2 Interesting Links about Breech Births

Wonderful article discussing how Canada is changing its stand on breech births.  They are now encouraging vaginal breech births!

Great video showing a vaginal breech birth.

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“Flippy” baby turns and is born vaginally easily with Hypnobabies

Helllo Hypno Moms

Alexandra Addison was born at 11pm on June 29th, she weighed 7#11oz and was 19 inches long.

Here are some brief details:

Baby was breech until 37 weeks (after doing lots of tricks from spinningbabies.com, she flipped)
At 39 weeks she flipped back to breech.

So, the doctors were very nervous about me walking around full term with a breech baby. With much persuasion they agreed to let me wait until 39 wks + 5 days before taking any action.

We scheduled an ECV to be followed by induction on 6/29. With help from a midwife, the dr was able to turn baby. I listened to “Turn Breech Baby” track the entire time and visualized baby in ideal position. It worked!

One hour later, pitocin was started. I had started having pressure waves that morning on my own but nothing very strong or consistent enough. One hour and a half after Pit started, my water broke on its own. After that, I had some very powerful pressure waves. Even though I was hooked up to IVs for antibiotics (group B strep) and pitocin, I was able to move around a bit and change positions. I rocked in a rocking chair, rested on a birthing ball, slow danced with my husband.

Only 5 hours later when I felt PWs increasing I lied on bed on my right side. I felt the urge to push but we needed to wait for the Dr.

My husband put in the pushing track, Dr arrived and Alexandra was out with 3 easy “Aahs”
I can’t say enough about how the Hypnobabies tracks helped.  The mind is a powerful thing. I listened to Hypnotic childbirth #1 and #2, birthing day affirmations and easy childbirth etc. I kept thinking “open, open” with every PW.

I am so happy I used Hypnobabies.

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ECV Success

i posted last week about my breech baby who refused to cooperate with my
conservative methods to flip him. i tried webster technique, acupuncture,
pelvic tilts, and knee chest positions. i even tried a little bit of pulsatilla
20c. this afternoon was my ecv. i had my husband and doula there with me. it
was a long afternoon.

i started off the day a little stressed out with some time-sensitive errands.
my ob canceled our appointment at the last minute (38w appointment), because she
had a conference (that’s another frustrating story). then my husband picked me
up from our house to carpool to the hospital. i didn’t feel like eating much,
because i read from one of the ecv stories on hypnobabies that i shouldn’t eat
so much to give the baby more room to move. and my appetite wasn’t quite there.
i just listened to the breech baby track and then deepening.

we were on-time to the perinatologist. the ultrasound tech mapped out the baby
and measured his weight. he was 1/2 frank and 1/2 complete. what a funny baby!
that would explain why his kicks were in such weird places, always making me
guess where he is. the measurement was surprising since i measured small. he’s
estimated to be 39th percentile and 7 lbs. that really dumbfounded all of us in
the room since i didn’t gain too much weight, and i really thought he’d be 4-5
lbs. i was ecstatic that he wasn’t so small since that’s why i’ve been worried
for the last few weeks.

then i had the non-stress test done. the baby tried his best to get the
electrodes off of his head. he was so cute! then he gave up after 15 mins of
struggle. his activities looked great, so we met up with the perinatologist who
looked at the baby on ultrasound again. she explained to me gently that i had
about 2/3 chance to having this little guy flip. she encouraged visualization,
and i told her that i had that covered with my ipod. she seemed pleased, and i
was happy that she was already telling me to relax with visualization.

now this was the tough part. i was listening to the breech track when they set
up the iv line for the terbutaline in my left hand. i realized that i had to
quickly change over to deepening, because i needed anesthesia now! i started to
relax, but my hands were so cold and the veins weren’t cooperating. they spasmed
as soon as the needle when into the tiny vein. the nurse who was quite
experienced stuck me 3x including my radial vein (if you know where this is, you
know it’s not the most comfortable place). the sticks felt like they were
jabbing into my bones. i had a difficult time focusing and started to jump
whenever she took the needle out to change course. she got the perinatologist
to try in different spots. (the perinatologist typically does the tough iv
cases.) even she missed 3x further up the radial vein towards my elbow. i
thought it’d be less painful, but the pain was quite intense. it kind of felt
like somebody was breaking my arm. but i have to admit… i would’ve cried at
about the 2nd stick. i’ve had phlebotomists miss my vein before in my median
cubital veins, which are much easier to puncture than these tiny ones. and the
staff were trying really hard. so this was the hang-up.

