C-sections
Spruce Goose
member
Elective c-section, anyone?
Spruce Goose
member
in C-sections
I know this might be a controversial topic, but please don't be too hard on me. Has anyone scheduled an elective c-section? My placenta is low-lying, so I may need one anyway, but my doctor was willing to schedule one for 39 weeks. I'm 30 weeks now. I want to do whatever is safest for both me and the baby, but part of me likes the idea of having the delivery scheduled. Thoughts?
EDD 7/1/13
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Re: Elective c-section, anyone?
You are absolutely right. I wanted to add that my doctor was ready to schedule the c-section at my last appointment, so she thinks it is a safe option for the baby and for me. I was the one who wanted more time to think about it. My doctor also expressed concern about my size (I'm pretty petite) and my ability to deliver vaginally with minimal damage. I don't want to be in a scenario where I labor for a long time and end up needing a c-section anyway, which, to my understanding, involves increased risks. Thank you for your thoughts. I really appreciate them.
Agree with this 100 percent!!!!!
Mom to Carter (6), and Calianne (1).
Proud VBAC, natural birth, breastfeeding, cloth diapering momma!
i would find a new ob. Your size has nothing to do with your ability to deliver a baby. There are large women who can't deliver a five pound baby and petite women who deliver ten pound babies with minimal tearing. You cannot predict what a woman's pelvis will do when she goes into active labor until she's in active labor. Size is completely irrelevant.
I have delivered both ways. I had tearing and an episiotomy with my vbac. I would NEVER chose to have a csection. My recovery was horrible. Besides that, having a csection adds risks to your future pregnancies. And like Pp said, just because you have a csection scheduled at 39 weeks, that means nothing. I had DS at 38 weeks.
Also, like pp said, it is concerning that your ob thinks you may have trouble delivering the baby due to your size.
Like pp's have said, you could go into labor early so the convenience of scheduling a c section goes right out the window. I can also tell you from personal experience that there is nothing convenient about a c section recovery. For my VBAC I had a second degree and recovery has been a million times easier than my c section. Honestly, the only lingering effect from my vaginal deliveryis that I am having is soreness at my incision site when I turn in bed or move a certain way. I still don't have feeling in parts of my abdomen. My incision site is constantly itchy. My c section was unplanned but they didn't have to run me back to the OR. I just couldn't push her out. I am and L&D nurse and I can tell you that size of either the baby or mom has nothing to do with whether or not the baby comes out safely. Position of the baby is a HUGE factor. Some women say their recoveries are a breeze, but you really won't know until you have a c section. That is not a risk I would ever be willing to take.
This is a decision only you, your husband, and your OB can make. If this is your first there is know way of knowing what kind of recovery you will have regardless of whether or not you have a c-section or a vaginal birth.
I am a FTM and had to have a c-section because my LO's heart rate was dropping with every contraction. I would say that my recovery was really easy. Yes I was in a little bit of pain but nothing unmanageable.
Just remember you are going to have a recovery no matter what. C-sections are not so terrible, IMO, again every experience is different. I would go with whatever option you feel the best and most prepared for.
Good luck!
I have now had an unscheduled c/s have 24 hours of hard labor & a RCS because of medical concerns.... I would never in a million years schedule a c/s just because. And I didn't have any really issues with either c/s or recovery.
I would give almost anything to have a vaginal birth & if I do have a 3rd baby I'm really hoping that a VBA2C isn't out of the question for me.
But no, I wouldn't do it just to have my birth scheduled.
Your OB will have a far better understanding of your condition then a bunch of random posters on the bump. I would be listening to your OB and carefully making a decision based on the information they provide you and your own research.
From my experience if your doc suggests a csection you should do it. I too am very petite. My 1st daughter 8 yrs ago ended in a csection. BUT my doc had suggested a csection and scheduled me but my water broke before the date on a weekend. I went in my doc was not on call. So o told the on call doc i wanted to try a vaginal birth. Never ever again will I go against my doc. I had the worst back labor in the world for hours. Which like o said ended in a csection. This time my doc different doc then 1st once again suggested a csection at 39 weeks and that is what I am doing this time :.
I had an elective c section with my first. Recovery was not bad at all. The most painful part of the procedure was having the IV put in. I would absolutely do it again. This time around I am a little scared that I will go into labor before my scheduled c section on Wednesday.
Oh, and research does show that it is safer fo you and the baby than vaginal delivery or emergency c section. Statistically scheduled c sections have less complications because there is not an underlying emergency that the are addressing.
Good luck with your decision!
This is incorrect. Major surgery is never safer for you unless there is an underlying medical emergency. You are more than three times more likely to die during a c/s. this is because of the fact it's surgery. I used to be in research and I never found one scientific article that found an elective c/s was safer or comparable to a vaginal birth for the mother. For the baby, primary vaginal birth (barring complication)is safer for them. VBAC has some back and forth and depends on your scar, etc, but generally, vaginal is still safer for baby then.
Ozp, this is up to you, DH, and your doctor. I'm assuming it has to do with more than your size because there is no correlation with that and ability to birth (my mother has cousins under 5 feet who birthed 10+ lb babies without a problem). You also can check out your OBs c/s rates. If they are high, it might just be her preference. But I'd recommend you do some research both ways through scientific sources and not the bump:-)
This makes you sound like a moron. This is not true at all. Get your facts straight before giving false info that could affect someone's life and their babies.
I wouldn't really classify a rcs with twins a "purely elective" c-section. You have medical indications for one. A purely elective one would mean one without any medical indication.
What KC and the other posters said, but also the increased risk of a c/s after laboring isn't that much of an increase. Also, is your placenta just low-lying or actually partial previa? Because you can have a placenta that's close to your cervix, but chances are good that it will move up in time for labor. Is she ordering more u/s to check it before you have a c/s? I would talk to her more about that, frankly.
One more thing to consider is how many kids you ultimately want to have...the more c/s, the more risks of complications with future pregnancies. Would you be willing to think about VBAC for your second, if this baby is a c/s?
LULZ to the poster who thinks a planned c/s is safer than a vaginal birth.
DS2 - Oct 2010 (my VBAC baby!)
I'd never choose to go through this just for the sake of setting a schedule.
This is what my H and I have decided for now. I have a follow-up U/S scheduled in two weeks, so we'll see whether the placenta has moved and go from there. Again, thanks for all of your input. Also, I wanted to clarify that the intent of my post was not to get medical advice. I was more curious to hear others' personal experiences with elective c-sections.