Baby Is Face Up...

Hi L.,

I also had this experience with my 3rd child. He was 9lbs 8oz and born face up. Once I got to the point of pushing he was out in 4 pushes in 16 minutes. The worst part of him being faceup for me was that he bruised my tailbone on the way out which led to a lot of discomfort after sitting for a while for several months after delivery.

I have no experience with forceps but I did have to use the vacuum with my first. I was really nervous about it at first but things worked out well and there were no lasting effects from the use of the vacuum.

Hope this info helps you (even a little bit)! Good Luck!

My first baby was face down and they ended up using the vacuum on him. I had horrible swelling afterwards. My second son, who also happened to be a 9 pounder (my others were 7, 7, and 6), was face up and I had no problem with him at all and had a natural delivery. After him I had two c-sections. Some people think this is better because you are on drugs and are numb. But for me it was shear torture. The pain meds made me vomit and I popped stitches. Because of that, I wasn't able to take anything stronger than Motrin with my second one. It was the worst experience of my life. The natural delivery I had with my second son was the best of all 4 of mine. And if they do need to do something to intervene, do not let them use forceps, the vacuum is safer. A c-section is a little safer for the child, but keep in mind that you will have a long recovery time that will affect your ability to care for your child. In the end, you just have to do what seems to be the best thing for both of you. I do hope that you get to have another natural delivery though :)

My baby boy was face up which caused him to push on my tail during labor and cause me a bunch of pain (both during and after), BUT he turned at the last second and even though he was my first child I pushed him out in 25 minutes. I honestly wouldn't have done anything different, I have nothing else to compare it to but I didn't think it was that bad..
Hope you have a good experience.
Good luck, C.

L.,

There is a chance that the baby could still turn around to the face down position. I would try not to stress to much about it. Just relax and hopefully that will help the baby to turn for you.

Good luck and god bless.

S.
35 y/o SAHM of 3 boys 13, 5 and 3

I wouldn't worry too much about this. The baby can even flip during labor. Try to move around a lot, or turn from side to side frequently if you have to stay in bed. Most problems arise when a 1st time mom has a baby in this position, but even then, it isn't always a c-section. Oftentimes it is just a little bit of a longer labor or longer pushing phase. Since this is your 4th, I bet it will be no problem at all for you to get him out!

Both of my children were face up until right before I delivered them. My dear son turned, but with my daughter, I had to get on all fours for a while during delivery to help get her to turn. Good Luck.

The same thing happened with my son. He was fine but then when I went into labor we found out that he had turned face up. I tried for 18 hours to deliver but he would not come out so they did a c-section. Which personally, I highly recommend, 100 times better that natural labor, but that is my opinion, some people think the opposite. I've been trhough both, with and without an epidural, and the c-section was a breeze.

The only thing with him being inside so long is that he got an infection in his blood, which can happen if they are inside too long and we ended up stayingin the hospital for 10 days so he could receive antiobotics twice a day through an IV. It was not so bad, he was fine, he seems perfectly normal. Justs needed the meds. But he had to go through a lot os test, like a spinal tap, to make sure the infection did not go into his spine. which broke our hearts.

Good luck.

Both of my kids were face up and I had them naturally. I guess that my body just puts them that way. Both deliverys were extremely hard! My first her heart beat went down a lot because all the amnio fluid was almost all gone and she was stuck. I had to labor on my knees, soooo hard. My son was easier but still a hard delivery. Both kids needed the vaccuum! They are perfect now and I don't regret the experience of not having a C section, but having never had one I can't tell you that it was better/worse.
Good luck.
if you want to know more about my labor let me know and i will give you more details.

My first son was born this way and it was VERY painful. I did not have an epidural and the "back labor" was terrible. The dr. had to use a vaccum extraction to get him out because of his positioning. I am not sure if an epidural would have made the labor more bearable, but that is what momnesia is for, right? Just prepare yourself for all options including a c-section. Good luck.

Hi, my daughter was face up and for me, it was hard to push. I couldn't "feel" when to push (I did not have an epidural). I don't understand why, but the nurses and doctor said because she was facing "sunny side up", it is harder to push. She came out pretty quickly (I pushed for less than 45 minutes) so I managed to do it somehow! :-)

HTH and good luck!

Here is something you can try.
My daughter also was facing the wrong way and i spoke to a mid wife who told me to lie on a slanted board with my feet higher than my head so the baby can dislodge from my hips and be free to move. I used an ironing board, I put one end up on a chair and the other end resting on the floor.Kinda massagin around your belly you can push gently a little it wont hurt the baby.
So when your laying feet up you got gravity working for you. I lay like this everyday for like 20 min (I think) after a few weeks of doin this I was in my usual position and I felt her turn... tears rolled out of my eyes... this is for real. My daughter is now 14 :)

Do the Cat Cow position from Yoga. Go on hands and knees as much as possible and gravity will turn the baby. Try no to lay on your back too much...even sleeping...the gravity can work against you. If you need a comfortable side sleep helper the "snoogle" can help...they sell it at babies 'r us.

she may turn....but the doctors also may be able to turn her as she delivers. My daughter was in this position and everything went fine with the delivery....after 17 hours of back labor! I did have an epidural which made all the difference in the world. Best wishes to you and congratulations!!

hi, sorry so late with my reply. my first born was the same way and i was told that if he did not turn by the time i went into labor, to try and walk, that would help. and it did. my water broke, we went to the hospital where i was checked and told i was 2 cm dilated and baby face up still. so i walked. by the time i made it back to my room, he had rotated and i was 6 cm dilated. i got the epidural, and within 3 hours and only a few pushes i vaginally gave birth to a perfect 7 lb 8 oz boy! it went so smoothly. i hope this helps to ease your mind. good luck.

You may wish to see a chiropractor. I highly recommend Vivian Keeler. Birthing on all fours might help too. I delivered my son 9 lbs) face up at a birth center. No drugs or inventions of any kind. My labor was long, painful, and difficult. I think from start to finish, it was 19 hours. But had I been anywhere else, it would have been an automatic c-section. Although more difficult, my son and I are completely healthy and we went home after 4 hours instead of healing for six weeks from a surgical cut. If conditions warrant,then a c-section is the way to go but if you can avoid one... I did suffer from back spasms after the birth but regular adjustments helped. Good luck for a fast and safe delivery!

Hi L.
Do you have a midwife? I have one child and didn't have ultrasound while pregnant so I didn't know till she was on her way out of me that she was posterior. Yea, I had back labour and it hurt but it was fine my labour went very quickly. Remember this was child number one for me. So if I can do it, you will be fine. Congrats! Don't let the drs bully you into any sort of 'intervention' they make more money when they do that stuff. Unless of course there is serious risk to your child but then again have your hubby discern as the drs love to scare you to do what they want.