the perinatologist told me that i can try the intramuscular injection, which is
less effective at smooth muscle relaxation. or i can return to labor & delivery
to have the anesthesiologist try and then proceed with ecv. she told me that i
can return if today’s efforts didn’t work with the first option. since she was
gracious enough to let a first-time mom try 2x, i wanted to go for it. and we
did spend a lot of time here already… with my listening to deepening and
breech tracks multiple times.

so i got the intramuscular terb injection, which did make my heart race. but as
i listened to the deepening track, my heart rate came down again. however, the
staff didn’t want to start until they saw that my heart rate was over 100, which
indicated that my body was seeing its effect. so i had to switch my ipod to a
fast song so that my heart rate can catch up. hypnobabies was so effective in
lowering my heart rate! i was fighting 2 forces here – relaxation vs. fast
heart rate.

i was finally ready at 100-102 bpm. after my very last restroom break and a
quick prayer on the toilet, i was finally ready. i laid down, and i think they
allowed me to relax listening to the deepening and breech tracks. i was going
back and forth between the two. the ultrasound tech and perinatologist got into
their positions and lowered the head piece of the bed. my knees were propped up
to relax the belly. i got another glob of warm ultrasound gel. then i was
ready to go. i took some deep breaths in and out while listening to the tracks.
i felt the doctor cup the baby’s butt with her left hand as she pushed down his
head in counterclockwise fashion. i felt him starting to move a little. i was
getting a little excited, but i made sure that i remained calm and relaxed. the
doctor was very gentle in her touch and used broad contact rather than digging
with her fingers.

it was just as other moms have described here. the move was very intense. i
felt the baby get stuck at one point when my uterus tightened. then i took a
big breath and felt the uterus muscle relax and melt as i expired. it was
amazing, because he completely flipped afterward. i heard the excitement in the
staff’s voice even through the scripts. when i heard the perinatologist say,
“good boy!” i knew we were done. after some cheers, congrats, and many thanks
from us, we were off to another session of monitoring. he was fine and still
kicking. he was getting used to his new position.

i pray that he will stay head down since he’s one active baby. the
perinatologist believes that he probably won’t since it was definitely a tight
turn. and i even had hard time turning him with other methods. but definitely
no more inversions and poor posture. i think the baby’s finally at peace with
his new position. in fact, i feel more his back now. so he’s occiput anterior
so far. i will try my best to keep him this way until he’s ready to come out.
i’m currently at 38w2d.

thank you all for your support and advice. the stories were absolutely
encouraging as people around me kept telling me how c-section wasn’t that bad.
my aunt said that i was lucky that had a breech baby so that i have to get
c-section. i had a difficult time keeping me bop during the last few weeks. i
was glad that i was able to get encouraging advice from the moms here. i
honestly believe that the breech baby script helped my baby prepare for today’s
procedure. thank you.

kaela

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Successful External Version with Hypnobabies!

When I was 37 weeks, 5 days, my midwife discovered my baby was in the breech position.  For me, this was especially disappointing, as I am desperately hoping for a VBAC.  I was really upset to think my chances for a VBAC were flying out the window because of a breech baby.

For a week I tried everything:

•Moxibustion (did everyday for 6 days)
•Chiropractic – Webster technique
•Knees to chest position multiple times per day
•Headstand, shoulderstand, down dog
•Laying on ironing board at 45 degree angle
•Hypnosis daily – Turn Your Breech Baby script
•Visualizing and talking to baby
•Using flashlights, music, talking and having 2-yr old sing through TP tube at belly
•Pulsitilla homeopathy
•Swimming – handstands, somersaults, deep dives
•and some good emotional releases (I think I cried a box of tissues)

None of the above worked (although I think it was all helpful to send baby a message and give her more room), so at 38 weeks 5 days, I went in to have an external version done and it was successful!

In the morning, I did one more moxibustion treatment at home, then on the way to the hospital, I listened to the Fear Release.  When it came to the part about creating my bubble of peace, I was thinking about all the comments I received from friends/family in response to an email I sent out the day prior requesting their good thoughts, good vibes, and prayers for this baby to turn.  I took those comments and visualized them typed on strips of paper and I pasted them to the outside of my bubble.

