ECV Success Story--long post

Hi everyone. I am 37 weeks today and until this afternoon my baby had been stubbornly in the frank breech position. I tried all the standard home remedies, but she couldn't seem to make the flip to head down -- her bottom was pretty well stuck in my pelvis.

My midwife booked me for an ECV (external cephalic version) to have a doctor try to turn the baby. We had this done at the local university hospital. Here is what happened:

I was not allowed to eat or drink anything after midnight the night before the procedure (killer as I am always hungry and its 100 degrees here so I was quite thirsty too!)
When we arrived we went up to labor and delivery. We were checked in and put in a triage room. They asked for a urine sample and I had to change into a gown. The nurse came and put in an IV and took a couple of vials of blood for labwork. Then they hooked up fetal heartbeat and contraction monitors for about 45 minutes to see how baby and I were doing. The doctor came in did an ultrasound to confirm that the baby was still breech and to diagram her position so that he could decide on the best direction to turn her. The he explained the risks of the procedure (accidently breaking water, placental abruption, and fetal distress--all very rare) and that I would need a c-section if any of those things happened. I signed a consent form. Then we waited for the labwork to come back.

When they were almost ready, the nurse came in and gave me a shot of Terbutaline to relax my uterus. The doctor came back with two residents and several med students (this is a teaching hospital). They checked the ultrasound again and revised their plan because the baby had moved. I put on headphones with some music to help me relax. One resident pushed the baby's head towards my cervix, while another tried to lift the baby's bottom out of my pelvis. They pushed very hard and I found this to be very uncomfortable but manageable if I just focused on the music and took deep breaths. They tried twice and took a break between each time to use the ultrasound and give me a chance to relax. She moved a bit each time, but not enough. Then the attending doctor took the place of one of the residents. He lifted her bottom out of my pelvis and moved it up my right side while the remaining resident moved her head down my left side toward my cervix. A third resident held the ultrasound at my cervix so that everyone could see when the head came into view. This third try was pretty painful, I could plainly feel a little person rotating inside of me and they were pushing down and around very hard. I turned up the music and really focused on breathing and relaxing. I think I probably groaned a bit. It didn't last too long, maybe a minute or two, then everyone in the room started to oooh and ah because it had worked. When I realized that it was successful there was a big emotional release and I cried a bit--very happy not to be headed for a c-section and to have a chance to labor at my birth center.

After they hooked me back up to the monitors for 45 minutes to check tha baby. She was just fine. Nice strong heartbeat. While I was waiting they brought me a cup of ice--which was the best and only thing I had eaten all day. I was a bit jittery from the Terbutaline. It makes your heart race. Also, I got a case of the shakes--kind of an aftershock from the earlier pain. A big mistake was that I told my husband he could leave the room to call my mom and tell her it had worked. I was a bit scared about how shaky and out of control I felt. I wouldn't want to be alone afterwards if I had to do this again. My uterus was very sore for about 20 minutes. After a while all these things went away and I started to feel normal again.

Baby is moving very well tonight. I am just supposed to be extra mindful of her movements, any irregular contractions, and the possibility that my waters may leak. No problems so far though.

Sorry for the long post--but I haven't seen anyone else post about what their ECV was like. Maybe this will help someone else who is nervous. I think the most important thing was to have a positive attitude and to really try to stay relaxed. Know that the discomfort will pass quickly. Also, I was lucky to have a great doctor who did not give up on the first try.

Thanks to everyone who sent me good wishes.

Thanks for posting that grouchfrog... I haven't seen anyone else post about an ECV either, and seeing as I didn't have one myself, I found that really intersting. Ta.

I've never heard of anyone having this done so it was an interesting read, thanks and good luck with the rest of your pregnancy!

Wow, that was really interesting. Thanks so much for posting about it. And wooohooo that they were able to turn her. All the best for the rest of your pregnancy :)

What a fascinating story! And a great ending, too! Hope your bub stays put until ready to meet the world :)

Thanks for posting this. And I hear you on the pain of it. I had it done with my 3rd child. It didn't work though and all I was left with was a killer headache and a very sore and tender stomach. I swear I had internal bruising.

Fingers crossed for you now that your baby stays head down, all too often these babies move back to where they were comfortable.

Thanks for sharing your day with us, Grouchfrog. It sounds very promising. I hope your bubby stays head down.

I'd heard of this being done, but not with so much detail. I found it really interesting. Thanks!

Yes - thanks for sharing! Really pleased to read about the experience from someone who has been through it first hand.

You poor thing having to go through that.But at least it did the trick and all is fine now and you can go ahead with a normal delivery.

Iv seen it done on the pregnancy programmes on sky and she was in pain with it too,it looks horrible to be honest the way they push and shove about. You will have to remind your baby of this when she is older lol.

Good luck,you are near now so keep in touch