Elective C-Section Due To Damaged Tailbone

[Mrs S]

Im going mad trying to decide whether to have a c-section because a natural birth may do more permanent damage to my tailbone which was damaged from my first labour, plus im not sure whether i can stand the pain of the contractions and then the bearing down when it comes to pushing on the tailbone.

To make matters worse i would more than likely have to be induced as im also on clexane injections to thin my blood as i had a blood clot years ago. The reason id have to be induced is i cant have an epidural or emergency c-section 6-24hrs after ive taken the clexane, depending on the anethitist, because i could hemorage to death.

So if i have to be induced it will more than likely be more painful and intense(and more painful on my tailbone) which means i might have to have an epidural and if that happens there is a high risk that I will have to have forceps which could do more damage to my already very damaged tailbone - which is apparently not repairable and i could end up having to have surgery or injections after the birth just to get rid of the tailbone pain.

Im 25 and dont want to have to put up with something like that for the rest of my life. The recovery with my first baby after having my tailbone damaged was probably nearly as bad as a c-section recovery anyway!

I really dont want to have c-section if i can help it but it looks like it might be my best option for the future.

Im really stressed out about what to do and im very interested to know if anyone has been in a similar situation and if they ended up having a c-section and what the outcome was.

Hope someone can shed some light on the subject for me.

Michelle

[Danielle]

Michelle,

Your situation sounds pretty tough, seems no matter which way you go there are things that could make into problems. I dont know if my situation is the same as yours, but I have chosen elective c section again for this pregnancy as my baby seems quiet on the larger size around 10 lbs already, my 1st was 10 lbs 2oz, And I have a sverely damaged hip as well from takin 2 falls on the same hip when I was around 25 weeks pregnant both within a week of each other. My OB reccomended elective C section as they are safer than emergency c sections, and he did not know the strain or impact labour and birth would have on my hip being such a tubby bubby. I am much the same I dont want another c section, they arent easy, the recovery is horrible, but all in all you know within yourself what would be safer for you and your baby. My OB was also worried about me being so small and with my bunged up hip and pelvis how I would go pushing such a big baby out, apparently a few labours fail to pregress from big babies, so I dunno. And as for being induced, if you dont think you could go through the pain with your tailbone Im not sure I would do it, but then again C section is really just as bad the day and weeks even months after! I hope you find a solution soon! Let us know what you decide what to do.

[Tobily]

I agree with Danielle in that you're definitely in a tough predicament...not knowing which way to jump because the consequences are all very uncertain. Tough call!

I just wanted to throw my experience with tailbone damage into the mix....I had a number of falls on my tailbone prior to having my first baby that resulted in injury and ongoing problems with it. Sometimes my whole lower back would seize to the point where I could barely walk.

The vaginal birth of my daughter basically fixed it and I swear to you I haven't had a problem with it since. When my DD was born she had a long, thin bruise down the length of her outer forearm - you can see it really clearly in pics of her when she was fresh out. A midwife made an offhand comment that "she must've clipped your tailbone on the way out" which I thought nothing of at the time. But three years later and having had no trouble with it since I'm convinced that whatever happened during her birth has actually fixed the problem.
So there you go, just another perspective

[Mrs S]

Thanks for your input ladies. I dont think it matters which way I go, im probably going to encounter issues somewhere along the line.
Im just thinking of my future, where as c-sections do heal even if they take a few months to get back to some normalness.

Tobily - When you had your daughter did you have to have any intervention at all to help you along as in forceps?

Danielle - You dont have to answer this if you find it too personal but before you had your c-section were you a very fit person that had done exercise for years beforehand? The reason I ask is I do a sport called physical culture and used to be a very fit person. Everyone that i know that does "physie" and has had a c-section said that the recovery has been fine for them and didnt take very long to heal. Im just wondering if a persons muscles have been fit in the past maybe they take quicker to get back to normal?? Who knows??

On a scale of 1-10 how bad would you have rated your c-section recovery?

