post your positive vbac success stories here!! - Page 2

[mlsantarem]

Thank you Stafl for asking. I have been noticing with great concern the effects of the change in VBAC policy in the USA. MDC has been a great resource for me. So I will share my story also


My dd is now 2 years old. But I can still remember most of it. To begin I had my first birth normally and very naturally in a Birth Center and my second birth was with a very close friend/midwife in a hospital which ended up in a c-section. It was for Fetal Distress related to absolutely no interventions I didn´t even have my bloods drawn he was just high with a nucal cord wrapped a couple of times and so when he tryed to decend his heart rate went very low and folks waited a while but it just didn´t get better...so I had a c-section. He was fine in the end. I was very disappointed and completely shocked as was my friend that I actually had a c-section. After much consideration I got pregnant with my third. I knew the safest option for me would be a home birth. I was living outside the USA in country where home births is not for the urbane middle class, for them the c-section was delivery of choice. I did find an American women who had all her children at home with MD there. We became fast and furious friends. Anyway I spoke with this MD (Dr. Fred) and he was very calm and accepting. He´s wife ran a group of doulas so I contracted her as more of a cultural liason. My daughter who was then five wanted to be there and watch, so my hubby would be with her and if I need help or support I wanted some one extra. My pregnancy was normal till my father died unexpectedly when I was 7months I went to see him because he had this abdominal mass and we (my family) knew it was serious but we didn´t have a real prognosis so I just went home to see him before I couldn´t travel anymore. I stayed two weeks he died during that period it was most painful thing I had ever endured. So I come back in a fog and do my GLT test that at this time is a month late. While I am taking it I know, I shouldn´t do it, it´s going to be elevated…it was, as was my gtt but Dr. Fred just said to me I just don´t seem to be someone with diabetes and these test are sometime wrong. After reviewing the literature I agreed, they can be wrong a lot of the time. Anyway because still bit nervous about it so I do fingersticks which are fine the rest of my pregnancy. Actually the GD ´diet´ is just sort of a normal healthy way of eating and not anything I need to change, my weight was fine and the baby grew normally. (no ultrasounds waited till it seemed necessary and never actually did as with my other two pregnancies). Our plan was just to continue with our plan if anything changes we will act accordingly. It was a hudge relief for me. So I am just trying to set the stage so to speak for labor.
Iam 40w3d just like with my first.
I started a bit of labor in the morning and I called my friend (homebirther) to let her know (we wanted her there for positive vibes) and I called Dr. Fred just let him know not to go too far away just a sort of FYI
The day was full of contractions coming and going but nothing too steady or too strong lots of walks around the park with my dear friend. I think my husband went to work in the morning but came back for lunch. I have a vague memory that my 3 yo son has gone to preschool at this time then to a very close friends house he definitely did not want any part of this and told me so. My daughter wanted to stay home with me so she is here and there with me. When my husband came back I was a bit disappointed that things were not heating up so I ask my friend to give me time alone and I would call her. We were in a chorus group together which was practicing that night. So at about 4-5pm ish things started to heat up and I remember sitting in a rocking chair just chatting with my husband for like an hour or two...life gets so busy when already have two...it was a sweet moment for us. Well my hubby calls the doula at about 6ish and also my friend to tell her not to go to chorus practice and come over. My doula lived in the next apartment block over so she came over. She was really very helpful which I had my doubts about what I would need from her but in the end she was great. Showers, birthing ball, backing rubbing the whole thing. My husband was with my daughter who I wasn´t paying much attention to but felt her in the backround. Anyway I feeling a bit pushy I think about 830p so I tell the doula she should call Dr. Fred she did he had just finished up his clinic and he was coming over with his wife. They arrived some time after 9pmish. I loved how they entered into my home waiting to asked to come in a quiet discreet manner. Then asking where he could do an exam and listen to the babies heart beat. I said my bedroom. He did this with reserve and calmness. It reminded how different it is outside your home folks breezing in the room grabbing charts talking ....I digress
I was 9 cms (my first and last exam during my entire pregnancy which is exactly what happened with my first pregnancy and birth actually). He (Dr. Fred) then left our bedroom and waited in the living room the two doulas stayed with my hubby and daughter lots of turning changing positions then hands and knees and then my bag of water broke. Dr. Fred is there again. I am very uncomfortable now. You know that moment when you think god I REALLY CAN´T TAKE THIS ANYMORE! I then ly on my side ( I always thought I would do the squatting thing but for not my side was what worked for me even with my first). I push out her head I can hear myself crying out then I hear my 5 yo daughter crying that was a bit disturbing. Then the baby came out and is up on my chest immediately. I was torn between the sheer joy of giving birth and concerns for my eldest who I couldn´t see I immediately wanted to know how she was I was asking if she was ok who was with her. I look up and our baby sitter has her (my eldest in her arms). She was talking care of our now middle child when he came home from his friend´s house. I don´t even think I was aware of any of this. Well she tells me he sleeping soundly in the backroom. Needless to say the room was full but in a good way. We didn´t know the sex. I was absolutely elated when I found out she was a girl, we had two names picked for a girl Maria and Carmen she looked more like a Carmen. She was very serine not much crying but eyes WIDE open. No one was paying much attention to the clock though we estimate he birth to be at about 945p. My now eldest daughter was very calm she said she was just scared to hear me cry out. Dr. Fred let the cord stop pulsing before he cut the it and the placenta came after quite easily. I had a small first degree that he didn´t think needed repaired (as I did with my first). Well she nurses immediately. We opened a bottle of wine to celebrate (me not so much). I was alone with my family all asleep by 11pm.
There where a lot of things that I didn´t plan that worked out so well. I never mention really that I specifically wanted it filmed or not but I had my recorder there with film in it and my friend just picked it up and started filming which was a treat to have this record of her birth. Also the plan for my son. Another very close friend knew I was in labor and took him from school and when he came home our babysitter was still there whom he was very close to put him into bed and sort of hung around after. Just in time to be there for Kate (dave was up by me). Also somewhere I knew I didn´t want Dr. Fred to be there for most the birth. As kind and respectful as he was he was still a doctor and man not what I intuitively consider appropriate for birth , and especially home birth which I think he knew and why he waited outside the room till he was needed. All in All I think he was there for about 30 minutes before she was born. Both my other births in the Birth Center and in the Hospital was a very female experience (even the surgeons were women)
For me I never considered anything else but a VBAC.I was a wonderful very healing experience.

[seagrape24]

Hi,

Here is my HBAC story for you, glad to share for others benefit. A little background: After my 1st dd, as the dr was breezing out of the operating room, we were assured we could have a VBAC with our next. But, as everyone is well aware, two and half years later, that was not the case at all. Before we were even ttc, I started realizing this and interviewed a couple of local midwives and drs. To my anger, the nearest hospital that would accept VBAC was about an hr away with traffic or more depending and it was a teaching hospital. I was already thinking about a homebirth and several friends/acquaintences had a wonderful local homebirth midwife they recommended. I called and spoke and eventually interviewed her and she agreed to take me on a client.
I had a wonderfully uneventful pregnancy and phenomenal birth.
Here's the story:
Two days before my "due date" I started feeling some cramping like with my dd, nothing major, but noticable. I started noticing in the late morning and by mid afternoon, I was thinking this might really kick in tonite while I am sleeping (like it did with my dd). I cleaned the house and got everything ready I could think of and felt very prepared. That evening, I finally realized they were forming into actual contractions and were fairly steady. We called my midwife around 7pm just to let her know what was going on, kind of a courtesy call, because I really didn't want her there just yet. She advised to get some sleep, which I anxiously did. As I went to bed, I fully expected to be awoken by contractions that I could no longer sleep thru. However, I woke up at 3:30am from a hard sleep and realized nothing was happening! I was so bummed! Since I had gone to sleep so early I was kind of awake and played on the computer some and ate a little snack. Then, I realized the contractions were returning slowly. It happened so nicely. They didn't come back fast and furious, but rather just kind of nicely built up stronger over the next few hours. By 6am when my husband and daughter woke up, I realized this was it and this baby WAS coming today! I showered while my husband fixed my daughter brkfst and we decided to go ahead and send her to summer camp since I had no idea how long it was going to last. I had kind of planned on everything happening at nite and just waking her up when the baby was almost out. My MIL came and picked her up around 7:30am. All that time, I was just kind of hanging out moving around by myself, it was amazing. Right before she came, though, they got so strong I felt like I really wanted to lie and bed and fully concentrate on being relaxed, moving was no longer working for me. My MIL and dd came in and said a prayer and quickly left. My midwife finally arrived a little before 8:30 am. I was working very hard at that point and was very anxious for her to check me to know where I was because I was so worried that I was only 6 cm or something. By the time she got everything set up, I was feeling sick to my stomach so I had a pretty good idea I was in transition and close, and when she checked me I was indeed a 10! Not long after that (minutes, I'd say) I really felt the urge to push. That never happened with my daughter (she was posterior). It was amazing and crazy all at the same time. I was honestly very hesitant about this part. I had pushed like crazy with my daughter to no avail, so I had a small doubt in my head about the capability of myself to push. I had told myself the whole pregnancy that my body will just know what to do, that it wasn't me, it was the circumstances and that was right on! I pushed for about 25 minutes and out she popped! She was born at 9:30 am. It was very hard work but so fulfilling! She was 9 lbs 6 oz and I only had a little tear that didn't even need to be sutured. I was so proud of myself and so grateful for my husband and midwife. They were so supportive and perfect the entire pregnancy and birth and I know they helped directly and indirectly positively influence my mental state during the birth. It was so empowering and wonderful, I wouldn't have done it any other way.

