Best tips for labour/vbac/vaginal delivery

[Izzymay]

Hi mamas/mamas to be

I had my first baby 3.5 years ago and she was breech which meant I had to have a
c-section. Thankfully this baby is head down. I am hopeful I can try to have a VBAC. But I don’t feel ready or informed, because
( thanks to covid) I haven’t had a lot of contact with my midwife and have not attended any prenatal classes etc.

Mamas who’ve had normal delivery/VBAC, what are the key tips that you think helped you along labour/delivery?

If you wouldn’t mind could you please not share any nightmare stories. I am trying to keep a positive mindset for this delivery.

Don't underestimate your breathing and how this can help you through the pain.

Remember every contraction is a step towards holding your baby

Go with the flow and remember things don't always go according to plan.

Best thing is to stay mobile if you can.
My 1st 2 vb's I was on monitors the whole time which is like being chained to the bed. 3rd I was free to move about and found the pain much more manageable until they broke my waters, she was out 11 mins after that though so not too bad.
Be flexible with what you'd like to happen and what pain relief you'd like, things can change super fast with a vb.

@Leftphalange @Chelyanne

Thank you both for your advice.

I can’t afford to do a hypno breathing course but I’ve been watching tons of YouTube videos about the topic and trying to practise.

Friends and family keep suggesting I walk, but I have pelvic pain, and can feel pressure inside the vagina (and sometimes on my bladder) from babies head. All in all - it’s a real challenge to get mobile.

Forgive the tmi, but I’ve also read perineum massages help - except at this point I cannot reach .

Hi OP - I dont think 'being mobile' necessarily means walking, but making sure you are not just lying down all through labour. I.e. standing, leaning on birth ball, being in the water, hanging off of partner all count as being mobile in labour.

Would recommend this book for hypnobirthing which covers the same stuff a course would 'Hypnobirthing-practical ways to make your birth better' by Siobhan Miller, and also The Positive Birth Book by Milli Hill.

Good luck :)

@FTM91

Yes I know about being mobile during labour I was adding to that, that I’m struggling to be mobile in general 😥

Thank you for the book recommendation. I had only seen online courses that were quite expensive.

When you get to the pushing stage, I would reccomend doing it in as upright position as possible, or lying on your side. It'll help prevent the chance of tears.

Depending on your personality, keep a positive mindset, but be aware of what will happen and what your options are if things don't go to plan. I thought that even considering things not going well was negative, so I didn't do my research, but that meant at the first setback I was so freaked out that i just went to pot. I think if I had done some research I would have felt more in control and able to deal with the situation.

@Izzymay how about trying an online hypnobirthing course like this one - courses.positivebirthmovement.org/

There are a couple of options if lower income. I think doing this sort of prep would best set you up for a Vbac

@Pentamix that looks really good thanks for the suggestion. I don’t even mind paying the requested higher price, it’s very reasonable.
I had only seen organisations charging upwards of £100-150 for their courses.

@Noodella18
@HumunaHey
Thank you both for your advice too.

...going against the grain here, but I would highly recommend an epidural. The pain is the worst pain I have ever felt and I could not cope with it. I know you probably don't want to hear that but it is true and please don't feel bad if breathing the pain away does not help. I don't know how women do it without one!! I was in labour for 12 hours. The rest of the labour was so relaxed and calm after that and I could still feel and move my legs, but obviously not stand up. I could also feel him moving down, turning, pressure ready to start pushing. We were also monitored continuously throughout via probes on my bump, which was so reassuring - I was lying there most of the night half asleep hearing the beep of his heart monitor. It's a really lovely memory actually

Disclaimer - I was terrified of a vaginal delivery and completely unprepared. I've had tokophobia as long as I can remember (I got over the pregnancy fear luckily, but the fear of delivery was worse than ever), formally diagnosed, to the point of being booked for an ELCS at 39 weeks...but DS was born vaginally at 35 weeks (VB was safer for him in this case - which was always my top priority).

It was such a positive experience in the end and I know it would not have been if I had continued to be in the pain I was in before the epidural.

Disclaimer #2 - I did require an episiotomy. This was also not nearly as horrendous as I had feared. It may have been more likely as a result of the epidural but I would do it the same way again in a heartbeat.

@applesarethebest
I haven’t ruled out getting an epidural, I’m just trying to keep an open mind and see how things develop.

I know a bit more about what an epidural is like because I had a csection with my first. Vaginal delivery is new to me however and I wanted to get more insight on that experience - regardless of pain management style.

My preference is towards the least medicated route. We realised during my csection that I am sensitive to some drugs co-administered with the epidural. I almost died from a heart attack as a result. We have a heads up now- and I’m confident I can have a safe epi, but I’d rather give my body a chance to see if I can handle it, then simply rush to an epidural.

Not much advice to offer, simply because you won't know how you'll cope until you're actually in it. I found having a supportive birth partner to be really useful- I've hired a doula with my last one and it was the best decision I could have made.
Like others have said, go with the flow, keep mobile, deep breathing, staying relaxed and most important- don't fight the pain! If you need pain relief, go for it, and remember that the only positive outcome is a healthy mother and baby, however you get there.
Best of luck and hope all works out for you!

Read Dr Jean Sutton - Optimal Fetal Positioning

Focus on breathing as much as possible, try a birthing ball during labor.

Look up walking/low dose epidural which is what I had... although we rarely hear about this option, to me it was the best and helped keeping upright, moving and at the pushing stage when i could feel contractions and pressure to be efficient!

Try to stay calm, positive as much as possible and "in the zone".

Read as much as possible on vaginal delivery, the science, the risks, and the different pain management etc...

I also found helpful to watch videos (not the gory ones!)