I had an ECV that failed, but it was seriously nbd. Doctor won't force baby. 38 w. C recovery was fine bc I had prepared big time by reading books and taking pre surgical vitamins, etc

For a breech baby, I would just go with a C-section.

Recovery is tough though, you will feel like you have a huge paper cut on your abdomen and will need to rely on pain meds like Tylenol for a few weeks afterward.

You will have a permanent residual scar on your abdomen & will lose some scar tissue during the (major!) surgery.

But for a breech baby, I wouldn't try to flip the baby!!

Your post brings back some great memories. Do not make yourself crazy trying to get your baby to flip.

I got a 2nd opinion from tchabo. He said The baby wouldn't flip and he was right---I wish I would have listened to him and skipped the ecv.

I've had two vbacs since the csectuon---just know that a woman who has a breech baby is the best candidate for vbac. Good luck!

Hi there. Mine was in breech in 38 weeks and I was scheduled for a C-section. My lil one turned the next week and they had to change the plan for a natural birth. But my close friend’s baby was big and was in breech, as well. She had a C-section. She was completely fine and her recovery was fast. She prepared herself mentally and I think that made a lot of difference. Please don’t get anxious and I’ll be praying for you. Hope everything goes well with you. Hugs!

I had two scheduled c-sections (well I guess one was technically an emergency because I went into labor the day before my scheduled C-section but I had maybe 2 contractions) and two very easy recoveries. I'm a week postpartum and I feel great, just a little sore. I have friends who had vaginal births whose recoveries were significantly harder than my c-section recoveries (e.g. physical therapy for a year because of pelvic floor issues, major tearing, massive bleeding, etc...), so consider that a vaginal delivery may not be as easy as you are imagining it to be.

I tried an ECV with my first (along with EVERYTHING else) but it failed (no complications, it just didn't work). We found out later that my baby had the cord wrapped around her three times. This time around, I didn't bother trying to turn the second baby - I figured it was meant to be.

Anyway, a c-section definitely won't ruin your body. You may have a little shelf, but if you're in shape with flat abs, it won't be noticeable at all.

As a doula, I've attended an ECV that did not work, and she went from there into a cesarean. She had an epidural for the ECV so it was already in place for the surgery. It seems like it's worth a try, but regardless, a cesarean won't ruin your body! You may have a longer recovery, but especially with good support, you'll be just fine. If you're concerned about the ability to have a vaginal birth with future pregnancies, there are things you can do to help make that more possible. Best of luck to you!

I was in the same situation. Baby would not budge, and I was set on natural delivery. We tried the ecv, I tried some spinning babies moves, but nothing worked. By the way, the ecv is painful and very uncomfortable!

During my scheduled C-section, they saw that the cord was wrapped around his neck four times. That's why he wouldn't move.

OP here - I just want to thank everyone for this great input. It's making me feel like a rational human again (when does DCUM accomplish that?)

I was a poor ECV candidate and I did make myself nuts with appointments and stress. If your body is saying not to do the ECV, don't. In my case, an ovarian cyst was huge (like inches long) and calcified and DC couldn't go head down. As I know you've read, sometimes they're breech for a reason. Scheduled section (and recovery) still sucked, but birth wasn't happening otherwise.

My VBAC was great.

I was in the same exact situation and really agonized over whether or not to do ECV to avoid c section. After a lot of thought and research, I reluctantly decided to do it. I had a c section scheduled just in case. The night before we went for the ECV my water broke and had to have a c section. I was honestly so relieved that I didn't have to do the ECV and the decision was made for me. In the end the c section wasn't bad at all for me and I recovered quickly. If I had to make the same decision I would just choose the c section. Something about the ECV just didn't sit right with me and I'm glad I didn't have to do it. Trust your gut and do what u feel most comfortable with.

I've had two scheduled c-sections. Easy recovery both times. Very similar to PP's experience (although I did not walk 2-3 miles during pregnancy and gained about 35ish lbs both times). No issues breastfeeding (second baby latched on in the OR while the nurse was helping to hold her on my chest for skin-to-skin, ha!)

