I am wrestling with this exact issue right now with #1. I broke my tailbone when I was about 3 months along and the past 5 months have been hell. Its finally getting to a different type of pain (she's pressing on it rather than OMG broken ow ow ow). My doc has suggested c section and left the decision up to me. Thank you for posting about your experience. I can't go through rebreaking the tailbone again. I am just now to the point where I'm not in unbearable pain all day.

go for the c section. i really do not get all the fear mongering i read about c sections. i was born vaginally and have had plenty of health issues (including asthma). you should go for whatever you feel comfortable with and whatever you feel has the strongest possibilty of as few complications as possible. i had a c section with dd 1 due to breech presentation. yes, it was major surgery. and yes, my recovery was quick and relatively painless. best of luck what ever you decide.

I broke my tailbone when I had my son and I am now considering having another one. The tailbone injury STILL hurts 15 months later. I still can't ride in cars for a long period of time, I can't sit on unpadded areas, and I even have pain while having BM's. I am terrified of doing that again. My delivery would have been absolutely perfect if not for the tailbone break. It only took 3 pushes to get him out. (I think I may have pushed too hard, too fast...?) I am leaning toward the c-section. My husband is definitely for the c-section because he doesn't want to see me in that much pain again. My OB has told me that he has had several women break their tailbones the second time as well, so he is recommending a c-section for next time.

Any advise would be wonderful.

Thanks Guys for your responses. I am going to try to get an appt. for the chiro. After an x-ray, maybe I will know more. I am thinking pinched nerve in the area. I had a childbirth no one would have wanted. I am lucky to be here today. But, like you said, why now after 2 years.

15:40: It could totally be your tailbone, but probably not from childbirth. Poor posture for extended periods, long bike rides, slipping on a hard surface--all these things can push your tailbone slightly out of joint. It could also be sciatic pain that you're interpreting as tailbone pain. Try a medical-grade doughnut coupled with very good posture and see if it gets better.

to 15:40 -- I suspect you do not have a dislocated/cracked tailbone... but I guess it is possible.

In my experience, dislocated/cracked tailbones hurt IMMEDIATELY (or at least as soon as the epidural comes out!), and the pain does not come and go. But I hope you figure out what is causing you pain...

I'm the 21:26 poster above and in my experience if you "broke" (which is really fracturing and dislocating) your tailbone you would know IMMEDIATELY. Like the OP I couldn't sit at all except for on a doughnut cushion (and even then it was really painful). I sat on that thing for months and months. I also went to an orthopedist and did physical therapy to try to help fix it. It's not something you would just notice 2 years later.

Hello everyone, I need some answers. Is it possible to dislocate or crack your tailbone if you were induced at 6am started pushing at 5pm and ending up having a emergency c-section at 8pm. I am 39 and my son is now 2 years old and I have had pain setting down and getting up that comes and goes for awhile now. I never really paid attention to it until now. Lately it is getting worse. So, I stand all day until I go to bed. It is getting very painful to get up out of a chair padded or not. What do you think?

I would do the c-section. Good luck!

Thanks so much for posting this OP!!! I'm in your situation (although only had my tailbone broken once). I'm 32 weeks pregnant with #2 and just found out that this baby is really huge (my first was actually pretty small, less than 7 lbs). I am TERRIFIED about another potential tailbone issue, especially with a much bigger baby. I think my OB would be open to a c-section and I'm going to ask about it at my next visit. I was really scared of the surgery, but after talking to some friends and reading this post I think it would be better than the tailbone issues again. (Especially since I'm already having issues with it popping in and out again since I've progressed in my pregnancy...).

Congrats OP! Hope you're recovering well after this past week. The C-section recovery just gets better and better as the weeks go on.

Sounds like you made the right decision for yourself.

Enjoy your baby!

Thanks for posting OP. I had a tailbone fracture with my first, and I will be wondering about this same question if I opt for a second child.

OP, congrats!! Thanks for posting your experience. I really appreciated this whole conversation and it helped me to see why someone might opt for a cesarean in a situation like yours. It sounds like this was the right choice for you! Enjoy your baby!!

HI all. OP here. thanks to everyone who weighed in on this situation over the past several months. I found most of the input to be very helpful.

As promised, I said I'd post on my experience.

My son was born August 9th (Monday) at Sibley. He was 39.5 weeks along. The delivery went very smoothly, and was really not bad at all (other than I just felt scared about the whole thing). But the surgery itself was cake. (WAY easier than labor!). He was born healthy and screaming his lungs out, and has not had any complications. We came home from the hospital on Thursday.

