Help. (Intro)

Staciefacie · February 2014

Hey ladies, I just recently learned that I'm pregnant with my second. I had a very bad experience with my first. I tried my hardest to go with it an epidural but I was induced at 41 weeks with cytotech. The anesthesiologist failed over ten times to get it in and I honestly believe my cause of lower back pain is from the epidural. Anyways I desperately want an all natural birth. Unfortunately I live in Mississippi and there are no birth centers around here. I was curious as to how I would successfully have a natural birth in an hospital.

Thanks in advance.

MommyAtty · February 2014

It is absolutely possible to have a natural birth in a hospital. Find a provider who will support that effort, whether that's a midwife or an OB. (I used a fantastic OB and am using him this time around.) Do some prep on natural comfort measures. Consider whether you want to pay for a doula. (We didn't and I don't think we will this time.) And believe you can do what your body was made to do. Btw, I was induced with pitocin and still went pain-med free. I also only did a one-day course, not an expensive multi-week course, though if you think that would help you, by all means you should do it!

blueeyedrose86 · February 2014

I had a fantastic all natural hospital birth! You just have to be clear with what you want. The fewer interventions you have (continuous monitoring, IV, meds, etc.) the better your chances. I also had a doula.

mysticl · February 2014

I was also induced with cytotec. I lasted 12 hours before I got the epidural. Then the first one didn't work. I understand how you feel. I ended up with a c-section and I live in an area with a vbac ban. If I get pregnant again I plan on switching care providers and hospitals to one that is vbac friendly and try for a natural birth again. I think the key is avoiding cytotec. I don't know how it happened for you but I wasn't told any of the risk factors associated with it. It was presented to me as very mild way to kick start labor. The words hyper stimulation of the uterus and utetrine rupture were never mentioned.

mysticl · February 2014

jennish11 said:

You could look for a local midwife.
I am a FTM and really want a natural birth as well, so I am switching (at 29 weeks pregnant) to a midwife.

Midwifes generally stay with you throughout the labor and can act as an advocate for your wants/needs.

When I was in labor the on call midwife only came in to break my water. She absolutely did not spend any time with me or advocate for me in any way, shape, or form. My midwife dumped me on the on call practice because it was a Friday and they closed at noon and it wasn't their weekend to be on call.

cwm11985 · February 2014

It's definitely possible but you need to be well prepared. There are several books you can read; try Natural Hospital Birth or Ina May's Guide to Childbirth.

dmhrn13 · February 2014

Yup, look for a midwife or ask other women who have had good experiences with an OB. I second getting prepared with a class. Honestly, I'd have a consult with anesthesia. Find out through your OB how to do that. 10 times for an epidural stick is not normal, so either you had a very inexperienced & bad anesthesiologist or there is some anatomical weird thing with your back (ie- scoliosis) that made it difficult.

dmhrn13 · February 2014

@mysticl i'm sorry, you had a shitty midwife. they are out there, just like there are some really great & understanding OB's. But for the most part I think we are committed to caring for women. so i think if her goal is to have an unmedicated birth a midwife is the first step, but just like you interview OB's to see if they are the right fit (as well as figure out how they handle call coverage) she needs to do it with whoever she chooses to care for her. people are afraid to switch practices sometimes, but you have 9 months to try to figure out if your practice is full of jerks or supportive folks.

Staciefacie · February 2014

mysticl said:

I was also induced with cytotec. I lasted 12 hours before I got the epidural. Then the first one didn't work. I understand how you feel. I ended up with a c-section and I live in an area with a vbac ban. If I get pregnant again I plan on switching care providers and hospitals to one that is vbac friendly and try for a natural birth again. I think the key is avoiding cytotec. I don't know how it happened for you but I wasn't told any of the risk factors associated with it. It was presented to me as very mild way to kick start labor. The words hyper stimulation of the uterus and utetrine rupture were never mentioned.

