If you could just pick would it be vaginal or planned c-section? [Title edited at OP's request]

[Bells3032]

If you could just rock up and choose which would you choose to do? There seem to be massive pros and cons to both.

Thoughts?

Massively depends on circumstances. I have 3 dc. 1st was natural at 9lb13, second emergency c section due to breach presentation, 6 weeks early rupture of membranes then 3rd was natural with an epidural.

Ordinarily I'd go natural with epidural every day of the week, however I now have scar endometriosis so have a large growth in my abdominal wall and also suffered a prolapse and have next to no muscle tone in my pelvic floor, I worry that due to having big babies I would struggle to engage my muscles enough to labour without struggle. So if there should be a number 4, he or she will be coming out of the sunroof no matter how hard I have to fight for it!!

[quote XenaAura]Natural all the way, and asking every woman I know who have had to have a c-section, they wish they could have had natural also.
The fact that you cannot lift/drive and most cases cannot breastfeed your own baby after for a good few weeks, find it hard to sit up and move... I just would not willingly put myself through that.
Childbirth is obviously painful but after you give birth you are able to get on with things as normal. Plus, with a c-section, having a consecutive preganacy can be risky if its too soon after your first (think they said wait at least 2 years? I could be wrong here) and ups your chances of having to have a c-section with your second also.

Its the main concern for me with my second pregnancy, is if I have to end up having one for some reason >

[quote XenaAura]Natural all the way, and asking every woman I know who have had to have a c-section, they wish they could have had natural also.
The fact that you cannot lift/drive and most cases cannot breastfeed your own baby after for a good few weeks, find it hard to sit up and move... I just would not willingly put myself through that.
Childbirth is obviously painful but after you give birth you are able to get on with things as normal. Plus, with a c-section, having a consecutive preganacy can be risky if its too soon after your first (think they said wait at least 2 years? I could be wrong here) and ups your chances of having to have a c-section with your second also.

Its the main concern for me with my second pregnancy, is if I have to end up having one for some reason >

I had a vaginal birth with episiotomy with my first and an emergency general anaesthetic csection with my second. My recovery after the csection was awful. I was in so much pain. I'm currently 30 weeks pregnant with my third and hoping for a vagjnal birth

I have had 3 C sections. 2 emergencies and 1 elective/directed by doctor. 18 years after my first and almost 9 after my last, I live in constant strong pelvic and leg pain from internal scar tissue and am waiting for a hysterectomy for adenomyosis (common in women who have had c sections). I am truly struggling (and this is a huge admission from someone as stubborn as me).

I have decided to take every opportunity to share this experience with younger women contemplating elective CS. Whilst there are also long term complications to vagina childbirth, please please please think about the implications of choosing CS. It is a marvellous way of saving babies' and mothers' lives in emergencies but not perfect long term for the mother.

I chose an elective c section (pure maternal request) and would do so again. I breastfed successfully from the off and was up and moving around the same day and onwards from there.

We were out and about on outings a few days later (carefully!). I just had to roll over to get out of bed for a few weeks to avoid pulling stitches.

Zero overhang and no scar to speak of.

I gather that emergency c sections can be a different kettle of fish, no least because mum stats the op already exhausted.

But you're right, you pays your money, you takes your choice.

The fact that you cannot lift/drive and most cases cannot breastfeed your own baby after for a good few weeks, find it hard to sit up and move...

I must have missed that memo during my 2 sections, that were planned and needed (but probably wouldn't have been in the UK. Country I had dc are far keener on sections). Given the choice that's what I would have picked anyway. Everyone I know who has had both has preferred the planned section. I believe emergencies aren't always such a good experience

I'd especially hate having my colleagues see me so vulnerable too. At least with a natural birth it'd be limited to 1 or 2 midwives who I don't know as well.

Different hospital? Also a natural could end up with interventions. Many of which are rather less dignified that a calm, planned section

My first child was born by emergency c section after a long labour. I was up and about in a week or so. Driving was no problem in an automatic. Baby fed from day one and at 3 weeks we flew 5000 miles with no assistance.
Second birth "natural" though how an eventual high forceps delivery could be termed natural I don't know.
It took much longer to fully recover from the second birth and now that I am very much older problems are starting to surface down below due to the so called natural birth. I do wish I had been allowed a section for the second one.

planned c section - easy and lovely, looking forward to my next one!

A lot of people saying that they would take elective c section over forceps. Well it depends on the type of forceps. I had low forceps, didn’t go to theatre. Obviously had episiotomy that was sore for two weeks but then it was ok and honestly now I can’t even see the scar, let alone feel it. No incontinence.
Assisted birth is very common for ftm, especially after a long labour, but then your chances of needing one for a second labour are much smaller.

I wrote in my birth plan that I did not consent to high forceps. I will write that again this time, along with mid forceps as well. But low forceps, honestly was fine.

Reading through it interesting there isn't a view on the baby?

I have had natural with ventouse - my baby had a bruised head and wouldn't latch. He suffered evening colic for the first month.

