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Turn baby turn tribe?

876 views 11 replies 6 participants last post by  Louisep 
#1 ·
Anyone trying to get their baby to turn? Either from breech, transverse, or OP? My baby is stuck stuck stuck in transverse and it's freaking me out. DS1 was head down by 28 weeks and engaged very early on (albeit OP until pushing) and DS2 has been transverse for weeks. I'm now heading into my 34th week and although my doula keeps telling me there's time and I have awesome midwives on my side, it's keeping me awake at night worrying.

I'm doing yoga poses every night, acupuncture including moxibustion, and seeing the chiropractor.

Maybe we can support each other with what we're doing and share stories of mamas who had successful vaginal births even though their LOs were in funky positions until the last moment.

Anyone?
 
#2 ·
Hi Louise!

I am big into baby positioning after my last labor with an OP baby. I am doing pelvic tilts, hamstring stretches, tailor sitting, and chiro. I'm also avoiding reclining positions and sitting on my big ball.
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Here's a list of daily activities from Spinningbabies.com.

Breech is a whole different ballgame, though, and I have zero experience with that. I am also not very familiar with transverse positioning.

There was a face presentation in either the July or August DDC -- a successful vaginal delivery! That kind of birth story gives me a lot of hope.

Louise, I hope your baby pops out of that transverse position!
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#3 ·
I have a baby that really prefers to be OP. I am 34 weeks, so I have a little bit of time. My first was posterior and I had a very very very very long labor and lots and lots of back labor/pain. My second was positioned better and I had 3 hours of intense labor and he just slipped right out, so I am a little frustrated at having an OP baby right now. :) I do love to feel the kicks and wiggles, but I am ready for him to finish rotating.

I spend a lot of time on my hands and knees, do pelvic tilts through the day, tailor sit, hardly ever sit on the couch, all those good things. I even did an inversion when he was transverse about a month ago and that did the trick! Baby will swivel but not stick where I want him. I do know that I have an anterior placenta so that doesn't help him out any.

I know that he will be where he wants to be when labor starts, but I like to know that I did what I could to encourage a better position. This will be baby #3 in 3 years so I am kinda hoping that since everything is a little looser than my first OP labor that this one will be easier than that one.
 
#4 ·
The tub really helped my OP labor and for a first birth it was relatively quick. I went into labor proper at midnight and gave birth at 1pm. I used the tub at home and then waterbirth tub at the hospital. Just before transition I was losing it and had saline water syringed into my lower back. It's supposed to block the pain, but I can't say it worked and the pain of the water going in was worse than anything! It's supposed to help some moms having a natural OP labor though. DS1 finally turned while I was pushing.

So what is the best way to sit? Is crosslegged on the floor good? I find that comfortable and prevents me from slouching. I'll have to look up tailor sitting.
 
#5 ·
My water always breaks super early and I have never been allowed to use the tub. My midwife has a TENS unit that we can try if I need it.
I think sitting cross-legged is the same as tailor sitting. My midwife told me that the more I can do hands and knees and/or leaning over will help.
I don't know of my midwife does the sterile water injections, it doesn't sound like I want to try it though. Lol
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#6 ·
My baby was doing ok and flipped head down for a while and then about 2-3 weeks ago flipped into frank breech. Since then I've been doing a ton of tailor sitting and spending hours sitting on a birth ball to open up the pelvis. That was all while taking the CLC course. I was very happy when one of the Healthy Children's Project faculty suggested I bring in a birth ball to sit on - 9 hours a day was a long time just sitting!! Anyways, one night I felt DS2 move into tranverse again and immediately did a sort of modified downward dog type position (on my knees, but way up in the air and shoulders to the floor).

I went in for an u/s yesterday to confirm positioning to see if an external version needed to be scheduled and I was very happy to find out he flipped head down again! There is still plenty of amniotic fluid so he still has room to move. I'm praying he stays put and in a position so I don't have to deal with back labor (I forget if that's anterior or posterior....). If he was still breech I would have asked my CNM about chiro (webster technique)...
 
#7 ·
I've just had an emotionally charged up and down week. I had an ultrasound last week for position and babe was sideways. With the full moon that weekend, the babe was moving around a lot. It got to the point that the movement was very painful at time. Wednesday came and midwife had me booked for another positional ultrasound for Friday with a consult with an OB if the baby was not head down. Midwife checked position herself and found that the baby was breech and I had 2 days to change that. I lost my mind. I've had 2 VBACs one being at home with my third. Having a possible consult with an OB scared me because not all are midwife friendly and none of them are homebirth friendly and it would have been in my file about the homebirth with my third. This pregnancy was an emotional one for me from the start and this seemed to be the last straw. I wanted to give up. I had a 3 hour nap when I got back from the midwife. I got a bit of fight back into me.

