I just delivered my baby frank breech on 5/30/17. Went into labor at 6am, waited it out and arrived at the hospital just before 8am. I was fully dilated when I arrived. My doctor was pulled out of starting a c-section (they were still waiting on the patient’s spinal) because my baby just didn’t want to wait! So the doctor came in and gave me the go ahead to start pushing.
I started pushing with a contraction and all I could hear was the panic in her voice when she realized baby was breech and she was feeling a butt and not a head! Mind you, this is the same doctor that had been checking me since 36 weeks and baby had been head down since my anatomy scan at 22 weeks. She had some nurses getting ready to clear an OR to bring me down for a c-section, and another on the phone calling the doctor in the practice who was familiar with breech deliveries. But baby still just could not wait.
My body just took over and I said I need to push. The Doctor took a deep breath and said “Ok, push!” Two pushes later my beautiful girl was born at 8:17am! After she was born, my doctor was stitching me up and says “Janelle I need to tell you something, I didn’t want to say it before because I didn’t want you to freak out, but this was the 2nd time I have ever delivered a breech baby.” I was shocked! She was shocked!
It was a wonderful experience. I’m glad I went into labor when I did as I had an ultrasound scheduled the next day, and had they known baby was breech, she would have scheduled a c-section!
This birth was truly empowering for me as not only did I deliver her with no pain intervention, but she was breech! I was beginning to doubt my ability to deliver her naturally as the contractions worsened. My husband was a great support person while he was there. Unfortunately he had to miss the birth of his second daughter because our childcare plans for our toddler fell through, and he was in the waiting room with her while waiting on my mother to arrive, but she didn’t make it in time! So although I wish he could have been there, I can now say I delivered my baby naturally, breech, and all on my own!
*Positive birth story kindly contributed by Janelle Belanger