[Mama Coltrane]

here is mine

http://www.mothering.com/discussions...d.php?t=333255

great thread

- kerri

[MsMoMpls]

Here's another one...

I was 40 with two C-sects for failure to progress and two 10lb babies when I went looking for someone to help me VBA2C. I have a dear friend who is a doula who said she thought that there were only two people in the whole area who would even consider talking to me. Rebecca was her strongest recommendation but she warned me Rebecca was tough.

She only agreed to work with me if I kept my weight gain to 25lbs and agreed to focus on having this baby early. I had thought that having a doctor push me to deliver "on-time" was what was going to be a problem since both kids were 2+ weeks overdue. Rebecca said that I needed to talk to the baby and since I had such big kids, I had to know that he was going to be ok to come early.

She thought I was ready to start natural inductions at 36 weeks but I was afraid. Too early seemed worse than late. At 37 weeks I started using my breast pump twice a day and inserting Evening Primrose Oil and having sex and at my 37 week check she said I was ripening and things needed to get moving. I started acupuncture on Friday and again on Monday and then did one dose of castor oil... YUCK! Within 6 hours labor started and I knew it was different.

Nate was born 21 years ago and I was in labor for about 24 hours and then they freaked me out about fetal distress and low heart rate and I had an emergency C-sect that left me feeling like a failure. They also stuck a bottle of sugar water in his mouth and completely messed up nursing.

With Joey, 17 years later, I had a doula and a midwife and great care and labored well for 24 hours to find out that I wasn't even effaced!!! Then I went home and labored for another night before I gave up and thought I was going to have to have the C-sect. When we got to the hospital, they said I was 8cm and maybe I should give it a try. Well... I made it to 9cm and everything fell apart. Basically 48 hours of labor and then an actually wonderful, peacefull C-sect. I felt like a real trooper but... you know.. sad.

Zach was born after 4 hours of beautiful productive labor. I pushed so hard I tore pretty bad but I think I was just so amazed at my power. She kept telling me to slow down and I just couldn't. He was my tiny little baby... two weeks early weighing in at 9lbs 4 oz. Everything went so much better than I could have ever imagined. I almost want to have 3 more....

After it was over, my doula admitted that I was the biggest long shot she had ever taken on and was kind of just humoring me. She and my doula bragged me up all over town. Not bad for an old lady.

[aolinsmama]

My homebirth after 2 cesareans

Mountain Summit-My HBA2C story

Where should I start? My first two sons were born via cesarean section, induced with pitocin. For my first birth, I trusted that my doctor and the hospital knew what was best. I had planned on a natural birth, and took Lamaze. I went overdue (42 wks) and was induced. The contractions were quick & on top of each other, I labored this way all day & around 7 pm that night he was born via c-section, and rushed off to the NICU in a helicopter across town. He was in about 2 weeks, with a collapsed lung, heart murmur & meconium pneumonia. They told my husband that he might not live 24 hours, and if he did he would have to be transported to yet another hospital for surgery. I also had some problems (anesthesia does not work well for me-I became fully awake as I was being sewed up) and needed to be given blood. I remember being left in a recovery room alone and freezing, no blanket or anything to cover me. I called for what seemed hours for my mother, as I was coherent enough to know that my husband had left with my son. We were blessed that night, his murmur closed fully & he was getting better. Rarely has he been sick since. I truly believe now that his not being ready to be born, added to the pitocin induction did this to him.

For my second birth, I did a little research, and was exposed to the book Spiritual Midwifery for the first time. Wow-they still birth at home? I picked a female ob gyn that had had a vbac herself, and had midwives in her practice. I saw the midwives & I saw her. I picked a hospital again because at the time I felt it was safest. Again I planned on a natural birth. This time while walking on the beach, I fell on my bottom on some slippery rocks, and went into labor by myself, again at 42 weeks. Went to the hospital and was induced again to speed things up. Luckily he was born, although via c-section again, without any problems, just a bit jaundiced. At this point I did not want anymore children, and considered tubal ligation. My ob talked me out of it, and put in an IUD.

A couple years pass, we moved to the Pacific NW and I met quite a few women who had their babies at home. I just thought this was the neatest thing ever, but still was adamant about not wanting anymore myself. I became close friends with a woman (S.) who had both her children at home, and was expecting her third. I learned more about homebirth from her, and then finally looking around on the internet, and reading quite a few books. Last summer I felt a presence, a soul that wanted to come into our lives. I had not had this feeling before with my boys, and it was too strong to ignore. I got my IUD removed and we started trying right away. I still wasn't sure about the whole homebirth thing, for me anyway, too risky. I don't remember just where I first learned about HBAC, and trying after 2 c-sections, but I still was nervous. All the what ifs really came into my head.

Well I got pregnant fairly soon after having my IUD removed, and was worried about how far along I was (I am a bigger woman) so I went to an OB. Large, huge mistake. I was high risk when I walked in the door. I told OB of plans to homebirth, as him being my backup (I had 2 midwives to interview that did hbacs) and whoa that was a mistake. I had high blood pressure that first day. (also had with my 2nd) I weighed 268 lbs-another risk. All I can say about that day is I have never felt so broken. In tears I called S. told her what happened, she told me to take a warm bath, calm down, light a candle, etc. Dh and I also talked quite a bit this day, I finally calmed down enough to decide not to go back. I interviewed both midwives, and again picked someone who had also had a cesarean, and then gone on to birth her other 4 children at home. From the beginning, I felt completely at ease with her. Every blood pressure reading from then on, (done at my home) was normal. Imagine that.

I exercised, ate well, saw a chiropractor and a prenatal massage therapist, took some supplements & drank a prenatal tea that tasted like dirt daily. I read tons, joined the ICAN email list, and a few other homebirth-oriented lists. A few issues came up for me (from the c-sections) and every time, I had support unimagined in my previous pregnancies. I read many, many, birth stories, imagined what mine would be like, and did some birth art. Also,this pregnancy we went on hikes quite a bit, and I began to associate this pregnancy & birth like a mountain, with many paths leading up. My midwives, C. & G. & S., my friend (& other support person) and my dh were incredible. They had such faith in me, and were so empowering. I felt so strong.

The last week of my pregnancy, I was feeling worried about going over again. Even knowing that my midwives were not the intervening type. Thursday I lost my mucous plug, and Friday after feeling a couple times like I was leaking something while on the phone with S. telling her I needed to go to the store to get a fishy net for the birth tub, my water broke! It was classic, down the legs and all that jazz. I couldn't believe it! I told dh, called S. back & told her, and then called C. She told me to take some vitamin C and garlic caps, and drink lots of water, and she would bring me some herbs. At this point, I was having mild contractions, but they were way far apart. In fact, that night I ended up sleeping fairly normal, although after 12 am I kept waking up during my contractions. Even then they were about 15 min apart.

Around 7 am the next day (Saturday), I called C. and told her what was happening. I told her that while they still were pretty far apart, and irregular, they were getting stronger. She told me she would be there in a little while, and so would G. My friend/support S. said she would be there around 12-1 pm which I was fine with, because things were going so slow. My boys were still at the house, and beginning to irritate me. (I previously thought I wanted them there) They left with friends around 12 or so. Dh was there, cleaning, making lunch for all of us, bringing in the tub, he was taking care of everything. He was also in charge of the music, which actually ended up being only 3 cds, playing over & over. One was Indian sitar, another was ambient, and Krishna Das, and Mermaid (song) by Sade. That song just makes me think I am swimming in the ocean. He was amazing.

The rest of the (hot!) day passed, G. & I took a walk around the neighborhood, I drank more water & watered down Recharge than I ever had in my life to this point. When I was at home, I paced around a lot, bounced on my birth ball, and sat in a hard chair. It was so peaceful, I really enjoyed the company, and we talked & laughed a lot. It was really one of the best days ever. S. & I took another walk (this time backyard) and then we all sat down on the shady side of the house. I kept contracting, I had a pillowon the grass, and another on the chair, and I would kneel there with my head in my hands. Dh later told me this time was the most at peace he has ever felt. I moved back into the house, because I kept needing to go to the bathroom, and hung out in the living room for a while. One of my favorite laboring positions was dancing with my dh, I would hold on to him and sway my hips, he felt so sturdy and it was very loving. Even with the midwives & my friend there it was very intimate, and we felt OK kissing & just generally loving each other.

