Please Help Me Ladies

So... I'm getting more and more worked up the farther along I get. I'm almost 22 weeks ( with girls!) And I feel so "out of the loop" still.

I'm scared. When I saw my OB last ( see her again tomorrow) she said " Baby A has to be head down, if shes not, we'll do a c-section" " I'll be inducing you at 38 weeks so we can better control the birth assuming you make it that far"

Wait...WHAT? Already so much talk of these things! I have 2 singletons. I felt I was pushed into induction with my daughter. I now know that was unnecessary.

But with twins? How do you know? I read online they can be turned? I read they may turn on their own once labor starts? I've had people tell me that they were forced to do csections with their twins because it's easier on the doctor and was given a link to a movie to watch, but I'm sure it will just be singleton babies...

My doctor also said its common for A to come head down, and B not to turn, and then she'd take me up for a Csection then too. But I also read that B could be turned and can come out on her own!

I guess what I'm asking is, how can I know what is medically necessary? I'm so confused. I want to be able to stand up and say "No" or "I want to give it a little time" if something is unnecessary and the doctor is just doing it out of convenience. But I don't know what is and isn't because this is so different from having a single baby...

I want to have a vaginal birth. For the obvious reasons, and because I want my husband and I to be able to experience the whole birth process together. I don't see why I have to be induced. Why can't I just come in like I did with my son when I have contractions?

I'm sorry... I have so many questions and this probably didn't make much sense...

Thank you so much. Any advice, info, links would be GREATLY appreciated.

 

I remember the thought of a c-section scaring me too actually everytime and Ive had three of them. I know how overwhelming it all is, my baby a never turned when I had the twins so they booked me in for whatever date it was and then I went into labour so they ended up doing the emergency c-section. I think they did what was best for all of us though and personally i would have hated to go through a long labour only to be told too bad we have to operate anyway. Sorry if Im not much help but I had to post when I read what you said because I felt the same. I think you should tell your doctor how strongly you feel about this, Good luck with everything. :hug:

 

Well from reading other threads, it seems that Drs. disagree in this area. Some will do a breech extraction of Baby B, some won't. Most however seem to agree that Baby A needs to be head down first. Mine were breech and transverse, I did everything to get those babies to turn. I went to the Chiropractor, used the suggestions on Spinning Babies http://spinningbabies.simplwebsite.com/ and still they didn't turn. I had 4 vaginal births before my twins and was pretty terrified to have a c-section. The most important thing is that your babies get here safely. The c-section was a harder recovery for me, but to be honest I don't feel anything different about the twins because of the c-section. By the time they came by c-section, I was soooo tired of being that pregnant that a scheduled date was a huge relief for me.

Well I would definitely tell your Dr. what you would like concerning the birth. And if you need to, find a second opinion (Dr.) who is willing to work with you in this area.

 

I opted for a csection and scheduled the date so my DH wouldn't be away when the boys were born. They arrived 4 weeks before that day! You are still really early (I was only 19 weeks when I learned it was twins) so don't worry about not knowing everything already! I had 2 abdominal surgeries in my twenties and knew what I was getting into with the csection. It wasn't any worse than my other surgeries. Like Pam, I was so sick of being pregnant I just wanted them out. On the other hand, you are still early enough along that if you want to find a different dr. you have time. Even with in the practice I was seen at (about 10 drs) they varied in how to handle it.

 

The issue of c/s vs. vaginal is precisely why I interviewed and basically SHOPPED for my OB. I wanted to find someone who would be willing to deliver vaginally even if Baby B was breech (so long as Baby A is vertex). I would be a nervous wreck if I knew that my doctor wasn't okay with that scenario, since it ISN'T medically necessary. There are risks with breech extraction but there are also risks with c/s. It's what is up to YOU. I would suggest switching doctors...it will be a pain and extra work, but the rest of your pregnancy you will be so much more relaxed and comfortable with your set up. That's not to say you won't still end up with a c/s...just that you will feel more comfortable with your OB and that is priceless.

Good luck!

 

What type of twins are you having? My girls are mono/di and I know that if had not had a c-section, there's a great possibility we would have lost baby B. I did have other issues (Baby A was IUGR) but when they got baby B out after 2 minutes of tugging and finally using vacuum extraction, her apgar score was a 1. Had she gone through two sets of labor, I believe she would have gone into distress and may not have made it.

The c-section was not bad at all for me (of course I have nothing to compare it to). The delivery was the safest it could be for my girls and that is what mattered to me.

Good luck with your decision. It sounds to me like you have a really good doctor who is discussing everything with you in advance. Mine were like that too and it made a big difference in my comfort level.

 

Thank you ladies! *hugs*

Well..thing is. I have different doctors lol. There is a team and they just sorta put you with whoever. They gave me an NP today. She was the nicest so far, but that's not going to work I'm going to talk to the doctor I see on the 20th about sticking with ONE doctor that I like and see if he knows who would be willing to try to turn baby B if shes breech and who tries to avoid csections...

It's a military hospital. The other one isn't close enough to be a good candidate to switch to and my insurance says I have to go here.

I will do whatever is medically best for them. I really just don't want to be pushed into one out of convenience for the doc.

