C-section or Vaginal birth? if you had choice and you knew the baby would be big what would you choose?

I have gestational diabetes and I am 38 weeks and 3 days and the doctor wants to induce me on friday. The ultrasound says she is already over nine pounds. I had problems pushing my son out and he was only 7 lbs 9 oz. they had to turn off my epidural and I was pushing for 2 hrs and 45 min. and the doctor ended up using the vacuum. My dr. told me this baby could have shoulder distocia (spelling wrong sorry) so he wants me to consider c section I am afraid of that because my husband works 9 hours a day and then after that he is in trade school for 3 hours after that so I would be recovering by myself. which sounds horrible but he is a iron worker and he is at a point in his training where he is not allowed to miss a single day of school because the next class isnt until next year. another question do you know if you can stay in the hospital a few extra days after the c section to recover longer? any advice would be helpful. thank you so much!

C-section or Vaginal birth? if you had choice and you knew the baby would be big what would you choose?
I had gestational diabetes and she was measuring over 9 lbs at 37 weeks. They scheduled a c-section at 39 weeks just for the shoulder dystocia factor. She was my 1st. Considering you had trouble pushing w/ your 1st I would for sure consider c-section route.


Women push out big babies all the time, but I would do the c-section to avoid the dystocia chance (that is scary stuff)


My water broke on it's own before the scheduled c-section so she was ready. C-section itself was not bad...you get a spinal and instantly you are numb, they have the baby out in record time...takes about 40 more minutes to stitch you up and then you are done.


I am not going to lie, you are sore! You get 3 nights in hosptial w/ c-section sometimes more depending on how you recover. After 1 week I was moving good, 2 weeks I was great.


I think you will need help though, especially since you have another child. But for an example, I had c-section on a monday...got out of hospital wednesday (I was READY to get outta there!) by that Sunday my hubby had to go to a fire school training thing and I was alone w/ baby for 24 hours. I did fine...everyone recovers differently though...





By biggest "pain" was sitting up from a laying down position.





FYI, she ended up being 9lbs 10oz...not that bad since they were saying over 9 lbs 2 weeks earlier.





Good luck. Do the c-section.
Reply:I was induced one week early because they thought my daughter was going to weigh 10 1/2 lbs. When I had her she was only 8lbs 13 oz. The ultrasound can be 20% more or less. They thought they were going to do a emergency C-section because her shoulders got stuck for a few mins. But everything worked out just fine for me. If you had a hard time with the first, you may need a c-section but I dont think they will let you pick.
Reply:I had to stay 2 days after my csection, but by then I was pretty much able to get around by myself. I didn't get a choice though, my dauhter was laying on her cord, breech and hell bent on being born at 30 weeks. The csection was actually pretty easy, the worst part was the epidural, and you already know how those feel. I would go with the csection, but that is entirely a matter of opinion and has no medical value whatsoever.
Reply:Hello. This is actually a very simlar situation that I went through five years ago. It is not worth yor child being born with health difficulties. I had gestational diabetes and polyhdramnios, which was excess water. After my 3rd, I do not regret having csections with all 3. The only thing is, at times when I talk to someone who has had regular deliveries I always wonder, "what was it like?" Again, you're curiosity is not worth you're child being born with major health issues. Even though shoulder dystocia happens and there are usually no major problems with that.





Kind of a scary story:I had a friend who was having a big baby, her pelvic outlet didn't open as much as they thought it would, so they took him by vaccuum, too, after 36 hours. She even got to the pushing phase. He was stuck in the birth canal and nearly died, and the vaccuum couldn't even get him out. In fact, it took some skin from his head with it. She ended up with a c-section, but he was born with a lot of deficits, that he has been able to grow out of a little. But she doesn't know how it's going to impact her son.





So, do not feel the least bit like you need to have a vaginal. If anything, you can try to do a vaginalone, but make an agreement with your DR beforehand that if you aren't progressing after 20 hours, for example, do a csection. Then, it will ease your stress of having a healthy baby. Remember: either way, you have a baby, and you have done everything you can to make their life easier while coming into the world for the 1st time.





Good luck!
Reply:First, ultrasound weights are not accurate. Second, having a large baby is not a reason in and of itself to have a c-section... women deliver large babies all the time!





When they did an ultrasound at 41 weeks, I asked them how big they thought she was... they wouldn't give me a "yes, this is a clinical definite weight" answer, because they couldn't.





The doctor looked, felt around, and pronounced it to be an 8 lber.





Boy was he wrong. :)





A 9 or 10 lb baby is not huge... my daughter was born at 9 lbs 12 ozs, vaginally, no drugs, no complications.





