Working towards VBAC

[sgmom]

My first child's birth went in the complete opposite direction that I wanted.

I was 13 days late, my water broke (with mec), no labor, was induced, 26 hours of labor, infection (fever), 5.5 hours of pushing, ended with a C/S.

My daughter will be 20 months old when baby #2 is born (I'm 3 months pregnant right now), so I'm starting to do some research on VBAC. I had a midwife with my last, and the same midwife with this pregnancy. She has high hopes that I will get my wish, but any help in making that happen would be appreciated.

Is there anything I can do now to help raise my chances of a successful VBAC? One thing I am doing (or trying to, hard to do when you're dead tired and feel sick all the time) is exercise. Though with chasing a 13 month old around all day long, that doesn't leave for much time. LOL

Are there any good articles that someone can link to me?

Thanks in advance!

[SAMarshall]

I would start looking in the thread posted at the top of this forum about helpful VBAC resources. There are so many sites to visit, but you should always try your local I-CAN group. This forum can definitely help with any specific questions that may come up that you just can't quite find the answer to. Good luck!

[sgmom]

I did quickly skim through, but at some point today I think my daughter actually morphed into a monkey. Man, that kid can climb, and QUCKLY!! LOL!!

I'll take another look later when she's sleeping.

THANKS!

[langdonslady]

Ditto to those who said look up International Cesarean Awareness Network.
Also check out the website of Henci Goer, who wrote "The Thinking Woman's Guide to a Better Birth" and VBACfacts.com

I did, and I had a glorious HBAC to a 10 lb baby boy, no problems, and that would never have happened if I hadn't known what I did, going in, and had the determination not to repeat it.

[jess152]

Welcome to MDC! I too am working towards a VBAC...at home some time in the next 3-4 weeks!

I will second the Henci Goer...I have her book (mentioned) and it's great.

[kltroy]

Perhaps a silly detail, but I think the language that we choose can be impactful on our self-confidence in the process. Instead of "working towards" or "trying for" a VBAC, how about "planning a VBAC"? I made this mental switch when I was pregnant with my VBAC baby, and the more I said it to myself, the more confident I was that it would all work out - and it did!

[sgmom]

Planning... LOL! I don't mean to laugh, but I had the birth of my first child completely planned out, and it was laughable as to how opposite it was. NOTHING went as planned. Not one single detail. I had a midwife, I wanted a homebirth (read all the books and got completely prepared), maybe a water birth (was to be decided after I went into labor), hopefully a nice easy labor/delivery with no major complications. I ended up 13 days late, developed a fever (infection), pre-ruptured membranes (meconium - which meant no water birth), no labor (had to be induced), completely useless contractions (even though they were insanely strong), minor fetal distress (heartrate issues), baby turned while pushing (I pushed for 5.5 hours, and she turned face up about half way through), and over a full day later, an emergency c-section. And MAN, was I ever upset. Not about all the complications, but about not getting to push my baby out. People told me that birth is birth and it didn't matter how she came out... I would still give birth, but because I never got to experience it naturally, and also a little because everything went against my plan, I never did feel like I gave birth. I had a baby, but I never gave birth.

Granted I am planning for a vbac this time around, but I'm aware that it might not happen that way. So if there is anything I can do to prepare myself better, I'm going to do it. Based on my last experience, I am MUCH more determined this time. Determined being the key word though...

I'll check out the Henci Goer book, and view some of those websites. Thank you!

[jess152]

Originally Posted by kltroy

Perhaps a silly detail, but I think the language that we choose can be impactful on our self-confidence in the process. Instead of "working towards" or "trying for" a VBAC, how about "planning a VBAC"? I made this mental switch when I was pregnant with my VBAC baby, and the more I said it to myself, the more confident I was that it would all work out - and it did!

You are totally right though. If c/sections were used in only the true emergencies and extremely dire cases, there would be no 'planning' needed to achieve a natural birth! They'd just all be that way, aside from 3 or 5% that were true emergencies.

[sgmom]

I agree. I don't believe my c-section was a true emergency, and I don't think my midwife or the surgeon thought so either. I was given a very clear choice. I could wait, but these are the risks, or I could have a c-section. With everything that happened already, I chose the c-section. And I think I cried from the second I made that choice, to when I got to hold my baby.

It wasn't the choice I wanted to make, but given all that was going wrong, I still feel that it was the right one.

However, if the question were presented to me again (to C or not to C), I want to know exactly what those risks ARE to turn it down, or how to prevent it from happening in the first place... If I can.

[CamoShades]

Originally Posted by kltroy

Perhaps a silly detail, but I think the language that we choose can be impactful on our self-confidence in the process. Instead of "working towards" or "trying for" a VBAC, how about "planning a VBAC"? I made this mental switch when I was pregnant with my VBAC baby, and the more I said it to myself, the more confident I was that it would all work out - and it did!

I'll go even further. I tell people (or write online) I'm "having" a VBAC. A person can't think more positively than that! Of course in the very back of my mind I know there's a possibility that won't happen, but I don't think much about that.

sgmom- I tell people that all the time. "I had a baby, but I didn't give birth."