And to whomever asked me ( sorry, I forgot! ) The one doctor I posted about said they were dizygotic? Non-identical fraternal? But then I read that even though they have separate sacs they could still be identical, it just depends when/if the egg separated, or if there were two eggs? So I'm not sure how she came to that conclusion....or if I'm just confused about that as well. Oye, I'm a bundle of confusion! So thank you for answering! It's appreciated!

 

You're in a bit of a tough position with multiple docs, but you could still try dropping little hints like "Well, it's early. When will we need to make the decision?" If that doesn't work: "OK, at what point do I make that decision?"

You have a little bit of an advantage that you can claim that 'another doctor' said X-Y-Z. They may go along, or they may present you with compelling reasons for their point of view. Regardless of that, you'll never truly know what is medically necessary. There are just too many variables, some of which are the doc and his/her level of experience.

I would suggest that if the doc thinks they aren't competent to do a breech extraction, they are probably right. Do you want them using you for OJT? When it comes time to deliver, if they aren't willing they might be willing to call someone in, partcularly if you can find out a doc that will do it, butter them up, and ask.

 

First, how far along were you when your singletons were born? If it was before 40 weeks, then you probably will start labor with the twins on your own. Secondly, as long as Baby B is the same size or smaller than Baby A it can be delivered feet first. But, you need a doctor that had done breech extractions to do this. You don't want someone to deliver a feet first baby who has never done it before. Studies have shown it to be perfectly safe as long as you have an experienced doctor. Your doctor doesn't sound like the breech extraction type and she seems a little lawsuit wary and doesn't even want to try to get out a Baby B that doesn't immediately move down on it's own.

I totally understand your concern about being induced unneccesarily. I've been induced every time and it is not something to take lightly. With the twins it was warranted because we had to take them out but both my singletons it was just because they were post dates. Labor goes so much more smoothly if it is allowed to take a natural course.

If I were you I'd probably just wait it out and see what happens. Alternatively, you could look for a doctor that is more supportive of your choices. It can make all the difference in a birth to have an OB who realizes that this is your body and they are actually there to catch the baby rather than "deliver" it.

 

I understand your fear of a c-section. But the longer that I've been pregnant the better I'm seeing that a c/s is the way to go for me. My baby B is a flipper, shes was head down on friday but today is a diffrent day. She's also bigger than baby A. I am my OB 1st twin pregnancy on her own and like someone else said I don't want for my babies to be OJT for her, not that I don't trust her, just no....

But like PP said discuss all of this with you doc(s) they should be writing all of your wishes down and you should do the same too on which one you talked to on which day.

 

When I was pregnant our OB office (we too saw a team of docs) said that if Baby A was breech then they would do a c-section, if A was head down but B was breech, they would turn baby B and I would still deliver vaginally. However A was breech the whole time. I would definitely let your doctor know of your wishes and concerns. Good luck!

 

I had two vaginal births with my singletons and was thinking I would do the same with the twins. My OB told me that if Baby A was breach we would definitely be doing a c/s, if Baby B was breach we could see how things were progressing and decide. He said that once A was out it was possible for B to turn. There is always the risk of having to have a c/s if B didn't turn. He said it was too dangerous with twins to perform breach births.

I was really scared about the idea of a c/s also. It actually was so much easier than a vaginal birth and not that much harder recovery as long as you keep moving around after. The epidural was not that bad at all, that was the part I was most scared of before. It was pretty amazing actually. You do feel some pressure and at times but it was nothing compared to vaginal delivery. I would not worry so much about it. Your dr will do what is best for the babies, they do this all the time. It will be fine, it is not as scary as it sounds. GL

Jen

 

I completely understand not wanting a c/s.... it is a surgical procedure- I had one two years ago and I will have one again with the girls.

I noticed that you said you wanted your husband to be able to be there for the whole birth experience. If you do end up having a scheduled c/s, your husband should be able to be there in the OR with you the whole time. I don't think I would have been able to get through my c/s unless my husband was there!

But he was right there by my side and he got to hold DD as soon as she came out and it was an amazing experience for both of us.

22 weeks does seem awfully early. A lot can happen between then and 38 weeks.

They induced me with DD, and I ended up with a c/s after failure to progress beyond 0. I would have much rather just had the c/s and not been pumped full of induction drugs.

 

I was in the EXACT same boat as you are now. I wanted a vaginal, natural birth, and did not want to be induced at 38 weeks. My OB was willing to do a breech extraction if baby A was head down, and while he strongly recommended induction at 38 weeks, I was firm that I didn't want that and that I would rather take it each day as it comes and just have more monitoring towards the end and he was fine with that.

However, with twins: plans change! My baby A had IUGR, and at my 36 week growth scan, we discovered that she also had virtually no amniotic fluid left, and that baby B, who had been head down for about 3 weeks, was now breech. We had to do an emergency delivery that day and while they gave me the option of inducing labor or a section, I opted for a section. And I don't regret it at all - I think it was the safest way to deliver for my girls, and my recovery was a SNAP! I was feeling back to myself within a week.

So, my advice would be to find an OB who is comfortable doing breech extractions, plan for a natural birth (maybe even hire a doula), and then take it as it comes. If you do have to have a section in the end, get the IV out as soon as possible after the birth, get up and walking as soon as possible, get off the narcotic meds and take a tylenol/ibuprofin combo as soon as possible, and wear an abdominal binder as soon as possible.

Congrats on your girls! You will have SO much fun with them!!!