Recovery from a c-section is harder and longer than a recovery from a vaginal delivery, and without help, you're going to have a hard time. You'll need help from someone... especially with two children.
Reply:I would go with the c-section. For your sake, and the sake of the baby. good luck!
Reply:As always you should consult with your doctor first! Find out more about shoulder distocia. Weigh the pros and cons for your unborn daughter if this condition should happen to but her at risk and that will have to be the deciding factor, c-section or vaginal.





Personally I would take the vaginal birth to c-section any day just because the recovery was so much smoother and I cant say that the size of my children had anything to do with whether the c-section or the vaginal birth was the best choice. I had to have a c-section for my first child, she was only 6lbs 9oz because we were unsure of her health. But my other 2 children were born naturally. My 2nd daughter weighed 8 lbs 2 oz and I was in labor for 13 hrs. She was just a stubborn girl that was only going to come out in her own time. 6 years later she is still the same.


If your worried about being induced, or have any preconceived notions about it, throw them out. I was induced for my son (an almost 9 lb boy born 3 weeks early) and within 30 minutes there he was. My sister was induced for her daughter (9lbs 2 oz) and her daughter was stubborn too. She didnt have enough progress and after 10 hrs of pushing the doctors decided to do a cesarean. My sister hasnt had any other children to tell whether she would have had any other success with a vaginal birth.


So talk to your doctor about your concerns and when friday comes you will know what to do. As mothers it is what we do.


Any point I would have liked to got across to you is EVERYONE is different and ultimately you will be the best judge of what is best for you and your baby. Good luck with your new little angel.
Reply:Can you try going vaginal and then go for the C-section if the baby won't come? Each birth is different and we know that U/S's can be off. They thought my baby was going to be close to 9 lbs. and he was 7lbs. 8oz. You just never know for sure until they are here. I think with a c-section you still only stay 48 hrs. tops unless there are other problems. Good luck!
Reply:I was in this predicament last week with my own son. After 24 hours of labor a C Section was "ordered". Im a bigger girl so recovery is harder on me...my hospital let me stay 3 days- i even could of stayed an extra day but decided to go home.


With that being said I am a single mom and I have NO trouble doing everything on my own. Once the staples were out I had 0 pain (they took the staples out at 3 days post op). It was not as bad as I thought it would be and next time I am not even attempting labor.. going to go ahead and schedule a section. Good luck
Reply:Have a C section. You don't feel a thing and it is over in minutes with no stress to you or the baby which is important.


As for recovering...yes, it is hard. You can't drive for 6 weeks and they say to leave the stairs for a couple of days...but, on the flip side of the coin, they do try and get you up and about asap. They wanted me to stay in hospital 4 - 6 days but I was crying for home (as I did have my partner there to help). You do get sufficient drugs to cope with the pain and they are very effective. It is hard breast-feeding, but I managed with perseverance. You should be able to stay in hospital a little longer if you explain that there will be no-one there to help initially. I honestly felt alot better after a week or so. You will be able to shuffle around.


Sorry, forgot to mention that I had an emergency C-Section and my little boy was 9lb 1oz and I'm only 8.5 stone.


Don't worry, you will be fine....you'll be in very good hands.


Good luck and let us know how you get on! XX
Reply:I would choose vaginal birth over a c-section any day.





My friend delivered her son after six hours of pushing. And they never had to use a vacuum or forceps. It seems that doctors don't have any patience.





Your body is perfectly capable of delivering a ten pound baby. You just have to work with it, have patience, and let it do its job. Two hours and forty five minutes of pushing is NOT the end of the world.
Reply:I had a C-section because of my child's head was stuck under my rib cage and there was a problem with my uterus. but they didn't know that until I went into labor. I hated have a C-section. If at all possible go with a vaginal birth and use a C-section as a last option. Why go thru the months of pain with a C-section compared to few hours in labor?
Reply:well...i'd say you'll definitely need some assistance while you recover from a c-section. especially if this will make 2 children for you. it's a whole different ball of wax going from having 1 child to having 2, especially if the first one is still young. (take it from me, i have a 2 year old and a 3 week old) so, if you can have your mom or his mom or a sister or something come over to help you...i would do that. vaginal births are always easier to recover from but if your doctor thinks that it would be safer to have a c-section, listen to your doctor.
Reply:I have had one of each, c-section and natural birth. The problem with them telling you its going to be a big baby is , they are wrong ALOT, they told me 2 weeks before i had my son that he was already just over 9 pounds, and when i had him he was a nice healthy 7 pounds 6 and a half ounces.(the c section wasnt for the size of the baby, we had other complications after being in labor for almost 48 hours) and as for having them, id choose natural over c section any day, sure c section is easy at the time, but the healing process is long and hard, i healed fast and it was still alot harder then natural.its harder to breastfeed with a c section too. im not saying by any means that you cant, im just saying it is more difficult and more painful, as breastfeeding causes your stomach to cramp every time you feed or pump.





