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I am 35 weeks this week and baby has still not turned ready for birth. My GP said this would happen wk 32-34, and when I went to hospital last week midwives and ob seemed a bit concerned that she was breech. She either lies sideways or head-up, bum-down. Is this normal for a first baby? I'm starting to worry I might need a caesarian.
Hi Rosy,
My bub turned in week 36, the ob sent me for a scan to check as he was worried about him being breech but in the two days between my ob appointment & the scan he had flipped :)
My bub turned at 30 weeks but I know a few women who's bub's didn't turn until the last minute. Try not to worry about it until a decision about the labour is needed. Good luck.
Went for an appt today and he's turned (I'll be 30 weeks at end of this week), but according to the midwives it's common to happen right up to 36-38 weeks. So she still has some time!! She's probably just comfy where she is :)
I was born 9 days post dates and turned on the 8th day post dates. Vaginal breech birth can be safe, with an experienced carer and if bubs in is a favourable breech position - safest is frank breech. There are only a few Obs who will do vaginal breech birth, which is ironic when you pay them for birth expertise!
Try acupuncture, hypnobirthing, optimal fetal positioning and other tips I think in the birth threads about helping to turn a breech bub.
Hi Rosy, great question.. I am 30 weeks and my bub has been comfortably bum down for a long time. Today am pretty sure side ways. My chiro has tried a procedure that is meant make more room for bubs to turn but no joy so far.
Kelly what is frank breech? I dont want a ceaser either but I imagine birthing a breech baby vaginally is going to cause more damage and cant be good for bub either..
Netty - A frank breech - is bum first.
Rosy - there is still time yet. Follow Kelly's advice. A friend of mine also found that swimming breaststroke and accupuncture eventually turned her rather stubbornly upright bub.
My Yoga teacher also says that a late-ish turning can be feel uncomfortable. So you might need to make sure you don't inadvertently prevent it from happening by lying down or resting when your baby is possibly about to roll.
netty, breech birth is safe, like I say though, this is given the person caring for you is experienced in breech birth. The idea is to keep hands off for most of the birth until the very end as baby will do the work. There is a great book, breech birth, woman wise by Maggie Banks which is very comprehensive on the topic.
I have attended a breech birth and I know of many where babies were born fast, at home and were breech and fine, including several footling breech (feet first) although this is generally not a 'safer' breech birth. The width of the hips is around the same as the head. Having witnessed a breech birth and it going so well I can't understand why more carers do not keep their skills by continuing or learning how to attend breech births. The biggest danger of breech birth is unskilled people assisting you while giving birth - thats where you can have worse outcomes, as they tend to adopt a managed approach which is not good for the baby, the head comes out last and it needs to be carefully and minimally maneuvered.
In Melbourne, there are three Obs I am aware of doing breech on a regular basis, Lionel Steinberg (does about 3 a month), his back-up, Guy Skinner who does about the same and one other man. Need to get his details. MeredithD has just had a breech birth, she might pop in and give you her thoughts if she sees this thread :)
Rosy,
Kelly has just alerted me to this thread so I thought i would give you first hand account of a bub who wouldn't turn!
My little man was breech from around 26 weeks and never turned back. I tried acupunture, moxibustion, all the optimal positions etc etc but got to the point around 34-35 weeks where I just "knew" he was not going to turn and I was correct. In saying this, I have heard of many baby's turning at the last minute so do not give up hope yet.
My OB was adament she would not deliver a breech baby vaginally and would have booked me for elective c-section at 37-38weeks
After much reading and discussions with kelly (who attended our birth), I was equally adament NOT to just accept the c-section path. I changed over OB's to "vaginal" Lionel Steinberg at 34weeks which also meant changing hospitals and a reaonable amount of stuffing around with medicare etc. HOwever, it was all DEFINTELY worth it.
I delievered our son Logan Thomas 3 weeks ago (39 weeks gestation) without drugs and yes, he came out bottom first. He was alert and breathing immediately and no issues at all associated with the breech delivery other than a very bruised bottom (albeit a very perfect head!).
As kelly has mentioned, the "safest" breech position is frank (bottom down and legs folded up straight against body). Lionel will only vaginally deliver frank breeches and he has other criteria to ensure a safe birth - ie Bubs must not be estimated over 4kg birth weight, NO epidural for mum as you need to do some serious pushing on command, spontaneous labour only - he will not induce, continuous foetal monitoring during labour (although I negotiated on this one and ended up only on the CTG right at the end) and high liklihood of episiotomy (small price to pay to avoid MAJOR surgery in a c-section)
The breech position itself means the baby will take some time to stretch out their legs and they are at higher risk of hip problems (especially girls) but contrary to what some may have you believe, the hip problems result from the long standing breech position, NOT the mode of delivery. C-section breech babies are just as much at risk of hip issues.
