Breech Birth

L.,
If your baby is still breech, I really don't recommend having him or her at home. Can you find a doctor at a hospital who will try to turn your baby, if necessary? The doctors I know will not deliver in homes if the babies are breech. Both of my kids, not breech, turned out fine, but needed to go to the highest care nursery right after their births. I'm so glad we were at hospitals.
Good luck.
Amy

Hi L.,
I have an 8 month old son that was breech pretty much the entire pregnancy. At around 34 weeks, my OB and I discussed possible birthing plans for a breech baby. My best friend had a baby 5 weeks before me and attempted to have the baby "manually turned." She said it WAS THE WORST 30 SECONDS of her life! So when talking to my OB, I opted out of that choice. We planned a scheduled C-Section, it was THE BEST experience ever! I know some women who have endured hours of labor and ended up with a C-Section will totally disagree (rightfully so), but a scheduled one is so much better. I found the recovery to be very quick and easy. Good luck.

Hi L.,
I just had a baby at the end of May who was breech. I tried *everything* I could to turn him (we knew he was breech from 30 weeks onwards) and nothing worked. Here's what I tried:

Chiropractic (I went to Estelle Nella at Bucktown Chiropractic. She was referred to me by my midwife and was wonderful, though the Webster Technique didn't work for me, who knows why?)
Swimming
Knee-chest position several times a day
Bag of frozen peas on my baby's head (cold!)
Talking to the baby
Music (walkman earphones near my pubic bones)
Flashlight
Laying inverted (on a tilted ironing board) several hours a day
Massage

Nothing worked for me and we tried a version at 37 weeks, which was also unsuccessful, though not nearly as unpleasent as I thought. I ended up having a C-section for this delivery, which was immensely disappointing to me since I had planned on a natural childbirth.

Has your baby moved at all or does it seem "stuck" in the same position? I guess a lot of babies flip around and around and eventually settle into a comfortable position. My baby was stuck in the exact same position for at least 10 weeks - longer I think - and so I was really not very optimistic that anything would work. One day after my chiropractic my baby moved from head up facing left to facing right, but he flipped back around to facing left the next day. That was the extent of the motion I got :(

This was my first baby and I was told that had I already delivered a baby vaginally, I would be able to find someone who might deliver the baby breech. But since I had an "untested pelvis" it was considered too risky. I am planning to VBAC for my second.

I would recommend doing everything you can to turn you baby, of course. See the website www.spinningbabies.com for some more advice (might be .org - I cant remember).

But if it doesn't turn there's probably a darn good reason for it. In that case, since you've already got one baby you should be able to find someone who will deliver your baby vaginally. But it may take some looking. I would especially look for some of the older docs who do high-risk pregnancies - delivering breech babies seems to be somewhat of a lost art and a lot of the younger folks have never learned the techniques.

My mom, a midwife, says it's a bit like delivering an ice cream cone pointy-end first. The baby's head doesn't have a chance to mold so there is a higher chance of it getting stuck in the birth canal. That said, the statistics that I saw indicate that there is only a slightly higher risk of vaginally-delievered breech babies having problems later in life. The one doc I know who does them (unfortunately he lives in NH!) says you almost always need foreceps to deliver breech babies.

If your baby remains breech I personally would not risk a home birth. I would push as hard as I could for a natural vaginal hospital delivery, but since there is a higher chance of something going wrong and a large possibility that instruments (foreceps) may be necessary, I'd go the hospital route.

Everyone will tell you this a hundred times, but at the end of the day having a healthy baby is the most important thing - much more important than your birth experience. That said, if you can have a healthy baby *and* a good experience, all the better.

Despite the fact that I was tremendously disappointed that I ended up not even being able to "try" labor, my midwife was great, I healed quickly, and my baby is beautiful. That said, I'd never repeat the experience if given a choice!

Good luck with your baby-turning! At 34 weeks breech, about 80-90% of babies will spontaneously turn even if you do nothing, so chances are you'll be able to do the home birth after all. Still, a little help doesn't hurt.

-K.

PS; If you end up with a c-section, I highly recommend scheduling it rather than going into labor first (despite the fact that labor is good for babies). You will be more well rested. Your husband will be able to come in with you. Everything will be more relaxed. You will be able to prepare your baby by telling him that he is going to come out. Your recovery will be much faster, believe me.