I should mention that I called my family back east when my water broke (they did not know my plans to homebirth) and they kept calling, wondering what was going on. I ended up telling them that I was sent home because labor stopped. That pretty much stopped the calls, but then my dad called around 4-5 pm. After this things kicked up a notch. Funny, eh? Also I told S. my worries about holding everyone up. I kept feeling like nothing was happening, and that I should tell them to go. She said things were happening, and for me to relax. I told S. to put in the Rainbow meditation (hypnobirthing) tape so I could rest a bit, as I was getting tired (It was time for my daily nap, ha ha ha) I was able to relax a little, but had 2 contractions I couldn't ignore (I think I waited too late to use my meditations) and decided to get up again. We did use the affirmations, my dh told me lots of the script he made up (involving the ocean waves) and the breathing (4-8 & J breathing).

At this point I also asked if we could fill the tub, as things were getting intense. After all this, things got mindless for me. I think subconsciously, or consciously I wanted to feel every bit of this birth. S. had brought a fabric painting of Sheila-Na-Gig! and it was by the birth tub in my dining room. I have a wood rail all the way around and made a miniature altar (I already had a bigger altar in my living room that had been there since the beginning of my pregnancy) I also read my tarot cards a couple weeks prior to the birth and pulled the Ace of Pentacles-Pure contentment, attainment, prosperity, bright prospects-both material and spiritual. Wow. I had on the rail a small wooden Akua, African Goddess of birth, pregnant women & children, my Grandmother's locket, and a small wooden mermaid nursing a baby mermaid. I had so many things on my other altar, but these meant the most to me, as focal points. My youngest son had also picked me some flowers, among them being a wide open pink rose, which also took my attention.

Ah! The tub was filled! My midwives, C & G, S., and my dh were in a circle around me by the tub, I would get bits of things they would say to me-incredible, empowering, loving words that helped between mindless contracting. I felt my body opening, I felt my baby moving down-what a marvelous feeling, and totally new to me. My contractions were on top of each other pretty much at this point, I kept shifting in the tub, sometimes holding on to my dh while in the tub (dancing) Normally I am a fairly inhibited person, but all that went out the door at this point, I got really loud too! I live in a historic district, the houses are pretty close together, and before the birth I worried about being loud-this evaporated too! Ha ha! Then C suggested I sit on the toilet again, to get baby further down-that was rough, moving from the tub into my bathroom-I had to walk (when I could-the contrax were happening all the time now) with my legs spread way out-crablike. I sat on the pot, did a contraction/push then during a break stand up, hold on to dh then squat & push again.

At some point, I moved to the bed-don't ask when-I just ended up there! I was propped with pillows behind, so MW could check to see where baby was, a few pushes later she was crowning! She told me to touch the head-I was in complete disbelief!! No way!! But I reached down and sure enough, it was there, wet & full of hair! I really hated being like that in the bed-the whole time pushing it was best when I could get my legs spread far apart, usually on hands & knees or squatting. So I moved onto my hands & knees, way far apart, kinda like a frog. Not too long after this her head came out all the way, but then her shoulders got stuck! It continuously burned! Wow! C. did some maneuvering, I pushed a few more times (my contrax slowed down then-grr--but I kept pushing anyway) and felt the rest of her body slip out-felt like a big fish!

I don't remember who said it was a girl-but I just couldn't even speak. My dh started crying at this point (I never did, I just remember complete elation & surprise) and telling me it was a girl. Had a bit of getting her going with some oxygen, talking to her, rubbing her feet, then finally a cry! After all this she latched right on, nursing like she always had! There was a short cord, and a large heart shaped placenta. It came out pretty quick after, then I bled a bit, C gave me some herbs, and some Chinese herbs that I sucked through a straw that were rather nasty. I did end up tearing, in two places, I did not really notice. 6 stitches is a tiny thing for this incredible healing experience.

I never once during labor worried about my scar or rupture. My midwives didn't check my blood pressure once during labor, there were no interventions. I feel reborn, and completely high on birth, still. I did it, I finally reached my summit.

[Our2Girlz]

My birth story

I will start with my amino Monday 4/25/5 at noon. I get to the hospital and check in. I wait about 30 mins for the dr to get there. He did a quick head check to make sure baby was still head down. She was. Then he looks for a good pocket of fluid. Finds one and start the process, give me the numbing shot that hurt a bit, after that I didn't feel much but a bit of pressure. Once he got the amino needle in she moved and he had to wait for her to move again. While waiting for her to move I was trying to take a deep breath and couldn't cause every time I did I would feel a sharp pain. I asked the dr if he was almost done cause I was having a hard time breathing. According to DH he took the needle out and reinserted it and I was fine breathing. Then he had a hard time getting a clear sample with no blood in it. He finally got a sample witha very small amount of blood and called it good enough. He told me I would be observed for an hour or so to make sure my water didn't break and the baby tolerated the amino ok. He said the results would be back before we left the hospital. About an hour later he came back in and said the lungs were mature and I could leave and go get my stuff (it was already in the car) and come back at 4 pm and they would insert the cervidil. I was excited and scared at the same time. I went out to the in-laws and posted my update several places and saw my daughter for about an hour since DH had dropped her off at the in-laws the day before and I wasn't sure how long till I saw her again.

When I got to the hospital we were put back in the same room the amino had been done in, and was told a nurse would be with us in a few mins. Well over an hour had passed and my nurse walked in the door an said oh your here! When did you get here? I told her 4pm she said no one had told her. She was really upset we were left waiting. She hooked me up to the monitors while she had me sign lots of papers and explained what was going to happen. My dr came in and did an internal check and inserted the cervidil. He said I was maybe 1 cm dilated but long and had no effacement at all. Since I had been contracting since Saturday night I was kind of depressed to hear that and worried about the cervidil not working. The dr told me to get a good night sleep cause tomorrow was going to be a long day. I continued to contract thru the night and they were getting stronger when I was on my back so I didn't get a very good nights sleep since the only way they could get a good heart tracing of the baby was for me to be on my back. At 5:30 they came in and took out the cervidil. I was about 2 cm dilated and 75-80% effaced and baby was at -2 station. I was let out of the bed to shower and I was still contracting real good but nothing really hurt just more annoying. At 6:30 am they started the pitocin the contractions got more intense and I had to breath thru them. I was also having them more often. I was allowed to take 15mins every couple of hours to be off the monitors and walk around to help with labor. They slowly upped the pitocin cause they were in no hurry and didn't want to cause uterine rupture. BY 10 or 11 it seemed like even though they were turning the pitocin up my progress was slowing. I was not having to breath thru the contractions any more and they we not as often. At this point I thought about just asking for a section cause it was frustrating I wasn't doing anything. However I did not ask for it. The nurse came flying in the room at about noon and said " he not in here is he?" I was confused and was like who. She said the dr he's going to break your water. So all my guests left and went to the family room she gets me in bed and the nurses called her in the room and said she is needed in the section room. She tells me to go walk cause they were going to do a section on someone else first. I went walking and went back into the room and the dr came in at about 12:45 and I requested to have an internal monitor put on my baby's head because they way I am built its hard to keep the baby's heartbeat on the monitor unless im laying down and I didn't want to lay on my back the whole time. While he was breaking my water he put the monitor on her head and did an internal check I was already 3-4 cm. He did not say anything about how effaced I was or what station the baby was at. He went to leave I stopped him in his tracks saying I can have my epidural now right? He said soon I reminded him that he told me in his office that he would not make me wait till I was 5 to order it he would order it at 3-4. So he told the nurse to watch me for 20 mins or so to see if I would continue contracting and if so then order the epidural. I was extremely surprised that I was 3-4 already since I wasn't feeling hardly any contractions, and I knew that as soon as my waters were gone the contractions would hurt a whole lot more, so I wanted the epidural before I started feeling a whole lot of pain. Well I started contracting real good and I was def right they were much more intense and getting worse. I was in a good bit of pain and I told the nurse she had to get the epidural ordered cause I wasn't sure how long it was going to be before I started losing control of my labor and started screaming. I guess it was about an hour before I finally got my epidural and it was done by the same dr that had previously done my epidural with my daughter. (Last time I was stabbed 10 times by another dr before they called this dr in he got it first try). He had me lay on my side and hug a pillow. MY DH and his cousin (my labor support) were allowed to stay with me. The contractions were coming pretty good and I was starting to get louder since I wasn't focusing to hard, as I was more worried about being stabbed so many times for the epidural. He got it first try again thanks god. The whole while I was hugging the pillow I was praying that he didn't have to stab me so many time and also praying that the baby would be ok, as last time after the epidural is when my daughters heart rate had started having decelerations, I didn't want a repeat of last time and I wanted my VBAC.