Logan is having his hips ultrasounded in mid Jan but the paed thinks they will be fine.
Anyway, sorry about the longwimded reply but I am very passionate about the breech issue. Had i not done my own research and followed my heart, I would still be housebound recoverung from a c-section plus contemplating the future implications this surgery would have on my fertility, future births etc.
Hopefully your bub will turn and you won't even need to consider options but if she does not and you are really not keen for c-section then please, please don't just accept the standard protocol. There are careres who will help you with a safe birth of YOUR choice.
Let me know if you have any further questions.
Bubs was turned at 28 weeks. So lets hope s/he stays like that..!!!!
Rosy, at my hospital they usually try to turn the baby at 37 weeks if it is breech.
Hi everyone, thanks for your replies. We went to the hospital yesterday and are having a scan today to see if there's a reason that bubs hasn't turned yet. At next weeks appointment the ob will talk to us about having her turned at the Mater hospital. Friends of ours have recommended not having that done as it has risks to the baby. Have any of you had baby turned? Does anyone have any info about this?
It's all up to the baby as to when and if they turn but as I mentioned twice above, there are some things you can do to help. But depending on the baby, he/she may or may not decide to turn in some circumstances... you have to help yourself - either leave it up to the high chance that baby will (which is often close to birth and not likely if you are caesered early) or do some things that will help your chances. Many will turn the moment before birth but with a caesar you will never know. Most will turn, but I would rather try just in case. It's up to you and you have the right to say no to a caesar and go into labour. They prefer to book you in as its better for their schedule, but some labour as opposed to none is better for the baby. Its not as if baby will shoot out the minute you go into labour ;)
Either do that, or find yourself a carer who will support you - which I think is the biggie in all this. You need a carer who doesn't see birth as a minefield - what's that going to do for your feelings about birth?! I think thats why birth these days is seen as being so worrysome and a medical condition is because we choose carers who think that way. The thing is that carers who WILL do breech is that they see it as normal and possible (in most cases of course), not a complication in the sense of something that must be dealt with immediately through a caesar.
Kelly, you mentioned earlier that there is another Ob in Melb who will attempt vaginal breech births. Wondering who that is, just out of interest :D
ETA Sorry Kelly, just read it PROPERLY and saw that you need to get his details. I'm blaming pg brain!
Here you go: https://www.bellybelly.com.au/forums...d.php?p=176793
Remember you are consumers - things will change if you change your spending habits ;)
Thanks Kelly for that link. I will try some of those suggestions. Scan came back all fine, but bubs feet are in the birth canal area and as she has talipes they think with her feet being crossed over she may have trouble moving them out of where they are. We'll just have to wait a few weeks and see.
I spoke to BellyBelly's midwife Brenda and this is what she had to pass on about for you:
:
The fact that the baby has a talipes ('positional' i.e. treatable by massage & physio or 'structural' ie requiring corrective surgery) does not affect it's birth in any way, breech or cephalic (head down), it's irrelevant. It is no impediment to a normal birth at all. In the days before we scanned everyone obsessively the talipes just turned up as a surprise package at the end of a usually normal vaginal birth.
If they were severe it may possibly prevent the baby turning from breech to cephalic but it's doubtful. That's because the baby uses it's legs & feet to help itself turn (imagine a rabbit in a transparent water filled balloon doing somersaults that will give you the 'visual').
The major influences that affect whether a breech baby turns or not are:
1. 1. Multiple pregnancy with or without associated prematurity i.e. fetal size & babies are commonly breech at 28 - 32 weeks anyway.
2. the position of his legs i.e. extended alongside his head (frank or extended, most common) in which case he will find it nearly impossible to do a somersault forward or backward especially as he gets bigger & there is less room to move ( his legs act as a splint to his body, we cannot do a forward or backward roll with a straight trunk, we must curl up to achieve it. If you get a doll & do the visual with 1 foot beside each of the dolls ears you will get the drift). As opposed to flexed/complete breech where he is sitting cross-legged in the bottom of the uterus (or footling where feet or knees present)& can bend his trunk to somersault
3. Abnormally shaped uterus i.e. bicornuate or baby with abnormalities (NOT including talipes).
Great outcome MeredithD! Thanks for sharing your story. I hope Logan's little hips are fine.
At my 28 week appt last week, the mid-wife reported that bubs is currently breech. It got me a bit worried, and I wondered whether I should be starting to convince bubs to turn around already.
Thanks for the info Kelly and for those that had their bubs turn later in the preg. It sounds as though I am worrying prematurely.