Hi, Friday I had an appointment with my Dr. The visit went well. My blood pressure was checked..they tooked urine specimen..checked babies heartbeats...did the height of fundus...I was 35 wks. and 5 dys. so the Dr. finally brought up the subject.."How would I prefer to deliver..Vaginally or C-section." He asked me this question because Baby A is head down and when we last checked weighed the most. Baby B is breech and weighs less than Baby A. This is my 1st pregnancy so I am new to all of this. I am one who is not bent on having to deliver vaginally or by C-section..My thing is which ever delivery is the most safe for my babies and me..that is what I am for..be it vaginally or c-section. And my thing is what ever method that my Dr. feel most comfortable with I would prefer to go that route. So I asked him which did he prefer to deliver because I would prefer to go with whatever he thinks...and he told me that he had to give me both options to choose from but that he is always for delivering vaginally..and he also said to me that as long as Baby A is head down and weighs the most he can deliver Baby B even if he is breech...and then he added the only thing with that is if something was to present itself in the process that I may end up with having both procedures done (a vaginal birth then an emergency c-section) ...Now that I don't want! I either want to deliver vaginal for both or C-section for both.My only concerns about the C-section is that my iron levels the week before last were low..although I was told that it was nothing to be alarmed about and they gave me stronger doses of iron to take.My iron levels were 10.2 and I was told that they would be alarmed if it was 7 and below...well with the c-section my concern was that I did not want to chance having to have a blood transfusion, so that's why I was thinking that vaginal was more safe.But each deliver I think has its pros and cons. Also..My Dr. is one who believes that twin pregnacies as well as singleton pregnacies alike are full term at 40 wks. it's just that 10% of single pregnancies don't make it to full term..whereas 20% (double that of single pregnancies) do not make it to full term (that's where we get thinking that 37-38 wks. is full term for twin pregnancy) But seriously..I hope to go in labor naturally 37-38 wks. because I have some concerns with carrying them longer than 38 wks.(just my preference).My hold mission in posting this post is to see what you would do if this was your scenerio and situation...What would you decide to do? Ultimately I already know that this is my decision to make ..and what ever my gut tells me to do...and whatever I feel comfortable with...But never mind me..I want to know what decision would you make and that will help me to confirm what I feel.Thanks in advance for any and all responses.Hopefully I will be having these babies anytime after the 22nd of this month..so that's like a week and a half (hopefully). So I need to be confident about the decision that I make by then.
If you progress naturally and baby A remains head down. It's probably prudent to go with a vaginal birth. My SIL (aka ColoradoMama) had hers vaginally with B being breech (her was unmedicated - as things happened quickly) and the dog had to go up and get baby B. She recovered remarkably fast however from this birth! So that's a benefit! With her first child she pushed for hours and hours and had a longer vaginal recovery. I would say that it's a good idea to try for the vaginal as it serves a purpose for the babies. (Mine was no choice C-section as I didn't progress) It clears their lungs and helps them squeeze all the fluid out etc..... That's my humble .02. The babies MIGHT CHOOSE FOR YOU and it will end up out of your control! They can still flip! :hug:
Interesting, I am in the same spot. Granted, I am only 33 weeks, so positions can change, but both are currently head down and my doc wants me to decide within the next four weeks. He won't let me go past 38 weeks though, so either way, they are coming out then. I had a vaginal delivery with my daughter. I was induced, and the contractions were horrible, but it was a pretty easy delivery. Start to finish(from walking in the door to baby being out) was 12 hours. Hard labor was only 4 hours. I was up and showering an hour after her birth, and walking the halls and having visitors an hour after that! I have never had a c section, and frankly, major abdominal surgery scares me. You have higher chances of mass blood loss and blood clots. Vaginally, you still have the possibility of hemorrhage, but it is a lot less of a chance. And much faster recovery than c section. So honestly, if both mine remain head down, I will try for vaginal. And I am not sure the combo vaginal/c section thing really happens all that much. I have read that the statistics of having to deliver both ways are not high. But, that might be something to ask your doc. How often has he had that occur?? Good luck with your decision! Ultimately, end result is whichever way keeps the babies and yourself safe. Molly 32 weeks 6 days