When we arrived at the hospital at 7:30 AM, we luckily got a very nice nurse who got us settled into the triage room.  They hooked up the fetal heart rate and contraction monitors and baby was very active, which was good for establishing a baseline.  I listened to the beginning of the Turn Your Breech Baby script and tried to get relaxed into the setting.  My doula arrived around 8 AM.  I listened to more HB while we waited for the doctors.  Just before 9 AM, the perinatologist I consulted with arrived with one of her colleagues, who the nurse later informed me was the `one to have for this procedure’.   I had explained to the doctor during the consult that I was planning on using my hypnosis practice for the external and she was very excited and supportive.  So, they asked me what I needed and I asked them to just give me 5-10 minutes, if possible, to get relaxed.  The nurse gave me a shot of Terbutaline, a smooth muscle relaxer, to relax the uterus.

About 10 minutes later, the doctors came back.  I made sure that I was listening to the part of the Turn Your Baby script where you visualize your hands reaching into the uterus and gently stretching it open, making more room for your baby, and then reaching your hands around your baby and nudging her around when they did the procedure.  I wouldn’t say that I was in a hypnotic state, because it was difficult with all the interruptions, but I was staying relaxed and focused on the script.  I kept my headphones on the whole time, and my eyes closed and I didn’t listen to what they were saying, or watch what they were doing.

It was SO intense, but I stayed totally relaxed and calm the entire time, even though I swear my diaphragm was in my ears and I could barely get any breath into my lungs, and I was sure my xiphoid process (little bone attached where your ribs come together) was going to pop off!  I did want to scream out “STOP!” but I just focused on the script and was talking to my baby the whole time.  I finally opened my eyes after about 2 minutes when I felt the hands come off and looked at one of the doctors and she was smiling, so I removed my headphones. It was good news!

I was really surprised at how forceful it was and I never felt the baby turn on her own.  I guess I thought they’d give her a little nudge and she’d turn herself around.  The doctors said they couldn’t believe how relaxed I seemed and they said, “We need to find out what that is you are listening to!”  [Of course, I told them all about HB.]  They also said that a big part of her getting to turn was because I was so relaxed. I figure if it took four hands to move her, she doesn’t have room now to flip back on her own. I’ll be 39 weeks tomorrow.

They kept me for 3 hours to monitor my contractions and baby’s heart rate. She was just fine – never wavered outside a normal range. I was having some pretty strong contractions (according to the monitor) although I never felt any sensation beyond strong tightening of my uterus. I also had some mild cramping, but after about 90 minutes it all normalized, although I was still crampy, which I’ve been feeling for a few days anyway. The nurse called the doc to see if she could release me, and the doc wanted her to do a cervix check before they sent me home.  I politely declined and assured the nurse I was not in labor, as I have labored before. She was okay with that, just smiled and said, “Okay”.

I kind of struggled with the fact that this was a bit of an invasive procedure, but I figured it’s a LOT less invasive than another cesarean and I truly did try everything else I could to get her to turn on her own.  I’m glad we tried it and now I am confident that it will be smooth sailing from now until the birth…

~Karen
39 weeks, VBAC

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Amber’s Extrenal Version Attempt

I wanted to share my story about our external version attempt on Monday. We weren’t successful in the traditional sense, but I personally consider it a success…I’ll explain.

Our little one has been breech since at least 31 weeks, though I’m pretty sure he’d been in that position for at least two weeks before. We found at our growth ultrasound that he was breech (and big and healthy! Daddy is 6’5″ so no surprise!)

I immediately began breech tilts, acupressure on my little toes, some swimming, and the Webster technique with the chiropractor. The Webster definitely made him more active, but he just couldn’t seem to turn on his own. By 36 weeks, he seemed to begin settling into my pelvis, making it even harder for him to flip. He was, however, able to flip side to side (he’d face my right side, then my left), so we had hope.

