Tags
Active Birthing, Baby Smith, breech, ECV, Libby&Derek, mound report, NHS, USA Expats
ECV was yesterday and we have happy news to report. Baby turned, and he’ll no longer be known as “naughty baby.”
Upon arriving at the hospital we were told to go to the Labour Ward which was new for us. We had only been to the Antenatal Ward down the hall. We checked in at reception and they put us into an “active birthing” suite to wait for the doctor/consultant to be available. Royal Surrey Hospital was bumpin’ because as soon as we sat down, within a minute, we heard a fresh baby cry in a nearby room. I had to take a moment to really absorb the upcoming events, not the ECV… It was just so surreal. We are going to be back here soon and we will hear that cry, from our son!
The active birthing suite was a site to see, accommodated with a private bathroom with toilet and shower, birthing ball (fitness ball), a mat, a bed that can be contorted into a variety of positions, a large bean bag pillow, and my personal favorite the birthing pool.
On the move, parents needed our room, so we got put into another active birthing suite to wait and wait and wait….. two and a half hours had passed and the midwife pops in to have us be moved to the room where the procedure would be done. It was right next to the surgery theatre in the case of emergency delivery. “Quick, before the room gets pinched!” she says.
Finally ready to start the procedure, first things first, is baby still breech? Ultrasound confirms, yes, baby is breech. I was then hooked up to monitors to record baby’s heart rate and moms contractions for 20-30 minutes. No concerns proceed to next step. Midwife provides muscle relaxer that was applied with a patch to my belly near my rib; it took 30 minutes to work. Bizarre feeling, this muscle relaxer is in no way a pain reliever, nor does it affect the baby—that’s good. It felt like my belly fell asleep not in a tingly way but in a heavy relaxed way—think sinking into a pillow as you fall to sleep. Time to review the risks with the consultant (doctors = consultants, and he’s a Mister not a Doctor), now that I’m terrified of the impending doom and what is sure to be pain ahead shall we proceed? Yes, let’s.
Remember this is all external:
- Lay me flat with a pillow underneath my pelvis
- Visual check for location, he’s sitting in the V position, baby’s head (at 10 o’clock) and baby’s bum (at 6 o’clock)
- Doctor takes a firm grip of baby’s bum to agitate him
- Grab for husband’s hand
- Baby on the move, doctor lets go and baby begins to wiggle
- Doctor guides baby in specific rotation (counter-clockwise) with his hands below baby’s bum… wiggle wiggle
- Baby stops near my rib cage and is horizontal (head at 2 and bum at 10), midwife steps in to help doctor
- Don’t forget to breathe, yeah this part hurt… like a lot
- Baby moves again with four hands on my belly guiding baby. 2 midwife hands on the right (9 o’clock) to keep the baby from going back into previous position and 2 doctor hands to push/guide baby down from my rib cage (2 to 4 o’clock)
- Baby stops at hip bone = excruciating nerve kind of pain, doctor nudges again, almost there…
- He’s head down!
Thank goodness!!!
Doctor still has a firm grip on my abdomen (5 o’clock) while they raise my head and visually check his head is down and facing the right direction = Good baby. SUCCESS! Afterwards, I felt pretty beat up and had a headache, the Midwife put it best; “you’ve just been man-handled, well done mum.”
So glad it’s over. Would I do it again? Absolutely! That being said, he did turn. It was worth it for me, but with a 50/50 chance of success, I’m not sure I’d want to go through that again if it had not worked the first time. As the doctor put it, “babies are breech for a reason, some just don’t turn.” So, what does it feel like the next day? For me, I still have a headache and feel pretty battered. For Baby, he is definitely lower, putting a lot more pressure in my pelvis and I am feeling WAY more movement below my belly button (it was mostly ribs before, 1 to 4 o’clock).
All is good in the Smith household. We are back to waiting for the Memaw and then Baby to arrive now that we know we don’t have to plan the day he arrives. Lots to do! Take care everyone!