My VBAC Journey!

I am really excited to be sharing today's post by my sweet sister-in-love, Helen, Sumner.  I have had a lot of requests asking me to tell my story and give my advice on birth and homebirthing.  As of yet, I have not taken the time to do that, but today, Helen will share with you her encouraging story of having a natural birth after having a C-section.  She will also give great tools and advice for pregnant women. 

Helen Sumner

I first started researching VBACs (vaginal birth after cesarean) when my first baby was about six weeks old.  When I went to my six week check up with my OB, I asked him about a natural birth next time, and he told me that it was too risky, my baby was just to big for my body, and he didn’t want to have to be waiting around the hospital the entire time I was in labor. (It’s a law that a Dr has to be at the hospital the entire time his patient is laboring during a VBAC.)

So I left feeling a little sad, but hey it’s what my Dr said, and we have to listen to everything our Doctors say because they are the ones who went to medical school, and they have our best interests in mind, right?

 

A few weeks later I couldn’t stop thinking about it, so I did a quick google search, and found out that there are a lot of other women who do not want to be forced into another c/section.  I found an amazing vbac support group, and I started asking everyone I knew who had had a cesarean if they were considering a vbac next time?  A lot of responses were “what is that?”  I heard the stories of why people who had multiple C/Sections went that route.  “Well because that’s what their Doctors said to do.”  Honestly, a lot of ladies think they have no other choice - “Once a C/section always a C/section.”   That’s what I had always thought too.

 

I’m going to back track a little because if I could give first time moms any advice it would be do not go into your birthing experience feeling like the Doctor has your best interest in mind.  Do not go to the hospital trusting the system.  Do your research.  If I had done just that, I am positive that my c/section could have been prevented, but that’s another story for another time.  Oh and by the way, I’m sure you’ve figured this out, but in case sarcasm is lost on you, I do NOT think we always have to listen to our Drs.

 

So when I realized that other people did have babies naturally after a C/section, I started researching the risks.  I’m not going to get into all of the statistics and studies.  I’ll provide links to some great information though. What I found was surprising!  There are risks, but they are smaller than I thought.  I’m not going to say that everyone should have a vbac, I think it’s a very personal decision that you should research, and pray about.   There are risks to which ever you choose, you just have to decide which risk is right for you.  We decided that vbac was the right risk for us.  It took a little bit to convince James, but once he saw the research he was convinced.  It also took a little bit to convince a few of my friends and family I heard “please just don’t risk it” a few times, but I think I bored them with enough evidence that it was a safe option, to hush them up.

 

So once everyone was on board, I started trying to figure out where I could actually have a vbac!  I quickly discovered it was not going to be in Beaumont, no Doctors will do vbacs (I wasn’t pregnant at this time, just wanted to be prepared.)  I starting thinking I was going to have to drive to Houston.   At this point, I had decided I didn’t want another hospital birth, and I had started trying to find a birthing center.  Then I heard about a birthing center in Orange!  I called and asked if they take vbac patients and they did!  I talked to my midwife for a few minutes and told her my first birth story.  I think I was dancing a jig while I talked to her.  She said I sounded like a good vbac candidate.  I told her I wasn’t pregnant, but would be giving her a call when I was.  I felt so happy to have found a provider. James still wanted to go the hospital route, but said he would meet her. When I was about 1 month pregnant with Benjamin, we went to Orange to meet my midwife.  After that first meeting James was convinced.  She put us both at ease, and we realized that I would be in very capable hands.

 

I was ten days late when I had Benjamin.  My midwife realized that I was worrying so much that I wasn’t letting myself go into labor, so I made a list of all of my fears, and then put a bible verse to go with that fear.  I had so many people praying for me, I knew deep down that the Lord was with me. When I was on my way to the birthing center, I was crying for joy because I had so much peace and could feel the presence of the Lord!

 

 

Natural birth was the biggest adventure I’ve ever been on; don’t let the fear of pain keep you from a natural birth.  There is nothing like the feeling of pushing your baby out, and then pulling them into your arms.  Birth isn’t something we should fear, it’s what we were made for.  It’s what our bodies are designed to do, and there is something amazingly powerful about being able to do it all on your own.

 



 



If you are considering a vbac, or have already decided you want one, then get a little determination!  I had decided that if I did end up having a C/section, I wanted to be able to look back and say without a doubt I had done everything to make my vbac possible.

My sweet sister, Tera, paid for me to have a birth photographer, and I’m so very thankful to her for that.  I will forever cherish the pictures from that morning, and I would like to share them with you all. Here’s a link to my birth pictures.

The Landon study proved that vbac is a safe option, link.

This is written by a midwife and puts the risk of vbac into perspective, link.

I think this last link is what made me decide I definitely wanted a vbac after I weighed the pros and cons of vbac or repeat C/section, link.

 

Lo, children are an heritage of the Lord:

and the fruit of the womb is his reward.

Psalm 127:3