At my 36 week appt, I asked the OB to check placement. He was still frank breech. I asked about an external version then. The OB was really relunctant to do one for the following reasons: 1. this was my first birthing (tighter uterus than someone who’s blessed with 6!), 2. I had ‘OK’ fluid, but not plentiful, and 3. I had an anterior placenta. He gave me a chance of success of 10-15 percent, and said that if I hadn’t suggested it, he wouldn’t have because he didn’t want to put me through the pain of one. I told him I felt that 10-15 percent chance was better than nothing, and I was willing to try. We scheduled the version at the hospital for the following Monday.

Sunday night I did a fear release and listened to the turn your breech baby track. Hubby and I also talked to our baby, telling him that the doctor was going to try to help him turn and not to be afraid. We also told him, like we had before, that if for some reason he couldn’t turn, that would be ok.

Monday morning I did another fear release and listened to some of Deepening on the way (shorter ride than I expected!). The doctor’s office told me to be at the hospital at 10am, so we pulled into the lot around 9:30 just in case. As we pulled in, labor and delivery called wondering where I was! They had been expecting me at 8am for monitoring. Thanks for letting me know ;).

Once I got in the room, I got dressed in a gown and had the monitors placed. IV wasn’t too bad, but I have terrible veins from being stuck a lot in past years. When the doctor came in after I had been monitored for awhile, he had to bring in the buzzer to startle the baby – he was just too relaxed as well! My OB asked if I had been having contractions or anything, and I told him I hadn’t. Apparently I was while I was there on the monitor! The OB even commented that I was “as peaceful as a spring morning.” Once we confirmed we had good heart tones for everybody, and the whole group of nurses was there (4 nurses, the OB, and a resident, plus hubby), I got the shot of terb and we were ready.

My husband pulled close to me, and everyone gathered around. I didn’t have a lot of time to relax (I was I had done a finger drop before the doctor got in, but I wasn’t expecting him then), but my husband was able to reach over, put his hand on my shoulder, and say “relax.” That was enough to get me in hypnosis, and I felt myself just release. There was a lot of pressure and I was uncomfortable (I think I would have been more comfortable if I’d been more prepared), but overall it wasn’t painful. The baby was facing my right side, so they tried to turn him that way first. They got him to almost halfway, but couldn’t get any farther. I could feel that it felt like he got stuck there.

They regrouped and tried to backflip him to the left. This didn’t work either, and they couldn’t get him as far as they had to the right. Sometime during this, the nurse asked my husband how I was taking it so well, and he told her I’d been preparing for this all along. The OB commented that he was amazed that I wasn’t “cussing him out,” and joked that he was a little dissappointed.

After they were done, my OB explained that he just couldn’t get a good grip underneath the baby’s head because of my placental placement in the front. He actually seemed surprised that he couldn’t do it, despite what he had said before. Also, at previous appointments, whenever I made the comment that the baby still had time to turn, my OB would say “well, I’ll cross my fingers” and get a look that seemed to say “there’s no way.” However, after the version attempt, he told me that the baby still had time to turn and we’d talk more about everything at my next appointment.

I only had a little bit of pain the whole time – when they tried to turn him to the left, a buzzer started going off and worried me. I don’t know if they lost him on the monitor that way or what, but I lost concentration for a bit and had pain then.

The nurses asked me afterward if I had a “really high pain tolerance.” I told them that no, I didn’t, but I had been using self-hypnosis to prepare for birthing. One nurse almost jumped forward to ask what it was! They were really impressed. One of the nurses also commented that it was really good to see someone who didn’t just want to schedule a section, who understood that vaginal birth was best for baby and mommy.

It took awhile to get released, lots of monitoring and busy nurses. I’m sore now and I’m going to try to go to the pool and see if the bouyancy will help my soreness. We even laughed afterward while I was getting dressed that I had a big scratch at the top of my stomach where they had really been digging into me.

I feel that it was all successful for a few reasons. First, I had a peace going into the procedure, and a peace afterward. I had been afraid that I would be devastated if it didn’t work, but I wasn’t and I’m not now. I also feel that it went really well after seeing my OB’s reaction. Overall, he’s a pretty permissive OB – you can talk to him like an adult (!) and make a case for doing or not doing something and he’s usually good about it. However, he seemed more hopeful, and I think seeing me give it a go showed him that some women are willing to go for the difficult things in order to have a healthy birthing. I’m hoping he’ll be more willing with other women in the future to try. Also, I think it was really great for the nurses. One of the nurses in particular (all of the are surgical, so they only see c-sections) told me that she had two sections herself and didn’t want either one. She really coached me throughout the procedure, and I think it was a big encouragement for her.