[Danielle]

hey again Michelle

No, I was a full time worker throughout my whole pregnancy, found it hard to fit exercise in, I worked until I was 39 weeks with my 1st one. I was very fit though, never been overweight or had any issues with my health at all before the operation.

My c section with my 1st wasnt nice at all I had an epidural with spinal block combined, and they couldnt get the epidural to fully work I had to have it several times before it worked, then they said if it didnt work they would have to knock me out cause they couldnt give me anymore, maybe I was slightly overdosed who knows, but I was shaking like a leaf, especially while they were stitching me back up and felt terribly ill, couldn't breathe properly, and was passing out during the op cause my blood pressure went so low, and was breaking out in cold sweats. I thnk I am more scared of the operation itself than the recovery, the recovery is a step by step process for me. I am not sure how badly i would rate my c section recovery, but it took me 6 months before I could walk properly, and even then i was very tender when bending/standing/sitting/lifting etc, was about 12 months before I was healed enough to start escercising to loose my baby weight. I am having a c section again thursday, and I know if i can get through the operation I will recover - probably slowly as my body heals slowly with everything. But i have been eating terrific in the months leading up to the op, so lets hope that might have some sort of influence how I heal? I would much rather a vaginal birth, but having a previous c section and looking at having another big baby I am too much of a risk apparently, I dont know but its my last baby so I will have the op thursday and take things step by step, the operation being first, which scares the hell outta me but Im sure ill be fine. Oh and last time my scar was closed with the surgical glue too so I dunno if that could of had some affect on how i recovered either?

[Mrs S]

Well i wish you all the luck in the world and please let us know how you go! Have you made a birth plan like that other lady said to make sure you get looked after properly?

[AnyDream]

Mrs S I have just replied to your post in the other CS support thread...please ask if you have any other questions.

The other thing I want to throw in is the question of how many more children you think you'd like to have. The risks associated with CSs go up with subsequent pregnancies. For me it was a fairly easy decision as my elective CS was for my last planned baby. I was able to have skin to skin contact in theatre and breastfed in recovery so we got off to a really good start. HTH

[~mamaspice~]

Mrs S, You do have a hard decision to make you poor thing!

I've had an elective caesarean (due to pre-eclampsia and bubs head not being engaged) and I have to say that if you decide on a caesarean make sure you have a birth plan in place. If you can discuss and negotiate special requests it will help to make you c-section a more personal bonding experience. EG: you can ask for the screen to be removed so you can see bub being delivered. You can ask for instant skin to skin contact in theatre and also ask to have bub with you in recovery. It's a shame that this isn't standard procedure, so make sure you do ask for these things. Also you can do things like ask to be able to see the placenta if that interests you. And if you feel nauseous during surgery make sure you tell the anaesthetist as they should be able to fix this quickly with an anti nausea drugs.

As for caesarean recovery. Mine was surprisingly good. Nowhere near as bad as I thought it would be! If I can give you any tips it would be to make sure your OB isnt one of the ones who actually removes your uterus from your abdomen to stitch it up (some OBs do this and it is unnecesary and causes more post op pain and bruising for the mother). make sure you are up and about as soon as your IV and catheter are removed. The sooner you are up and about the sooner you will feel better. Also I didn't have any post OP morphine but I did have capadex capsules and voltaren suppositories (I know the suppositories don't sound great but honestly I had no pain post OP, just a little tenderness).

Hope this helps. And best of luck to you

PS: Danielle, best of luck for your C-section this Thursday!

