Soon to be mom with a question

dsimmons1107

Hey, I am 37w4d and my baby is still breech.  I was hoping to get some input from mothers who have been through the options.  

1-If your baby turned, how far along were you?  Do I have any hope of the baby turning on its own at this point?

2-If the baby did not turn, did you elect to do and ECV and how successfull/unsucessfull was it? 

 TIA.  I just want to be realistic about the next 2 weeks:) 

mrsannie

I had an ECV done at 37 weeks and it was successful (and my 1st pg). My baby was born head down at 41 weeks. The ECV was very uncomfortable and pretty scary. My dr does them often and has a great success rate and felt that he could easily get my baby to turn so I felt comfortable with him doing it. I really wanted to avoid a c/s so I am glad I did it. Good luck with what you decide! 

wolfpack61210

My baby never turned.  My husband and I decided it would be best to leave her the way she was.  Having the Doctor try to turn her sounded terribly uncomforable.  Having a C-Section, there were no surprises on when she was coming, we got to pick her birth date.  When she was born, she was born with Hip Dysplasia.  Took 4 months to fix, she had to wear a harness for 24 hours a day.  If the Doctor had tried to turn her, successful or not, it would've been very painful for the baby--her hips would have been pushed out of place.  So we made the right choice.  I hope this helps!

memali26

DD2 flipped back and forth from breech to head down from 28 weeks until delivery at 39. Last u/s at 36 weeks had her breech, last appt at 38 weeks the dr was certain she was head down and she was right. She only weighed 6lbs at birth, though, she had more room to move than many babies at the end

buskey2011

he was breech from 32 weeks untill 38 weeks. he just turned himself around.

law&order

DS was transverse my entire pregnancy until around 35 weeks when he went head down.  Then at 37 or 38 he was back to transverse.  He flipped, on his own, in the middle of an NST at 38+ weeks and stayed that way. 

KBaker421

My son was breech and we didn't realize it until i was about 6cm. (my dr was apparently a dumb ass)

i didn't have any other choice but to be taken back for an immediate Csection.

Sunshine05

My baby was frank breech every time they checked me (was high risk so had lots of u/s).  She flipped to head-down at 36w (was scheduled to deliver at 37w), but flipped back breech the next week so we did a c/s.  We weren't sure she would tolerate a vaginal delivery and I was not favorable for an induction, so we did a scheduled c/s.  Getting her here safe was my # 1 goal and we did that.  Ditto the pp who said to watch for hip dysplasia.  My pedi checked her at each visit and around 8w sent us for a hip u/s which she passed with flying colors.  Even now, she still checks her hips but thankfully they haven't posed a problem!

missyishere

My baby was frank breech and did not move.  I did not do the ECV, but I did some alternative methods to try flipping her.  I had no success with anything flipping her.  I ended up having to do c-section, which seemed so scary at first.  The surgery went very well, and I had a great team in the hospital.  The doctor who performed the surgery said there was no way she was going to flip, because her poor little head was stuck in my rib cage.  I know it isn't something you probably want, because I certainly didn't want to go through surgery.  In the end, I'm just thankful she was delivered safely and came out healthy.

ktshafra

CurlingRocks:

My son was breech (frank breech) for about 3 months before birth.  He was born at 31w 3d, so I had the C-section that I'd discussed with my docs.  (I would have preferred vaginal delivery but it was not an option with my complications.)  My best advice is two-fold:

1) The important thing is to get baby out safely.  Trust me.  Make peace with the fact that the birth plan is not in your control, and allow things to happen as they may.  Discuss your options and likely circumstances with your doc before you get into L&D.  And if things go differently when you are there, ask more questions at that time.  It is truly impossible to plan a birth.  My son and I are living proof of that.  And your baby may still turn.  Some babies turn during labor.  Best of luck!

2) Breech babies are at very high risk for hip dysplasia.  Make sure you ask about it at well-baby checks.  My son's pedi missed it for the first year until I finally asked why he was always on tiptoe as he was learning to stand.  (We have a LOT of medical appointments, including monthly checks with a nurse and also with an occupational therapist, so I'm appalled that no one figured it out before I asked.)  If you catch it before 6 months it is a relatively simple fix, but after that it gets more invasive and complicated.  Hopefully it won't affect your baby.

All great advice. DD was breech from 23 weeks until scheduled c/s and while I continued prepping for a natural birth, I had to take the time to come to terms with the fact that this was the way my daughter wanted/needed to enter the world.  And while hip dysplasia is more common in breech babies, they don't always get it. It runs in my family and DD was/is perfectly healthy and without dysplasia. Though you will want your doctor to check it out for the first few months. 

apeydawn214

DD turned at 37w6d. By 38w1d, she was back to breech. The dr joked that I had a gymnast that just didn't want to lock into one place. I opted for a c/s due to her frequent turning, a narrow birth canal, and other medical complications.