2nd baby was an emergency cs and this baby is totally chilled and sleeping through at 10 weeks. He latched immediately but my milk hadnt come by day 7 and continual cluster feeding post csection is brutal.

So for me - based on how baby coped - I would choose c section

It's difficult to tell the baby's point of view because unlike me my babies have only done birth once. Both my c-section babies did struggle with the separation from me and no skin to skin. Even dc4 who was 5 weeks early and later diagnosed with learning difficulties kept turning his face towards me in theatre if I was talking as if he was looking for me. They both had to be born by c-section for medical reasons but I think vaginal birth would have been better for them if those reasons hadn't been there.

I would love to have a vaginal birth to give it a go and have that experience, I’m not afraid of the pain at all and do see the whole thing as primal and magical, but my fear of life changing injuries or incontinence mean that all my babies will come out the sun roof.

Ah, yes, I should also mention that I had immediate skin to skin (up high!) after my elective c section, followed by his father, and he was put straight into bed with me to be wheeled back to our room. They were very good about all of that.

One of the things I was most apprehensive about was oxygen deprivation and baby getting into distressed during birth (though of course there are other risks with c sections, for elective with no medical reasons they seem to be far lower). Another concern was forceps or ventouse intervention both for baby and for me. I'm lucky that I've had no laying effects from c section at all. I'm as I was (with bigger boobs).

My consultant also said that their birth preference for everyone would go in this order:

1. Uncomplicated vaginal delivery
2. Elective C section;
3. Vaginal delivery with intervention.

And as they had no crystal ball to tell whether you'd have #1 or #3, then #2 was a perfectly reasonable choice if you were aware of all the risks both ways.

I think that's pretty sound.

I've only had great experiences with natural birth so I'd choose natural over C section if I had another baby.
During two of my pregnancies my baby were transverse/breech and I opted for an ECV before a C section.
All three births were drug free by choice, one had minor intervention and my last was an unplanned free birth (planned home birth) which was incredible.
No birth injuries, no stitches or episiotomy and in the shower half hour after giving birth.

I’m going to leave this thread. Basically OP you’ll get people saying like @Colbinabbin how great their ‘drug free by choice’ births were. I’d have loved a drug free birth, but baby was distressed so I didn’t have a choice really, and that’s something I think is very important to remember. You cannot really choose anything in birth, unless you choose an elective c section.

Also I’ve said twice now that I had forceps and it was ok. Everyone else saying ‘bad vaginal’ is the worst. So should I be more traumatised than I am? Should I go around thinking my birth was more horrendous than it actually was? Maybe only people who’ve had forceps or ventouse can actually comment on that.

You asked for an opinion OP so here’s mine. If you’re relatively young, healthy, straight forward pregnancy then I think going for an ELCS is crazy, especially if you would like another child afterwards. Giving birth is hard. Whatever you do, your body will be damaged. Sorry.

Anyway I’m leaving now, taking my ‘terrible awful’ birth with me.

C section one million percent!!! If I knew what state I'd be left in after Vaginal birth I'd have had elective sections. I've already had one lot of surgery to try and repair the damage done and will need more in the future. I fully recommend to all my friends and family they have an elective if they ask my opinion. Vaginal births should be a thing of the past in my honest opinion!

Parsley I'm sorry you've taken this so much to heart. People are taking about risk, not inevitable outcome.

Some people recover absolutely fine from massive intervention in vaginal birth and some suffer terribly from purely elective c sections.

What people are taking about is which types of birth hold the greater and lesser risk - both overall and in relation to specific individual issues.

Of course you shouldn't feel badly about your birth - noone should. We all do our best with the information we have and then an awfully lot is down to chance.

But I don't agree that it's "crazy" to opt for an ELCS not that your body will inevitably be damaged by birth. It's just not the case. It's a risk (of any option).

The fact that you cannot lift/drive and most cases cannot breastfeed your own baby after for a good few weeks, find it hard to sit up and move...

I'd take this a hundred times over rather than being left with a permanently damaged vagina. Oh hindsight....

I had my section 22 years ago , I was perfectly able to lift normal weights ( kettles, the baby , a baby bath etc ) within a few days and was driving within 10 days .

Whatever you do, your body will be damaged. Sorry.

Absolute codswallop. And fearmongering.

I've had a csection and have opted for an elective so that's my choice. Healed nicely, breastfed well

If I could guarantee an intervention free water birth at home then natural

Otherwise elcs 100%
Even my emcs was an easier recovery than some natural births I know

I've done both. For me, the vaginal birth was better as recovery was better in terms of physical injuries. I was exhausted though, we both had an infection and dc1 had shoulder dystocia, so came out not breathing. Dc2 was looking big in scans and they were worried about another shoulder dystocia, so he was ELCS. Very easy birth, horrible recovery. I would genuinely not know what to do now if we ever had another baby. VBAC probably too dangerous, but aftercare is so, so bad ime of NHS postnatal wards and coping with that, alone, after c section and blood loss, low haemoglobin etc and on oramorph....no. It's actually so dangerous to leave women like that on wards after CS.

So, if I could choose for a third DC, I'd probably go VBAC if it looked good, or ELCS with paid help for after the birth.