(Closed) Would you scdedule your C-section?

• Sassygrn
• 9 years ago

• Wedding: June 2011

I personall wouldn’t unless there was/is medical condition baring me from having another child naturally.  For my son, he was born early and did vaginal delivery. Was the pain insane, it hurt like hell yes. But not totally insane.  I rather tolerate the pain of birthing then have a surgeon cut me open. 

• Tatum
• 9 years ago

• Wedding: October 2010

I think only a minority of doctors will do an elective c section. For most, they would want you to have a medical reason in order to plan one in advance (obviously this does not count situations that come up at the very end, like baby in distress or a breach position or something like that).

However, I had an emergency c-section back in Sept (I wasn’t dialated at all, baby’s heart rate was plummeting, my blood pressure was spiking, and doctor said, that’s it, baby is coming out NOW, we can’t wait for you to deliver on your own). I did not have any kind of labor experience (no/minimal contractions, no pushing, etc.) so my doctor told me I’m actually a pretty candidate for a VBAC if I want next time. But, since I already had one c-section, they would go ahead and schedule another one at 39 weeks if that’s what I wanted- the choice is mine.

I think about it a lot and there are pros and cons to both, obviously. I mean, I could go in with every intent of a VBAC and still wind up with a c section. Plus, the thought of being able to schedule the birth is pretty appealing, especially since I’ll have another child I need to make arrangements for (my c-section was my first baby) and we have no family nearby. PLus, the recovery for me was next to nothing- I felt great the next day and tossed my pain meds upon hospital discharge.

BUT- I really feel like I missed out on something not having my daughter vaginally. I have no idea what labor feels like, I didn’t get the OMG, my water broke! moment, I didn’t get to count contractions and be like, this is it! I’m going into labor! I have no idea what pushing feels like. I blame the c section for my milk never coming in and not being able to breastfeed. A C section is more complications, more drugs, more expensive, and an extra day in the hospital.

So, I really don’t know. Guess I’ll decide when it actually happens.

• This Time Round
• 9 years ago

• Wedding: December 2012

@MuchGreater:  Your point of view is sadly somewhat a common one for gals who haven’t had a baby yet… “IF it gets TOO BAD then I’ll just ask for a C-Section”.

Lol, unfortunately that is a pipe dream… it doesn’t work that way.  A thought that is well shall we say a naive one.

C-Sections are very serious business… they are indeed a major operation… with ALL the possible consequences that go along with that (including the possibility of death) so Drs don’t just do them on a whim.

No matter how bad your pain is, you aren’t going to get to ask for a C-Section.

What you can ask for is a epidural (also has some potential risks / side effects)… or if you’ve already had that, then maybe a TOP UP… but alas no guarantees there either… it all comes down to timing and where you are at in the delivery process

So ya, there certainly is a chance that you are not going to have a pain-free delivery, which I think here is your biggest worry / fear.  A common one for first-timers. 

Although, it can be hell at the time… this whole giving birth thing… in the end you get over it once you have that babe in your arms… and soon after it is pretty much forgotten (which is WHY the human race continues to have babies… IF it was truly horrible, we’d all only ever have one… and women would probably NEVER have sex again, like the many who MAKE THOSE THREATS to their husbands in the Delivery Room).  Lol

C-Sections are performed because there is a potential life-or-death / serious situation at hand… usually with the baby.

In my case, with my first I had a C-Section because I had been in labour for over 12 Hours, and the baby was now beginning to rip the placenta away from the wall of the uterus.  So we were both moving into dangerous territory.

The good news is I had no pain the entire 12 hours… because I knew how things were supposed to unfold, and what my options were along the way thru the whole process.

So if you plan to have kids, you’ll want to go to Prenatal Classes, and pay atttention.  You can learn a lot in them in regards to what is what (Pregnancy – Delivery – Newborns) and also find out what OPTIONS are availalbe to you and when in the Delivery Process… cause if you miss the window for drugs… then you’ll be sh** out of luck, and have to go thru it all au natural !!

• goodasitgets
• 9 years ago

I’m not pregnant, nor am I going to have a baby in the near future, but I might actually end up scheduling a C-section when I do have a child (bummed out about when I think about this tbh, I’d like to give birth vaginally), because I have a medical condition where giving birth vaginally could be life-threatening for me. That’s the only real case I could see it being worth it, because as PP’s have said, C-sections are a major operation.

• eeniebeans
• 9 years ago

• Wedding: October 2010

I gave birth to 2 daughters vaginally and I would be scared to death to have a c-section.  I have experienced child birth and I would always choose that over surgery (unless medically necessary).

• Audreysdance
• 9 years ago

• Wedding: May 2011

a C-section is MAJOR surgury with big risks and a very long and painful recovery. i would not do this unless absoultely medically necessary.

• Jenn23
• 9 years ago

• Wedding: April 2010

I have to have a C-section because I had a major surgery in 2010 on my uterus so I could have uterine rupture if I delivery vaginally. It will be scheduled one week prior to my due date. I’m not happy about this and would prefer to delivery vaginally. A C-Section is major surgery and has lots more risks. Sure, a vaginal birth is painful, but as a previous poster said, millions of women give birth this way and get over it once they have their precious baby in their arms. I would never elect to have a C-Section unless it was necessary, as in my case.

