Is trying VBAC worth it?

[Mummy_]

Also posting in here as well as the CS forum as hoping to get different views on this.

I had a really traumatic birth with my first and ended up with a crash CS under GA. I still get upset now when I talk about it - 2 years on! The hospital have said that there is no medical reason to have a CS, but I can have one for psychological reasons if I want.
I am thinking of just having another CS so I know that I won't have to go through what I went through before - my minimum criteria is to be awake this time!
I also don't know whether if I went for VBAC I would be able to totally relax after what happened last time, and weirdly whether I would feel guilty for having a natural birth with the 2nd, after the 1st was so far from it and really impacted me emotionally afterwards.

For those that have had a go at VBAC - was it worth it? Did it live up to expectations/hopes? If you ended up with another emergency CS, how did you feel?

 

[tristansmum]

I just had vbac 2 months ago and so happy I did. I had emcs with my first due to brow presentation and failed forceps delivery. I was so upset I'd not pushed him out. It affected our bonding to start with and breast feeding was not successful and I had really bad baby blues not to mention the physical pain afterwards. I was determined to have vbac for my next. It was very important to me to push a baby out myself.
It was very quick (I did get to fully dilated with my first), only 3 hours on hospital. Did it on gas and air. To feel him come out and have him on my tummy straight away was an amazing experience. I did have mild shoulder dystocia at the end which meant I got a second degree tear. It hurt fir about a week but way less than the c section scar. Breast feeding established immediately, I bonded straightaway and no baby blues at all. So all in all totally worth it!

 

[RebaRezzelba]

I just had a VBAC (on 8th August) - it was a different experience..... Lol!!!

I had a c section due to breech presentation so there was no real reason for me not to try for a VBAC. I'm glad now that I did. Don't get me wrong it was the most painful and scary experience of my life. I had an episiotomy cos pushing for nearly 3 hrs - but it's great being able to move about and not worry about my scar rupturing. My rear end is swollen but that's manageable.

You sound like you had a really traumatic experience with your 1st. Maybe some hypnotherapy could help you over come any fears and maybe you could try for a VBAC ?....

 

[nursemom3]

I have had two VBACs and my first VBAC was the best experience of my life. My 2nd one was great also, but that first one was just SO amazing!! There is no way I can imaging ever choosing a surgical birth over that amazing experience. It was beautiful and NOTHING like my first birth experience. I had a rough first labor experience as well but my VBAC labor was totally different. You can't compare one birth to the next. All labors are SO different.

Go for VBAC. It's SO worth it!!