I would definitely try for the vaginal delivery. The recovery is so much faster in most cases. My baby A was head down and Baby B was breech. I was induced for pre-e and HELLP syndrome at 34+6. I had a 12 hour labor on PITOCIN without an Epi - it failed and there wasn't anyone to replace. Even without pain meds it wasn't horrible. I did get the Epi replaced before pushing. Baby A was born with 3 big pushes. Baby B decided to hang out. She was born bum first 1.5 hours later. She had a little bit of fluid in her lungs but didn't need any breathing help. Both were happy and healthy. I was up within the hour of Baby B being born, showered and in the NICU with my girls. I didn't have a stitch. My Drs gave me 5% chance of having a vaginal and emergency c-section. For me, it was a risk worth taking. Good luck with your decision. It sounds like your Dr is suppotive of vag birth for twins. That's really important. I wish I could have gotten to 38 plus weeks. Lucky you.
I would go vaginally. My OB wont deliver me vaginally unless both babies are head down. I stil have ways to go, but I hope they are both head down when the time comes. It is better for both you and the babies to have a vaginal birth.
Ditto on going vaginal. Take it from someone who has had a c/s and now a vbac... once you have the c/s it's a lot harder to find someone willing to do vbac...or to really give you a fair chance at vbac. So if you decide for a second birth that you really want a vaginal birth and not a repeat c/s you might have more problems. And honestly, these days with a good epidural in place they can keep you pretty comfortable during labor should you wind up having a c/s anyway. If I were to do a vaginal birth with twins I would opt to get an epidural in place after reaching at least 3cm, and then you'd have plenty of time to make sure it's working right so that you are set up for a safe c/s should one be necessary. In my case, I needed a c/s because my baby A went transverse at 35 weeks! I did have a vbac with my 4th child...but once you are in the vbac category you can never get out of it... my next will also be considered a vbac. Anyway, my 2 cents... give vaginal birth a chance!...especially since your doctor feels pretty confident about it.
I delivered vaginally. Baby A was head down and Baby B was breech. Baby B was WAY up in my chest and had to be grabbed. They are 50 minutes apart and I was very close to having one of each procedure. But with the episiotomy, the doctors were able to get Baby B out. Yes, he got stuck even though he was smaller. I delivered Baby A unmedicated even though I had a epidural in place. Baby B was medicated after a lot of pain though. It was scary because Baby B was not crying much, but he recovered very well. In the positive note, I healed very well. I was back in my regular jeans 3 weeks PP and I felt great. Jenn
My OB didn't even give me the option of a c-section. If Baby A was head down, she wouldn't schedule a c-section - she didn't care about the position of Baby B. So until I joined TS, I didn't even know it could be an option. She was really very casual and professional about it. Kind of like - don't worry if Baby B decides to stretch out. I'll just go in after him. In the end, Baby B flipped vertex sometime late, maybe 35 weeks? I delivered vaginally with an epidural. It went very smoothly. I think my doc's very calm demeanor and faith in herself kept me calm.
Another vote for vaginal here! My doctor was just like yours, very supportive of vaginal delivery so long as A was head down. Baby B was breech until just past 34 weeks when she too went head down, HOWEVER, my doctor was prepared and willing to deliver a breech baby B. I personally woudl do anything to avoid a major intensive surgery. Im a weany. I dont wnat my muscles cut open, I dont want staples or stitches or have to worry about the risk of infection to my incision. I want the babies lungs to get a good squeeze on the way out so they can breathe a little better. I like the shorter hospital stay. There are so many reasons I was hellbent on a vaginal delivery and Im grateful I was able to have one. I wanted to go "au natural" as well and that was the only caveat my doctor had. She wanted the epi at least in place even if there were no meds flowing through it. She assured me if she had to stick her arm up my crotch and grab a baby it would be more uncomfortable than pushing one out. Baby A pretty much "paves the way" for baby B. If you go on to have other children and are able to deliver these babies vaginally vs a c-section its more likely you wont have to continue having repeat c-sections. My recovery was quick. Dont doubt yourself, your body was meant to do this and if something should happen, save the C-section for plan B Good Luck with your decision and yay for a supportive doctor!
