What went wrong with #1 and what can I do to get VBAC??

[simplykate]

Hi everyone! I'm ten weeks pregnant with #2 and hoping for a VBAC.

I planned a homebirth with my first, but after almost 2 days of labor I dilated only to a two and had barely effaced. We transferred to the hospital for pitocin, but after 12 hours I hadn't dilated anymore. She just wouldn't drop down.

 After 72 hours of labor and no progress I had a c-section.

I was told that my pelvis is too small and DD's head was too big, but I don't really believe that.I am small, 5'3 and her head was in the 90th percentile, but my mom is also  small and birhted six kids at home, and one of them was over 10 lbs.

So what do you think would have cause something like this and what are my chances of birthing vaginally this time around?

I have a few ideas of my own of what may have happened, but I want to get other thoughts and advice.

Kate

[ryan'smom]

I can only speak from the experiences I had when I had my VBAC.  Your story sounds similar to my first birth (except for I dialated to 10 cm)....I was never able to push him out.  After 2 hours of pushing, the OB said "You are never going to push this baby out, you need a c-section".....

Fast forward to baby #2. 

I dumped the local OB and found a very supportive group of hospital based midwives.  The hospital itself was very birth friendly, with jacuzzi tubs, birthing bars & balls, telemetry (wireless) monitoring units, etc.  The only downside was that it is about an hour's drive from my house.

I did as much reading as possible about VBAC.  Most of my reading was done here on this forum.  Read as many positive birth stories as I could.  Practically memorized Ina May's Guide to Childbirth.  I even remember quoting certain parts to myself during transition.

Went to a chiropractor for adjustments during pregnancy.  I always wondered if this could have made a difference with #1 not dropping.

Remained very active during pregnancy to help improve stamina for labor.

Stayed at home as long as possible while in labor......well, almost too long!!  Ds #2 was born about 20 minutes after arriving at the hospital.

And yes, I did have a VBAC even though I was told that I had a "smaller" pelvis and had a 40-50% chance of vaginally delivering a baby (from my OB). .....oh yeah,  I'm about 5'5" and 115#.

Good luck mama!!  You'll find lots of good information here!!

[CookAMH]

My first thought is the positioning of the baby in labor and NO flaw in your pelvis.

[JoyFilled]

Originally Posted by simplykate 

 after almost 2 days of labor I dilated only to a two and had barely effaced. We transferred to the hospital for pitocin, but after 12 hours I hadn't dilated anymore. She just wouldn't drop down.

 After 72 hours of labor and no progress I had a c-section.

This is exactly what happened in my case.  But I got an infection towards the end so they said that was the reason I had a c-section.

I would really talk to your midwife about this and see what she says.

I see an OB on July 4th and will come back and tell you what he says.
 

[akind1]

I second the chiropractor, and making sure baby is in optimal positioning - as much as possible anyway.

DS wouldn't decend either, and it was because his head was stuck in my right pelvic bone (which I knew long before labor began, but didn't know how to fix at the time). this time around I am surrounding myself with as much positive stuff as I can, I have a great doula (she herself has had a successful VBAC at the hospital where I will be delivering), see the chiropractor and his massage therapist regularly, and read as much as I can at the library and online.

I just want to make sure I do everything in my power to ensure a VBAC. So much is not in my control, but what is, I try to manage.

[simplykate]

That's what I think happened last time -DD was stuck. I knew for the last month that she was stuck with her butt over to one side of my rib cage, and my belly was even lopsided, but I didn't know then that that could be a problem. But if that was the case, wouldn't someone have known that and told me? Like wouldn't the midwife have caught onto it? Although looking back she wasn't as attentive as she could have been.

Thanks for talking with me everyone!

[ablepearl]

We like to trust that our providers know these things, but they don't always.  I knew my first was breech, but everytime I asked they said he was vertex.  When my water broke at 39 weeks, it was because he stuck his foot out!  Yeah, I was right, but what does a first time mom know?  With my second I also knew he was breech.  The CNM at the office kept sying he was vertex, and this time i knew better.  I told her butts don't move the way this one was. so she agreed to send me for an ultrasound, which resulte din an external version that day.  Same thing with my third.  Breech again and by palpation they had a hard time deciding which way she was, another external version at 37.5 weeks.

My fourth turne don her own sometime during week 36-37.  I started seeing a Webster trained chiro at about 23 weeks.  I did the techniques on spinningbabies.com and pregnancysuite (17 ways to turn a breech baby).  We don't know for sure what helped, but something did.  All of these things are good for ather poorly positioned babies too, not just for breech babies.

Do you have a short torso?  Have you had back problems, pain or an injury?  Even a minor one.  I had a fall down the stairs when I was 12, brusied my tailbone really bad.  The chiros thought that may have contributed to my babies all being poorly positioned without help to get them correct.

[akind1]

I know I asked my midwife, and we were having sono's and both said to me that baby was vertex. I told them, yeah, his head is generally down, but doesn't it need to be in the middle?! I mean, the exit passage is not in my right hip bone! she (the CNM) just kept telling me he was vertex, and because he wasn't breech, I didn't really try to do any of the baby turning tecniques on spinning babies, etc. (I know better this time around!)