2. Failure to progress? Um. Most likely failure to wait.
3. Previous cesareans increase chances of placenta previa, placenta accreta, placenta increta, placenta percreta.
4. Babies are designed for vaginal birth. Wet lungs are more common for section babies because the fluid from their lungs is not squeezed out during labor.
5. Doctor error.
6. Cesareans are major abdominal surgeries.
7. Your cesarean section's recovery time coincides with the very special time you are initiating breastfeeding and bonding with your newborn.
8. Labor and delivery is good for women. Our bodies are designed for birth.
9. Hospital acquired infections.
10. VBAC is a safe and reasonable option for most women.
I often think about how it just took a friend's casual question of my interest in natural childbirth during Liza's early pregnancy to spark my path to a homebirth and full-fledge birth junky. So, to all my previous c-section mamas, please know a VBAC is a very real option! If your current provider does not agree with ACOG's recommendation that VBAC is a safe and reasonable option for most women, find a new provider!
Interested in learning more about VBAC? Find a local ICAN chapter or join the forums.
Did you have a VBAC? Are you planning a VBAC?
* Don't like this list? You weren't the only one........read my followup post here.
6 comments:
I was probably one of the rare ones who couldn't. :( First baby was C-section after I failed to progress even after pictocin. Pushed for hours with my other two and could never get anywhere. With my third I had so many complications from pushing for hours, and they finally did a c-section and it ripped my cervix because she was sort of 'stuck' when they pulled her out. I hemorrhaged two weeks later and had to be rushed to the hospital by ambulance. I felt so guilty for years, and wondered what I was doing wrong. Went to the chiropractor years later and when they did xrays he found my pelvic bone was bent at an angle that would have never allowed me to have babies vaginally. I was so thankful to have found that out as I carried so much guilt and blamed myself for all of those years. Having said that, my case is probably rare and I think it's always a good idea to try for a vaginal birth if possible after previous c-sections!
Anon, I'm glad you got an answer for the reason you couldn't push your babies out. I'm sure that put your mind at ease concerning your previous births. But, no matter what, your body and your babies still got most of the benefits of labor if your TOL lasted through the pushing phase. Thank you for commenting.
While VBAC may be most ideal, we must remember that some women aren't capable of having a VBAC and their only other option is having a section. A woman that has a bicornuate uterus most likely won't be able to have a VBAC because baby won't be able to flip around and will stay breached. Obviously, that is not safe and it is not their fault. I am sure women that have these medical issues that prevent them from having a baby the way their body was intended for them to, are aware that they have increased chances of placenta previa, placenta accreta, placenta increta, placenta percreta and wet lungs. I am sure they have heard people say that having a section will interfere with their recovery time that coincides with initiating breastfeeding and bonding, but we must stay open minded about the reasons some people have sections. "10 reasons not to have an elective cesarean section" Maybe some people who really want to have babies and were devastated when the doctor told them at 36 weeks that having a VBAC wasn't possible won't feel as bad when they read things like this because I can only imagine how it would make me feel to constantly see and hear people say things like this without considering that it is more than to "just have a VBAC or to "just have a section."
I must also say that I know women who didn't have any problems bonding or breastfeeding with their newborn after their cesereans. AND it was worth doing it again to have another precious little child, even with the increased risks.
You are a very young mom and I appreciate your enthusiasm but as you grow as a mother- your ideas and opinions will change.
I agree with a VBAC but sometimes it's just not worth it and dangerous!
sandy toe
I’ve held my breath for long enough. An elective cesarean is just as personal and wonderful of an experience as any other birth choice, Laura. Just because a woman cannot, or chooses not to to have VBAC does not mean that she has not been highly educated and informed of her choices. As a mother who had two elective C-sections, I find it highly offensive to hear such close-minded attitudes regarding this issue. Not only because my decision/birth choice was just as meaningful to me as yours was to you, but because there are other mothers who did envision a unmedicated vaginal birth or even a medicated vaginal birth and simply could not. I think your sanctimonious tone could be damaging to a new mother’s spirit who truly did not wish for a cesarean.
I could go on and on about the disadvantages and risks assumed during a VBAC just as you could of the reasons to have a VBAC, but honestly it's not my place because I did not elect a VBAC, and it really only seems that you compile statistics and evidence that only further support your own ideals.
While the percentages of having a complication during VBAC may be low, due to increased medical technology and our bodies' natural ability to heal then deliver another child, the severity of uterine rupture for mother and baby was not something I viewed as my most responsible decision to the almost two-year old I was caring for already.
When you successfully have a VBAC, I would then consider you to be qualified to speak your opinions on the issue.
Anon, duly noted and thank you for the respectful comment.
Shell in Your Pocket, I found your comment rather condescending.......
Melissa, if you have such problems with my blog and my opinions perhaps you would prefer not to read OMML.
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