I totally agree about going vaginal if you can. Ditto all the pp, but also keep in mind that I've heard that not only is the recovery harder and longer (don't ever forget that c/s is major surgery...regardless of how routine it is!!!), but also that it can make holding your babies more painful...a co-worker of mine had twins (13 years ago!) and said that if she could give me any advice it was to go vaginally if I could...she elected a c/s because she was afraid of pusing out two babies, but said that holding them against your incision was painful and she didn't like having to take all of the pain medication afterwards. Also, don't forget that vaginally delivering is healthier for your babes (assuming there are no complications)....becuase it squeezes the fluid out of their lungs as they come through the birth canal. Save a c/s for plan B!!! Good luck on your decision!!!!
I opted for a c-section. The recovery wasn't horrible, it was really not bad at all. . .but a lot of people feel that vaginal is the way to go if A is head down. Personally, I think that the c-section was the best option for me.
If your Doctor is willing to plan for a vaginal delivery with Baby B still breech, it's a sign that he is well-trained and comfortable with vaginal deliveries, which means there's much less of a chance that you'll have to go in for an emergency C section - if there is a way to get the baby delivered vaginally, he probably knows them all. Doctors that are more comfortable with C-sections would be recommending that or even requiring it with a breech Baby B. It sounds like you're in great hands. I wish I'd had your Doctor when I was fighting with some of the folks in the OB practice about scheduled inductions at 38 weeks and required C-sections!! We ended up with a vaginal delivery because we got the right (old school, very experienced) OB on call the day we showed up. Hope everything goes well for you either way!
I highly recommend attempting a vaginal birth. My baby A was head down and baby B was breech (and slightly larger). I was induced at 37.5 weeks (looking back, I probably would have asked to stay pregnant another week or so and just asked to be monitored each day or two to make sure the babies continued to be okay). I delivered both babies vaginally - baby B flipped right after his brother was born and was delivered head down. It went beautifully! I'm so glad it happened that way.
QUOTE(dfaut @ Jun 14 2009, 01:31 PM) [snapback]1353949[/snapback] If you progress naturally and baby A remains head down. It's probably prudent to go with a vaginal birth. My SIL (aka ColoradoMama) had hers vaginally with B being breech (her was unmedicated - as things happened quickly) and the dog had to go up and get baby B. She recovered remarkably fast however from this birth! So that's a benefit! With her first child she pushed for hours and hours and had a longer vaginal recovery. aren't typos grand?
QUOTE(miss_bossy18 @ Jun 15 2009, 01:09 AM) [snapback]1354454[/snapback] aren't typos grand? I got a good giggle out of that too, it suits all too well Are these your first babies?? If so I'd have a harder time making that decision too. I'm going for VB if baby a is head down still, my OB said that in his career, which is a fairly long one he's only had to do both 2x but he won't say that it won't happen b/c it CAN! I've also had 2 VB b/f so I'm comfortable w my decision. My good friend and sil both had to labour and push w a singleton and ended up w a c-section b/c the baby was stuck so the whole thing can happen w 1 baby too. Good luck w whatever you decide!