[Danielle]

hey!

thanks charlismumma, and Mrs S! My ceserean was an unpleasant experience for my 1st time bub, but thats only me, everyone is dofferent and most women I know Have pretty good experiences in thearte and with recovery, so I didnt mean to scare anyone if I have by expressing my experiences through C section, this time I know what I didnt like about last time though and therefore I have the advantage of discussing this with the OB before I go into thearte (will be tomorrow for this discussion) to see if there is anything they can do to help me out a little more while Im on the operating table. A birth plan sounds like a great idea! No I havnt got one in place yet I might spend tomorrow or Wednesday doing one up before I go in. There are things they can help out with while your in surgery though, like you said charlismumma, with the anti-nausea drugs I didnt have them with 1st bub so I will be asking about this and also the doctor I spoke to at my pre-admission appointment said they can even give you medication to help elevate your blood pressure a little so you dont feel so shaky, nauseated, or passing out like I was - which is what I have to speak to the OB about tomorrow. I think if you are going to decide on a c section, Mrs S, to make sure you fully inform yourself of all of this as it will help if you know what your allowed etc if your finding it hard to cope with it, I did not know any of this 1st time around. Do let us know what you decide to go with Mrs S, in most cases I have heard of really good surgeries and normal and good recoveries, apart from myself but this time might be different! fingers crossed with the knowledge I have now I am hoping so!

And thanks again girls! And good luck Mrs S with what you decide, whatever you do decide the most important thing at the ned of the day is you and your prescious little bundle are safe and sound!

[Mrs S]

Geeze us women are awesome arent we?!! The stuff we have to go through - even the ones that have an easy labour.

I think Ive pretty much made my mind up about having a c-section. Done a lot of research into everything that I need to and i think because i have the time to plan everything, it will be a better experience than having a natural labour(induced) and not knowing the outcome. I could still end up having a c-section with an induced labour which is putting me off too! What a waste of time if i end up where i was going to be anyway!

Thanks for the advice charlies mumma, im going to write a very detailed birthplan to make it as pleasant experience as possible. Im lucky my ob is very supportive and is very very experienced. I trust him with mine and my babys life, so that helps a lot too!

I will have to get up and about early anyway because of the risk of getting another blood clot. I will be on a higher dosage of clexane, wearing my stockings and walking around as much as possible.

Hospitals, needles and stuff like that dont worry me as i was in hospital for 10 days with my blood clot and had to have a blood test 3 times a day and lots of injections which was yucky but i know what to expect. So im not too worried about the c section itself, im more worried about the midwife care i will get after. Thats something else i will have to write in my birthplan I guess!

Im sure everything will be fine for you Danielle and we will be thinking about you. The main thing is that the bub will be safe and you get the care you need. Cant wait to hear how things go!

God id love to be a midwife but i hate doing all the bloody and yucky things. I dont reckon you should be allowed to be a midwife unless you have had kids! I had a young trainee and a fully trained midwife, who im sure both hadnt had kids, snicker and laugh at me as i was going through one of my contractions! Ill never forget that! If i had had the energy i wouldve turned around and said, "look here you two, how bout when you go into labour i stand there and laugh at you?!!" Maybe I was just imagining it, but im pretty sure thats what happened as i was making a few weird noises but thats the only way i knew how to deal with the pain!

[Doing my best]

Hi there,

Danielle, GL for your c-section on Thursday.

Mrs S - If it is any help to you, I will tell you my experience. I am really freaked out by ops, but c-section was recomended, so I took this path. Also the thought of an epidural or spinal block had me really worked up, but I was talked around.

I had a rough time through the c-section (my own fault for not telling the anethesiest that I react bad to anesethetic ), but my recovery from the op was great, after the effects of the anesethetic wore off. I actually passed out at one stage as my blood pressure dropped so low. This happened when I went to cough and then couldn't feel that my lungs were clearing, and I panicked. I was given the oxygen mask which helped calm me and I passed out. I then woke as they were pulling my beautiful daughter into the world and all was forgotten, til in recovery I started throwing up (sorry if TMI), and that pretty much continued all day. The fernergun I was given helped a little.. DD was placed on my chest in the theatre while I was being stitched up, but I was pretty out to it, so for everyone's safety she was removed.

For the pain, I was only on voltaren for day. I then had panadol 4 hourly in the day till I left hospital and then once a day after that (if I remembered).

