Hey folks - I was at my 37 week appointment today and just found out in all likelihood that our little lady will probably have to be a C-section baby because I guess I'm quite small. Now, that's fine with me (I'm open to whatever is safer for her and always have been), but I have no clue what to expect because all the birth classes tend to go really quickly through C-sections, instead focusing on labor and vaginal birth. What was everyone's experience?
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@maddy - you must be do excited to meet you LO in just a few short weeks! A thread was recently started that is very similar to yours and you might find it helpful - my own experience is in that thread too. I hope all goes well!
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@ElisaT: ah, awesome! thanks for the link - I'll check it out!
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I was told the same thing... I had a vaginal birth.
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@lovelife: yeah, at our next appointment we're going to get a second opinion since we're seeing another doctor in the practice at that point (there are about 8 or 9 doctors at the group I go to, and they encourage us to see each one at least once). If she feels the same way, we're just going to have a planned C section because everything I hear says it's much better and safer to preplan than to try to do vaginal only to have an emergency C section.
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@Maddy: it is because your baby is big?
i pushed for 3 hours and ended up with a c section with my first child. i wrote a post on what to expect here:
http://www.hellobee.com/2011/09/27/what-to-expect-when-youre-expecting-a-c-section/
it wasn't scary at all for me, and the recovery wasn't that bad (thank goodness for percocet!). a scheduled c-section also has the bonus of you being able to plan for everything ahead of time.
i would like to know why they would suggest one though because you're small. i find doctors are often off when estimating baby weight.
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@Mrs. Bee: no, it's about my physical build. apparently my pelvis and canal are much smaller than normal, enough that there are concerns of even me being able to deliver an average sized baby naturally. the first I've heard of it was today, but apparently for this baby (and any subsequent ones) I'd likely have to get a c-section for safety reasons. again, we're going to get a second opinion just to make sure (though I have a huge amount of trust for the doctors at my practice, they've always been great) since we see a different doctor at my clinic next week, but I was a little taken aback when I was told this today because I had always thought of it as a worst case scenario situation rather than a "highly likely" one - I was open to it either way, but it took me a minute to settle into the idea that a vaginal birth wasn't what was likely in store for me. However, I realized pretty quickly that I had no idea what to expect since they don't spend a lot of time on it in birth classes...
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No experience- Just wanted to say good luck!
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@artbee: thanks so much! that's really sweet
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@Maddy: ah wow! well i hope that everything goes smoothly. i was actually way more scared to attempt a vbac than get another c section. if that's the route you have to go, it'll be ok!
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@Mrs. Bee: thanks! I'm sure it will be!
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It's great you're getting a 2nd opinion! Being proactive about your healthcare and all that!
Try searching for some videos on youtube.
And good luck!
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Don't worry too much about it! A few of my friends who've had both say the c-section recovery wasn't any worse than the vbac. My doc gave me an option of doing vbac this time around (if the baby is small enough) and I told him I'd like to just go with a c-section since my recovery wasn't bad at all the first time. What's most important is a healthy baby. Good luck!!!
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@Maddy: my drs. office is the same. I had to see all the drs. which is nice and not so nice all at the same times . I was kind of relieved when she mentioned c-section, but when I mentioned it to the nurse while being induced she said to just see how the induction goes... (I think my dr. was taking into consideration that at 39 weeks baby hadn't dropped, so she thought there wasn't enough room for her to drop and she wanted to get the baby out before the 40 week mark) good luck!
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I had a planned section, and from what Ive found, sections without laboring first are a MUCH easier recovery than laboring before proceeding to the c-sec. I wrote my story over on wedding bee here http://boards.weddingbee.com/topic/baby-kellyvs-birth-story
there is all sorts of info there.
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I had an emergency c-section. If you need one, have it scheduled. I lucked out and didn't have any tearing/repercussions from being induced and pushing for 3 hours but I would NEVER suggest that if they're leaning towards a c-section in the first place.
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Thanks guys! Super helpful information.
@venice4504: I was planning that anyway. I had a pretty long convo with my husband last night about it, and that was my point of view anyway - if I know probability says I'll have to have a c-section, I'd prefer to just go ahead and do it rather than go into labor hoping for that 20% chance I might be able to delivery vaginally. Seems like it makes everything more complicated.
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