I am so sorry I have been neglecting this blog and it feels like forever since I wrote on here. I meant to write on Oct. 23 since that was my little girl's first birthday and my anniversary of my VBAC. It is so weird that a year has gone by it seems like it was just yesterday that she was born and I was feeling the rush of ecstatic emotions of accomplishment after the succesful VBAC birth. Yet at the same time it seems like so long ago too....
Since starting this blog I have enjoyed having friends go on to have successful VBACs and I have also enjoyed sharing my story with other women who have wanted to learn more about their options. It amazes me how many women don't even know that a VBAC is an option!
I hope to continue to offer encouragement, and knowledge to women who are wanting to have a VBAC. I also am looking forward to having other women share their own birth stories on here so we can celebrate with them.
I really want to get back into posting on here. If there are any questions anyone has feel free to post a comment or if anyone has specific topics they want me to discuss I would love to hear from you. I have been mentioning I will talk about pain management techniques, as well as twin and breech VBAC so that is next on my list of topics. My goal is to finish those soon!
Friday, December 11, 2009
Twin HBAC Video
Here is another great video a friend found that is showing a wonderful HBAC (homebirth after cesarean) of twins!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xi37qJ-mIoU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xi37qJ-mIoU
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Is your hospital on the list?
Even though I decided to have my VBAC in a freestanding birth center, I know many people feel more comfortable in an actual hospital. In my town my hospital does not do VBACs so I would've needed to travel to find one that allowed them.
Here is a great resource for you if you are trying to find a hospital that allows VBACs. It is taken from the ican website, which I mentioned earlier has some wonderful information. The list shows each state and all the hospitals and then tells whether VBACs are allowed, banned, or defacto. Defacto bans are hospitals that do not have an official ban, but do not have any doctors that do VBACs, or are hospitals that allow VBACs but have not had more than 2 in the last 6 months.
I would still encourage you to ask lots of questions of the hospital that says they allow them, to get a feel how friendly towards VBACs they really are.
http://ican-online.org/vbac-ban-map?filter0[]=**ALL**&op1=5&filter1=
Here is a great resource for you if you are trying to find a hospital that allows VBACs. It is taken from the ican website, which I mentioned earlier has some wonderful information. The list shows each state and all the hospitals and then tells whether VBACs are allowed, banned, or defacto. Defacto bans are hospitals that do not have an official ban, but do not have any doctors that do VBACs, or are hospitals that allow VBACs but have not had more than 2 in the last 6 months.
I would still encourage you to ask lots of questions of the hospital that says they allow them, to get a feel how friendly towards VBACs they really are.
http://ican-online.org/vbac-ban-map?filter0[]=**ALL**&op1=5&filter1=
Monday, September 21, 2009
Natural Births and VBACs with Twins and Triplets
Here is another video a friend sent me about women who had natural births with twins and triplets. I will do some research on this subject and write more on the topic later. It is nice to know that there are options with multiple births. It is important to have a careprovider who has had a lot of experience with natural multiple births and breech births. One thing that stood out to me while watching this video was the actual week of delivery. So many were into the 39th-40th+ week. If they had a c-section that most likely would've been preformed around 38 weeks or before and obviously these babies were not ready to be born then. What a wonderful gift to let the babies continue to grow and develop and enter this world when they were ready and in a natural way!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7E-wULAaD
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7E-wULAaD50&feature=related
Saturday, September 19, 2009
Peaceful Birth
This was shared to me by a friend studying to become a midwife. Even though it doesn't show the actual birth you can tell this baby was brought gently into the world. I wasn't as focused and peaceful at 10 cm as this woman but it shows how beautiful and natural birth is.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r-eW2miJN7U
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r-eW2miJN7U
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
Good Articles and Other Links
I just came across this great quiz that was on the Consumer Reports website. It has great information. Take the quiz and see how informed you are!
http://www.consumerreports.org/health/medical-conditions-treatments/pregnancy-childbirth/maternity-care/maternity-care-quiz/maternity-care-quiz.htm
Another great article found at Consumer Reports:
http://www.consumerreports.org/health/medical-conditions-treatments/pregnancy-childbirth/maternity-care/overview/maternity-care.htm
http://www.consumerreports.org/health/medical-conditions-treatments/pregnancy-childbirth/maternity-care/maternity-care-quiz/maternity-care-quiz.htm
Another great article found at Consumer Reports:
http://www.consumerreports.org/health/medical-conditions-treatments/pregnancy-childbirth/maternity-care/overview/maternity-care.htm
Monday, August 31, 2009
Overcoming Fear and Trusting your Decision
With a VBAC the fear of the unknown can sometimes get the best of someone. It is like being a first time mom again and all the fears that went with labor and not knowing what to expect. The same is true with a VBAC. For me even though I knew what to expect more with the actual labor since I had gone through that before I had no idea about the pushing part and was really nervous for that. The fear of the unknown. Unfortunately sometimes that fear can actually cause someone to just have a repeat c-section because they are at least familiar with that and know what to expect.