After the epidural I was feeling great and baby was doing great. No decels at all. I was very happy. The nurse checked me not long after that and I was a full 4-cm dilated. And my cervix had come down quite a bit because she didn't have to reach far (when the dr checked earlier he was reaching like he was digging for gold it was still very high) and she has smaller hand than the dr. So I was making good progress. This was about 2pm. I was feeling great now. At this point the dr called and wanted my pitocin turned up and a faster pace and more of it each time. After about 2 hours my contractions started getting worse and I was starting to feel them in my groin. They started getting to where I had to breathe thru them again and I had an epidural. They had accidentally let the epidural med run out and had to get some more when they finally got more in it didn't take full effect everything was numb but my groin and the contractions were getting way bad and I was feeling lots of pressure down there during the contractions. The nurse check me about 5 pm and said I was 7-8 and fully effaced. She estimated I would have baby by 7pm. A 10-15 mins later I felt like something was just sitting down there. I told the nurse I felt like something was hanging out down there, wrong choice of words, as she started to panic I told her not literally hanging out but just sitting there. She did another check and I was 9 cm dilated, they started bringing stuff in and the contractions were horrible I was feeling everything in my groin. 15 mins later I felt like I had to poop. I mentioned it to those who were at my bedside (my mom, DH, DH's cousin), they told me to tell the nurses. I was checked again and I was 10 and ready to start pushing. Dh called his mom in the family room and she came down too. The dr came over and told me I was ready to start pushing. I screamed with every push as it burned like hell. The epidural had no effect on this part I felt every bit of it. At one point I just wanted to breathe thru a contraction and take a break and the dr said no I needed to push. I kept hollering that I couldn't do it and they just had to get it out it burned. With each contraction I would push 3 times and during the 3rd push the dr would run his finger around the baby's head trying to stretch me a little bit and when he did this it would burn so bad I would stop pushing. I pushed for about 20 mins and all of a sudden it felt like my pee hole was ripping and I asked the dr what are you doing? (more like screamed it) He said im not doing anything that's the baby now push cause she's almost out (and no one wanted to worry me but I already knew cause I could hear it but her heartbeat was decerating so they unplugged the monitor cause I asked if she was ok) So I pushed one more time and the nurse was putting gloves on dh so he could catch the baby. I screamed very loudly when her head came out and they told me to stop pushing and I told them no they had to get her out cause it burned very bad. Dh got turned around just in time to get his hands on the baby's head and out she came. Dh delivered our baby at 5:53 pm. I pushed for 20 mins. She was laid on my chest and began to cry right away. They rubbed her down while on my chest and DH got to cut the cord. I helped rub her off at first I was afraid to touch her but I did after a min or 2. She was sooo beautiful.

I asked the if I tore he said he would check in a min. He needed to deliver the placenta. I asked if it was going to hurt he said yes I was not happy with that answer lol. He delivered the placenta (it didn't hurt near as bad as I thought it would). Then he told me he was going to look for a tear and it would hurt I told him never mind don't do it. It did hurt and I did tear but it was only a 1st degree tear and only required 1 long stitch. He got out the needle and I asked if he was going to use lidacain (or some kind of numbing stuff) he said no and I said "oh mylanta" and everyone laughed. He put the stitch in and said congrats thanked everyone in the room and went on his way. I was cleaned up and the baby was weighed she weighed 6lbs 5 oz and was 19 in long. Her apgars were 8 and 9. My baby was doing very well. They wrapped her up and put a hat on her and brought her back to me.

There is my successful VBAC story. Sorry it’s so long.

[elsie]

This is my VBAC story - in the hospital with some monitroing, but absolutely wonderful. It was the best experience of my life...

I was due 3/30 and hoping for a VBAC even with GD. The doctors were talking about inducing on 3/31 if I hadn't gone into labor, I really wanted to avoid that whole situation.... luckily Victoria had her own ideas - to make things easier for mom. My water broke around 2:45 on Friday afternoon. I called the doctor, got my things together, had my sister pick up my 2 yr DD and went to the hospital. We checked in around 5 pm. I was a fingertip dilated, 0% effaced, the baby was high at -2, and they thought I would be in for a long labor. Around 8 pm I was nearly 2 cm dilated and they put in an internal contraction monitor. They wanted to also put in a fetal heartbeat monitor, but decided to wait until I dilated some more. The contractions were very regular at 2 minutes, but not strong enough to indicated imminent labor. Around 9, they put in the internal fetal monitor I was nearly 4 cm dilated. Things progressed slowly, or so it seemed.
At 11 pm. my doctor went to update the next doctor of my situation since they were sure it would be an all nighter and her shift ended at midnight. At 11:15, the LDR nurse asked if I was feeling any pressure to push because my contractions were looking very strong and were right on top of each other. I said yes. She got the doctor in there right away and checked me out. I was 10 cm dilated, 100 effaced and the baby was at 0 station. At 11:35, they asked me if I wanted to push, not really expecting anything. I said sure - gave one big push and I swear their eyes just about popped out of their heads. Apparently I got her about halfway down the birth canal on the first push. They told me not to push any more and ran around to finish prepping the room. A few minutes later, I gave three more pushes and the baby was about to crown. Her heart rate dropped because the cord was wrapped around her neck. Doctor apologized because she needed to give me an episotomy so we could get her out on the next push. At 11:41 pm, Victoria Mae was born at 7 lbs, 13 ounces, 21" long and 11 days early. The whole experience was wonderful! I feel so good!

[TwinMom]

Click here for my HBA2C story.

What a great idea, to get all the stories in one place. Reading other women's VBAC stories helped me immensely in preparing for my own.

[SimplyMama]

I wrote this as a letter to a friend unfamiliar with HB & interested in VBAC, so excuse the obvious details.

At 41 wks, I'd gone to bed that night with a few light contractions, and decided to sleep through them. I'd had several bouts of pre-labor, and was at 4cm for almost 2wks! (As my midwife E- says, "If it *is* labor, you'll wake up!") At midnight, on the dot, I woke up when my water broke! I was relieved that *finally* things were starting, and then pretty pleased that my underpad was absorbing all of the fluid! I looked to see if the water was clear, and checked for a cord...everything was peachy. I woke DH up, and he called E-. We decided that we'd call back when I had a pattern of contractions. 10 minutes later, we called back...they were coming 2 minutes apart! It would take an hour for her to get here, so I had DH fill the tub. I was hoping to slow things down a bit, so I laid a blanket on the floor and did several contractions on my hands and knees, and did some pelvic rocks. The contractions were intense, but I was ready for them & wasn't afraid. When the tub was full, I labored in there until E- arrived.

As I worked through the contractions, I remembered to keeps my sounds low, and my jaw loose...tension and high screams aren't so productive. I mostly made 'ummmmm' sounds, and concentrated on breathing full, deep breaths. Being in the water felt good, though the contractions really needed a lot of my attention at that point. When E- arrived, I was pretty happy to see her! She took one look at me, and asked if I was pushing. I told her I was trying not to, so she asked if she could check me. I lumbered out of the tub, and she did an internal...I was at 10 and ready to push when I wanted! She took my bp, temp, pulse, and listened to the baby's heart tones...everything looked fine. Doug warmed the baby's receiving blankets with a heating pad, and brought me fluids. Soon after, her assistant L- arrived. They asked me where I wanted to push. I thought I'd like to lean on my birth ball for a while, and we did that for several contractions. E- felt the baby, and we decided that I needed to expand my pelvis a bit more so that he could slip under the arch, and things would be easier. Sometimes, it's all about angles and posture...and as silly as it sounds, laboring on the toilet is a pretty tried and true midwife trick. With my feet on a low footstool, and a pillow behind me, I did several contractions. Whenever I seemed to tense, E- would stroke my leg to remind me to relax. E- listened to Nicholas, and felt that we were getting a good decent, so she had me get up to walk a bit and use gravity. Walking from the bathroom to the bed was pretty comical...I felt that he was going to fall out! I wanted to lie down, and after about 20 more minutes of pushing I felt him rotate and soon after felt him crowning. I kept reminding myself, "I'm going to get huge!" E- poured some olive oil on as he began to crown, and held warm herbal compresses on my perinium to prevent tearing. After a few more pushes, I felt the relief of his head delivering, and his shoulders and body slipped right out. He came out with a strong cry, and good color...his apgars were 10 and 10. L- settled me back against my pillows, and I held Nicholas as they covered him with the warmed blanket and hat. He was born at 3:10am.

DH and I sat back and admired Nicholas as L- waited for the placenta. When the cord stopped pulsing, it was clamped and DH cut it. I didn't need any stitches, thank goodness! A short while later, I thought I felt the placenta detatch, so I gave a good push sitting semi-upright, and out it slipped. L- put it in a bowl, and examined it to see if it was complete while E- finished up the paperwork. DH went downstairs and made tea and bagels for all of us, and called a few relatives. From first contraction to birth, labor lasted exactly 3 hours! After tea, we were ready to weigh and measure. Everyone took bets, but we were all surprised that he was as big as he was...9 lbs 7oz, 22 1/2 inches! E- and L- cleaned up the disposable underpads that we used, and tidied up in general. DH took out the trash, and everything was comfy. We all chatted and held the baby, as they took our vitals every 15 minutes. The bleeding was fine, and my uterus was clamping nicely. My BP was great, and the baby was perfect. At about 5am, they left...and we got 1 1/2 hrs of sleep before the kids woke up....and yes, they slept through it all! When they woke up and saw Nicholas in our bed, they were beyond excited! DH managed to get them off to school, and he, baby, and I spent the day in bed!

