A question for C/S Mamas

je2161

My DD was born via section due to fetal distress during pushing. I want my children to be close in age, so we will be TTC in the near future. My OB recommended that I wait at least 1 year before TTC for a rcs and 2 years before TTC for a vbac. I would like to have my second child via VBAC, but I am still considering the rcs.

Did anyone here have a c/s with the first child? Did you decide to have a vbac or rcs with the second? What was your reasoning? How far apart were the births, and did that coincide with your OB's recommendations?  TIA!

csells021383

My first was c/s due to Pre-E. With my 2nd I opted to have a repeat c/s.

I just don't have any desire to have a vaginal birth. My two kiddos are 8 years apart. But when we try for #3 I will be opting for a repeat c/s. My OB suggested waiting a year before another repeat c/s. 

On a side note*, for me personally the 2nd c/s went much more smooth.

csells021383

Oops! I just realized I was *lurking* on 2u2! I don't have 2u2!

howleyshell

I was offered a VBAC with mine 17 months apart.

According to my OB the most recent data regarding risks of uterine rupture is much lower than once thought.

Perhaps do a bit of digging around in medical journals regarding the risks of VBAC in regards to time between section and VBAC attempt to reassure yourself and then make a case with your OB?

FWIW - I declined and did another section so I can't tell you how a VBAC actually went that close together but I will tell you that the OB who did my 2nd section told me that it was totally fine that I was pregnant again with a 3rd who would have been 27 months later.

He said my uterus looked great when he was in there doing my 2nd section so he had no concerns.

GL with your decisions! 

lkf041

I had a c/s with #1 and I wanted to vbac with #2 however, I ended up with a RCS instead.  Mine are 18 months apart.  #2 and #3 will be 18 months apart again and I will be attempting a vba2c this time around.  Obviously things may change as it gets closer to the end but I have never been told you HAVE to wait to have a vbac. 

Are you sure your ob is vbac friendly?  I thought mine was until they placed a few restrictions on me in the end of my pregnancy that resulted in the rcs (one was I could not go past my due date).  I strongly suggest contacting your local ICAN chapter to see if they have a list of vbac friendly docs.  Without doing this I probably would have never found a doc who is willing to at least let me try a vba2c.

Good luck with everything! 

 

kcisthebombdotcom

My births were 12.5 months apart.

My OB said he would let me attempt a VBAC if I went into labor naturally, but was not comfortable inducing me. I ended up with a rcs because I never went into labor on my own.

vanessaNOV2

C/s with ds#1 after fetal distress. My ob gave me option to try for vbac but I was more comfortable planning a c/s bc I knew what to expect & to me was kess complicated. I did have to be induced for ds#1 so I also didnt think mybody would start contracting in time to do a vbac with ds#2. My kids are 13 months apart. I also had placenta previa with ds#2 bc they were so close together.

biblionerd

CS with #1 and OB told me she recommends only a year between actual deliveries. I personally feel more comfortable with a RCS regardless, but she told me as long as everything was progressing normally that a vbac would be an option still.

mayowife

My 1st c-section was Dec 09. When I went for my postpartum checkup I did not discuss family planning with my doctor. When I went for my pap a few months later I discussed TTC with my nurse practitioner. She never mentioned anything about a time frame between c-sections. She just cautioned me against getting upset if it took a while to get pregnant because I was breastfeeding.

I got pregnant again in Aug 2010. My OB recommended a repeat c-section. My due dates were 16 months apart. My perinatologist said that I should have waited until I would have at least 18 months between c-section deliveries. All of my doctors agreed that I should have a RCS at 38 weeks because my due dates were less than 18 months apart.

In addition to doctor recommendations I wanted a RCS because I had a good experience during and after my first delivery. I had another great experience this time around and will opt for RCS with future babies.

erbear

I had a c-section with DD1 after a failed induction and 4 hours of pushing.

I tried to VBAC with #2. went into labor on my own. Pushed for 2 hours, but her heartrate was dropping and we opted for a RCS. I wanted to try to VBAC because it's healthier and safer for mom and baby. I wanted to be able to pick up my older DD. Alas, not to be, and my second section was an easy recovery so whatever.

My girls are 23 months apart and my OB was fine with that.

mrsseguin

DS was a c/s for failed forceps.  My OB recommended waiting a year before TTC.  I ended up having a few m/c's.  My kids are 25 months apart.  I got pre-e with DD and had a RCS.  My OB never said anything about how close in age they were...

ShannonSky

I had a C-section with DD1 due to fetal distress (did not make it to labor). I'm going to attempt a VBAC, but my midwife is not comfortable using pitocin on primary C-section patients, which I am fine with, so if I get to my due date, I will have a repeat C-section. My main motivators behind doing a VBAC this time is the lower rate of maternal mortality (I believe it's something like 2/100,000 for VBAC and 10/100,000 for RCS), and length of healing time (this time around, I have a toddler who needs me home and up and running ASAP). My midwife didn't have any specific recommendations on when we could TTC again, and knew we were not preventing when I went in for my 6 week PP appt. This baby is due exactly one week after DD1's second birthday.

Daisy22

My 1st c/s was due to lack of progress. Water broke at home, even with pitocin i couldn't get past 1cm, then DS1 came out 9lbs 12oz and looking like a 1 month old. My OB said that the best thing is to not get pg within a 1 while after finished BF DS1 at 6 months old I got pg again. It was complete surprise since it took us a while to pg with DS1.

 I had a repeat c/s with DS2 but I had no desire for a VBAC. My sister tried for a VBAC with my niece and was in the percentile that have a uterus reputure. After seeing that I had absolutely no desire to try. Plus my OBs only let you do a VBAC if you go into labor on your own and they will not let you go past 41wks.

My sons are 15 1/2 months apart.

Fussalopesmom

We'll LO#2 isn't born yet but I had a c/s with DS because of fetal distress/failure to progress.  My DR recomended that I wait about 1yr - 18mons before we TTC but obviously that happened alot sooner! At my most recent appointment my DR said that we could still try for a VBAC even though it'll only be 14 months since my last c/s. I think it all depends on what the DR feels comfortable with and what resources your hospital has.

Even though I want a VBAC I'll probably have a rcs just because of some pg complications that I had last time around that have already started this time (PIH, etc)

Good luck!

moonfaerie

My two are 14 months apart, and I opted for RCS. My OB had no problem with me getting pg fiveish months after giving birth. She would have let me attempt VBAC but I had no desire. Both of my kids were scheduled c/s because I have a broken tailbone, and I'll take the certainty of healing from a c/s over the possiblity of suffering from a re-broken tailbone any day.

Additionally, both times there were medical issues that made it better to have c/s than to squeeze through the birth canal. DD1 had a mass in her pelvis that was thought to be either a bowel obstruction or ovarian cyst (it was the cyst, thank God) and it could have ruptured going through the birth canal. I had serious thyroid trouble during my second pregnancy, and it was a possibility that DD2 had a goiter, so the endocrinologist was glad I was having a c/s.

Honestly I wouldn't let a dr's opinion influence my family planning unless there was a real, serious medical reason to not get pg. Plenty of us have gotten pg within months of giving birth and lived to tell about it.  The repeat c/s was right for me and my family, but  it's understandable to want to try VBAC. Good luck with your decision!