Good luck deciding! I am definitely worried about having 2 types of birth as well and will be asking my doc about it. I want a guarantee LOL! In a way I want a c section to avoid that but I also don't want major surgery. A lot of my friends had c sections and honestly say it's not that bad, that they would definitely do it that way again. I've also had it described by a friend whose had both as "which area would you like to have hurt?" and she would rather have the c section again too. So I guess for me the first step is asking the doc what he thinks based on their positions and then what would the chances be of an intervention requiring an emergency c section for the second baby. Also looking at my previous births and how long I've spent pushing (usually quite long) if he thinks these will get stuck too and just barely make it out vaginally like my last one did. Good luck deciding, I still don't know what I will do if/when that time comes.
I think you've gotten great answers but thought I'd give mine as well. Obviously delivering vaginally is the best way to go for you and the baby in most cases. I've had nothing but c-sections (3 of them) so I have no clue about the healing time for vaginal vs c-section. Honestly, I think it depends on you. I have friends who delivered vaginally and they had a longer recovery than me. My reason for posting this is just to reassure you about c/s. Sometimes women like to tell you their horror stories about them but just so you know, all surgeries are not like that. It is true that delivering vaginally squeezes out the fluids from the baby which is better for them and we were made to deliver that way as well. My girls were delivered scheduled c/s at 37 weeks and they were completely healthy. No nicu time. So...my advice is to try vaginally but try not to stress too much about it turning into a section. Healthy babies is the goal not how they enter the world. I hope this helps!!
My OB also gave me the decision. She said she'd prefer to do vaginal, but if I wanted to, we could do C-section. My opinion is that if you can do it vaginally - do it! Mine were vertex/vertex and the doc said there's a 20% that once baby 'a' is delivered, that baby 'b' will turn and we'd need to have an emergency c-section. That was just for precaution and everything went smoothly. I think vaginal is best for baby and mama.
This is also how my boys were presenting. My doctor was comfortable with whichever method I chose to give birth. After many discussions with the doctor, DH and other twin moms, I decided to opt for the c-section. My doctor and I scheduled my c-section with the understanding that I could change my mind at any time based on anything unless both babies turned breech. At my 36 week appointment there were no indicators that I would go into labor on my own, but my water broke in the middle of the night while I was at home. After arriving in L&D my doctor (who was on call) still gave me the option of trying for a vaginal and said my chances were probably good since I went into labor on my own. He was very supportive of my choice to proceed with the c-section and did an ultrasound to confirm the babies position before surgery. It was then that I realized my mommy instinct was right about the c-section since my breech baby b was trying to pass his brother and had his legs right around his brothers body. After seeing that my ob said something to the effect of "glad you opted for the section cause there is no way they would have let you have a vaginal delivery" Even when I saw him at my 6 week pp checkup he commented on their odd positioning and how much it had changed from my ultrasound less than a day earlier. My section was easy and I would totally recommend it if you are questioning it either way. My recovery was super easy (easier than many people I know who had vaginal births) and my boys were perfectly fine. If I was to have any more children I would repeat the section without even questioning it.
I guess I'm going to play devil's advocate here... And I suppose I need to preface this comment by giving the standard "of course vaginally is better" statement so that I don't get crucified by anyone else. BUT... I delivered vaginally with my 5 year old daughter. The doctor who actually delievered her believed in just giving out episiotomies left and right. (He was/is old-school and the father and partner of the actual ob) So I got to deal with the recovery from that PLUS hemorrhoids from pushing. Now I've never had a c-section, of course, but I seriously cannot imagine that hurting more than my recovery from the vaginal birth. I was begging to be shot. Just because you deliver vaginally doesn't mean that you'll be up n at 'em 4 days afterwards. I didn't do my proper homework at the beginning of this pregnancy and come to find out a few weeks ago, my OB doesn't do breech deliveries! Even though twin A is head down, so I have to have a c/s unless I want to drive 3 hours and have the boys at the university hospital in birmingham. Smart me. But I'm not freaked out because the vast majority of stories I have heard have been positive ones. The way I see it is its not exactly gonna tickle whichever way you go! lol