Hi L.,

Sounds like you are doing everything possible to turn the baby. Not sure if you've heard of using Moxibustion herb. In a 1998 landmark study published in JAMA 75% of woman suffering from breech presentations before childbirth had fetuses that rotated to the normal position after receiving moxibustion at an acupuncture point on the Bladder meridian. Perhaps your acupuncturist is familiar with this. I've had both a c-section (not bc of breech) and a VBAC. Personally, I believe a c/s is worth avoiding since birth is a natural process where less intervention statistically yields better and more satisfying results. My Bradley instructor used this herb to turn her 4th child for a home birth. It took about 3 times but the baby finally turned. Please use caution at home, though, because her son was delivered safely but had anyone rushed the labor things may not have turned out as well. The cord was wrapped around the baby's neck 3 times when he came out. He is now doing fantastic and she was able to take care of her other children following the birth as well (not so easy with a c-section). Good luck!

Karen

Hi,
Call a dula. My baby was breech and my dula told me to sit in different positions.

There are some tricks you can use to try and turn her yourself. They may sound strange, but let me tell you, they do work. I learned these in my doula training. The first one is, get a flashlight, and shine it on your belly. then move it down slowly and do that a few times a day. You will move it down and eventually be shining it right up your vagina. You can also do this with a bag of frozen veggies. Do the same thing and hopefully, the baby will follow the cold all the way around. It has helped alot of my clients and their baby's ended up being head down at their next visit. You can also have your ob/midwife try the procedure to turn the baby.

S. Bailey CLD
Aurora
www.tendermomentsdoula.com

Wow, do you have a lot of advice here. I had both my children vaginally. I fought with my doctor to have my second child vaginally. My daughter was small 6lbs 11oz and was "sunny side up" and got stuck while she was trying to turn face down. She ended up having some nerve damage. My first doctor said that he knew my second baby was larger and wouldn't deliver me unless I agreed to a C-section. I sought out a second opinion and this Doc said that I should be fine. My son was 9lbs 14oz and we both did fine with a vaginal birth. I wish I would have had a midwife though. Anyway, my point is to look around talk with many midwives and docs and ask there opinions on Breech Births. Some breeches are less risky to deliver than others.

Also, have you tried Yoga to turn the baby? My friend had a breech baby and worked with a prenatal yoga instructor on poses to turn the baby. It worked!

Best of Luck to you and Best Wishes on a happy and health baby no matter where or how the baby enters the world!
E.

I can see you have a lot of advice & I hope you found the help you needed. My daughter was breech. It was the day before her due date & she was 8lbs. She was very comfortably settled in and was not going anywhere. My Dr. did a c-section. I didn't want to risk a vaginal birth and decided, with the dr, that a c-section was the best option for all of us.

best of luck!
M.

HI L.,
I would recommend having a c-section. Recovery is very fast. I was in labor with my daughter for 5 days. I knew something was wrong 2 weeks before I went into labor. We knew she was in position before then because I had a ton of pelvic pain and pressure. One night of major discomfort and pain the pressure was gone. Finally, on the 5th day of labor and finally dilating to 4 they decide to admit me and x-ray my belly. Sure enough she change position...had an emergency c-section and recovered after 2 weeks. It was soooooooo much easier than vaginal birth. If given the choice I'd never go vaginal again!!

L.,
I have a 4 month old son who I found out was breech when I was 37 weeks pregnant. I was a little hesitant at first about this, and was not interested in visiting the hospital to have the Drs try to "flip" the baby...that just didn't seem right to me. I ended up having a cesarean delivery and everything went great! I'd do it again in a heart beat! Not sure about a home delivery, and actually delivering a breech baby, but I hope you choose the right decision for you. You're very brave to want a home delivery......if I were in your shoes, I would opt for a c-sect. The recovery takes longer...but it was well worth it!
R.

