Reluctantly Scheduling a C-Section

Let me add, I refuse to schedule a c-section, even though it is warrantied. I will wait to see if my uterus can take contractions and go from there. It's my body. I feel whatever happens, it's meant.

I completely agree with you on this. I posted this on a different thread:

I wanted to have a VBAC with this child, but it really is not an option for me. I am all for vaginal delivery. Let me speak of my experiences.

I had my first child, a girl, natural (no medicines) vaginal. She was 8lbs 6oz and 21 1/2" long. This was in 2001. I labored naturally for 41 hours and the pushing part was the easiest. Loved it. The recovery was amazing and easy. I was pleasantly surprised. Three years later, I was getting ready to have an emergency c-section for transverse twins. Ugh. I was devastated. I was against spinals, epidurals, etc. It really bothered me I could not have them natural, but I knew the medical reasoning.

After having this c-section, I was devastated. The doctor left an inch and a half of my uterus open. I bled internally. I had a bag for a staph abcess inside of me. Then my c-section came open and I had to have a home health nurse for almost 1 year to help me, pack it, etc. It was HORRIFIC!!

This go around, it's been 8 years since the twins delivery, I asked could I have a VBAC. Nope, sure can't. Doctor's reasoning, she is afraid we might hemorrhage. Although, having a hysterectomy after delivery don't sound too bad, I am scared to DEATH about having another c-section. I feel I will die on the table.

I am all for VAGINAL! I wish I could speak to everyone about the differences. I hate seeing people OPT for a c-section. Women giving birth is a natural life process. It saddens me.

I really hope that people can take what we have to offer and share.

I absolutely believe that how we birth DOES matter. Emotionally and physically and spiritually healthy MOMS matter just as much as healthy babies do. I also believe it is absolutely a woman's choice HOW she gives birth, and all women should be allowed to exercise true informed consent and refusal for ANY procedure, including cesarean or VBAC. My one plea is that all mothers consider MULTIPLE sources for their information, including: their care provider, the internet (blogs, websites, social networking sites, videos, etc), the medical studies, support organizations like ICAN, stories from other moms who have had this same decision in front of them - Look at ALL of it, because it ALL matters. We as women must now assume more responsibility for our own births. Neither a cesarean nor a VBAC is risk-free for either mom or baby. There are extremely important risks and benefits, both short term and long term to each choice - for mother and baby. If you talk to a mom whose baby suffered during a vaginal birth from shoulder dystocia, you BET that mom will wonder "what if I had just had a c-section". You talk to the mom whose school age child is suffering from respiratory and digestive issues (multiple times each year, every year since their birth) as a result of their c-section delivery, and you BET that mom will wonder, "what if I had just had a vaginal birth".

But DO NOT let fear be the only guide! Learn the facts. For example: uterine rupture happens in less than 1% of VBAC moms, and catastrophic outcome for a baby during a uterine rupture only happens in only about 10% of the cases of uterine rupture (.05% of moms). Source: vbacfacts.com Note that uterine rupture occurs at about the same rate as does the rate of obstretrical emergency in moms without a scar. Also note: ACOG considers FailureToProgress as a "subjective" reason for a cesarean, and has noted in a study published in their publication dated August 2011 "Obstretrics & Gynecology" that more cesareans are indicated for subjective reasons, rather than objective ones.

There is a great nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting cesarean and VBAC moms, called ICAN (international Cesarean Awareness Network). Your local chapter would love to support you on your journey - whether repeat c-section or vbac!

Congratulations on your pregnancy and good luck! Thank you for sharing your story and bringing awareness to this important topic!

You know what? Unless it's you, stay out of it! Of course, we all have our opinions on trends like the doling out of C-Sections for the mother's or worse, the doctor's convenience, but that argument should focus on hospital policy, not on someone you met on the street who happened to have had a C-section.

I think scheduling a c-section because of valid fears and precautions like uterine rupture and previous complications is totally warranted! It's the ones that schedule it for their first child without any medical reason that make me wonder...

I think as long as you go into it armed with knowledge and the understanding that you put your and your child's life and health at risk and therefore are not going into it willy nilly and have had a very in depth convo with doctor about this (and he isn't one with a high C-Section birth rate), then go with it. The issue many have is that there are doctors and hospitals that have high rates of c-section births and that they are not needed. I wish you a happy healthy baby and a speedy recovery.

Thank you, everyone. I appreciate the support. And yes, it's a personal decision, one that I obviously think each family, in consultation with a doctor, needs to make.

Yay, Mama Track! Glad you made the decision that was right for you and your family.

I think there is a big difference between scheduling a C-section because a VBAC isn't right for you and scheduling one because you don't have time to go into labor or trying to make Mother Nature conform to your schedule. I think when people are uptight about C-sections, this is what they think of. You have nothing to be ashamed of or embarrassed about. Your concern is not going through what you went through the first time, and that is a very valid concern.

I completely understand. I am aiming for a VBAC but have a scheduled c-section just in case we don't make it. I am looking at it as "healthy baby, healthy mommy". That is all that matters to me.