The bottom line for me? I made the right decision (for me), and it all worked out. I'm really glad I did the CS, as, IMO, the recovery (although tough this first week) is in many ways easier than my previous tailbone recoveries. Being able to sit is HUGE. I can nurse the baby. I can hold the baby. I can stand up and sit down and stand up and sit down again.

I think I had slightly unrealistic expectations about how easy the C/S would be. As my mom says, even with all the medical improvements, it is still "major abdominal surgery". I was able to keep my pain under control quite nicely as long as I took the pain pills. I tried to wean myself off the percoset on day2, and that was a mistake. But now I'm down to 2 per day, and 4 600 mg Motrin. I have noticed that I feel better each day when I wake up.

The flip side to the C/S, is that while I can sit... I had a hard time laying down when I got home. That made me less able to take quick cat naps as needed. The trouble is actually laying down, and getting up. I didn't know this, and maybe its not true for everyone... but for me, I absolutely Cannot lay on my side. It pulls on the incision and hurts a lot (although, I think I'll be able to do that in another 4-5 days?). So, you have to sit in bed, and then to STRAIGHT back... of course, this engages your ab muscles at about 45 degrees, which is no good either! So, the hospital bed was a real blessing in that regard. The first night home, I had to get my husband to hoist me up and down, and once i was down, I was kind of stuck. I have now figured out that its easier to prop myself up on 4 pillows and sleep only halfway back. And I can get up and down by myself. So it's getting easier.

So, for me, the primary benefits of the C/S were:
1) NO BROKEN TAILBONE! YIPPEE!
2) Still had healthy bouncing baby boy
3) No hemmoroids, ouchy perineum, or incontinence issues
4) It is MUCH easier to nurse/pump/etc. when you can sit. God bless sitting.
5) I think I will feel pretty good by 2 weeks... so while the first week or so seems a bit harder in some respects... I think the long term recovery will be much easier.

Primary drawbacks are:
1) No picking up heavy things (including my 4 and 5 year olds) for the next 6 weeks
2) Rule number one makes it hard to get laundry/etc. done, which is tough when you have 2 active preschoolers and a new baby.
3) Felt more tired for a few days longer (still feel a bit more tired), but I think in the next week, I'll feel pretty good.
4) No driving for 2 weeks (have to rely on hubby to do grocery shopping, etc.)
5) scar-- which I was really worried about, will probably be a non-issue. It looks pretty darn small and thin, but I guess only time will tell.
6) somewhat harder to lay down/sleep in the short term

I'm not going to tell anyone what to do, but this was my experience. To some extent, I realize I played the (pretty good) odds, and everything went as expected/hoped for. I'm sure that doesn't happen every time. Plus, I think a big factor that can only be determined by the individual, is HOW bad the tailbone problems are for YOU, and, based on your age/risk/etc., what is your BEST GUESS as to what your recovery time from a C/S will be?

I hope my story will be at least one helpful anecdote that may shed some light on that decision for other moms.

Thanks again for all your input everyone. If I'm not too busy, I may try to post back in another 2 weeks or so with an update.

I'm not the PP who wrote about the asthma, but there has been some research saying that babies born by cesarean may have a higher risk of asthma. For example, this research study:
http://www.jacionline.org/article/S0091-6749(02)91296-0/abstract

and this
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/06/080618114718.htm

So to the PP who said "Get Your Facts Straight", do you have evidence to the contrary, showing that there is no greater risk of asthma? If so I'd be curious to read it. I'm sure there are studies on both sides, however I have found the evidence for an increased risk of asthma fairly compelling.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Push your baby out while you are on your hands and knees. There is much less pressure on the sacrum and tail bone in this position, and much lower likelihood that it will dislocate. If your doctor does not know how to deliver a baby this way, perhaps you could find a hospital-based midwife to help you out. Also, "breathing" the baby out is far more effective than forcefully bearing down as the baby is crowning. Of course we have no idea how your last two deliveries worked out, but if they were not like this, then perhaps you still have something new you could try.

I would do the vaginal birth because it is better for the baby. Baby's born by c/s statistically have a tougher time breathing and have a greater chance of asthma as they get older. Or, if you decide you want a c/s, wait until you spontaneously start labor so your baby at least has the benefit of labor hormones, and then go in to get the c/s.

BABIES BORN BY C-SECTION DO NOT HAVE A GREATER RISK OF CHILDHOOD ASTHMA, GET YOUR FACTS STRAIGHT.

TO THE OP: my c section was super easy to recover from. i felt great in 10 days and was doing ab crunches (gentle ones) at 6weeks. baby was breech and could not be turned. it was not my choice or my desire, but was the safest way to go. and her health came above my desires.