• luvalways86
• 9 years ago

• Wedding: November 2011

This is coming from someone who had a c-section with my first. ABSOLUTELY NOT!  What most people don’t know is having a c-section is a MAJOR surgery.  There are more complications with c-sections, with mother & baby than with vaginal deliveries.  You need to watch the documentary https://signup.netflix.com/Movie/The-Business-of-Being-Born/70075502?mqso=80030196&mkwid=sCBd7F4jS&gclid=COjhpOGl968CFU6MtgodRlPXRA&country=1&rdirfdc=true

THE BUSINESS OF BEING BORN

You can watch it on netflix, and it will change your view completely.

Being scared is completely normal, but wanting a c-section takes alot longer recovery and more damaging to the body.  And it also can effect how many pregnancies you can have afterwards.  I was miserable after having my first because of the pain.

• runsyellowlites
• 9 years ago

• Wedding: April 2011

I’ve had both & I would NEVER schedule an elective cesarean & would be hard pressed to accept just any reason as medical necessity… No big baby or because you had a previous one here.

Apart from what most would assume, alot of doctors are totally on board for elective cesareans or come up with “reasons” to call them necessary pretty loosely. Cesareans are major abdominal surgery and come with ALOT more risks than a vaginal delivery, whether a vbac or not. They come with a higher maternal mortality rate bc of risks like infection, hemorrhage, & embolism that are significantly higher than that of a vaginal delivery & baby’s have a 3x higher rate of death in elective cesareans than vaginal deliveries (per a recent article on a new study I read).

The key to a successful vaginal birth is to educate yourself as much as you can on natural childbirth, our body’s capabilities, & common medical intervention & tactics. Most (not all) of the “we need to get the baby out” scenarios you see on a baby story are either scare tactics or 100% a result of earlier intervention the doctor “needed” to do. When the time comes just educate yourself & trust your body.

• chasesgirl
• 9 years ago

• Wedding: December 2011

I know that around here there has been some serious issues with scheduling C-Sections and inductions pre-term (ie 37-38 weeks). A C-section is MAJOR surgery, most drs. are moving towards avoiding them if not required and I don’t know any around here who would schedule an elective one. Like others have said, there are much more serious risks involved, the recovery is longer, it is more exspensive, and the female body is generally made for birth, baring major complications it will do its job and deliver the baby which is better for all involved.

ETA: I will say there is a good deal of fear mongering on both sides of this issue, but doctors really do want the best outcome for you and your baby. So be well educated, don’t let anyone make you do what you dont want but do believe your nurses and doctors went to a lot of school and have worked a lot to be able to help you out.

• ashe89
• 9 years ago

• Wedding: June 2013

My son was a planned c-section. At 39 1/2 weeks I wasn’t dialating at all, not to mention at 36 weeks, he measured 7lbs 2oz. In all honesty, I was sick of waiting. I had been hospitalized twice the month prior, had no signs of contractions or any other symptoms that labor was starting. My OB offered the idea of a c-section (even though I could tell that he wasn’t happy about it) and Fiance and I had talked about the possibility of it, so we went ahead with it.

I knew that the procedure was going to be a very serious surgery and I was scared. To death. The nurses at the hospital were extremely helpful and told me what was going to happen step by step before we went into the OR. During the surgery, the nurse and anesthesiologist were amazing.

After DS was born, he weighed in at an amazing 9 pounds!! I was a big baby when I was born too, so I knew that he would be big, but not that big. After the surgery, my OB told my mom that even due to his size and my like of dialation that he didn’t think that I would have been able to deliver naturally.

Knowing how difficult recovery would be, I tried to walk as much as possible when I was allowed out of bed. Over did it the first time I was up, and made the pain worse. Once I was able to walk a little bit more comforably, things started to go better. The only major issue I had, besides the walking, was spinal headaches for about a week and a half.

• mommytobee
• 9 years ago

• Wedding: January 2010

With my son, I planned on going natural; but it happened quite differently. My water broke and 24h later, still no contractions. I had to be induced and the contractions from pitocin were not tolerable for me. So I had an epidural. Then, it still took hours between each centimeter gained, and I started to have a fever and was exhausted from not eating. From 4am to 7am I saw nurses and interns come examine me then go out in the hallway to talk in a low voice, I sensed something was wrong and they weren’t telling me. The baby’s heart slowed way down with each contraction.

At 7am someone recommended a c-section. We asked for another opinion just to confirm, but the other doctor recommended I wait and push. At 8 I saw my real doctor who suggested we wait another 2 hours (I was dilated at 9cm) to see if I could get to 10, and we’d see from there.

Well at 10am I was still at 9 and there was meconium; I was more exhausted since it had been 47 hours since the beginning of it all.

I ended up with a c-section, which at that point, was a relief.

At first I felt sad, I felt my body had failed me. In a way I still think it did, but I am ok with it because I have my beautiful son and we’re all healthy.

This was a traumatizing experience for me and I don’t want to go through anything similar again. At first, I told my husband that this was going to be our only child. However I always wanted two.

I’ll have a second child, but it will be a scheduled c-section. I can deal with the surgery, but not with all the procedures and anxiety of not knowing what’s going on for days! Also, the exhaustion from it all made my first week with my son really difficult and I can avoid this with the next if we go directly in the operating room. I know the next one could be totally different; it could be better, but it could also be worse and I don’t want to risk that.