[CarrieLMT]

Vbac

I had a great VBAC (may daughter born 4/28/04). I had to have a c-section with my first- his heart rate went down during a contraction and i wasnt progressing after 5 cm. I was determined not to have another c-section and there were a few negative people around me- the head dr at the hospital and even my husband. But i had a great midwife- and my mom- supporting me. I was a week past my duedate and was getting worries because the Head Dr. said that if i go 2 weeks over, then i will have to do a c-section again. My midwife and i did everything that we could possibly do to naturally enduce labor- couldnt break the bag because my midwife would get into trouble (the head dr. said that was enducing and wasnt allowed for a vbac). i was mostly efaced and dialated about 1.5 cm the day before i had her. I said to myself- tomarrow is the day that i am going to have her (8 days overdue). My midwife suggested that i try Castor Oil to try and move things along. So, i woke up around 4 or 5 am to take some castor oil. I contractions when i woke up, so i thing i was already in labor when i took the castor oil. I went back to bed, and still felt contractions- they got a bit more strong- and i knew that i was in labor- yeah. I walked around and did my prelabor at home. When i was about 3 to 4 cm we went to the hospital. I had my husband, my mom, my midwife and a doula all there with me. They broke my water and put an internal fetal and contraction moniter (which hurt pretty bad because they were new and flimsy compared to the old version- my midwife had to try to get it in the right spot several times). The contractions got a lot more intense, but i hade great people there helping me stay as relaxed as i could be. The most effective method was sitting on one of those huge exersize balls. I had to change rooms because of where i was, but it was ok. at the end- i seemed to be stuck at 7 cm, but i had the biggest urge to push- so my midwife decided to check me during a contraction as i pushed. I did and was then at 9.5- 10 cm. My husband had left the room to use the restroom, so he didnt know that i was ready. on the next contraction i did a very good push- my midwife was not expecting it- she had to get ready real fast- and i didnt want to push anymore until my husband was back. He came back- i did a good push (the head was out), and then another- and there she was. I had ripped only a bit on the inside (only 1 or 2 stitches). They gave her to me right away and i had her for at least an hour before thay took her to wash her and all of that. I was up walking a couple hours later to go see her- couldnt do that when i had my c-section. I healed very nicely afterwards and i know that after that and the intensity of my contractions (they were off the charts- they are supposed to do this /\, mine went / \, even my mom and midwife thought they were really strong), ther is no way that any scar is opening up. I am so much happier with my 2nd birth, I would never recommend a c-section.

[Mommy Piadosa]

i have had 2 successful vbacs. my section was in 1997 with my dd, and my vbacs were in 1999 and 2004. it amazes me how much changed between the two. in 1999 i was encouraged to vbac. no one gave me any trouble in fact when i got anxious toward the end of my pregnancy two doctor's encouraged me and basically refused to schedule a section. my first little boy was born after 11 hours of difficult labor, with no pain meds, and he weigheed 9 lb 3 oz. his entire birth story is handwritten in his baby book- and so i will only post his brother's here as it is easy to cut and paste. needless to say with the way the medical profession is heading i was NOT encouraged to have a vbac this time around and had to fight for it instead. like i said what a difference 5 years made.
here is the story of my 2nd successful vbac
Jesse is Kerry's sixth birth, my third, but our first together. Kerry was an advocate of homebirth and all things natural. His ex wife had their babies after very short, not too painful labors. Boy was he surprised by my labor experience with Jess. Jess was going to be my second VBAC (vaginal birth after cesarean). I had to fight to get the doctor to let me even try labor. My last VBAC was in 1999, since then all kinds of scary literature has come out about the risk of uterine rupture, and many hospitals, and doctors are refusing to perform VBACs. My docter was willing, but the hospital she had privileges at wasn't. We found this out at around 36 weeks. I did not want another section, especially since I knew my body could do it, and having experienced both types of birth- I'll take a vaginal please!!! No other dr would take me that far along, and most of them said no VBAC anyway. So we asked our dr to see if she could deliver at another local hospital that was still doing VBACs. In my mind it was that or homebirth, which to me was scary due to the C section, and my history of LONG labors. Thank God that worked out. She was able to deliver there, and they were willing to do a VBAC.

Now I had started leaking urine in the last couple of weeks of pregnancy. (I know yuck!) So on Sunday morning when I felt alot of fluid, I did not think it was my bag of waters. It was slow- not like on tv, or like I remembered when they broke my water with Kevin. Plus I really did not want another false alarm. So we waited that day, and hiked the hills behind our home to see if we could get labor started. In the afternoon we called the dr since the leaking hadn't slowed down. When we got there, we took one more walk around the outside of the building, hoping the mild contractions I had been having all week would speed up.

At the hospital they did a litmus test to see if the fluid was amniotic, the first test came back negative. Then they did all the regular stuff, took urine checked my cervix etc. I was still leaking enough to make the bed wet. So they tested it again. Now just a couple of minutes earlier the nurse tested the acidity of my urine (which I had peed into the cup) and said- wow- your urine tests just like amniotic fluid, so when the next nurse tested the fluid on my bed and said it tested like amniotic fluid, so I would be staying and having the baby, I always wondered if it wasn't just urine. But at that point I wanted to get that little boy out of me so I kept my mouth shut.

I wasn't progressing, and my contractions weren't very strong, so at some point, maybe about 7 pm they gave me pitocin (I had needed it with Kevin and with the "failed labor" of Shae). From that point on the dr rarely left the room, I found out later that new protocols have the dr staying there if pitocin is administered with a VBAC, maybe thats one reason why so many dr's are saying no- they don't want to be tied to one patient. Once I got the piticin things started progressing painfully and slowly. I told Kerry to get some sleep at around 9pm and only 5 cm. He did- I watched the emmy's which were boring and then a bunch of Jeopardy on the game show network. (BTW I impressed the dr w/ my useless Jeopardy knowledge). At around 1 am I was at 7 1/2 cm, and the pain was really intense, I wanted Kerry so we woke him up, he rubbed my back the dr thought I was going into transition so she started to set up the room. I had to pee, so they sat me up and gave me a bowl thing, i couldn't go because of the pain, I remember crying because I had to go and couldn't. But being up right helped so when the dr said to lay me back down I said no, so the next hour was spent crouching on the bed with Kerry supporting my weight. After that hour I was still only at 8cm, I asked for some pain relief and was given stedal (sp?)- I layed down and tried to sleep. I hatred the stedal- I felt drunk and I went to sleep, but the pain woke me up. I had such a skewed sense of time on the drug, that I would look at the clock, go to sleep, wake up thinking it was at least an hour later and cry to Kerry it's only been three minutes. I felt like I was incoherent and I was crying alot. YUCKY. Another hour later at 3 am I was still at 8cm, and I was really stressing, crying telling everyone it hurt and that I wanted to be done. The dr said I could have an epidural if I wanted one that she thought it would help me relax so I could progress. I was surprised, with Kevin I asked for an epidural at 8 cm and was told it was too late. I said yes to the epidural, looking back, maybe I was wimpy, but the dr was right as soon as I relaxed some, I started to progress again. So at 4am I was in transition and was dilated to 9cm, at 5 am I was ready to push. That moose child took two hours of intense pushing. The most comforatble post ion for me was basically crouching into the stirups, Kerry held my weight up, and the dr helped with balance, the nurse oh she was amazing and encouraging and she was mostly massaging my perenium. (I ended up with no tears or episiotomy) When I started to get discouraged they placed the mirrors so I could see his head progressing when I pushed this helped. It was also nest to be allowed to touch the top of his head. I understand why they call the feeling down there the "ring of fire" but although the pain was incredible knowing he was almost here encouraged me. His head came out fairly easy, it seemed more painful and such hard work pushing his shoulders out. Then he was placed on me. (The first baby that they let me do that). "Welcome Baby" are the first words Jess heard from me. I really do not remember delivering the placenta, I was so in love, I held him for 90 minutes with out any one else taking him (even Daddy- he kissed him and loved him, but I held him.) He was alert and awake, not interested in the breast, just taking in all there was to see.

[Rach]

http://mothering.com/discussions/sho...d.php?t=357458

[maman_a_deux]

If I Can Do This, I Can Do Anything!

The Birth Story of Ava Marie Cassidente Christian
Born November 6, 2003

The birth of my second child is intrinsically linked to the birth of my first daughter, who was born by emergency c-section after discovering she was in the breech position. When my water broke, I had been laboring for 26 hours and was finally fully dilated and pushing when an ultrasound confirmed that she was breech. Since I was a first time mom with an “untried pelvis”, my well thought out birth turned into a surgery. I was determined to remedy that the second time around.