I had an ECV. I've posted about it on a few threads in this forum if you search. It was simple. The prep (muscle relaxer, monitoring) took way longer. I saw Tchabo at VHC. He does a lot of them. His motto is to try twice but not force a baby who won't move. It hurt, but only for a few seconds. You have to be screened first for all kinds of things that would make it a bad idea before they'll do it. There is a risk of distress but it is pretty low. I was scared as well, but it wasn't bad at all. Baby did turn pretty easily and I had an uneventful birth two weeks later. For me, the risk of complications from a c/s as well as my desire to have more kids was just as scary as attempting the ECV. I would not have tried again if it wasn't successful.

I don't know anything about ECV but I had a scheduled C at 38.5 weeks--it wasn't scheduled far in advance, but because I have a history of pre-e and had almost no amniotic fluid left, I saw the doctor on a Friday and they scheduled the c-section for Monday, 3 days later.

It was seriously not a big deal at all. It was not rushed or scary (I'd previously had an emergency c-section). My husband and I showed up at the hospital, changed into the gown, watched tv and the nurses took my vitals, put baby on monitor, etc. When it was time, I walked into the OR and climbed up on the table by myself. The spinal anesthesia feels quite weird, no lie--you cannot feel your entire lower body but you otherwise feel totally normal--but it wasn't painful at all for me. It just feels like a wasp or bee sting in the lower back--like a prick and burn. The surgical team chatted with me and my husband the whole surgery, checked how I was doing, etc., and as soon as the baby was out and they checked he was a-ok, he got wrapped up and handed to my husband so that he could snuggled the baby and let me see and kiss him. We kept the baby the whole time they sewed me up and it wasn't til I was taken to recovery that the did the quick bath, etc. I got him back probably 10 mins later and was able to breastfeed right away.

My recovery has been pretty darn easy. I might be lucky, but I also walked 2-3 miles every day during pregnancy and gained 25 lbs. I was out of bed at 18 hours after surgery, walking hospital hallways, and took first neighborhood walk at 1 week. No pelvic floor issues. Now, at 8 weeks, I"m back to normal life, running and exercising. My incision site is not painful at all anymore, though the skin around it is more sensitive than on the rest of my body.

I know that's a lot of detail, but if you have to have the scheduled C, it's really not too bad! And you still get a baby at the end

Congrats!

I've had both an emergency and a scheduled c-section.

Recovery wasn't fun, and I remember being especially shocked the first time at how incapacitated I was for awhile, especially the first two weeks. (There are lots of threads here that describe c-section recoveries.)

However. The scheduled c-section was way, way better than the emergency c-section. Way better. There are still restrictions on activities, still pain to be managed, but recovery was faster and easier. You go in calm, you have time to talk with your nurse, your OB, your anesthesiologist all beforehand. It's quick (though the experience of being awake in surgery can be freaky and intense), but then you're in recovery with your baby.

It is by no means the end of the world, and it's a very logical response to having a breech baby.

And, you would be a good candidate for a VBAC. Breech babies isn't one of those reasons that make you less likely to be successful, should you want to try that in the future.

Any irreversible changes to your body are as much from having been pregnant as anything else, and it's hard to tell how your body will be afterwards. A poochy belly is most likely for awhile.

Best wishes.

I'm at 37 weeks, baby is breech, I'm doing all the things, chiro, stretches/inversions at home, I plan on doing flips in the pool, yoga, acupuncture etc. Baby isn't flipping. I've enjoyed the 3rd trimester the most and I feel like I'm just making myself miserable with going to appointments and finding solutions, etc. I really wanted a natural birth but I'm trying to come to terms with being cool with a scheduled C. My Dr. is also willing to try ECV but there's something about that process that makes me uncomfortable - I'm currently researching it now, but I don't love the thought of doing that, though I'm trying to warm up to the idea.

Anyway, I'd love to hear about your thoughts and experiences w/either or both of these procedures. I'm really worried about recovering from a C, and the state of my body after in the short and long term. I was very active and in fairly decent shape before the pregnancy, so I wonder if my body will just be irreversibly damaged after a C? Is that a crazy thought?