My husband told me that it was amazing to see the procedure and see how I did with it. I could tell beforehand that he was nervous. He told me that you could really see the baby’s back and everything as they tried. He thinks now that there’s a chance this little guy will end up bigger than he is, and like I said hubby is 6’5″. Maybe I should start saving money for shoes now. I’m just glad the little one is good and healthy. 😀

sorry it’s so long!
-Amber
almost 38 weeks with a big boy!

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Rachael’s Successful Version

I posted a couple of days ago about scheduling the an external version after all sorts of crazy attempts to get my baby girl to turn on her own.  Short version is successful hypnosis and successful external version.  The long story is below:

We were scheduled for the procedure at 12:30 pm, but had to be there at 11.  Before I realized which day I would be heading in, I had scheduled an appointment with the chiropractor.  She was still hopeful for having success through her methods, but the doctor was going on vacation and then it would be too late.  I followed the doctor’s advice to go ahead with the procedure because he really thought it would be successful.  The chiropractor stretched out the ligaments in the front of my uterus and worked more on my sacral joint.

We arrived to the hospital and did all the paperwork.  My doctor was of course late.  He always is, but we love him anyway.  My husband and I were starving by 11:30 am and he showed up after 1:00 pm.  At noon, I did the deepening track and then talked with my husband until the nurses wheeled in the ultrasound machine and told me the doctor was on his way.  I then listened to turn baby turn.  My husband was great at talking to them all and describing what I was doing.  The doctor was excellent at waiting until I was ready and then introduced me to a student midwife and student nurse that he asked to come along.  (It is part of my birth plan to allow student nurses… I aim to impress everyone with the success of hypnosis).

I think that actual procedure took about 20 minutes, but it was hard to tell.  I was able to stay under hypnosis the whole time, but would have to constantly tell myself “peace.”  The experience was very intense.  There were only a couple of situations were there was pain, but again when I remembered to say “peace” to myself or “relax” it moved from painful to merely intense and uncomfortable quickly.  At one point, my husband could tell that I was having difficulty returning to a relaxed state so he supplied the external cue which was very successful.

I’m glad that we decided to try it this week because she has moved from tushie on my left side to tushie in the center.  I think she was close to being wedged.  The doctor had to push her tushy out, though she fought him the whole time.  After the successful turning, the doctor and nurses praised me quite a lot.  My husband told me that they were seriously impressed with my relaxation throughout the procedure.  I didn’t even hear them.

We were able to go home a couple of hours after the procedure.  We would have been able to leave sooner, but my uterus did a little bit of practicing for my birthing time.  Bonus: we already took care of most of registration for when the baby comes!

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Successful Version at 39 Weeks

I am very happy to report that after our baby being breech since they’d started checking at about 33 weeks, that we finally decided to try for the version at 39 weeks and it worked! We have ourselves a head down baby and are ready to await her arrival! So it CAN be done even this late in the game. Yesterday’s ultrasound showed nothing was blocking her way, butt was not wedged in the pelvis, etc. She was really sort of transverse but because her butt was down on my left side they called her a true breech.

Normally they don’t wait this long to try it (about 36 or 37 weeks is optimal), but we just kept thinking she’d turn on her own and so we didn’t push the issue.

My OB was willing to try it even though different midwives had already mentioned a couple of times scheduling me for a c-section at 39 weeks, but we just politely held our ground and let anyone who mentioned this know that we were not interested. Our doctor was thankfully never pushy in the least! I have really gained a respect for her, especially after today.

She was extremely gentle and here comes the good part with Hypnobabies! The whole process from check-in, to celebrate baby head-down, took under two hours. They put me in a gown and put the hep lock in and chastised me gently for having eaten and drank that morning. I knew I was not supposed to but also knew it would be harder to relax if I was hungry and thirsty! They asked me 20 (more like 50) questions while I had my Deepening track on and husband tried to answer some but I ended up just using my Center switch so I could answer. It was easier. They took heart rate and blood pressure and hooked up the fetal monitor. My blood pressure was a little high and my heart rate was elevated although I assured them my heart rate is always fast. That’s normal for me. But I was in fact having trouble relaxing to Deepening, which is weird because it always puts me out like a light when I’m at home. (This experience turned out to be excellent practice for my birthing time!)