Fast forward four and a half years, my husband and I have taken Bradley classes, hired a doula, and read every book on childbirth and vaginal birth after cesarean (VBAC) that I could find. I was trying to stack the deck in my favor, knowing ultimately, the end was not in my control. Accepting this mindset was the ultimate test for me because “not in my control” was a not even a concept I liked to think about; however, at every step this pregnancy was teaching me to “let go”. But I wasn’t going back into another surgery without a fight!

I had originally hired an OBGYN and had been seeing her throughout the first half of my pregnancy. When my 20 week ultrasound showed that my placenta was low, the doctor warned me that if it didn’t rise on its own, I would need a c-section. Something in me snapped! I had read enough to know that this problem usually corrected itself, and I was suddenly struck that her “support” of a VBAC attempt was just lip service. It was clear in my mind that no matter how nice she was, if I stayed with this doctor, I WAS GOING TO END UP WITH A REPEAT C-SECTION! I made the very difficult decision to switch care providers mid-pregnancy to a practice with certified nurse midwives who would see me and deliver my baby. I would still deliver in a hospital, but I hoped that this would prove to be a more supportive and less medically invasive attempt for a VBAC.

I had been having Braxton Hicks contractions the entire third trimester, and it got to the point where every time I stood up to walk I would have a contraction. I had at least three episodes where my contractions lasted for five or six hours and got as close to five minutes apart. I was convinced that with this birth I would have her three weeks early. (I was also convinced that she was a boy until a 30 week ultrasound told us differently, so my score was pretty bad at this point!) So imagine my surprise and disappointment when I made it to my 41 week prenatal visit on Wednesday, November 5th!

The nurse midwives wanted me to check into the hospital the next day and have my water broken as a form of induction, but since I was only four days overdue I declined. We agreed to have a stress test and an ultrasound to make sure there was enough amniotic fluid around the baby. Both tests were fine, as I knew they would be, but I still had to agree to come back for these same two tests every two days. Against my better judgment, I also allowed them to strip my membranes a little to see if that would help. I only consented because I was terrified of not delivering soon enough to ward off the automatic c-section due to post dates and a failed induction. Needless to say, it had been a stressful day and the pressure was mounting!

I was emotionally drained, aching, and cramping from them stripping my membranes and was at my limit by the time I arrived home. I called my doula, Kirsten, and filled her in on the day’s events. Then I called Coral, our Bradley instructor, for advice on how to induce naturally if necessary. I planned to put castor oil in a root beer float in the morning if nothing happened by then (Yuck!). I also planned to make my husband drink it with me, as it was only fair. I was pretty desperate and saw my hopes of a VBAC slipping away from me. That evening was an emotional catharsis for me as I ranted, cried, prayed, and finally accepted that this baby was only going to come in her own way, and only by letting go of my need to control her birth would it ever happen. I went to bed feeling at peace.

I woke up around 5:30 am the next morning with contractions. During other episodes of false labor, the contractions would stop as soon as I had showered for the day. Since they didn’t stop this time, we decided that my husband, Paul, would take the morning off from work to see how things went. We dropped our four year old off at school telling her “Mommy might have the baby today”. We went to a little hole in the wall restaurant for breakfast. I made ticks on a napkin for each contraction but didn’t time them so as not to jinx anything. After eating my French toast and bacon, I counted and was averaging twelve contractions an hour, or one every five minutes. We then drove home via a scenic route and enjoyed the beautiful day.

I wanted to go to Best Buy to get a DVD that was on sale for my Dad, but we never made it shopping. We stopped home to pick up our things for the hospital and Ayla’s overnight bag to stay at grandma’s house in case my labor picked up speed during shopping. As soon as we got home, Paul wanted to shower, and when he emerged ready to go an hour later, I really had to breathe through my contractions. We called all the important people and asked my doula, Kirsten, to come over. My message therapist agreed to meet us at the hospital after she ran a few errands when she was done with her last client. I remember thinking “I don’t think you have that much time!”

A little after 11 am Kirsten met us at our home just as I was beginning to think we should have met her at the hospital. My contractions were so intense at this time that I had Paul call the midwives to tell them we were on our way to the hospital. The driving was more difficult than I had expected. The road to the hospital was extremely bumpy, and I was close to asking Paul to pull over for each contraction but figured at that rate I would have the baby in the van!

We finally made it the hospital about noon. After taking me to my room with my four or five bags of comfort stuff from home, including my own pillows, they checked me to find I was 4cm. The midwife wanted to break my water, but I told her that I had put in my birth plan that I did not want this type of intervention unless medically necessary, so she left without doing it. A nurse started an IV in my hand. The IV, blood draw, and fetal monitoring were mandatory because of the VBAC. After the first hour, we were left to labor in peace, and that’s when things started to pick up. My contractions were less than three minutes apart.

As I stood by my bed, not able to go very far because of the monitors strapped to my midsection, my doula showed Paul how to put counter pressure on my back during intense contractions. It was so nice to feel his hands on my back while I held Kirsten’s hands and moaned through my contractions. I was starting to feel like I couldn’t stay on top of the contractions and hoped Kirsten had more tricks in her bag. Although I was at the point where many women would want to ask for pain medication, I did not because I had done such a good job of coaching everyone to not let me have them as a first resort that I figured it wasn’t worth the effort of asking just to have them talk me out of it. In retrospect, I am glad I made those wishes known because the feeling passed quickly, and I would have regretted not experiencing what came next.

My legs started to feel shaky, and I felt nauseous and too hot. I kept telling Kirsten that I didn’t feel right. When I felt the urge to push, I was worried that it was too soon. I asked to be checked, and the nurse said I was 5 cm. Although this was right on track, I was a bit perplexed that I had mistaken the urge to push. I thought that maybe I had to go to the bathroom, so Paul and Kirsten took me there. I had a few contractions while muttering, “I’m having this baby”, and my water broke as I involuntarily pushed during one. Now I was really pushing hard, and Kirsten ran to get the nurse while Paul tried to get me back in bed. I was pretty content where I was, but he proceeded to half carry me across the room only stopping to support me in a dangle squat for my next contraction. Finally we made it to the bed. I crawled up on my hands and knees and stayed in that position while resting my arms on my pillows. (I knew bringing my own would pay off!) I couldn’t believe, looking back, how calm Paul was in the face of me trying to have our baby in the middle of the floor! His nature is to panic over small details, but when the big event of this birth happened, he was calm and collected! I was so proud of him!

After being checked again, it was determined that I was “having this baby”, as if I hadn’t been trying to tell everyone that for the past 20 minutes! Then there was a rather humorous scene as personnel started yelling for supplies, now! I can remember thinking how funny it was that no one was prepared for this baby to come so soon. I calmly asked if they could see the baby’s head, and the midwife told me that they could. I think that I reached back at this point to feel for myself. Then I really started to push as the urge came over me. The pain of the contractions seemed to disappear and pushing felt like a relief. I kept waiting to experience the “ring of fire”, when the baby’s head crowns and stretches the perineum, but I never felt a thing. I was pushing through several contractions when I suddenly stopped and asked if she had hair. My husband thinks I’m crazy for doing that, but I really wanted to know. I’m not sure what I would have done if they had said no, but luckily they said yes, and I calmly resumed pushing with the next urge.

Shortly after this, the baby’s heart tones went down on the monitor. I wasn’t concerned as this can be very normal when a baby comes through the birth canal. They put an oxygen mask on me to help bring it up, and when that did not help, the staff seemed to panic a bit. I wasn’t worried until I heard the midwife say that although she knew I did not want one, she would need to give me an episiotomy to get the baby out quickly. I heard the unmistakable threat of a surgical intervention, and that did it for me. I gave one last big push, and Ava Marie came out head and body with the same push. My husband said she shot right out of me. Not exactly the gentle ending to her birth that I had envisioned, but I DID IT! My beautiful 8lb. 3oz., 21 ½ inch girl was born.

I heard the person who came to do the episiotomy walk in, and upon seeing the baby, she offered her congratulations and left. I had the satisfaction of outwitting them on that count! Unfortunately, due to the rapid delivery, I did require stitches. It was a small price to pay for a vaginal birth, and the look on my face as I whipped my head around to my husband was priceless. We have this on tape, me grinning like the Cheshire cat, ear to ear. I have never felt so powerful, beautiful, brave, and more like I woman than I did at that moment.

My best advice? Hire a doula. It is well worth the money and helps take the pressure off of your birth partner. Take a Bradley prepared childbirth class, even if this isn’t your first child and you have already taken a hospital sponsored class. You will not regret it. I read many books by Dr. and Martha Sears, and they were all great. Immerse yourself in the culture of natural childbirth, whether online or in your community. It is out there, so go out and find it. Birth is an experience that you owe to yourself to own completely. It is too easy in this society to have that taken from us. And most importantly of all, believe in your God given ability to birth your baby!

