My son was born by emergency c-section, he was an undiagnosed breech presentation - he was head down my whole pregnancy and flipped in his last week. We didn't know until I arrived at the Birth Centre (in a major public hossy) in well established labour (8cms dilated) and my midwife did a vaginal examination. So it was all fairly rushed.
It would be fair to say that most public and private hospitals in Australia will recommend a c-section for breech presentation. Based on the risks associated with breech vaginal birth and the fact that is has been largely unpractised for so many years that not a lot of practitioners are experienced enough to support a breech birth comfortably.
For us, we had a short time to discuss our options & make a decision and it was fairly clear which way the hospital was trying to point me. And based on the info we had at the time we chose c-section (no less devastating for me, but a choice we own). FWIW based on the info & research I've done I believe that planned vaginal breech birth is safe - the key is confidence of the birthing mother & her support and the experience of your care providers. The type of breech presentation also plays a role. I found Henci Goer's book "THe Thinking Womans Guide to Better Birth" really helpful.
The thing that annoys me the most is that care providers will tell you all the risks about breech birth, but seem to conveniently omit the risks associated with a c-section. Like a lot of things in life, its about balancing the risk and really its your choice.
Its highly likely bubs will turn, I think its only a very small percentage that remain breech, so I'm sending your baby lots of "head down" vibes!
Reply With Quote
Bookmarks