After signing the waiver I was strapped around my stomach with a fetal monitor for about 20 minutes. They were checking babies heart rate in order to make sure he was not in distress. I was given medication, Terbutaline, to relax my uterus and help reduce potential contractions.
The Version procedure can make the body feel like it is in labor, and thus can begin contractions. If the baby is breech, like mine was, this could mean the baby would need to be delivered immediately in order to prevent a potentially dangerous breech delivery. In my case, baby would come out butt first during a normal delivery. If I went into labor I would have to have an Emergency C-Section. In such a case, the patient (mom) has to have a vertical incision instead of a standard horizontal one to get the baby out. In addition, the patient is placed under complete anesthesia, not an epidural. It was a lot to think about.
The nurse wheeled in an ultrasound machine, found my baby and told me he was still breech. I took in a deep breath and prepared myself for what was to come.
The night before my husband and I packed my overnight bag. I knew my baby might want to come early, so I worriedly packed my things, prayed and went to bed.
The day of the Version My husband came with me. He kindly took the day off to stand by my side. A look of worry was all over his face. A few days before, he had told his co-workers about our situation. He found out 2 of his co-workers wives had Versions. Both told him it was very painful. It had worked for 1 of the wives. I was hopeful.
During my admittance, I was asked what my pain tolerance was from a scale of 1-10. I would say it is about a 6. Kind of a wimp. After waiting for an additional 15 minutes in a different room, once again having a fetal monitor strapped to my stomach, and having an IV drip, our doctor came in.
Finally! A tall doctor with huge hands walked in wheeling in an ultrasound machine. He greeted us and reminded me that the procedure was very painful. He asked if I still wanted to go through with the procedure. I did. He lubricated my stomach and said I had plenty of amniotic fluid which was important for the baby to have enough of in order for him to move during the Version. He looked to see where the baby was in my body.
I knew our baby's head was on the right side of my body. His head was right under my rib. I could often feel him moving on that side. The doctor asked me to find a point in the celling and stare at it. To relax my body. I did so, but didn't expect for him to begin. I thought he might count from 1-10 or something. Nope, he just dug deep. He went under my rib and began to try to turn our baby. It was the absolutely most painful thing I have ever experienced. He dug into my belly and pushed my baby. He went down towards my pelvic area and pushed down and to the left. The lovely nurse gave me her hand. I grabbed it ferociously. Tears came out automatically. The procedure went on for about 5 minutes, I think...I was so busy breathing in and out. Trying to look at a single point in the ceiling. Trying to think about my baby turning. Positive thoughts!
He stopped. He told me it hadn't work. He was wrapping up. He threw out the 50/50 statistic (50/50 change the Version would work). He called me a trooper.
I asked him to please try one more time. He asked me if I was sure. I said yes. He did. He once again went towards my rib cage, pressed down, dug under my ribs, and attempted to move the baby. I felt some movement this time. I was happy, but in in incredible pain. It was horrible. The same pain, 10x worse. It was like a bat to the stomach after just having been hit. He then stopped to see the baby through the ultrasound machine. At the exact same time I felt my baby move right back to the same position he was before. I felt defeated.
It didn't work. He told me I would feel some pain and possible bruising and to take it easy. I stayed in the hospital for another 45 minutes or so. They were monitoring my baby for distress. The nurse told me I was having some contractions. I didn't feel them. After 30 minutes of the fetal monitor showing no contractions I was free to go home.
Our C-section scheduled for early March was back on.
A couple of hours later my body was still in in pain. I felt bruising around my rib cage and my pelvic area. Touching the areas was painful, as well as moving around too much. I decided to not go to work the next day. I knew my mobility would be limited. By Saturday I felt much better.
Mentally I was still not ready for a c-section. I was very sad. I started to eat a lot. I never thought of myself as an emotional eater, but I believe this to be true today. I ate to hide the fact that I was so disappointed. I ate to think about something besides my sadness. It didn't work, but it didn't stop me. In less than a month I had gained 10 pounds from over eating. I started to worry my doctors.
I eased up on the eating. I didn't want to harm my boy. The eating only made me feel worse, and fat!
....if any of my future babies are breech I would not have a Version again. I can say I tried it once, but the pain was so excruciating I could never do that to my body again.
A Guide to Cesarean Scars - Some information about the difference between the standard Horizontal Incision and the less often used Vertical Incision