My Scheduled C-Section Story-Thanks to My Breech Baby

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First of all, I went into this pregnancy NOT wanting to have a C-Section, but Hannah had other plans. I was taking a Bradley Method Birthing class so that I could have an all-natural drug-free birth experience. If you’re interested in that kind of birth experience I highly recommend the book Natural Childbirth the Bradley Way. You can also find a live class to take.

Anyway, a C-Section was not in the plan for me until my little baby decided to stay in a breech position. What a stubborn girl, right?! Now, I know I could have waited a little bit longer. I know some midwives might have let me deliver breech. With all that said, I was so darn anxious about the whole situation that in the end I followed my doctor’s recommendation and showed up at my scheduled C-Section at 39 weeks. Read on to see how the C-Section experience went for us.

This was my first C-Section but my second birth experience. My first baby came 10 days after my due date and I had an epidural. My labor went pretty fast and I had a healthy girl. I was really looking forward to a similar experience with my second baby 9 years later, minus the epidural and other medications. After a lot of acceptance (that didn’t all happen at once), I am happy with my C-Section birth experience. My babies are both tremendous blessings, no matter how they entered the world.

Today’s the DAY!

I woke up early, took a shower, and braided my hair. I woke up my baby (the almost 9-year-old) and gave her a few good squeezes. It was our last few minutes together before she became a big sister. We took some pre-baby photos and headed to the hospital.

Preparing for my C-Section

Checking in was super easy and they took me and my husband back to pre-op. There were a few forms to fill out for me and then a few for the baby. We opted out of vaccines, vitamin K, and the eye goop for the baby so I had to sign a few forms. I was expecting the nurses/staff to give us a hard time about that choice but I was pleasantly surprised that our choices were mostly respected. When I found out I was pregnant I started diving into some research about vaccines. My husband and I feel like we made informed decisions here. If you’re interested in learning a little more about vaccines check out the book The Vaccine-Friendly Plan. It really gave me a good understanding of vaccines and I felt comfortable making a decision after reading this and some other resources.

At this point during pre-op, I wasn’t nervous at all. Things were moving pretty fast and I didn’t really have any time to think. The nurse put my IV in and started filling my body with fluids. Then, my doctor came in and did one last ultrasound to make sure baby was still breech. Surprise…she was 😆. She asked if I had any questions and then left to prepare. The anesthesiologist also came in to check in with me before the procedure. When he left we chatted for a while with the nurse and then she left to fill out some paperwork. That’s when the nerves started to kick in. I started to get really nervous and anxious about everything. It’s a scary thing thinking about getting cut into! I knew I would meet my baby soon but the fear and nervousness were overpowering at that moment.

It’s GO Time! C-Section, here I come

The nurse came back into my room and it was time to walk into the operating room. I wheeled my IV across the hall, leaving my husband behind for a little while, and went to the OR. It was freezing in the room and I was shaking with anxiety and adrenaline. There were a ton of people in there, preparing everything for the procedure. They were counting supplies, checking in with each other, getting baby stuff ready, etc. I kind of felt like I was invisible because the hustle and bustle didn’t slow down when I got there and everyone was just doing their thing!

I sat down on the OR table and there was a nurse standing in front of me. She explained what I needed to do while the anesthesiologist put in my spinal block. There were a couple of pricks and it was done. Getting the spinal block sounded much scarier than it actually was, which was relieving. Within a minute I was already getting numb. They moved my legs pretty quickly onto the table so the medicine would work its way down my body where it was supposed to go.

The nurses put the drape up over me so I couldn’t see anything. I put my arms out to the side which felt weird and made me feel very vulnerable (or maybe it was being almost completely naked in a room full of people…😆). At that time my husband was able to come in and sit by me. It all happened very quickly.

Don’t forget to take pictures, Dad!