So I listened to Deepening again while we waited for the doctor. In between the beeping and people coming in and out, it was still hard to relax. My wonderful Hypnobabies-doula arrived and it was so comforting to have her there with my husband as he held my hand, and they chatted and laughed quietly and that was really comforting. She is a licensed massage therapist! Boy that was a God-send. I decided to lie on my side and was instantly able to become more relaxed, and she worked wonders on my back and shoulders. Then my heart rate and blood pressure were back down for sure! I was definitely much deeper then, and went in Center as they had me flip back on my back to do the ultrasound.

When she was performing the version, I put on the Turn Your Breech Baby track and it was perfect, helping me remember to relax all the muscles around the baby. And I just kept talking to baby and telling her that she was a good girl and we could do this together! And my doula was encouraging me and telling me how great I was doing, and my husband was holding my hand, and it was all so comforting. And 2 minutes later they confirmed with ultrasound that she was head down! What an amazing feeling of relief! My doula had not yet seen a successful version before, but also said that she had not seen a mom this relaxed! I am so proud of us and Hypnobabies.

Just goes to show that it CAN work, even at 39 weeks! Here are some things about the situation that would make many people doubtful, and that Hypnobabies helped me overcome:

-I am a first-time mom (45% success rate when tried at 36-37 weeks for first-time moms. Not sure how far this drops when tried later. 65% for subsequent pregnancies)
-Told by negative midwife that “we don’t recommend them for first-time moms because they don’t work”
-Told by another negative midwife, just before the procedure this morning, that she’s thought all along that the baby was “stuck” and she didn’t think this would work, and told my husband later that she’d probably flip right back! Gee, thanks!

I hope this story encourages other moms who may be going through something similar. Mamas with breech babies do not have to rush to schedule a c-section!

Jenny

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Using Hypnobabies with External Version Attempt

The whole time I was pregnant with Carter he was either breech or transverse.  By the time we got to 34 weeks, the midwives started to get concerned.  We tried everything to get him to turn.  I mean everything!  Chiropractic care, moxibustion, spinning babies techniques, Turn Your Breech Baby CD, acupuncture and acupressure.  My midwife even tried a gentle version of an external cephalic version two or three times.  Nothing worked.  So we scheduled an external cephalic version for 37 weeks.
       I was nervous about it since I had heard from many people that it was so painful.  But I’d read a story from one woman who was studying hypnobabies who didn’t have such a hard time with it.  So I decided to go into it with the expectation that it would be all right.  The morning of the version I did a Fear Release session and I listened to the Turn Your Breech Baby CD.
       We got to the hospital and checked into a room on the labor and delivery ward.  The nurses were super nice.  They hooked me up to monitor the baby.  They use elastic straps that stretch across your belly and one measures contractions, the other measures the baby’s heart rate.  I was having contractions that lasted 1 minute every 3 minutes!  But I didn’t even feel most of them.
       They took an ultrasound to confirm the position of Carter.  They said he was transverse, which was better than the frank breech he had been lately.  I was so hopeful!
       They took my blood pressure and it was quite high.  I asked them if I could do some relaxation and have them take it again.  They just left the cuff on anyway and said it would automatically take it periodically.  I laid back and listened to a Deepening track.  The next time the cuff took my blood pressure it was down to a normal range.  (I don’t recall the numbers now.)
       Nurses kept coming in while I was doing Deepening to check the baby’s heart rate.  I just used center switch if they had questions.  I felt nice and relaxed and confident.  After about an hour of monitoring, then started an IV.  Now, that was a touch painful, but not too bad.  I just stayed relaxed and focused on the Deepening track that I was listening to again.  They gave me terbutaline to prevent contractions.  I had been told that this drug made you feel really jittery.  That worried me since even one cup of coffee leaves me feeling terrible.  But again, I just concentrated on the feeling of confidence that I entered with.  And I ended up not feeling all that bad after all.  It wasn’t as bad as a big cup of coffee, though the jitteryness lasted for a couple of hours, until I got something to eat.
       So then the doc came in.  He didn’t get started until about a half hour or so later than scheduled since he had to attend a birth just down the hall.  By the time he got there, Carter had flipped back around and was a complete breech.  The doc wasted no time and got going.  He tried to push him in one direction and it didn’t work, so he tried the other.  The whole time he was doing it I was concentrating on relaxing all my abdominal muscles, like the Breech Baby CD directs you to do.  The sensation was not painful at all.  It wasn’t comfortable – I wouldn’t have wanted this done for half an hour – but it really didn’t hurt at all.  After trying in the second direction, the doc said it wasn’t happening.  I think he had tried about 3 or 4 minutes, tops, but time is funny in theses situations, so I’m not sure.  I asked him if he would try one more time.  This was my last hope to avoid a c-section!  He was surprised I asked, but did try again.  No luck.  Carter wouldn’t budge from my pelvis.
       As he was washing up, he told me that he was impressed with how well I’d handled it, he said most people don’t do so well.  I told him that I thought perhaps he was just being gentle and he said he wasn’t.  I think, from his tone of voice that he was implying that he was anything but gentle.  After that they monitored me for about another hour, longer than usual because of the contractions I’d been having.  I just lay there and talked to my husband planning what we were going to eat (I was starving!).  They finally let us go and we went for some Asian food.  For about three days afterwards I was a bit bruised where he’d been pushing.  I guess he wasn’t gentle after all!
       I chalk up my ability to be relaxed and confident going into the version to Hypnobabies and credit it with my ability to stay relaxed through the procedure.  It gave me confidence that it would work for during my birthing time.  Unfortunately, we ended up with a c-section, but it wasn’t all bad.  The results – a happy, healthy, beautiful baby boy – were what mattered.  I was happy to be able to say that I tried everything to get him to turn but that he just wasn’t supposed to.

