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VBAC
New here
Hi Ladies
Im new to this board. I have 3 boys and 28wks pregnant with baby girl! My first 2 babies were vaginal births and my 3rd was emergency csection due to low fluid and him being breech. This time around I want to have a VBAC. My Dr said she does do them and we would talk more at 37 wks to see if a VBAC is best or another csection.
My concern is if I have a VBAC i will most likely be induced..i have heard mixed things about this.. can anyone give me any insight on VBAC and/or VBAC with induction. Im so lost and scared as i hear mixed things about VBAC in general.
TIA
This discussion has been closed.
Re: New here
Why would your VBAC be induced? There is lots of research that the risk of rupture (which is relatively low to begin with) goes up when induction is used.
As for your VBAC, because you have had 2 prior vaginal births your chance at a successful VBAC is extremely high. Add to that that your baby was a c/s due to position and your VBAC success rate goes up again. You are a great candidate for VBAC.
My VBAC was induced with pitocen. While it is true this increases the chance of rupture slightly, it is still an extremely small risk. Inductions with cervadil increase the chances much more which is why this is not used in VBACs.
In any case, I agree that you are a great VBAC candidate and I can't imagine why you'd need to be induced. But if you have any questions about an induced VBAC, let me know! I had a great experience and a successful VBAC so I know it can be done.
Welcome to the board! I agree that it sounds like you are a great VBAC candidate.
How much has your doctor talked to you about VBAC? It worries me a little that you said she will talk to you more at 37 weeks. Is she open and willing to talk about delivery now? I would want to know things like her VBAC success rate, her overall cesarean rate, what kinds of restrictions she places on VBAC, etc. If she won't talk to you about that stuff at all or won't talk about it until the end of your pregnancy, that would make me worries that she's not really supportive of VBAC.
Why would you probably need an induction?
I had brought up VBAC to my dr from the begining and she mentioned she does them and csections all the time. I dont really know alot about VBAC so at the time I didnt know what ?'s to ask. kinda still dont. I had told her im feel a closer bond when i delivered vaginally than with csection. She said no problem. She made it seem like we would talk about it at 37wks because she wanted to see how my cervix was. Like i said i didnt know what to ask so i accepted the 37 wks answer. At the same appt I had asked about being induced (not knowing the risk or that there even was one) because we just moved across country and know NO ONE. I have 3 other kids that will need to have someone with them when im in L&D..so my thought was if i can be induced then i could plan. ( im a big planner, and i know that babies are a hard thing to plan as they come when they're ready..lol) I was induced with my other kids all for different reasons.. the first i was to continue my labor, the second was too much fluid and the 3rd was the emergency csection due to not enough fluid and breech. All in all she seemed to have no problems with any of my "planning". She did mention i would be a good for a VBAC and if any thing were to happen then the room for csection is right there..she was postive so it seemed..
Since i do like to "plan" i hate waiting till 37wks...do any of you ladies have ?'s i should ask her. I feel so lost.
Induction can be a great thing. There is sometimes a medical reason to call for it, and I may be in the minority in this board, but I'm also not 100% against doing it for personal reasons. But the thing is that the risks of induction depend on how ready your body is for it at the time that you're induced. Let's say at 37 weeks, you grab a calendar and pick a date that looks nice about 2 weeks down the road. You have no idea at 37 weeks how favorable you will look at 39 weeks. In fact, you have no idea at 38 weeks and 6 days how favorable you will look at 39 weeks. Especially if there is not a medical need, that would concern me. What if you go in at 39 weeks and your cervix is high, thick, and closed? Even though you planned it and it worked out well with your schedule, your body didn't go along with it. Your chances of a failed induction would be really high, and especially as a VBACer, I can't even imagine a doctor being willing to do that.
My personal opinion? Decide what's more important to you: planning, or vaginal birth. I don't think there's a wrong answer there. If it's important to you to set up child care, pick the date, and show up at the hospital ready to receive your baby, then an RCS can be a great option for you. A planned cesarean is emotionally and physically a very different thing from an emergency one. Look up info on gentle, family-centered cesareans. You can make it into a beautiful experience! OTOH, if a vaginal birth (or any of the specific benefits that go along with it) is important to you, that's great too! But I don't think VBAC and picking a date of convenience go together very well. Just my 2 cents.
Things you could ask: what's your VBAC success rate? How many VBACs have you done? Do you have requirements for VBAC patients that differ from 'regular' vaginal birth patients? (some docs require extra monitoring, epidurals, etc.)
You might also ask to talk more about induction. Will you induce me as a VBACer on the date of my choice, without medical indication? What drugs are you willing to use? What if my bishop score is really low? If we plan an induction, but I am not favorable on that day, what then?
I personally would be wary of scheduling an induction, but then my c/s was a result of a failed induction, so I'm rather biased. Ditto pp - what your cervix looks like at 37 weeks has very little to do with what it will look like later, so frankly, to me that would not be any indication of your VBAC chances (I wasn't even 1 cm and baby was high at that point, but I had my VBAC).
As for the induction, while I probably wouldn't go directly to a RCS myself (as caring for 4 kids with the recovery isn't going to be an easy task), there are slightly higher risks (very minimal if it is done carefully), and of course the increased risk of another c/s if your body doesn't take to the induction. I'd see if you can get some friends or family to come and stay with you the last few weeks. Obviously, not necessarily doable, but if you have a retired family member who is willing...
Whatever you decide, best of luck! I hope you have a great experience and an easy recovery.