Breech Babies Club

Emmanuel’s Breech Home Waterbirth at 20 days past due date

A planned home water birth of a breech baby at 20 days past due date.

“My first thought was to try and turn my baby, so I met with an acupuncturist and did moxibustion for a few days, but my heart wasn’t really in it. I had a feeling that this was my baby’s position of preference. The thought of just letting things be brought me peace, so I decided to stop attempting to turn him. ”

“Twenty minutes later I gasped “he’s here!”, as I felt his bottom “crown”. I’ll never forget the feeling; I cupped my hand around what felt like a soft peach coming out of me. I had read that there is usually a pause between the body and the head emerging, but that was not the case for us! The whole of his body and his head came out in one push! (one long, loud push!)

I scooped him up from the water onto my chest and asked him to breathe. After a couple minutes he did, but I wasn’t worried during this time, he was getting enough oxygen from the cord. I got out of the bath and walked into our bedroom. I couldn’t believe it! He was finally here! All nine pounds of him, so beautiful, and no trace of a conehead of course, having come out breech.”

“I am so thankful for the way things happened. I gave birth normally, naturally, intact (and no tear) and in harmony with my baby.”

http://www.homebirth.org.uk/kathryn.htm

Anton’s surprise footling breech home birth

A surprise footling breech birth at home, handled calmly and gently by an independent midwife.

” A few more pushes and a foot appeared and my midwife realised that not only was the baby breech, it was coming feet first. I had to get out of the pool, as the midwife needed to have full visibility of what was going on. I, understandably, could not move, and let that be known that nothing in this world would make me move. My midwife and my husband literally had to pull me out of the pool as I needed to get out.

I got onto dry land and leaned against our sofa. One foot was born first and then the other. With another contraction, he was up to his navel. His shoulder appeared then the other and his chin. Then two more contractions and his head was born. My midwife announced that it was a boy at one point, which I didn’t mind as she was telling me the progress of the baby being born. As Anton was positioned perfectly, he was born quite easily. My midwife did little to intervene in the birth other than support his body when his head was being born so it wouldn’t be flexed, as that would have possibly caused some damage.”

http://www.homebirth.org.uk/oddny.htm

Recurrence of breech presentation in subsequent pregnancies

A question that comes up a lot is about recurrence of breech pregnancies. So here is some research carried out in New South Wales, Australia.

Overall occurrence of breeches for first pregnancies is shown as 4.2%,and this study shows that it increases to 9.9% in mums with one previous breech baby, and to 27.5% in mums with two previous breeches. Which still means that you are always more likely to have a head-first baby than another breech…

First pregnancy factors associated with subsequent breech presentation in a second pregnancy were placenta praevia, maternal diabetes, baby birthweight for gestational age, maternal age of 35 years or over and caesarean delivery.

Interestingly the overall rates for breech pregnancies decrease in subsequent pregnancies (from 4.2% for a first baby, to 2.2% for a second and 1.9% for a third), with an overall measured rate of 3.4%
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2883072/

Hands off that Breech! (by Mary Cronk)

“But what I want to discuss is not the necessary and proper use of surgery to deliver babies, but what I and many others consider unnecessary surgery, electively performed simply because of breech presentation. Performed because while we have good surgeons who can do a good CS, they, and we, have forgotten, that most breeches can safely be born vaginally. Many midwives have lost, or never been able to learn, the skills of how to assist a woman to give birth when the diagnosis is made “It’s a breech”. Though we know all about mechanisms and we have sat with enough women through enough labours to know when a labour is progressing well and one which is not.

I emphasise that I am not saying that all breeches can or should be born vaginally but then again, neither can all head-down babies. I have attended many breech births, and in my experience if the labour progresses well and spontaneously and by that I mean-spontaneous onset at or around term, contractions that come oftener, last longer, get stronger, a cervix that effaces and dilates, and a presenting part that descends through the pelvis, this baby will be born.”

~Mary Cronk MBE

AIMS Journal, 2005, Vol 17 No 1

https://www.facebook.com/notes/beautiful-birth/hands-off-that-breech-by-mary-cronk/240459222667522

Home breech birth 2003

Home breech birth 2003

“After ten hours, I went into the birthing pool (cow trough) and began second stage. I found the pushing more challenging than my other births, however in the end I birthed my baby who was born doing the splits with the longest umbilical cord ever ( I still feel if I had done the ECV she could have knotted her cord)”

“I am so grateful to the wonderful midwife who allowed me to birth at home. The experience was empowering and inspiring and I hope more people come to realize that breech is a variation of normal.”

Home Breech Birth 2003

A planned breech home water birth

A planned frank breech home birth in water.

“I knew I had a little girl at this point but her head was yet to be born. I also knew we were at the ‘three minute critical phase’ – she had to come out within three minutes as the placenta usually detaches once the body is born. I had no contractions at this point, was exhausted, but pushed for all I was worth anyway. The midwife inserted her little finger into my daughter’s mouth and lifted the body while I pushed and she was born – with the placenta on her head!”

“It was the single most empowering moment of my life – even now 17 years later!”

“It was the single most empowering moment of my life!” {Frank Breech Homebirth In Water}

A planned home breech water birth at 20 days past due date…

A planned home breech water birth at 20 days past due date, supported by independent midwives.

” I’ll never forget the feeling; I cupped my hand around what felt like a soft peach coming out of me. I had read that there is usually a pause between the body and the head emerging, but that was not the case for us! The whole of his body and his head came out in one push! (one long, loud push!)”

http://www.homebirth.org.uk/kathryn.htm

A surprise breech home birth

“My midwife said, ”It’s OK, it’s the same labour, same amount of work for you, the baby is fine and you can do this.”

I don’t think you can underestimate the role of your care givers, especially in a situation like this where you’re thrown a complete curve-ball right in the middle of your transition phase!

It’s like that saying (one of my favorite labor mantras) – She believed she could, and so she did.”

http://birthwithoutfearblog.com/2013/12/15/surprise-breech-delivery-home-birth/

A baby successfully turned by moxibustion at 38.5 weeks!

“Later that evening I laid down. I felt like I had terrible indigestion, like my whole stomach was just upset. I didn’t feel any particular moving, just all over cramping. It didn’t feel like contractions, it felt like gas. So, I let it go, and before long it subsided and I went to sleep.”

http://www.mybreechbaby.org/1/post/2013/12/turned-at-385-weeks-moxibustion.html