The chiro I have been using had been doing Webster technique on me for the past little bit to make sure that everything was in place and because he was closer to me I felt I was in good care. A voice in my head to me to phone up a chiro I had used in previous pregnancies who had also done the Webster on me because her manipulations were just different. She fit me in at the end of the day on Thursday.

Thursday comes and I'm an emotional wreck. The end of the day couldn't come quick enough. I went to see the chiro, we had a chat before she started her thing. She started with her releasing technique, thumped on my chest and pushed away energy.....I started bawling. She told me to let it out and she kept going. Next she pulled up on my cheekbones and with her fingers stretched out the back of my head. Then she went to work to turn this babe. She put her finger in my belly button, pushed in a little and said that there was some tension but it wasn't coming from my uterus. Keep in mind I'm still weeping and crying. She felt around in my groin area under my belly, and said there was tension coming from within my pelvis. She got in position and started to push on the tension knot. This really hurt, but in a good way! I cried, but it wasn't from the uncomfortable feeling. It was more that this was where the emotional tension from this pregnancy was hiding. Within a minute, I stopped crying and I felt rejuvenated. She kept pushing and I could feel things shifting and the baby started shifting. She pushed some more and kept getting deeper in the pelvis. All this hurt and burned, but still in that good and productive way. When she finished, baby was still breech but had changed position. My belly was softer, there was no more pointy belly!

On the way home, I felt on the moon. My hubby told me I looked like I was high. I was floating. I know that sounds so crazy, but something within me was released. I was able to have a conversation with my hubby, without crying, about what we wanted to come out of our talk with the OB if we had to see him. He told me he hasn't been able to have a conversation like that with me for awhile. I took some pulsatilla before bed watched the baby move transverse then fell asleep. Woke up the next morning to the baby punching/kicking me on the right side. I wasn't sure if the baby had turned all the way around because the movement was similar to what I had been feeling when babe was breech. Off to the ultrasound. The tech was not the best. He said that a breech changing position is statistically rare from what he has seen especially at 38 weeks. He pretty much laid it out that there was no hope. So he started the scan. After having 3 other pregnancies one would think I could pick something out. No way, the images were all blurry and the tech was saying nothing. NOTHING AT ALL! After about 5 minutes and me thinking that we're seeing the OB since he was taking different panoramic scans with the machine, he said, "Well, that would be the head....back is on your left....bum up here and legs with the feet on your right." The baby was head down!!!!!! He said that he was surprised and that we were free to leave since we didn't need the consult. I couldn't leave the hospital fast enough.

I had another appt with the chiro that afternoon and she was just as happy as I was. She worked on the tension spot some more and I have another appt with her next week. Another homebirth is back on track! I am so grateful that I listened to my little voice that told me to call the other chiro.

Thanks for reading this, I know that it's long winded. I needed to share out open with others that will get it.
 
#8 ·
That is such GREAT news! Yeahhhhhh!!!!!! I am a little worried about this baby being breech too. MW said not to "worry" till our next appointment. If we aren't sure at that time, I may go in for a quick U/S to check for sure. Good to know how good these things can work out! Yeahh!
 
#10 ·
Since Wednesday it seems like the baby has dropped. :) Now that I'm at 37 weeks and the u/s showed my boy is head down I'm happy. It's been amazingly stressful for me to deal with all of this. One thing I know this pregnancy has been different from my first. I'm having a lot more downward pressure (nothing like labor) but more pressure on my pubic bone and significant fatigue from even a quick run into the grocery store.

I am so glad to hear that other mamas are dealing with the same kind of thing and that we have something to celebrate in these last few weeks (which at this moment feel like they will last much longer than it really will!).
 
#11 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by time4latte View Post

Since Wednesday it seems like the baby has dropped. :) Now that I'm at 37 weeks and the u/s showed my boy is head down I'm happy. It's been amazingly stressful for me to deal with all of this. One thing I know this pregnancy has been different from my first. I'm having a lot more downward pressure (nothing like labor) but more pressure on my pubic bone and significant fatigue from even a quick run into the grocery store.

I am so glad to hear that other mamas are dealing with the same kind of thing and that we have something to celebrate in these last few weeks (which at this moment feel like they will last much longer than it really will!).
I am so glad your baby is head-down!
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That's wonderful news!
 
#12 ·
Yay to all the turning babies! I'm joining you in the head down gang! It happened after acupuncture and burning moxa sticks on the point on my little toes. Not only is he head down but he's LOA! I'm so excited and hope he stays that way.

My midwife said a great thing to me. She said "not to claim it" ie if he was still not in the right position not to get depressed by it. And I think not stressing about it is the only way to go.
 
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