I am hoping to VBAC with DS this fall but don't have a MW or a doula. I am just seeing my OB who is allowing me to try for a VBAC as long as I don't go past my due date and baby is vertex.
Should I seek a doula? Any feedback/suggestions are welcomed.
TIA
Re: Anyone VBAC w/o a doula or MW?
I'd say get a doula if you aren't comfortable with your OB and don't think they have your best interests...
I've discussed at length my wishes/concerns and my OB and I have a plan in place. She wont induce (I wouldn't be comfortable with this anyway) and while she is okay letting me go a bit beyond my due date, I am not. We've gone over everything, so that we are on the same page...I think this is very important. GL
Yeah, the due date thing is a problem. My OB said the same thing and I ran screaming out the door (ok not literally). A truly VBAC supportive provider does not impose those types of restrictions - unless there are other medical conditions (GD or something).
I would not even consider my next birth without a doula. I feel like I was led astray and generally unsupported by some of the nurses and some of the OBs during my entire first labor. As luck would have it, when it came time to get the baby out - I ended up with the worst nurse and the worst OB. A doula could have helped me speak up - but instead I was exhausted, in pain and went along with whatever they said.
This! I so wish I had had a doula with a larger "bag of tools" to draw from to deal with extended/stalled labor. And to be my advocate when the CNMidwife, OB and nurses all voted csection...
That have been studies (cited in the latest ACOG VBAC practice bulletin from last year) that show it decreases VBAC success rates, but doesn't increase risk of rupture. That said, I'm pretty sure going past your EDD has a higher incidence of C/S in moms without a history of surgical birth, too, doesn't it? I agree that a supportive provider is paramount, and I wouldn't be comfortable with not being allowed to go past my EDD either. To directly quote the practice bulletin, "Although chances of success may be lower in more advanced gestations, gestational age of greater than 40 weeks alone should not preclude TOLAC."
Personally, I planned on having a doula with this baby, but my CNM says most of her patients that have had them haven't felt like they were necessary with her, because she is there for so much of their labor. I have a friend that is a doula that may come (she lives out of state but she said she wants me to call her) but that's it. If I were going for a VBAC with an Ob/Gyn, I think I absolutely would have hired a doula.
Good luck!
Sarah - 12/23/2008
Alex - 9/30/2011
"I say embrace the total geek in yourself and just enjoy it. Life is too short to be cool." - Shirley Manson, Garbage
I'm attempting a vbac as long as i go into labor on my own and show up at the hospital in labor. They're letting me go 1wk past my due date.
All i have is my regular ob. I don't feel the need to have a midwife/doula. I already had a vag. delivery w/ my 1st and it went pretty smooth.
GL!