I was up moving about the morning after the op, and didn't have any post op pain. The only pain I had was my uterus contracting while I was BF. I did notice if I bent the wrong way, but by the time of my 6 week check up, I forgot I had even had an op.

I will more than likely opt for c-section again when we decide on #2, but I just have to forget the bad bits of the op, which for me were partly my fault for not giving the details of my past anesethetic issues, and remember I had a great recovery and a beautiful, healthy bubba.

GL with your decision, and I hope it all goes well.

Heather

[Smoke Jaguar]

My GF had her tailbone broken by her first baby 6 years ago and had a bad back from it until her second child was born 3 and a half years ago. The first birth was natural (no interventions at all) and the second was the same. I don't even think she considered elective C for the second, she just went for it. No problems with the second, it also ended up being intervention-free and her back is not nearly as bad since the second one.
If you plan to have an elective C, that's one thing, if you want a natural birth (no induction, epi etc) you really have to go into it without planning for an emergency C. I'd allow for it in the birth plan, but not structure the Plan A part around Part B. To avoid an emergency C (and there is no real reason it should get to that stage, is there? I mean, if you don't have interventions?) you really need to have faith in your body's ability to adapt for birthing (and it does!), because if you embed into your plan a blueprint for interventions, that's statistically very likely to be what you'll get, culminating in an emerg C.
So, a previously broken tail bone does not preclude you from a genuinely natural birth (if you are induced, it's not natural, even if that's the only intervention you have), in the experiences of people here and elsewhere (i.e. my friend) who have had them the first time round
Also, please don't forget to look into how the interventions affect your baby as a neonate, because they will. The interventions may help you give birth, and there is a trade-off that isn't favourable for the reason you're getting them, unfortunately. When you look into the effects on the baby you can also then embed into your plan way to counteract those effects as best as humanly possible - as was said previously, see if you can have immediate skin-to-skin contact to enhance establishment of BFing etc, or it might sway you to avoid intervention all together and go natural.
Remember that without being induced you will give your body enough time to produce natural endorphins which will assist in masking any tailbone discomfort, if any. Endorphins are only produced when adrenaline is suppressed, which means working on remaining in a relaxed state
Good luck!

[~mamaspice~]

hi again girls,

Firstly Danielle, don't worry you wouldn't have freaked anyone out.

My first CS was yucky because I had an anaesthetist who knocked me out after he couldn't get the epi in right. It's just made me more determined to have a better experience next time, just like you Danielle So I've been on a mission, firstly to make sure they get the epi/spinal in right next time and secondly to have an active experience in my next caesar. Thats why I always tell anyone I know who is going to have a caesar to think about the type of experience they want and to write a comprehensive birth plan, because I didn't. If I had truely thought about it I would have made sure that my bubs birth and the 1.5 hours she spent in the world before I woke up would have been videoed so I could watch it later and not feel as thought I'd entirely missed out. My Ob is letting me have a maternal-assisted caesarean next time and I'm thrilled . Now I just have to get a BFP for #2!

Click on the attached link to read a story about a lady I know who had a maternal assisted caesarean at my hospital template

Mrs S, BTW, the chances of having to have a general for a caesar are rare. about 1% so please don't worry. I have just finished reading a book called Delivery By Appointment and I highly recommend it! It is full of information re: caesars and also has the stories of many cs mums.

Mrs S, I'm going to be a midwife! I starting my nursing degree next semester then will be doing a post grad in Midwifery after that! What those midwives did was absolutely un-called for. You should have complained to the Maternity nursing unit manager about that! I don't necessarily agree that a midwife should have had kids but it certainly takes a special, caring kind of person to be a good midwife, but unfortunately there are some duds out there.

