|
Author
|
Topic: What went wrong.???confused????
|
happymum1
Junior Member
Member # 572
Rate Member
|
posted 04 July 2006 03:25 PM
Hi,
I had an emergency C/S almost 6 months ago. We are thinking about TTC#2 so I've had to really think about my birth experience and have a few questions....
I was induced (due to prolonged waters breaking) and had an epidural so I felt nothing. After 12 hrs of labour I was fully dilated & told to start pushing. Even though I had an epidural I was suddenly in excrutiating pain!!!!! It was all in my lower back and my urge to push was strong...and soo painful.
Question 1: Why did I still feel pain when I had an epidural?
After pushing for an hour my obs told me I needed an emergency c/s.
The next day..I asked him what went wrong and he said the baby hadn't descended into my pelvis and it could've been my pelvis was too small or the baby was in a funny position but he couldn't be sure.
So...I'm wondering if I'm a good candidate for a VBAC or not????
Any ideas or thoughts about my confusing birth experience?
I thought I'd add...that in the end it was a very positive experience and no regrets..just confusion
--------------------
[img]http://www.snugglepie.com/ezb/551753.png[/img]
www.tagworld.com/happymum1
Posts: 1 | From: Melbourne | Registered: Jul 2006
|
|
JenBen
Member
Member # 520
Rate Member
|
posted 10 July 2006 12:46 PM
Hi,
Epidurals can have incomplete coverage, the spot which is missed can be excuriating. Also it may not have been a strong epidural. As to the baby not having descended, there are a few reasons this may have happened, it is more likely to be a baby in a funny position - like posterior then your pelvis being too small as that condition is really rare but a common excuse for c-sections. Many women who have been told thier pelvis is too small have gone on to deliver vaginally.
I would think you are a very good candidate for a VBAC as you fully dialated. Good luck
Jennie
Posts: 55 | From: perth | Registered: Sep 2005
|
|
<Penny - Birthrites>
unregistered
|
posted 10 July 2006 06:24 PM
Hi there,
This is quite a common reason for a caesarean unfortunately. I think you are a great candidate for a VBAC the next time. If you get informed about your birth preparation, reading books like 'New Active Birth' (Janet Balaskas), and 'Optimal Foetal Positioning' (Jean Sutton)you will be well on your way to your goal. Creating an active birth and labour is the key to getting your baby to descend into the pelvis and continue into the birth canal. If you get the foetal positioning right too then the baby will have an easier journey. You can have a 'light' epidural which will enable you to move around in labour. Also if you are able to labour in the bath, they nickname this the 'mini epidural'. I found it to be the only pain relief I needed, and it was just wonderful.
Good Luck
Penny
|
|
<Sarah>
unregistered
|
posted 13 July 2006 12:10 PM
I too was induced, had an epidural and then a caesar at second stage after about an hour and a half of pushing. My daughter was posterior with a deflexed head. I had a successful VBAC with my second daughter and again pushed for 1 1/2 hours, this time with a spontaneous labour and no drugs. My story "VBAC at Forty" is on this website. You have dilated beautifully the first time, and with planning and optimisation of your baby's position you have an excellent chance of a successful VBAC. Good luck.
Sarah
|
|
<DebbyM>
unregistered
|
posted 05 September 2006 08:37 AM
Hi Happy,
I have a couple of comments in relation to your statements and queries that will hopefully help you with your decision for next time around.
"I was induced (due to prolonged waters breaking)"
It sounds like your induction may have been appropriate. 90% of women will go into labour naturally within 12hrs of their waters breaking and 95% within 24hrs of their waters breaking. After the 24hr mark the risk of infection increases but this can be managed with drugs. Normal practice is to induce sometime between the 12 and 24hr marks. I had this happen to me but my OB was impatient and I was induced only 3hrs after my waters broke and he told me I would never go into labour naturally - wish I had known then what I know now!!
"and had an epidural"
Epidurals slow down the labour process in most cases because the women tend to be reclining or lying on their sides which means gravity doesn't get to do its work in helping the baby move down. If an epidural is required or desired some of this problem can be overcome by having the woman in a sitting position either on the bed or on a chair or by having a mobile epidural which will still provide numbness to the stomach area but usually still allows some movement of the legs. I had a mobile epidural with my 2nd pregnancy (VBAC) and was actually able to stand and walk around holding onto the bed.
"I was suddenly in excrutiating pain"
As some of the girls said the epidurals do not always take fully but it sounds more likely that it was starting to wear off which is what the OBs normally aim for when the woman is at 10cm or close to it. The pain would feel excrutiating because you go from feeling none of your contractions to suddenly feeling the full blown ones of advanced labour. Normally if you don't have an epidural you have time to get used (to some extent) to the contractions as they slowly build in intensity.
"After pushing for an hour my obs told me I needed an emergency c/s."
It is unlikely your pelvis is too small. The number of women who have a pathologically too small pelvis is very very small and usually related to injury or illness. The more likely reason is that your baby did not descend because you were not in the ideal position to help him descend. The best positions for descent of the baby are being upright and slighly forward leaning. This way the baby both descends and turns so their back is to your front. There is a kit called the Pink Kit which helps women to learn about their pelvises in preparation for birth and also checking out optimal fetal positioning techniques can help.
Pushing for an hour with your first baby is not excessive but if this was your OBs limit then he is an "averages" man. In other words he expected you to deliver to the standard scale of timings as per his text books. The problem with this theory is that most of us are not average women. For my VBAC birth I chose (eventually after interviewing several) an OB who was not concerned with the averages. As long as me and my baby were ok he allowed me to keep going. I had a 27hrs labour although my pushing phase was only 20mins my son did not move down until I started to actively push.
I hope some of this information helps.
Debby
|
|
UBBFriend: Email this page to someone!
Printer-friendly view of this topic