Erin
I am a stay at home mom. My husband, Paul, and I have two daughters, Ayla 6 and Ava 1 ½. I have a Bachelors Degree in Theatre and am currently completing my training through DONA to become a labor doula. My passion now is to help other women have successful VBACs.

[Vick]

Wow! Way to go! Thanks for sharing your story!

[MrsRoss]

Everyone's stories are so uplifting! After my needless c-section in December, I want to get pregnant again and have a vbac oe maybe even hbac! You mamas are all amazing!

[emdeecee_sierra]

My first was born via MASCR (major abdominal surgery for child removal)- whether it was truly necessary or not I'll never know... another story for another day on another thread .
My second was a completely unmedicated VBAC in hospital; I wanted a homebirth, but made the very stupid mistake of thinking I could labor and birth in a hospital and they would leave me alone... all in the name of saving a few dollars out of pocket since I didn't think the insurance would pay for homebirth. From the moment I stepped into the hospital I had to fight and fight to keep them from cutting me; it was a nightmare. However, because of my determination and the support of my DH and my doula, I gave birth to my DD.
My third was born at home. Two hours, start-to-finish labor and birth, dream home water birth. Peaceful, calm, beautiful.

I don't even consider myself a vbac person anymore, really.... it all matters who you surround yourself with, what their mindset is. Embrace your fears, process them, and know that vbac is possible, that you CAN do it!

[GatorNNP]

I just had a wonderful VBAC. my 1st midwife ended up being my doula, my 2nd midwife ended up taking off for the turkey holiday after getting "let go" the week I was due since she inquired about joining another practice her OB got ticked off and cancelled her insurance.

I labored at home for about 8 hours and made good progress getting into a good pattern and got to about 3 cms, 80%, -1 or so per the doula, my ctx were getting close about every 2-3 min and some were doubling. We went to the hospital at 6:30 to avoid traffic hour. I knew my pattern would fizzle out some getting to the hospital. We arrived and baby had gone back up to -2 station (I was stressing her back up in I think).

About 3 hrs later my labor pattern finally strengthened to what it was at home. I had a supportive labor nurse. Then my friends arrived who I had been at their births for support or photography. I was having back labor all along and the baby finally turned a little around lunch time and then my back wasn't hurting but my bootie was. My friends even pulled all my tricks on me, putting me in positions that I don't like to get my contractions stronger and making me go to the bathroom often! I was enjoying the breaks when contractions would slow down.

Even with all the support I had, one doula, two great friends who know what to do, my mom, my DH, my sister, a supportive nurse and supportive OB my birth plan changed when I got to 7cm. My two problems were lack of sleep ( I was almost 2 nights behind by then) and I had a headache from no coffee, no sleep, not wanting to eat etc... The baby was very low and my cervix was 100% effaced but dilation was going on the slower side and I was having intense pressure and desire to push at 7cm. The nurse checked me and said I was starting to get swelling of the cervix. I had seen too many people progress so well and push to soon, swell up their cervix and end up with a c/sec. I had decided when she checked me if I was 9 or better I could probably do it, but only 7 meant another 3 hours or so and I knew I was to fatigued to fight the urge any longer, so I opted to get an epidural to help me get to the goal of vaginal birth. My friends were very nervous about agreeing with me so I took almost 20min talking them into it and reassuring them that I would not regret it or be angry later or feel let down. I knew my main desire was vaginal birth.

I was able to then not push at least, I still had to do a lot of breathing to not push even with the epi. The guy who did it is really a pro an gives very light epidurals. My dose had started to wear off as I got to pushing though so I think I experienced all of the pressure and some of the burning pain of the final delivery. Pushing was hard since I was so tired, had a pounding headache, the baby's foot was like pressing on my rib to so that was distracting me a lot. I didn't want to push but I knew I couldn't treat my headache until it was over.

My friends got tough on me and made me do it and I love them for it of course. I finally gave birth at 5:45pm after about 2 hrs pushing. I was grabbing for the baby before her feet were out. I had her latched on as soon as she started breathing and let out a little cry. Her cord had stopped pulsing before cutting. I nursed her 45 minutes and held her for 1.5 hours before allowing her to get weighed, and I guessed her wt, off by one oz.

I was so happy that it didn't even seem real. I have never been so excited to have a sore bottom!

[starparticle]

Leif's HBAC

The day before I went into labor I finally "gave up" on the baby ever
coming. I stopped all my nesting activities and went for a pedicure instead.
Also took my daily 3 mile walk (had been pared down from 4 or 5 for the last
month or so). Somehow during the day I realized that he might be coming
soon, although my only physical clue was that all my Braxton Hicks ctx had
slowed down.

At 2:30 AM my water broke with a punch-pop, just like with our daughter
Luna. Same time, same way. I had spent time thinking about how I would react
if that happened again, and had even visualized trying to stay calm. For
some reason during the pregnancy it was my WORST fear that my water would
break spontaneously while in bed and it would send me back to a terrible
place.

Instead, I hopped out of bed and scurried to the toilet to try and keep
things neat. I got my first contraction right away, and I forgot all about
being worried. After another one 2 minutes later I called for Britton to
call the M/W and our doula, Carrie.

When he called our M/W asked for Britton to take 20 minutes and time some
contractions, then call her back. I already knew that they were every 2
minutes, but was afraid of having her come too soon. The funny thing is that
he found a second hand watch, handed it to me on the toilet, and walked
away. Apparently I was supposed to time them myself I sort of laughed and
tossed the watch aside, since I knew things were on their way.

The rest is a blur, the tub lady came and set up, Carrie arrived, M/W
arrived, my parents came. The whole time I labored sitting upright on the
floor leaning against the wall, at some point Britton scotched behind me for
support. I was able to use our hypnobirthing work, and I hear that there was
awhile where nobody could tell I was having contractions. Contractions were
every 2 minutes, lasting one minute, with a minute off for my entire labor.
They just gained in strength. I switched how I was coping often, sometimes
being totally silent and limp, and other times really letting loose. I found
it mentally exhausting to be silent, and physically exhausting to be vocal
so I tended to switch between the two.

By around 6:00 the tub was full, and I managed to get on my hands & knees,
and then into the tub. I can't imagine EVER getting into a car. That would
be pure torture! The tub was fantastic for about 10 minutes, then the
contractions really started to tumbled over one another. In about 10 more
minutes my body started to push, which really surprised me. I thought for
sure I was only half way done, and I thought I should wait to push. Then I
got my first internal exam of the entire pregnancy and was informed I could
push - complete!

Pushing was a relief, I could finally do something to help move things
along. I believe that I pushed through about 8 contractions, then got really
serious about getting him out. For some reason I thought that there was a
quantifiable amount of pain I needed to get through, so the faster I did it
and the more it hurt the faster it would be over. I don't know if this
theory is true or not...

He wasn't really moving down much, how they describe them descending,
stretching, descending a little more, etc. He just stayed put, about 1 inch
inside. Something happened though in one contraction, I just pushed his head
all the way out into my hands. No crowning, it took everyone by surprise,
including myself. Suddenly everyone jumped up, Britton reached in the tub to
guide the body out, and he was born. So fast! He was born at 7:00 AM.

He was alert right away, sort of grey, but pushing up on my chest holding
his head up and taking a look around. He stared right at me! After a few
moments the MW touched he mouth and he took a breath, and a few whimpers.

His apgars were 9 & 10, I had one tear needing 4 stitches (that's what you
get for just pushing the baby straight out!). 7 pounds on the dot, 21 inches
long (!!), 13 inch head. He came 2 days after his LMP due date, and 5 days
before his ultrasound due date. It snowed for the first time in two years right after he was born.

We are doing well, although apparently I shouldn't eat tofu because it keeps
him up screaming for about 5 hours (lesson learned). I'm dealing with some
overactive letdown issues, but it is starting to resolve itself. I feel
fantastic, and started my walks again around day 6.

[heathergab]

Thank You

I just want ed to thank you all for this thread. Mt name is Heather and I am 28 yrs old. My first 2 births were natural. My thrid one was a c-section due to being breech. I am now getting ready to have are fourth baby. I am hoping for VBAC And have been a little nervous,but reading these post have really help me alot. Tha only question I have is my dr who preformed the c-section didn't say if I could do Vbac or not. So I wondering if it ok to still do VBAC. I live in another state now so therefore can't go back to him. One more is there anything I should do to perpare myself for the delivery. I am due May 3. Thank you all so very much.
Heather

[maman_a_deux]

If I Can Do This, I Can Do Anything!

This is long, but I still enjoy reading it LOL

The birth of my second child is intrinsically linked to the birth of my first daughter, who was born by emergency c-section after discovering she was in the breech position. When my water broke, I had been laboring for 26 hours and was finally fully dilated and pushing when an ultrasound confirmed that she was breech. Since I was a first time mom with an “untried pelvis”, my well thought out birth turned into a surgery. I was determined to remedy that the second time around.