[AnyDream]

Mrs S, before I answer your Q from the other thread, I just want to recommend a book called "Delivery by Appointment" which is the most thorough book about CS on the market right now. It goes through everything you might like to consider in making your decision (although it sounds as if it's 95% made already). It's also important that you are aware of the risks involved in a CS otherwise it's not a fully informed decision, KWIM? For example I ended up with an infection that slowed my recovery by several weeks - for a long time afterwards I couldn't carry my baby any further than a room away as it was just too painful. However we'd planned ahead and DH took some extra leave and so I was well supported through that time.

Re after care - my CS was done in a public hospital, and I requested a single room so that my DH could stay the first couple of nights - I was quite scared of being alone with a crying baby that I was unable to lift (as they all room in) and no-one answering the buzzer (as that was my experience first time round, hours went by and no help appeared). They had a very rudimentary fold out single bed and DH ended up staying the entire time I was there. My older daughter stayed with her FDC lady as we have no family here. I know other mums who had CSs without their DHs staying and the midwives were fantastic, very responsive and helpful. You would need to check with your hospital as to how they organise things. I was a little more mobility-impaired than usual as I'd had SPD and getting out of bed was still quite painful for that reason alone, but it's amazing as each day passes how much more you can do.

I also wanted to say, re BFing or skin contact in theatre/recovery - I had various ppl tell me either yes this can and has been done, right through to no that's not allowed here, it's not policy, so I just kept telling ppl it's what i wanted and since they are a breastfeeding friendly hospital they should make the staff available for it to happen. I was adamant that my baby was not to be taken away from me while I was in recovery. On the day, they said they were too busy but in the end the theatre midwife just came up and the rest of them had to wait until she was finished with me before they could do the next person LOL.

[Mrs S]

My GF had her tailbone broken by her first baby 6 years ago and had a bad back from it until her second child was born 3 and a half years ago. The first birth was natural (no interventions at all) and the second was the same. I don't even think she considered elective C for the second, she just went for it. No problems with the second, it also ended up being intervention-free and her back is not nearly as bad since the second one.
If you plan to have an elective C, that's one thing, if you want a natural birth (no induction, epi etc) you really have to go into it without planning for an emergency C. I'd allow for it in the birth plan, but not structure the Plan A part around Part B. To avoid an emergency C (and there is no real reason it should get to that stage, is there? I mean, if you don't have interventions?) you really need to have faith in your body's ability to adapt for birthing (and it does!), because if you embed into your plan a blueprint for interventions, that's statistically very likely to be what you'll get, culminating in an emerg C.
So, a previously broken tail bone does not preclude you from a genuinely natural birth (if you are induced, it's not natural, even if that's the only intervention you have), in the experiences of people here and elsewhere (i.e. my friend) who have had them the first time round
Also, please don't forget to look into how the interventions affect your baby as a neonate, because they will. The interventions may help you give birth, and there is a trade-off that isn't favourable for the reason you're getting them, unfortunately. When you look into the effects on the baby you can also then embed into your plan way to counteract those effects as best as humanly possible - as was said previously, see if you can have immediate skin-to-skin contact to enhance establishment of BFing etc, or it might sway you to avoid intervention all together and go natural.
Remember that without being induced you will give your body enough time to produce natural endorphins which will assist in masking any tailbone discomfort, if any. Endorphins are only produced when adrenaline is suppressed, which means working on remaining in a relaxed state
Good luck!

Thanks for your advice Mayaness, but as i said in my first post i am unable to have a natural birth(no interventions at all - have to be induced) as it is too risky for me and the baby. The chances of having to have an emergency cs in that time period(6-24hrs depending on the anethetist) is not 100% obviously but no body can guarentee me that nothing will go wrong.

If I take my clexane injection and go into labour soon after, end up going to the hospital and somethings wrong with baby(i know its rare but it can happen) and i so happen to strike an anthetist that wont do a csection in 12-24 hours(because of legal reasons) i either lose my baby or i have a c-section and risk me hemoraging to death in theatre.
Thats not something I want in the back of my mind going into a natural labour and im already put off by my first labour as it was very very long and an awful experience. I would not go into labour with a positive attitude and i can see that leading to complications.