See no one told me the side affects. They told me to take it twice the second time because my contractions completely stopped. Then all hell broke lose. I barely remember anything because I was so badly drugged up. I think I cussed out my mom at one point. /:

@dmhrn13 My dad saw how horrible my back looked and pretty much ordered a doctor to take a look at my back. I'm pretty positive the doctor flat out lied to us. I couldn't sit back for quite a bit.

dmhrn13 · February 2014

I've seen anesthesiologists have difficulty before, but where I work if they don't get it by the second or third try at most they call for a second opinion & ask another doctor to try. Also if women have scoliosis or previous back surgery, etc. they can basically call the hospital I work out of & get an appointment for an anesthesiologist to look at them & get an idea if anything else is going on before all hell is breaking loose & you're really needing something for pain. I think with youe experience even though you've never been diagnosed with a problem it might be nice to get another opinion before the big day. The other thing to think about is picking a childbirth method. I teach hypnobirthing & its great. It also has a "fear release" section & this might be helpful for you to do some trauma release work around you previous experience. At least maybe just talk with a therapist about it so its not ruling this birth before you even get there, you know?

Staciefacie · February 2014

I plan to ask a crap load of questions at my first on appointment next Tuesday. Ranging from the services they offer to where they stand on certain "hot topics" regarding pregnancies.

Chichigo · February 2014

I had a natural birth in a hospital, with an OB. My primary physician knows me fairly well, and knows I prefer low-intervention, non-invasive medical care. He referred me to a practice outside of his medical group that was a good match for me.

mysticl · February 2014

dmhrn13 said:

@mysticl i'm sorry, you had a shitty midwife. they are out there, just like there are some really great & understanding OB's. But for the most part I think we are committed to caring for women. so i think if her goal is to have an unmedicated birth a midwife is the first step, but just like you interview OB's to see if they are the right fit (as well as figure out how they handle call coverage) she needs to do it with whoever she chooses to care for her. people are afraid to switch practices sometimes, but you have 9 months to try to figure out if your practice is full of jerks or supportive folks.

Oh, I loved my midwife, thought she was awesome. My prenatal care was done by an all female practice that had one OB and 2 midwives. I saw all 3 but there was one I saw more than others and she was my favorite. However, this is a small town with only 3 ob/gyn practices and the way they all handle anything after hours is that the practices take turns being on call. I had only lived here for 2 months when I got pregnant so I had no idea what resources were out there so looking for another hospital was not something I was up for. I went in for a blood pressure check on a Friday because I had been having periods of hypertension. I was 39w 6d and my BP was up again so they decided to induce. The practice closed at noon that day so that meant that I was sent to the hospital and the on call practice took over my care. I was introduced to a male OB and a female midwife. I don't even remember the midwife's name. All she did was a few cervical checks and inform me she would be breaking my water. I ended up having a c-section on Saturday due to failure to progress/failure to wait so she was not involved in the delivery at all. I think she did a couple of post op checks on me over the weekend.

I will be changing practices and hospitals if I have another child. Not because I don't like my providers but because this hospital has a total VBAC ban in place. I'm also much more familiar with the area and have had the opportunity to research my options. I have my midwife and my hospital all picked out. I also know the midwife may not deliver my child because she has other patients at both the hospital and a birth center. However, everyone in the practice she is affiliated with is very pro vbac.

My experiences with midwives is that like doctors (I saw a nurse practitioner rather than an GYN for my annual exams where I used to live) they have multiple patients they are responsible for so they cannot sit in a hospital with a woman the entire time she labors because there are other patients who need her attention as well. For example if you live where I live the only way you are going to get a midwife who will stay with you is if you drive over the state line (not very far) check into a hotel and do a "home" birth with a CPM.

mysticl · February 2014

Staciefacie said:

mysticl said:

I was also induced with cytotec. I lasted 12 hours before I got the epidural. Then the first one didn't work. I understand how you feel. I ended up with a c-section and I live in an area with a vbac ban. If I get pregnant again I plan on switching care providers and hospitals to one that is vbac friendly and try for a natural birth again. I think the key is avoiding cytotec. I don't know how it happened for you but I wasn't told any of the risk factors associated with it. It was presented to me as very mild way to kick start labor. The words hyper stimulation of the uterus and utetrine rupture were never mentioned.

See no one told me the side affects. They told me to take it twice the second time because my contractions completely stopped. Then all hell broke lose. I barely remember anything because I was so badly drugged up. I think I cussed out my mom at one point. /:

@dmhrn13 My dad saw how horrible my back looked and pretty much ordered a doctor to take a look at my back. I'm pretty positive the doctor flat out lied to us. I couldn't sit back for quite a bit.

