A breech birth story from Kapuskasing!

Here is our very first breech birth story! Thanks to Brigitte for sharing her positive experience!

Also, we are still looking for more breech birth stories, so if you have one that you'd like to share, please email it to us at cbb.ncr.east.ont@gmail.com

Brigitte writes: 

I have a special breech story that I would like to share from a small northeastern community.

My name is Brigitte and I live in Kapuskasing, Ontario. I have two healthy boys, ages 5 and 2. My husband and I chose to deliver both our boys in Timmins, Ontario (about 2 hours from Kapuskasing) as we felt it was the best option. Our first son was born without a hitch at the Timmins hospital with Dr. X who was absolutely amazing throughout the entire process. Of course, when I found out I was pregnant with baby #2, I wanted to have Dr. X again. Dr. X was also expecting a baby around the same time as I, which was a little worrisome but I also knew that there was a great team of OBGYNs there. 

At 33 weeks, during a regular ultrasound to make sure the baby was measuring okay (I always measured small so Dr. X liked to make sure the baby was good), we found out that the baby was breech. I was shocked and devastated. My first thought was that I’d have to get a c-section which was a big fear of mine. Having a beautiful flawless no epidural delivery like my first was always what I had imagined for my second. I quickly started doing my research. I stumbled upon the Coalition for Breech Birth where I found inspiring stories of vaginal breech deliveries. My husband and I also watched the movie “Heads Up” to get some more information and understanding. 

I started doing all the spinning babies techniques to try to flip the baby but without any success. I had a lot of fear as we live in such a small community that I worried that no doctor would want to attempt a vaginal breech delivery. I cried myself to sleep at night in fear of a c-section. Not to say that c-sections are bad, I just felt in my gut that it was not for me and that I could do this. I started discussing with Dr. X the possibility of doing a vaginal breech delivery as my due date was approaching and we discussed my fears. She was amazing and respectful throughout the whole process. She had suggested an ECV to see if we could flip the baby (which was unsuccessful). She was willing to do a vaginal breech delivery accompanied by another OBGYN but again as my due date approached so did hers. 

We ended up deciding that Dr. Y would be the best OBGYN for my situation. He was one of the best doctors with a lot of experience with vaginal breech deliveries. I was transferred to him about two weeks before my due date. I felt very comfortable with him right away. We discussed mine and my husband's fears, talked about the pros and cons, and he explained that he had done many vaginal breech deliveries back in the day. He agreed to do this without hesitation and was actually excited to have someone wanting to do it as not many people chose to. He felt that the baby measured approximately the same as my first born and with it being my second baby, he felt I was a good candidate. He made sure that the staff at the hospital knew my situation and if I were to come in to call him even if he was not the one on call that day. I was so amazed by his patience and calmness. 

When I arrived at the hospital at about 38 weeks with some contractions, I was about 3-4 cm dilated. Dr. Y decided it was best if I stayed as we live in Kapuskasing (about a 2 hour drive). The team strongly recommended for me to get an epidural but this was another big fear of mine. At the time, I wasn’t in a lot of pain and I was kind of stalled at 5 cm for quite some time so I decided against it. Dr. Y agreed that we’d revise things in the morning if there was no progress. Never at any point did I feel any pressure to do anything I did not feel comfortable with which I think is very important. At around 2-3 a.m. my contractions were very intense, so the nurses checked my cervix and I was fully dilated. 

Dr. Y was there in no time, guiding me through every step. He explained that he’d let me know when it would be time to push (even though I had a strong urge to). I followed his every instruction as I knew that he knew what he was doing! He offered/suggested I take something to take “the edge off," so the nurse gave me a bit of morphine. My water did not break and he wanted this to happen on its own. He told me to lay on one side and a few minutes later my water broke and it was time to push. A few big pushes, all of which took about 10-15 minutes and out came a beautiful healthy 7 pound baby boy! Born on April 9th, 2021. Of course, with all my research I was aware that the baby may take some time to breathe. What felt like an eternity, we heard our baby boy cry and all our fear went away!

I will be forever grateful for Dr. Y (and also Dr. X for sending me to the very best of hands). If it wasn’t for the amazing team at that hospital, my delivery could have had a different ending. I feel extremely lucky to have been “at the right place, at the right time” as I know from reading so many stories of how rare it is to have this privilege. Unfortunately there probably aren’t many doctors (if any) that will do vaginal breech deliveries near here as Dr. Y retired a few months after my son was born. I am so thankful and he holds a very special place in my heart.