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ECV (External Cephalic Version) with Hypnobabies

Here is one of the Hypnobabies Home Study Mom’s experience with ECV and Hypnobabies.

At 34 weeks, I found out Baby M was breech, and to say I was stressed
is an understatement.  So I did some research, and tried to find all
of my options.  I tried elevating my hips (broke my ironing board!),
played music in my lower belly, and ordered the Turn You Breech Baby
CD.  Then I called my acupuncturist.  Went to see her 3 times, and
while she got the baby to be very active, she never turned.  So then I
called the chiro and had him try the Webster technique last week, and
I was scheduled for another visit with him this past Monday.

I also had my 36 week OB appt that day, so when I went in, my OB said,
“She’s still breech, and if we’re going to turn her, we need to do it
today.”  I knew I was willing to try to ECV, but I was like, TODAY?
Um, OKAY?

So my husband and I had all day to weigh the options, and in the end,
we said, “Let’s do it.”  I did NOT want a C Section, and the ECV
seemed to be the best way to get me a natural birth.

Before the hospital, I listened to Fear Release and the Turn Your
Breech Baby CDs.  We went to the hospital around 3:30, and they
monitored me and the baby for 30 minutes. I put on my Deepening CD,
and the nurse came in a bit later and said I was registering as
“asleep” at the nurses station (great confidence booster, yay, it
works!).  Around 4, they wheeled me down to the Ultrasound, and it was
time for the version.  I kept myself in Center Switch, and my husband
said later that it looked like I was high/out of it.

The ECV took only about 3 minutes.  My OB tipped the table so my head
was lower than my feet, and he gave me a shot to relax my uterus.
Then he used his fingers to lift the baby out of my pelvis and then
turned her a bit.  After every turn, he watched her heartbeat (the US
tech held the US to me belly the whole time), until she was head
first.  The actual turning of the baby was no big deal.  The only pain
was with his nails digging into my skin, pplus the shot and lying at
that angle made me light headed and wanting to barf.  I also yawned
like crazy.  I got really sweaty, so the doctor had to use the balnket
to give her the final turn, which was sweet relief b/c no more
fingernails!

After I was done, they monitored us both for an hour, and they said
her heartbeat was strong, no problems.  I had a few contractions, but
they went away before bedtime.

I’m so glad we did it, because I can finally relax and get back to
concentrating on my HypnoBabies.  For those two weeks of wondering, I
would do the CDs and practice my finger drop, thinking it might all be
for naught.  Now I’m excited and really starting to visualize this birth!

So far, she’s stayed head down.  Please stay that way, Baby Girl!

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