Possible change of plans ( long but please read) Thanks!

[DollPosse]

I went into labour on the 10th and I went into hospital. I had chosen to VBAC because of all the benefits and I wanted a far better birthing experience than what I had with the birth of my first child. The experience was horrible. I hadn’t slept for 30 hours, I couldn’t eat, or really drink any water. I had to have my cerclage removed immediately because my cervix was pulling at it. The removal was supposed to be a 5 minutes long with the most painful part having the speculum put in. I had to be gassed until I was semi unconscious for about 30 minutes to remove the suture. I was almost sent to the O.R because the removal was not going as planned. After that I was 2 cm dilated and 60% effaced. I had to have an IV and 4 of my veins blew while trying to get an IV in. The IV fluids all went into my skin leaving my hands and arms swollen, burning, and painful. I told them of this issue beforehand and they just kept trying until they called an Anesthesiologist to come and start one. I have SPD and to do the removal and vaginal exams they had to hold my legs apart and hold them down. That was very painful and afterwards I could barely walk. Since I was not full-term I had to stick to my bed and have constant fetal monitoring. (both IV and constant fetal monitoring I will have to have early or not) I also had to stick to my bed because I could not move from the waist down. I had to stay for hours contracting strongly and I was so exhausted. Finally after hours of contractions but no progress they sent me home. Only near the end did they let me eat or drink. I felt awful from the gas it was worse than having a general.

With my SPD I have difficulty moving and I can’t see how I am going to be able to move around an IV pole and keep myself moving. I will have to have constant monitoring and even though in my birth plan I asked for a telemetric monitor I still ended up in bed the whole time. I was in pain from the contractions, the IV mess and the removal. I was so exhausted that I could even barely get to the bathroom. I know that I will not have to worry about a cerclage removal when I go to have my baby but I have a difficult time seeing how I am going to effectively labour and give birth knowing and be happy with the experience when the weekend was a preview of what is to come. I see my clinic on Tueday and I am thinking of electing to have another C Section. I feel bad because I really wanted to VBAC but when I left the hospital on the weekend I couldn’t stop crying and I felt so awful. I felt like a complete failure. I felt worse than I did after the birth of my first child. I made a pro and con list for both a VBAC and a C Section and the C Section came out the winner because so many positive outcomes of my VBAC were dependent upon ideals rather than a likely reality. Right now it seems that the goal I wanted for my baby and myself can still be achieved with a C Section which I what is most important to me. I think a planned out C Section would serve as a better birthing experience and a better birthing experience will make more for a happy mum and baby.

Thank you for reading and responding

 

[Menelly]

I kind of went thru the same waffling in my head. I originally really wanted a VBAC. I had it all in my head, how beautifully it was going to go, etc.

Then the realities of what makes me high risk went thru my head, my doctor sat down and told me some of the risks, and I remembered that the only important thing out of any birth plan is a happy and healthy mom and baby. And I can do THAT with a planned c-sec, so I am.

Have you looked at the idea of "natural" c-section? You can google it... the idea is they lower the screen a bit, so they can show you your baby being born, dry the baby off a teeny bit, and immediately put baby on your chest while they're doing the stitches so you get immediate skin to skin. My doctor is willing to do that for me, so I don't feel like I'm missing out on much for the birth process. Could you ask them about that?

It sounds like you've made up your mind for the scheduled c-sec, you just need someone to tell you it's OK to do that. And it is. You're making sure your birth has a happy outcome. That's what really matters, not what exit the baby takes. Good luck, ok?

 

[marley2580]

It's up to you hun, if you really want to VBAC then make sure you have support to refuse things like an IV and continuous monitoring.