All the things that could go wrong in natural or induced labour are at low risk of happening but they could still happen, and if they were too occur, the out come of them happening would be worse than the outcome of a c-section.
At least I can plan for a c-section and have everything down pat and ready to go and ready to deal with any complications if they happen. And I will also know that I wont be jeopordising the long term health of me or risk losing my baby.

This may sound terrible to some people but im not worried about maybe feeling like im not bonding with my baby because of the c-section, in the fact that after my first labour because of what happened, I was unable to walk properly, i couldnt hold my baby properly to feed him because of the pain in my tailbone and my husband did everything except feed him in the 1st week and my son and are so close and have been from an early age. I never felt like I wasnt bonding with him, i knew we had a lifetime to get to know each other and what was important at the time was I get myself better. So it wont be much different to that with a c-section -maybe a little worse or better depending on the outcome.
I also think its lovely for the husband to experience some bonding time with the child as the mother has just carried them for 9 months. My husband adored the time he had with his son in the first week and I felt such a loving, family feeling seeing my baby and husband bonding so well while I recovered.

I know some people feel different and thats fine, everyone has their own opinion. I just feel this is the right choice for me and my future but its also nice to hear stories and get info from other people.
Thanks to everyone for sharing

[Smoke Jaguar]

I would not go into labour with a positive attitude and i can see that leading to complications.

If you know that, then it sounds like you're best off in your comfort zone and structuring your birth plan accordingly I mean 'comfort zone' in a good way - women should not have to birth outside of their comfort zone, whatever that is for them, because it's such a vulnerable time, and that's why a sound birth plan is essential, with a support person to make sure the caregivers stick to it!
It doesn't matter how I feel about it, Mrs S, it's important that you have all the information about the whole picture, as Marydean said. As I said, when you have all the info, you can then best decide on how to counteract the side-effects and downsides. Lots of people ignore the risks and then wonder why they are having problems, because they didn't have any way of minimising those risks. If you know, then not only are you prepared, but you can go some way to mitigate them
Sorry, I wasn't lecturing at you in my previous post - I wasn't sure just how much info you had at hand. I'm also keenly aware that other people read posts like yours who may be in a similar position, so whilst you may be well-informed, others may not (others who may be too shy to post and just read similar cases to theirs). Hope you know what I mean!
I'm glad, above all, that you are at peace with your decision - that gives you a head start with your baby!! Lucky kid to have a well-prepared mummy

[Mrs S]

No thats fine Mayaness, i didnt feel like you were lecturing me at all. Its good to hear all types of stories whether they be good or bad.
I still havent decided 100% as i still have a little time. Need to talk to a few more people first and ill make my mind up when the end of the line comes.
As I said thanks again for all your and everyone elses support. Its so nice to talk to people about the situation and not feel so alone.
Hubby is very supportive but as Dannielle said in one of her posts, its not him that has to go through it or has been through it before so he doesnt totally understand. Not many men do i guess and its not their fault its just nature.
Im sure everything will work out fine and ill be on here soon talking about what advice i need for the baby lol

[Danielle]

Hi girls! Hi Mrs S....

Just thought Id report back in your thread let you know I had my bubba he was 10 lbs 13 oz, 40 cm head 56 cm long, he was a big boy! C section went alot better than last time apart from some hiccups with some blood pressure medication to stop me from passing out, I got heart palpatations from it, then needed a shot of adrenalin to keep me concsious but after that I seemed to be pretty good. Was up 5 hours after op walking, dosed up on morphine endome, pandeine forte, voltaren, you name it they gave it to me, so its good I got pain releif this time afterwards. Ryley has taken to the boob good, except he seems way hungry seems to be draining me before I even fill up again so we will see how we go anyways he is on the boob every 2 hrs on the dot.

But anyhow have u decided what you will be doing yet? If you want to know more about my C section birth I posted a breif birth story in my birth announcement, under birth announcements.

I wish you well for the arrival of your bubby!