So what can you do if you have a fear of repeating another hard labor? How do you overcome that fear if it seems to be holding you back from considering a VBAC? Take the time to look back on your birth that ended in a c-section and try to identify those fears and ways to avoid repeating those same problems if possible.
Maybe you realize now you didn't have good, supportive care whether it was with your doctor/midwife, or the birth setting. If that is the case you should look into other caregivers, and/or birth settings. You also might want to look into hiring a doula or have a close friend or relative with you this time who you know would give you the support you need.
Maybe you realize you didn't have enough knowledge of what to expect or knowledge of procedures or things you could do to help yourself in labor. In that case there are great books, websites, etc. that can help you gain knowledge. Some of these are listed in my resource post. Also a good birthing class, such as a Bradley Birth class, would be beneficial. You can also look for a VBAC support group in your area to gain insights from other women who have experienced what you are going through.
If your anxiety is towards having another long, non-productive labor or hours of pushing remember all births are different and this one most likely will proceed in its own way. Also keep in mind the first is usually the longest. However since you haven't given birth vaginally before it is like a first time birth. Again gain knowledge about ways to help labor progress and learn about what can also interfere with labor.
If your fears are related to the pain of labor learn ways to help you work through the pain. As I mentioned before it is best if you can avoid epidurals. I will have a post soon on some pain management techniques. Just remember that once the baby is born all that pain is quickly forgotten. :)
If you are still having a hard time dealing with your fears it would be a good idea to talk to someone. Seek a trained counselor who also is knowledgeable about maternity issues.
If you seem to be questioning your decision to have a VBAC here are some good questions to ask yourself and think about how you would truly feel:
If you tried to have a VBAC and it wasn't successful and you ended up with another c-section, would you feel better for having tried or worse because you went through all of that just to have another c-section? As I mentioned before I knew that I wanted to at least try and if I did end up with a c-section I would then know it was completely necessary.
If you just scheduled a cesarean, would you feel relieved that you wouldn't have to go through labor again or upset because now you would never know what would have happened if you had chosen a VBAC? As for me, like I said before, I knew that I wanted to at least try and I knew I would always wonder if I could've been successful if I had tried.
If you planned a VBAC and were successful, what would that mean to you? After my baby was born the sense of accomplishment and empowerment was amazing! I was truly blessed!
I hope you take time to ask yourself these questions and really be honest with yourself about your answers and feelings. You will realize if trying for a VBAC is really something that is important to you and that will help you overcome your doubts and fears!
So what can you do if you have a fear of repeating another hard labor? How do you overcome that fear if it seems to be holding you back from considering a VBAC? Take the time to look back on your birth that ended in a c-section and try to identify those fears and ways to avoid repeating those same problems if possible.
Maybe you realize now you didn't have good, supportive care whether it was with your doctor/midwife, or the birth setting. If that is the case you should look into other caregivers, and/or birth settings. You also might want to look into hiring a doula or have a close friend or relative with you this time who you know would give you the support you need.
Maybe you realize you didn't have enough knowledge of what to expect or knowledge of procedures or things you could do to help yourself in labor. In that case there are great books, websites, etc. that can help you gain knowledge. Some of these are listed in my resource post. Also a good birthing class, such as a Bradley Birth class, would be beneficial. You can also look for a VBAC support group in your area to gain insights from other women who have experienced what you are going through.
If your anxiety is towards having another long, non-productive labor or hours of pushing remember all births are different and this one most likely will proceed in its own way. Also keep in mind the first is usually the longest. However since you haven't given birth vaginally before it is like a first time birth. Again gain knowledge about ways to help labor progress and learn about what can also interfere with labor.
If your fears are related to the pain of labor learn ways to help you work through the pain. As I mentioned before it is best if you can avoid epidurals. I will have a post soon on some pain management techniques. Just remember that once the baby is born all that pain is quickly forgotten. :)
If you are still having a hard time dealing with your fears it would be a good idea to talk to someone. Seek a trained counselor who also is knowledgeable about maternity issues.
If you seem to be questioning your decision to have a VBAC here are some good questions to ask yourself and think about how you would truly feel:
If you tried to have a VBAC and it wasn't successful and you ended up with another c-section, would you feel better for having tried or worse because you went through all of that just to have another c-section? As I mentioned before I knew that I wanted to at least try and if I did end up with a c-section I would then know it was completely necessary.
If you just scheduled a cesarean, would you feel relieved that you wouldn't have to go through labor again or upset because now you would never know what would have happened if you had chosen a VBAC? As for me, like I said before, I knew that I wanted to at least try and I knew I would always wonder if I could've been successful if I had tried.
If you planned a VBAC and were successful, what would that mean to you? After my baby was born the sense of accomplishment and empowerment was amazing! I was truly blessed!
I hope you take time to ask yourself these questions and really be honest with yourself about your answers and feelings. You will realize if trying for a VBAC is really something that is important to you and that will help you overcome your doubts and fears!
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