Oh Help! 38+2 weeks and baby seems to have DISengaged his head and be trying to turn breech!

[sushistar]

I last saw my midwife at 36 weeks and she said baby's head was engaged. I was lying in the bath and I swear he turned transverse - sideways - and seemed to be on his way to going breech! Can this happen this late in pregnancy? I jumped up out of the water and am sitting leaning forwards on the computer, but am a bit scared to go to bed in case he tries again - or maybe he already got all the way round, I'm not sure. Is there anything I can do? I thought once their heads were engaged that was it, but obviously not....

That's spooky, I was looking this up earlier and mine is stubbornly transverse.

Is this your first baby? If it is then usually there shouldn't be enough wiggle-room for the baby to turn all the way around like that. If not, there's a bit more space. Your MW will be able to check so it would be well worth giving her a call in the morning and talking it through. Just remember that if there's room for the baby to turn the wrong way round, there is also room for it to turn back again

should have added "with some persuasion" there...

It's my 2nd - and the first was transverse until about 36 weeks then turned. I just REALLY don't want to contemplate recovering from a csection plus a newborn plus a toddler - stay head down, you little imp!!!!

I'm just surprised he disengaged himself!!! I'd have thought once his head was in the right place that was it - i've never heard of them going unengaged! Maybe I have a roomy pelvis

This could have been my post a few months ago. I think it was in my 37th week that DD went from being 3/5 engaged to disengage and from LOA (where she'd been for weeks) to ROA - although when I was in the bath and from where the kicks were coming from, I thought she'd gone breech. I called the MW the following morning who was very laid back about it and just said that we'd have to wait & see what happened. I spent loads of time sitting & lying in the positions which encourage LOA but DD continued to wiggle around swapping from ROA to LOA and back again on a regular basis, even during labour! I've no idea why she thought she had the room to do all of that wiggling.

The only complication it caused in labour was that if DD flipped whilst I was on the monitor, the heart rate would drop to 0 as her heart was in a different place and so couldn't be picked up. If you LO does keep being mobile like this, I'd suggest mentioning it to the MW in hospital so that they're aware this might happen as it seemed to worry the MW more than me when it happened (probably because they hadn't felt the mammoth kick when tended to precede each flip and all the wriggling around which followed it).

Having said this, you might still want to call your MW tomorrow to let her know in case she has a different approach or to see if she can check you to let you know if your LO has gone breech or not.

Good luck!

That is weird! I saw my mw yesterday and said I thought my babies head was engaged - To which I said thank god for that! Im 36+5 weeks pg.

She then told me a story about a woman who was 3/5ths engaged and then the baby turned to transverse.

I think it is quite common because your stomach muscles have already stretched so there is nothing to keep the head down.