Fast forward four and a half years, my husband and I have taken Bradley classes, hired a doula, and read every book on childbirth and vaginal birth after cesarean (VBAC) that I could find. I was trying to stack the deck in my favor, knowing ultimately, the end was not in my control. Accepting this mindset was the ultimate test for me because “not in my control” was a not even a concept I liked to think about; however, at every step this pregnancy was teaching me to “let go”. But I wasn’t going back into another surgery without a fight!

I had originally hired an OBGYN and had been seeing her throughout the first half of my pregnancy. When my 20 week ultrasound showed that my placenta was low, the doctor warned me that if it didn’t rise on its own, I would need a c-section. Something in me snapped! I had read enough to know that this problem usually corrected itself, and I was suddenly struck that her “support” of a VBAC attempt was just lip service. It was clear in my mind that no matter how nice she was, if I stayed with this doctor, I WAS GOING TO END UP WITH A REPEAT C-SECTION! I made the very difficult decision to switch care providers mid-pregnancy to a practice with certified nurse midwives who would see me and deliver my baby. I would still deliver in a hospital, but I hoped that this would prove to be a more supportive and less medically invasive attempt for a VBAC.

I had been having Braxton Hicks contractions the entire third trimester, and it got to the point where every time I stood up to walk I would have a contraction. I had at least three episodes where my contractions lasted for five or six hours and got as close to five minutes apart. I was convinced that with this birth I would have her three weeks early. (I was also convinced that she was a boy until a 30 week ultrasound told us differently, so my score was pretty bad at this point!) So imagine my surprise and disappointment when I made it to my 41 week prenatal visit on Wednesday, November 5th!

The nurse midwives wanted me to check into the hospital the next day and have my water broken as a form of induction, but since I was only four days overdue I declined. We agreed to have a stress test and an ultrasound to make sure there was enough amniotic fluid around the baby. Both tests were fine, as I knew they would be, but I still had to agree to come back for these same two tests every two days. Against my better judgment, I also allowed them to strip my membranes a little to see if that would help. I only consented because I was terrified of not delivering soon enough to ward off the automatic c-section due to post dates and a failed induction. Needless to say, it had been a stressful day and the pressure was mounting!

I was emotionally drained, aching, and cramping from them stripping my membranes and was at my limit by the time I arrived home. I called my doula, Kirsten, and filled her in on the day’s events. Then I called Coral, our Bradley instructor, for advice on how to induce naturally if necessary. I planned to put castor oil in a root beer float in the morning if nothing happened by then (Yuck!). I also planned to make my husband drink it with me, as it was only fair. I was pretty desperate and saw my hopes of a VBAC slipping away from me. That evening was an emotional catharsis for me as I ranted, cried, prayed, and finally accepted that this baby was only going to come in her own way, and only by letting go of my need to control her birth would it ever happen. I went to bed feeling at peace.

I woke up around 5:30 am the next morning with contractions. During other episodes of false labor, the contractions would stop as soon as I had showered for the day. Since they didn’t stop this time, we decided that my husband, Paul, would take the morning off from work to see how things went. We dropped our four year old off at school telling her “Mommy might have the baby today”. We went to a little hole in the wall restaurant for breakfast. I made ticks on a napkin for each contraction but didn’t time them so as not to jinx anything. After eating my French toast and bacon, I counted and was averaging twelve contractions an hour, or one every five minutes. We then drove home via a scenic route and enjoyed the beautiful day.

I wanted to go to Best Buy to get a DVD that was on sale for my Dad, but we never made it shopping. We stopped home to pick up our things for the hospital and Ayla’s overnight bag to stay at grandma’s house in case my labor picked up speed during shopping. As soon as we got home, Paul wanted to shower, and when he emerged ready to go an hour later, I really had to breathe through my contractions. We called all the important people and asked my doula, Kirsten, to come over. My message therapist agreed to meet us at the hospital after she ran a few errands when she was done with her last client. I remember thinking “I don’t think you have that much time!”

A little after 11 am Kirsten met us at our home just as I was beginning to think we should have met her at the hospital. My contractions were so intense at this time that I had Paul call the midwives to tell them we were on our way to the hospital. The driving was more difficult than I had expected. The road to the hospital was extremely bumpy, and I was close to asking Paul to pull over for each contraction but figured at that rate I would have the baby in the van!

We finally made it the hospital about noon. After taking me to my room with my four or five bags of comfort stuff from home, including my own pillows, they checked me to find I was 4cm. The midwife wanted to break my water, but I told her that I had put in my birth plan that I did not want this type of intervention unless medically necessary, so she left without doing it. A nurse started an IV in my hand. The IV, blood draw, and fetal monitoring were mandatory because of the VBAC. After the first hour, we were left to labor in peace, and that’s when things started to pick up. My contractions were less than three minutes apart.

As I stood by my bed, not able to go very far because of the monitors strapped to my midsection, my doula showed Paul how to put counter pressure on my back during intense contractions. It was so nice to feel his hands on my back while I held Kirsten’s hands and moaned through my contractions. I was starting to feel like I couldn’t stay on top of the contractions and hoped Kirsten had more tricks in her bag. Although I was at the point where many women would want to ask for pain medication, I did not because I had done such a good job of coaching everyone to not let me have them as a first resort that I figured it wasn’t worth the effort of asking just to have them talk me out of it. In retrospect, I am glad I made those wishes known because the feeling passed quickly, and I would have regretted not experiencing what came next.

My legs started to feel shaky, and I felt nauseous and too hot. I kept telling Kirsten that I didn’t feel right. When I felt the urge to push, I was worried that it was too soon. I asked to be checked, and the nurse said I was 5 cm. Although this was right on track, I was a bit perplexed that I had mistaken the urge to push. I thought that maybe I had to go to the bathroom, so Paul and Kirsten took me there. I had a few contractions while muttering, “I’m having this baby”, and my water broke as I involuntarily pushed during one. Now I was really pushing hard, and Kirsten ran to get the nurse while Paul tried to get me back in bed. I was pretty content where I was, but he proceeded to half carry me across the room only stopping to support me in a dangle squat for my next contraction. Finally we made it to the bed. I crawled up on my hands and knees and stayed in that position while resting my arms on my pillows. (I knew bringing my own would pay off!) I couldn’t believe, looking back, how calm Paul was in the face of me trying to have our baby in the middle of the floor! His nature is to panic over small details, but when the big event of this birth happened, he was calm and collected! I was so proud of him!

After being checked again, it was determined that I was “having this baby”, as if I hadn’t been trying to tell everyone that for the past 20 minutes! Then there was a rather humorous scene as personnel started yelling for supplies, now! I can remember thinking how funny it was that no one was prepared for this baby to come so soon. I calmly asked if they could see the baby’s head, and the midwife told me that they could. I think that I reached back at this point to feel for myself. Then I really started to push as the urge came over me. The pain of the contractions seemed to disappear and pushing felt like a relief. I kept waiting to experience the “ring of fire”, when the baby’s head crowns and stretches the perineum, but I never felt a thing. I was pushing through several contractions when I suddenly stopped and asked if she had hair. My husband thinks I’m crazy for doing that, but I really wanted to know. I’m not sure what I would have done if they had said no, but luckily they said yes, and I calmly resumed pushing with the next urge.

Shortly after this, the baby’s heart tones went down on the monitor. I wasn’t concerned as this can be very normal when a baby comes through the birth canal. They put an oxygen mask on me to help bring it up, and when that did not help, the staff seemed to panic a bit. I wasn’t worried until I heard the midwife say that although she knew I did not want one, she would need to give me an episiotomy to get the baby out quickly. I heard the unmistakable threat of a surgical intervention, and that did it for me. I gave one last big push, and Ava Marie came out head and body with the same push. My husband said she shot right out of me. Not exactly the gentle ending to her birth that I had envisioned, but I DID IT! My beautiful 8lb. 3oz., 21 ½ inch girl was born.

I heard the person who came to do the episiotomy walk in, and upon seeing the baby, she offered her congratulations and left. I had the satisfaction of outwitting them on that count! Unfortunately, due to the rapid delivery, I did require stitches. It was a small price to pay for a vaginal birth, and the look on my face as I whipped my head around to my husband was priceless. We have this on tape, me grinning like the Cheshire cat, ear to ear. I have never felt so powerful, beautiful, brave, and more like I woman than I did at that moment.

My best advice? Hire a doula. It is well worth the money and helps take the pressure off of your birth partner. Take a Bradley prepared childbirth class, even if this isn’t your first child and you have already taken a hospital sponsored class. You will not regret it. I read many books by Dr. and Martha Sears, and they were all great. Immerse yourself in the culture of natural childbirth, whether online or in your community. It is out there, so go out and find it. Birth is an experience that you owe to yourself to own completely. It is too easy in this society to have that taken from us. And most importantly of all, believe in your God given ability to birth your baby!

We are now planning the conception time for our third child and are really looking forward to a homebirth!