Christa's Birth Stories, Labor and Delivery #3 (The Triplets)

A SCHEDULED C-SECTION?!!?!?!?!?

Me?!?!?!?!


These are the thoughts floating around my mind after I talked to my doctors. They said it was not an option. No. Way. They would not entertain the delusion that it was a possibility. It was "reckless".

Right away I talked to several midwives, my new found friends on my triplet support boards, and my friends at mothering.com.

Yes....I found a mom who had home birthed triplets. It was tempting.... BUT in the end I decided that a cesarean was the safest way for 3 babies to exit this womb. It ended up being the ONLY way regardless.... due to all 3 babies being breech, so no worries.

Most of you know that I suffered from severe HELLP syndrome, but this has no bearing in the actual BIRTH....so I will only mention that I had it in passing. Just remember....if you see spots, have headaches, or severe nausea at the end of your pregnancy....SEE YOUR DOCTOR!!!

The day of my triplets birth I was taken to an OR, and my spinal anesthesia was administered. I much preferred it to my epidural, but maybe I am biased. I laid on the table while a single 6 inch bikini incision was made. They pulled all 3 babies out, made sure the uterus was clean, and sutured me up.

While it was happening, I felt very out of control. Due to the spinal I also felt as if I could not breathe, but I was told that this is very common. You CAN breathe, but the anesthesia is up so high it makes you feel like breathing is harder than it is. I was allergic to the morphine in my spinal, but I am sure this is an uncommon occurrence.

THE RECOVERY WAS TERRIBLE!

Okay, maybe this is not true for all women who have had both kinds of births....but I was wholly unprepared for the recovery. I was used to walking around hours after the birth, but this was....really bad. I had pain for weeks, and did not really feel normal for almost a month.

Also with the complications from the c-section I was not able to see or touch my babies until about 6 hours after the birth. This was heartbreaking for me. This is not true of all sections, but be aware that there are always chances for complications like I had during and after a major surgery...no matter how common.

What I learned from my c-section:

• #1. They are NOT EVIL. Cesarean is sometimes necessary "evil", meaning that it's not EVER first choice-nor should it be- but many a life has been saved by c-sections. This includes my life, and the lives of my triplets. I DO believe that many women have them unnecessarily due to having them electively, or doctors who push c-sections for a variety of reasons.
  
• #2. DO YOUR RESEARCH! Even if you are not having a scheduled c-section....LEARN about them. You just never know when a complication may arise.
• #3. TRY to have a vaginal birth first. I am only saying this because the recovery is SO much easier, and the risk is much less. Even if the baby is said to be "too big" ask for a "trial of labor" to see how the little tyke responds. You and your doctor may be surprised to find that baby handles it better than anticipated. If not....the OR is right down the hall!
• #4. If your doctor wants to schedule a c-section EDUCATE yourself on WHY. If you don't agree, do some research and challenge him. Find out what *exactly* his concerns are, and WHY he's not willing to do a trial of labor first.
• #5. If you have a cesarean, be prepared to be out of commission for a while. Schedule help for the first week. For the helpers: that means HOUSE duty! NOT baby duty. Baby and Mommy need bonding time, and helpers should only intervene with the baby at Mommy's request.

In the end, I am GLAD I had a c-section. It was not nearly as scary as I thought, though the recovery was much worse than expected. In the end...THREE HEALTHY BABIES was ALL that mattered!!!! I have actually run into women who refuse to celebrate the birth of their babies, because they were so "traumatized" by the fact that they needed to have a c-section. That it was not a birthday because the baby was not "birthed".

To that I say...."phooey". Your baby's birth is special no matter how it happened. I had 3 VERY different experiences. Even though Ethan's birth was the easiest, and the way I wanted it....I still look back upon the day's that Reagan, Delaney, Addison, and Joel were born with much joy. Don't let anyone take that joy away. Nothing in this life is perfect anyway.....even birth stories. :)