I'm pretty sure if they told women the risks, the side effects and the fact that it is a category X drug no one would consent to taking it. The only options I was presented for induction were cytotec and pitocin and I knew I didn't want pitocin. I got information on induction from three different sources (the nurses teaching the childbirth class, my midwife, and the on-call OB who took over my case), none of them mentioned a single risk factor and none mentioned any other options for induction.

Staciefacie · February 2014

@mysticl I was very naive my first time around. I don't plan to be this time lol. My daughter even pooped in the amniotic fluid because of all the stress. After I finally had the epidural in and they told me it was time to push I can recall being so out of it that they had to turn the epidural off and wait an hour because I was incapable to stay conscious.

mysticl · February 2014

Staciefacie said:

@mysticl I was very naive my first time around. I don't plan to be this time lol. My daughter even pooped in the amniotic fluid because of all the stress. After I finally had the epidural in and they told me it was time to push I can recall being so out of it that they had to turn the epidural off and wait an hour because I was incapable to stay conscious.

Me too. In the past I've had very good experiences with medical professionals warning me about serious side effects associated with medications so I knew what to look for and to call them immediately if I experienced any of them. It never occurred that a health care provider (let alone three) would fail to mention such extreme adverse effects. They did mention that it was an off label use but I worked in the mental health field for years so I'm used to off label uses for drugs that have positive outcomes for the patient. I say that I gave misinformed consent instead of giving informed consent. The funny thing is I normally research every drug I'm given but I wasn't planning an induction and didn't think to look it up "just in case" and by the time in the exam room being told I have to be induced now there was no opportunity to look it up (I don't own a smart phone). If I am lucky enough to have another child I plan on being an absolute bitch about every single thing if that's what it takes. When pregnant friends ask me for advice I tell them to question everything.

Staciefacie · February 2014

I'm normally very inquisitive too. But I was just so excited to have my baby in my arms I wasnt thinking clearly.

JessicaMae85 · February 2014

Stacie,

I'm sorry to hear that you had such a bad experience with your first baby. It sounds like you got backed into a corner with the cytotec induction.

Have you seen these facebook groups Mississippi Natural Birth and Mississippi Friends of Midwives? If you connect with other women who are into natural birth in your area, maybe they can direct you to some resources you are currently unaware of! https://www.facebook.com/pages/Mississippi-Natural-Birth/145826412174465 https://www.facebook.com/MSFriendsofMidwives

Also, as far as natural birth in the hospital goes... it certainly is possible. And you need to understand how the hospital system works to make it happen. As you already experienced, hospitals run a really "tight ship" which makes laboring on your body's clock nearly impossible. If you are going to be in the hospital, start by getting A TON of support. Like... SO MUCH SUPPORT that you think you're overdoing it. Hire an experienced doula to be beside you and help you with pain relief, and if that is financially out of range for you, think of a person you really really trust who is willing to inform themselves about birth (the book "The Birth Partner" is a great option for birth support information). Then, think about ways in which you might keep your hospital environment comfortable for yourself. I have heard of women designating one of their labor companions as the "door patrol"--basically, someone to stand at the door and intercept whoever is coming in. That way, when someone walks up, your friend can say, "the nurse is coming in." The point of this is to help you make the birth space your own, even in small ways.

The other thing is... and this is kinda tricky, the hospital is truly not set up for natural births.. it's just now how they do birth. So, stay aware of this and respect that you're asking them to do something they don't normally do. The more your team is respectful of that fact, the better. It's not cool, but it's a reality.

Sending you beautiful birth dust!!
Jessica

margaritachikita · February 2014

^^^WSS!! Hire a doula!! Also, if you haven't already, definitely switch doctors. Cytotec is black-listed and is not FDA approved for induction of labor. It is NOT a safe drug and no doctor should be using it. A doula will help you get the birth experience you want, I promise she is worth every single penny.

CallMeAl · February 2014

Read, read, read! And I second a doula. Find an OB that is supportive as possible.... a new one who will NOT use cytotec for a non-FDA approved use!!

It is absolutely possible to have a natural hospital birth. I did it with my daughter in rural Virginia and I will (hopefully) be doing it again any day now with my son at the same hospital. We were clear with our OB and the hospital nursing staff that we wanted a low-intervention experience if at all possible. They were generally supportive, but not enthusiastic. Having a good support system is really important. You can learn a lot from this board, too!

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