Elective section or vbac

[athomewithboo]

Hi,

Looking for other people's experiences with their second pregnancies. I'm currently 26 weeks with my second baby. My first birth was complicated and traumatic resulting in an emergency c section after 36 hours of labour and a failed induction. I lost 1.5 litres of blood due to a placental haemorrhage and had to have a blood transfusion so it was all a bit scary.

I now have to decide whether to try for a natural delivery (vbac) or an elective section with this baby and I'm struggling to decide. I have a very active 3 year old which is putting me off the idea of a section due to the recovery process involved, even though I'll have help from my DH and my parents for 4 weeks. However, the fear of going through labour and it not working out again fills me with anxiety and dread.

Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated

I don't have any advice but I'm in a similar situation. I'm leaning towards a section at the moment but am yet to have my meeting with the consultant to see what they say, although my MW was supportive and said ultimately it is my choice. I had quite a positive experience last time despite the section, I recovered well and was up and about fairly quickly. I know I'm not guaranteed the same this time but I know people have said with an elective, it's usually a better experience. My worry is that I'll choose a VBAC, go through it all again and still end up with a section.
Has your consultant given any advice?

@usernotfound0000

The midwives have been supportive but my consultant is a bit of an arrogant, eccentric character and wants me to try for a vbac. He said if I have anymore kids it's the safest option. I told him we're not having anymore after this one and his response was to snort and say "two out of three of my own kids weren't planned". He's a bit of an oddball to say the least. I think I might try for a vbac but I've told them I want certain markers in place to ensure I don't have the same experience again. He said that's fine and they won't induce me this time but they also won't let me go over my date, so I guess baby will decide on the type of birth really! If she's not out before her due date then it'll be a section for me. I healed really well and quite fast after my emergency section so if I have to have surgery again I can only hope I heal fast again. Are you set on a section for this one?

If you want a section then given the circumstance I really think you should be able to have one no questions asked. You are entitled to ask to see a different consultant so if you feel the current doctor isn't being supportive then it's worth considering this.

For what it's worth I'm hoping to ttc no 2 in the not to distant future. DS was born by emcs due to failure to progress. I also had a very stressful and difficult pregnancy. I am already decided on an elcs next time, I'm not putting myself through the uncertainty of a vbac. I understand why others would go for it but it's not for me. I really dislike that women are a bit bullied into vbacs when it's not what they want. You don't have to try for a vbac if you don't want to.

Good luck OP whatever you decide.

Generally they don't like to induce you if you are a VBAC so one of your markers could be that you would try for a VBAC if you go into labour if your own accord but if you don't and induction becomes necessary then you want to go straight for a CS.
To be honest that one measure alone is likely to have a huge impact on your labour experience this time as going into spontaneous labour would be very different to IOL which is known to results in more intervention.

Dd chose the vbac, and focused on the idea that her toddler wouldn’t understand being unable to jump on her/climb on her etc.
In her mind she told herself she was doing this for her first born (just over 2yrs old).
She had a beautiful quick successful vbac.

I'm going back and forth. In my mind I think I want to go for a section but then I worry about what might go wrong. Maybe a similar strategy would be good for me, if no arrival by due date then section. I have my first consultant appt next week so I'm going to try and keep an open mind until then and see what they recommend.

I had a VBAC 3months ago following a prev CS at 9cm for sepsis and fetal distress with a 4.7kg (10lb 5oz) Baby 3.5yrs ago. Lost 1litre of blood, blood transfusion, DS had E. coli meningitis and we were in hospital for 2weeks. I got PND. I was adamant I wanted a VBAC. I ended up being induced for polyhydramnios and large baby at 39+4. Had propess and laboured well although my epidural was shit. I pushed a 10lb Baby out at 39+6 with a 3B tear, lost 2.5L and transfused 4units blood. I am pleased I went for it and was definitely the right thing for me. I’m a midwife, I had a birth plan/preferences, knew my limits, trusted my carers.
It’s a personal decision. What does your husband think?

I was in your position 4 years ago. Failed induction with emcs, and lost 1.5l of blood too. I should add though that I wasn’t given a transfusion, but I found c section recovery very straightforward, not a lot of pain and could walk the next day. Recovering from the blood loss was a lot worse - I was in a fug for months. I also got pg again when DC1 was 6 months old. I opted for an elective c section. This was because:

1. I was totally floored by the long labour and blood loss which I felt I couldn’t risk again with a newborn and 15mo at home
2. C section recovery was straightforward for me
3. My consultant was supportive and told me that DC2 could also be 9.5lbs (same as DC1) and that the blood loss would have had a big impact on my initial experiences as a mum and I would notice a difference this time.

And she was right! Had a small blood loss after the section with DC2 but nothing compared to DC1 and despite essentially having two babies to look after, I felt so much better second time around.

I am currently pg with DC3 and am not even considering a vbac.

It’s such a hard decision, as nobody can really predict how your second labour will go. I feel for you!

I opted for a VBAC after a very similar first birth (went very overdue, failed induction, long horrible crappy labour and only got to 1cm dilated, needed blood transfusion, emcs etc etc). I had this idea in my head that it couldn’t be worse...

In the end my decision was taken out of my hands as I had reduced movements and had another section (although with two days warning) at 37 weeks.

To be fair, it was so much less scary, as I knew what to expect, and I recovered so much more easily, as I had a lot more help in the first few weeks. I was completely fine by 6 weeks, and was out doing buggyfit and yoga (am a complete couch potato normally).

I would say make your decision, fight for it and don’t be scared. For me...I feel relieved that actually my second birth was quite serene and controlled if not ‘natural’. There are upsides and downsides to each decision. For me, the calmness and control of a planned section after a traumatised c first birth worked. But I can imagine the opposite to be true and a straightforward vaginal birth to be cathartic. I just know in my heart of hearts I couldn’t have coped with a traumatic vaginal birth, though.

I've just made the decision to go for a Vbac after my c section last year - with a 1month old a c section recovery doesn't sound appealing !! My plan is to have the epidural put in but with no drugs going through untill needed ( if they think I will need a c section ) and this way I will be awake and no emergency x hope this helps x

Thanks for all of your info and personal experiences ladies! My hubby was a tad traumatised by the birth of our first DD too so I think he was keen for me to have an elective this time but he's also aware that it's major surgery. After talking it over with my sister (she's a midwife and was also one of my birth partners first time round) I think I'm going to opt for a planned section. I admire those of you who went for a vbac but I've realised that I'd be reliving the trauma of my DD's birth and I'm just not willing to put myself through that. The main thing is that the baby is delivered safely and we're both healthy I won't be bullied by an oddball consultant!

I can completely understand that choice OP, I hope the Drs listen to you and you don't have to fight too hard.

It's a very difficult decision to make and if someone could guarantee me a straightforward birth if I had a vbac then I'd probably go for it but obviously no-one can do that. I have friends who took longer to recover from their vaginal births than I did from my section and have lasting injuries. I also have friends who were out at softplay 3 days after a vaginal birth. There's just no way of knowing how it's going to go unfortunately. For me, the known risks of a section are preferable to the uncertainty of a vbac.