one in the end.

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/pregnancy/1849354-Elective-C-Section-medical-non-medical-reasons

That should be "but you can insist"

Sorry for misspells IPad predictive get...

I agree with littlepea (for once!). You have plenty of medical reasons that would seem to indicate that an elcs is a sensible option for you. I think you need to arrange to speak to a consultant asap and ask for it.

A little word of reassurance about size though - I was in the same position as you and told that my baby would be at least 10lbs. In the end she was a rather more petite 9lbs - not small but not massive either. Fetal measurements are notoriously unreliable, so I wouldn't panic too much about the size of your baby.

Good luck and I hope you get the outcome you want.

Poor you OP, what a terrible situation to be in

I've had two ELCS's so far after a very traumatic first birth which left me physically unable to birth naturally the second time. The ELCS'S are fantastic, no stress, very calm, everyone singing and laughing in theatre, it really is a great experience compared to the intensity and unknown of induction.

Push for what you want, it's your body and your baby. Good luck!