Note: In order to keep confidentiality, I am going to change the names of the doctors.
But are you really not progressing? How long have you been at the hospital? If, and more importantly, when, did they give you Pitocin? How quickly did you get the epidural? Chances are these questions will not be going through your mind. But now that you think of it, these are the questions you wished that you would have had on your mind. My story is pretty much the same as every cesarean mother's story.
With my first baby, my water broke at about 8:30am. I arrived at the the hospital at about 10:30am and was dilated to 3cm. My doctor suggested that I get an epidural immediately. I was young and stupid, so I did exactly what my doctor told me. Let's fast forward to 2:00pm, when I was dilated to 5cm, so my doctor said I needed pitocin. Once again, I had no idea what any of this was and went for it. I was told it would speed up my labor. By 7:00pm I was dilated to 7cm. At 9:00pm, I was still at 7cm, so my doctor told me that I needed to have an emergency c-section because my baby was in distress (though he never told me why he was in distress). I was confused, because everything seemed to be going fine. But I was also nervous, so I tried to put it off. He essentially bargained with me to set a deadline for when we could do the c-section, and we decided to wait until 10:00pm. At 10:00pm, they had me sign the consent forms, and prepped me for the c-section. I cried the entire way to the surgery room. I was devastated that I had to get a c-section, and I didn't know why I needed to have one. It wasn't until three hours later that I got to hold my son.
By that point, our breastfeeding relationship was ruined, but I still wanted to try. Thinking back, no one except for my husband really encouraged me me to breastfeed, so he was never breastfed.
I know now that I should have learned a lot more about labor and the birthing process, but I was 16 and had no idea how the whole ordeal worked. I regret not being more independent and trying harder.
With my second I had heard about VBAC's and wanted to try. I ran it by my doctor -- the same doctor-- and he immediately shot down the idea. He said with a previous c-section a vaginal birth was out of the question. I still had hope that I would be able to have my baby vaginally. At every appointment after the 10th week, we asked about a VBAC. The doctor always said, with great hesitation, that we would see how the pregnancy went. At my my 36 week appointment, he let me know that he did not want me to try a VBAC, and had one scheduled for me. When I questioned this, he agreed to check the baby's position every week, as long as I would still schedule the c-section. When he scheduled it for two weeks before the due date, I asked him to move it, but he said he wanted to do it by that date because "a big baby could put too much pressure on my inflamed gal bladder." So at 38 weeks, we delivered our 5 lbs 1 ounce baby -- the one that he was worried about getting too big -- by cesarean. During the c-section, the baby's head was cut by the scalpel. We were reassured that it wasn't as bad as it seemed, and that scarring would be minimal. At his first doctors appointment the pediatrician pointed out that it would be a serious scar. And to this day, he still has a moderate sized scar on the back of his head that grows with him. It was at that point that I made a promise to myself that I would have a VBAC with our next baby.
Everything about the third pregnancy was different. I researched doctors online, and found a practice with two doctors in it. The doctors appeared to be a great fit for me, and the reviews were amazing for the office. I went to my first appointment at 10 weeks with Dr. E, and I made it very clear that I wanted a VBAC and that if he wasn't comfortable with that, I would find another doctor. He was very open to the idea and said he would work with us, though he tried to make sure we were aware of actual VBAC rates right away. I was pleased with how he genuinely nice he was and how open he was about VBACs. My pregnancy went smoothly and Dr. E recommended that we meet the other doctor in the practice. The other doctor, Dr. L, was against VBACs and made it clear from the very beginning. I was very nervous about this, but figured it wouldn't matter because I planned on having Dr. E deliver.
At 38 weeks I started having contractions, and I started leaking a clear fluid. I was worried it could be amniotic fluid, so we went off to the hospital. Dr. E was on duty and he did a bed side ultrasound that showed that my fluid may be low. He also did a vaginal swab amniotic test which came back positive, but that was probably due to my husband and I having intercourse within 24 hours. He wanted a comprehensive ultrasound done, so he had one done at radiology. It showed that my fluid level was fine, because there was a large pocket of fluid down near the baby's head that the first ultrasound missed. Just to be safe, he wanted me to stay overnight and have another ultrasound in the morning. However, Dr. L was on call the next day. During this ultrasound, my husband and I both pointed out to the tech that there was a pocket of fluid closer to her head, but the tech just nodded and never looked down there, and quickly ushered us off to our room. The test results indicated that the fluid level was half of the minimal safe value, so the doctor said it would be best to have another c-section. I refused and asked for another vaginal swab to see if my water had actually broken, but Dr. L. refused to perform another one. He kept me at the hospital for nearly four days, not allowing me to eat or to move from my bed. I was furious. He was the doctor on call for the next three days, and I wasn't going to have my regular doctor back until Monday. The doctor kept pushing me to get a c-section and since I didn't want to, I had only one option: leaving against medical advice. My husband and I insisted that another vaginal swab test was performed, and he finally agreed to do it. It came back negative -- my water was not broken. After much thought and prayer, and after consulting our insurance company, we decided to go against medical advice and check out.
At 39 weeks and 3 days my water broke at 11pm. I stayed at home until the pain became unbearable. I was extremely nervous to go back into the hospital. I was terrified that they would push me into another c-section. I got to the hospital 1:30am and the doctor on call was Dr. M, who was the brand new doctor who had just started at the practice. I really liked her, and was extremely pleased that she was there. However, she had to leave at 7:00am and Dr.L would be coming in. I was so upset. I did not want to go though what I went though last time with him. I was dilated to 3cm when I came into the hospital and I hoped I would deliver during Dr. M's shift. At 7:00am, I decided I couldn't handle the pain anymore and asked for an Epidural, since I was dilated to 7cm. Dr. M wished me luck with my VBAC, and left for the day.
As Dr. M. left, she left the door cracked open a bit. While I was going in and out of sleep, I heard Dr.L joking with a nurse about how my husband and I should watch a video of a vaginal birth, since it would make us change our minds. I was very upset with his negative attitude and I used it to motivate myself to go though with my VBAC to prove him wrong. I passed out, and when the nurse woke me up at 10:00am to check me, I was fully dilated to 10cm, and the baby's head was crowning. She rushed to get the doctor and had me push right away. I only pushed for 25 minutes, without any complications, and gave birth vaginally to a 7 pound 14 ounce baby girl. I was ecstatic! I had proved that I was capable of giving birth vaginally! After we were moved from labor and delivery, all of the nurses who had seen us during all of our visits kept coming in and congratulating me on my VBAC. Dr. M. even made a special trip down to congratulate me. It was an amazing feeling to check "Vaginal Birth" on the insurance and hospital forms. I have never felt more accomplished in my entire life. I am so happy that I did all of the research, that I took my time in making an educated decision, and that I went with my gut instincts and pushed my doctor for a VBAC.
Every woman should have this choice presented to them. They should not let their doctor take over your birthing experience. It is her birth, for her and the baby. No one should let a doctor tell them if their body isn't working properly if they know otherwise. This isn't to say that you should not trust your doctor, but rather that a woman should think for herself and do her research. This is why there is so much information available on VBACs, and why there are many support groups. Exercise your right as a patient.
For reference, the best site I have found is the International Cesarean Awareness Network. The site can be found here.
Do your research, and make informed decisions so you can enjoy your VBAC experience. :)
~N