I had my son on wednesday by c section and went home on friday, but that was my choice, they did give me the option to stay longer i just wanted to go home where i could be comfortable, my husband works out of town and is only home on the weekends. but, you will be amaze at what you can do when you know your baby needs you so it will all be ok in the end.





good luck and dont worry too much, and dont go for the c section just based on the ultrasound :)
Reply:Hello, are you in the UK? They will not discharge you from hospital until you feel ready to go, and usually encourage someone who has had a c-section to stay in for an extra day or two. If you just tell them that youre not ready to go home, they will understand. From your question along i would have said have a normal delivery, but then reading about your history and the way you feel about this, maybe thinking about a c-section is the right thing to do. I dont want the pro epidural lobby to kill me for this, as i might be wrong, but i thought having an epidural can make the pushing stage much longer, because you cant really feel how to push and get the hang of it. I didnt have any pain relief and got her out in 10 mins of pushing. Im not saying this is the right thing for you, im just saying i think things would have been harder for me if i had the epi. Additional stress at the birth will make things even harder for you, so if you feel that a c-section is the best thing all round then go for it, but make it clear to the hospital staff that you will be staying for 4 or 5 days! hehe.
Reply:If you had complications with a previous baby that was smaller, I would hope that your doctor is recommending the c-section, and would take it. The healing process is longer, and it's a bit more difficult to get around afterwards, but friends and family should understand you need them right now. Go for what's going to be safest for you and babe.





The woman I was in recovery with had a c-section and they kept her 24 hours longer than they kept me, and I had a vaginal delivery.








Congrats and GL!
Reply:I had a c section with my son. It was my worst fear but it wasn't bad at all. I was up and walking around within a day and getting around by myself pretty well by day two. I didn't really even take the pain meds except at nighttime. I just needed Advil. But everyone is different. If it is a risk for the baby to be born vaginally, I would opt for the section. Good luck and healthy baby to you!
Reply:I'm sorry you had a rough time with your first. It might be connected to the epidural; it's proven to make it harder to deliver because you can't feel your body telling you to push. Also, if you were induced before you were ready, that stalls labors and has a higher risk of having a C-section.


Ultrasounds are notoriously unreliable, especially in the third trimester! They can be off as much as 2 weeks!


What is your doctor's reason to induce you? You're not 40 weeks yet. Why rush? In understand you have gestational diabetes, but as long as you are both not in distress, it's better to let your body go into labor naturally. As for the C-section, it should only be used in an emergency or when it's literally NOT possible to have a vaginal (ie placenta previa, previous C-section with the old-style incision, not bikini).


I HAD a C-section and it was horrifying. It wasn't helped that the hospital staff completely neglected me; I was in convulsions from the pain each time I was overdue for more pain meds, and it took them an hour to arrive each time! Also, no one told me to walk, or helped me, so the gas built up in my intestines (a side effect of the C-section), and I was in more pain on top of the incision. The recovery was pretty miserable. I was in the hospital 3 days (average for the C-section; it's longer if you have any complications). I couldn't walk normally for about 2 weeks. I never want another; and for our next baby I'm going to do everything in my power to have a VBAC.


Basically, the best thing you could do in this instance is wait, walk, have sex, and have a NATURAL birth. In the end it'll pay off big time! Do your research and you'll see.


We as women need to take charge of our healthcare, since the majority of doctors these days are doing what's convenient for them, and what makes more money.





This is from the first link I provided:





"Should you agree to routine induction or induction for


suspected big baby?





Pros: None (16). Some doctors believe that inducing labor at or before 40 weeks or for suspected large baby will reduce the risk of cesarean for poor progress or having the shoulders hang up during the birth (shoulder dystocia). Studies show this isn’t so (10,12,18,22,33,47). A few doctors believe that routine induction at or before the due date prevents stillbirth, but in the absence of other risk factors, GD babies are not at increased risk (7).





Cons: Inducing labor increases the incidence of fetal distress and cesarean section (19).





Should you agree to planned cesarean?





Pros: None (16,41).





Cons: A cesarean section is major surgery with all that entails in pain, debility, and potential complications, including life-threatening and chronic complications. In addition, the presence of scar tissue and the uterine scar threaten the life and health of mother and baby in future pregnancies. "

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