I doubt any doctor in the area will let you deliver naturally.I am a certfied doula (birth coach)and most physicians will section a breech.I hope you continue to try to change the position- hugging the back of a chair leanning over it has been one way to do it.The infant mortality rate is very low but of that 20% were breech. I believe that is the reason for the OB/Gyn prejudice against breech deliveries.I hope this adds to your discussion. If you would like to speak to me about my doula experiances I would be open to that. I can be reached at ###-###-####. I also have a doula office in downtown Skokie.
Good Luck!!
J. Roth CD DONA International

Who is attending your birth? Both our babes were born at home and I understand the desire to birth as naturally and comfortably as you can. There is one wonderful midwife in the area who does attend breech births at home. If you would like to contact me off-board, I would gladly give you her information. She is highly in demand, so I'm not certain she would be able to take you on as a client, but she may have good advice for you. Best wishes!

A.
____@____.com

Hi L..
While I did not have a breach birth..I almost did. I did a months of exercise that my Dr. told me to do. Did not work. In his office, with his hands he was able to move the baby himself. He delivers babies at home too. Has had many years of exerience at this.
Dr. William White
Franklin Park, IL
###-###-####
Maybe he can advise or help you too.
Mrs. P

Hi there- I am a chiropractor and I just wanted to make sure that your chiropractor is doing Webster's In-Utero Constraint technique with you. Webester's has a 90-95% chance of allowing the baby to get into proper position. If your doc in not using Webster's then find one who can. For more info check out this website: www.icpa4kids.org You can read more on Websters and you can find a doc who is certified in the technique if need be. Good luck!!! T.

Hi L..

My sister had a breech birth 4 months ago. The baby was head up, butt down. She had to have a C-section. All went well! The doctor told her some "exercises" she could do to try to turn the baby, but it didn't work. Trevor is now a healthy, happy 4 month old. If you must have a C-section, I think a home delivery is out of the question. Good luck and take care!

T. C.

My son was born at 32 weeks and he was breech and the doctor did not suggest having him vaginally. We did a C-section. I did not want to take ANY chances of something bad happening during a breech delivery. I would be even more cautious since you are planning a home birth.

I would definately talk to your doctor before making your decision and weigh the pros and the cons.

Way back 20 years ago when my sister was born she was breech and the dr's tried to turn her around. Nowadays they don't really do that w/ the fear that the umbilical cord can and will wrap around the baby's neck. C-sections are more common for that. I have a friend that had a c-section for that same reason. Did you have your first child at home?

There are many women with experience (from both sides) on these groups.

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/EmpoweredChildbirth/
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/HomeBirthingPregnancy/

Homebirth is every bit as safe as hospital birth in low risk women. In fact, in most recent studies, more moms and babies died in the hospital than at home. This was attributed to hospital acquired infections. Homebirth midwives and doctors carry the same resucitation equipment the hospital has.

As for breech birth, nearly no doctors and few midwives are trained to do this. It is still possible to find some who will. Although breech birth brings with it risks, c-section also has many risks for mom, baby, and future pregnancies. It is not a decision to be made lightly.

Things like the position of your baby (frank, complete, footling) affect whether a breech birth is safe to attempt. Sometimes a breech positioning can be a sign of another problem with babe such as a short or nuchal cord. It is important to see what other risk factors or warning signs are present. As a mom with a proven pelvis, there is every reason to believe you could safely accomplish a breech birth.

www.birthlink.com is a great place to look for practitioners who would be skilled in this area. Also, try the website www.spinningbabies.com for some great info on turning your babe. Only 3% of babies are breech at term. Best wishes to you and don't give up. 34 weeks is early yet.

I agree with what's been said about doing all you can to try to help the baby turn and going with the section if the baby does not turn, even though that means not the home birth you desire so much. Breech birth is not something to mess with when it can effect health so greatly. The primary goal is a healthy baby. Try to keep that in mind regardless of what it takes to get to that healthy baby. Both my baby boys were breech, and needed to be sectioned. The first was also 5 weeks early. Feel free to contact me if you want to talk about what to expect or anything. Congradulations on the 2nd child!!!

My daughter was breech and because of this I had to have a C-section. I was living in the San Francisco area at the time, and there was only one hospital that would do a vaginal delivery because it is a more complicated delivery and has more risk associated with it. Based on my experience I would say that if you do want to try to deliver vaginally I would do so in the hospital in case there are problems so that you have the care necessary for yourself and the baby to keep you healthy. Also make sure you check with your doctor/midwife/hospital to make sure it is something they will do.