Vaginal Birth After Cesarean

My Journey to a VBAC from Lindsey Meehleis on Vimeo.

Is VBAC Safe?

Studies show that women who have had a cesarean birth but go on to birth vaginally are likely to experience the following:

• Lower risk of postpartum infection resulting from the cesarean surgery.

• Less blood loss.

• Lower risk of needing a blood transfusion.

• Lower risk of developing dangerous blood clots.

• Lower risk of infertility in the future.

• Less risk of damage to your internal organs during surgery.

• Lower risk of complications from general or regional anesthesia.

• Lower risk of needing a hysterectomy.

• Less difficulty with mother-baby bonding and attachment.

• Lower risk of breathing difficulties for babies.

• Less difficulty with breastfeeding.

• Lower risk of developing complications in future pregnancies with placenta previa (placenta grows in lower portion of the uterus, covering the cervix) and placenta accreta (placenta grows into the uterine wall and cannot separate from uterus after birth). The complications increase with each additional cesarean birth.

We have cared for many VBAC women and all have gone on to give birth vaginally (as of 01-01-04).

For the latest evidence on VBAC and repeat cesarean birth, see A Guide to Effective Care in Pregnancy and Childbirth at www.vbac.com/chapter38.html#1. We strongly encourage women to do additional research on VBAC to help them make an informed choice.

More Info:

In today’s medical environment, hospitals and physicians are often banning VBACs or even attempts at VBACs. We are dedicated to preserving a woman’s right to choose her desired birth and that includes VBAC. We support her right to choose and we believe VBAC is the safest choice for most women.

Not only are we committed to providing informed consent, we fully discuss risk factors, monitoring, current studies and statistics as well as prevention techniques that contribute to successful VBAC experiences. We carefully review your medical & obstetric history, discuss birthing options and develop a care plan with you, keeping in mind all your desires for a normal birth.

Research shows a normal vaginal birth after cesarean is entirely possible and more probable with the attendance of midwives. We encourage women to educate themselves regarding physician and hospital policies in the rare case of a transport.* Women may find VBAC policies that include continuous fetal monitoring, IV access (with or without fluid attached), withholding of food and liquids, and restriction of maternal movement. Very often the clock will be ticking and time limits of labor imposed in a hospital setting. On the other hand, we believe birth is a normal process not subjected to time limits or physical restraints, and they highly recommend continued nourishment and hydration during labor, freedom of movement, hydrotherapy for pain and other “tricks of the trade” to ease the discomforts of labor.

With our midwives, a woman chooses her birth place, labor positions, attendees, environment and receives continued encouragement to birth her baby in her own way! We believe birth is a significant life experience that can be achieved vaginally. It should be a time of peace, exhilaration, joy and growth for a family that will be treasured for a lifetime.

For more research based information, resources and VBAC support go to www.vbac.com and www.ican-online.org

* At your request, we would be happy to provide you information regarding our birth, cesarean and VBAC statistics, client referrals as well as references for current medical statistics and studies.

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