Of course, I had that irrational fear that I wouldn’t be numb and would feel my doctor cutting into me. That obviously didn’t happen! My doctor told me she was pinching me and asked if I could feel it before she started. There were two doctors in the room working on getting baby out and it happened fairly quickly. I felt no pain but I could feel pulling and pushing sensations. It is a really weird feeling! They started and within a few minutes, I could hear my little angel start crying! Then of course I started crying and was so eager to see her. The doctor who was assisting had to remind my husband to take pictures (he stinks at remembering this sometimes) and thank goodness he did or I wouldn’t have had any pictures during this time!

And she’s here!

Immediately the nurses took baby Hannah over to the warming table and my husband left my side to be by her. It seemed like FOREVER that I was laying there by myself before a nurse brought Hannah to me! Even though there wasn’t much space, I was able to do skin-to-skin contact with her while they finished the procedure. This was such a special time for us that I wasn’t sure I was going to get because of the C-section. I am so thankful I was able to snuggle with my baby while we were still in the operating room. When the doctors were finished my husband and new baby girl left the operating room and went to the recovery room. They lifted me onto a bed and wheeled me back into the room I started in that morning.

Big baby problems

As soon as I returned to the room the nurse started spewing off things about the baby. She weight 8lbs 14oz and unfortunately, that triggered a special protocol. It was a little scary because you don’t want to hear about potential problems as soon as you have your baby! Turns out, if your baby is above a certain weight, he or she will need to get their glucose levels checked for the first 12-24 hours. My husband and I were both big babies so we expected that Hannah would be on the bigger side. Also, we were pumped with so much fluid before I went in for the procedure I can imagine some of that fluid transferred to her and added to her weight at birth.

I wish I was a little more informed about the options around getting her glucose levels tested but you just can’t prepare for everything and it is scary when they tell you there could be something wrong. Obviously, hindsight is 20/20 but I think if I were in this situation again I would opt out of getting her glucose levels checked purely based on weight. Sticking Hannah’s little heel once an hour wasn’t fun for any of us and I felt like it was a complete waste. Her glucose levels were always normal. The nurses wanted me to start supplementing with donor breastmilk to make sure Hannah’s glucose level was going to be normal.

The glucose tests and the push to supplement made our first nursing experiences more stressful and it put a lot of pressure on both of us. I wish that I would have just trusted my body and Hannah’s instincts more during this time.

Let the visiting hours begin

We moved out of the recovery room a couple of hours later and we were able to have visitors shortly after! I am definitely the type of momma who wants my close friends and family to visit right away so that’s what we did! Looking back, my memory is a little fuzzy that day and I don’t remember much. Thank goodness for pictures! I was up and walking later that day but it was pretty rough. The nurses cheered for me as I passed them in the halls! I was in a lot of pain but everyone said the sooner I got moving the better I would feel. I opted to only take Ibuprofen and Tylenol as my pain medication because I wasn’t comfortable taking anything stronger while breastfeeding.

Nursing, Snuggles, and Recovery after the C-Section

The next few days are a blur of nursing, snuggling, and trying to move around without being in too much pain. Doctors and nurses came in and out asking me the same questions and checking our vitals. We stayed for 2 nights and then we were ready to go home! My recovery was a little more rough than I anticipated. My husband had to literally pick me up and move me sometimes because I could not scoot or maneuver my body by myself. He handed me Hannah so I could nurse her day and night for about the first week before I could start to move her myself. I am so thankful for my husband and other friends and family who helped me during this time of recovery. Each day I felt a little better and that helped me stay positive that the pain wouldn’t last forever.

I hope hearing my birth story was helpful to you in some way! If you’re pregnant and are needing to have a C-section just know that you still have control over a lot of things for the birth of your baby. Don’t be afraid to stand up for what you want and be your baby’s advocate! I used a birth plan template from Mama Natural and she has specific options for C-section which I really appreciated!

Let me know in the comments if you had a C-section, scheduled or not, or a vaginal birth! I hope you enjoyed reading our birth story! If you’re interested in cloth diapering, make sure you check out my review of the Grovia Newborn Diapers!