International Cesarean Awareness Network

Education, Support, & Advocacy for Birth Justice & Healing

Lauren’s CBAC Birth Story

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Share your story with ICAN to be featured on our Instagram and Facebook! All cesarean and birth-after-cesarean stories are welcome: the difficult, the triumphant, the still-processing, and the stories which haven’t yet been shared. Sharing your birth story can be freeing, healing and profoundly powerful. It can bring others hope, comfort, and reassurance that they are not alone on their birth journey.

Submit your story HERE: https://airtable.com/shrJOtXla9O9MVBaj

My labour started on the 18th of February after a week of pre- labour, I presented to MFAU that evening to get an idea of where things were at, I had a VE and speculum that confirmed amniotic fluid and that I was 1cm and fully effaced. I went home to labour.

Rough night as things picked up, when the shower and counter pressure were no longer able to soothe me I decided to head back to birth suite at 9am on the 19th.

Got gas, fitball and shower going, enjoyed this combo for close to 5 hrs. Partner was incredible applying counter pressure whenever I needed. Had a VE @ 3pm and was 4-5cm dilated with bulging waters. Waters were broken and things quickly escalated, returned to shower where meconium in waters came out. Had everyone panicked about baby but I knew she was okay. Intermittent Doppler continued.

Pain went through the roof when my body started to push too early and I could not bear the intense pressure anymore, I wanted to make sure I wasn’t getting too swollen so got an epidural at which point a scalpel clip was placed ensuring baby was happy too. 

I was checked at 9pm and fully dilated, I pushed for 3 hours before OB recommended forceps assisted delivery. I wasn’t keen and actually resisted any decision making for close to 2hrs.

We got to theatre after 2am on the 20th. When I was laid on the table baby moved, she had moved from halfway down the birth canal to back up and transverse. Perhaps she sensed something.

Decision was made to proceed with a c section.

Adelaide Claire was born 2:42am on the 20th.

Healthy and happy 9lbz 11oz AGPARS 10 and 10.

It was after being shown my daughter over the curtain that things turned to me, my BP dropped to 50/25. I lost 3.5 litres of blood. The senior OB who had decided to hang back just in case jumped in and let me and hubby know what was happening, he advised my scar had ruptured when they went to get her out but I’d also ruptured vertically through my cervix and most of my vagina. At this point they were bringing baby over to me I yelled out “no, take her to my mum” hubby looked at me held my hand and reassured me he wasn’t going anywhere. We had agreed to let baby go to my mum should anything happen. 

I was shaking uncontrollably the whole time from the epidural and felt calm and numb from the low blood pressure. Unknown to me at the time I was being jabbed in my arms all over they had to access an artery in my arm to get an accurate reading of BP. By this stage two units of blood arrived for me, hubby was asked to manually assist the transfusions. All senior consultants were being called in to assist. Hubby was then told I needed to go under general anesthesia ASAP. We kissed and he left. Just before going under I turned to the anaesthetist and asked her to just make sure I wake up.

After 4 hours I was out of surgery and taken to ICU, intubated and my hubby and mum kissed me and went home to sleep.

I woke in ICU at 8:30am. 

I have never been so happy to open my eyes.

While my experience after birth was traumatic, I still had an empowering, positive TOLAC. I wouldn’t have done anything differently. 

Congratulations, Lauren, and thank you for sharing your story with us!

Bonni’s Family Centered Cesarean Birth Story

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Share your story with ICAN to be featured on our Instagram and Facebook! All cesarean and birth-after-cesarean stories are welcome: the difficult, the triumphant, the still-processing, and the stories which haven’t yet been shared. Sharing your birth story can be freeing, healing and profoundly powerful. It can bring others hope, comfort, and reassurance that they are not alone on their birth journey.

Submit your story HERE: https://airtable.com/shrJOtXla9O9MVBaj

My first pregnancy was scary; delivery became a “non-emergency emergency” as they put it, when I rolled into L&D after a massive bleed 3 days before my scheduled csection due to complete placenta previa. After GD, high risk appts, MRI, along with weekly ultrasounds, the delivery of my first daughter haunted me after they whisked her off to the NICU for “observation” for 24 hrs, and I never once get to touch her and sat alone in recovery until my husband could pop by to give updates. She joined us a day later, sleepy and late preterm, and we marched forward with breastfeeding issues and lack of sleep. Newborn life carried on – she’s healthy as can be. 

So for my second pregnancy, we were hopeful for a VBAC. Boom – placenta previa *again*. It cleared. Boom – GD *again* I am not prediabetic, but figured same result. So, I braced myself for a CBAC, in case. The fetus (we were team green) never turned head down. My high risk doc said something was wrong in my body and the “baby knew”. Not reassuring. I broke down outside my appointment calling my husband sobbing: we could try something like burning incense, maxabustion, by my toe and acupuncture (had no effect, but was relaxing), but due to my tilted cervix and irregular uterus, another c-section was in my future. 

We scheduled the c-section for 39 weeks; made arrangements to have someone with me in recovery, if this baby needed NICU, too, someone to look after our toddler, etc. When we rolled into the cold OR just after 8AM, it was a party. The music was good, everyone was chatting. When I heard the first cry, I cried. When they showed her to us and played “Isn’t She Lovely” announcing she was a girl, I sighed.

I waited to hear as she was assessed to see if she didn’t need NICU for what seemed like hours, and when they laid her on my chest, all I could do was touch her little nose as I was in disbelief. I cried and felt relief wash over me. My family was complete, and this squishy face was safe in my arms.

Later, my OB told me that I had a uterine window larger than she’d ever seen. She said by not turning, and not experiencing labor, that baby saved our lives. Our gentle c-section was as good as a surgery could be. We laughed and I was able to have closure with my family’s birth experience, something I wasn’t sure was possible.

Congratulations, Bonni, and thank you for sharing your story!

Allie’s CBAC Birth Story

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Share your story with ICAN to be featured on our Instagram and Facebook! All cesarean and birth-after-cesarean stories are welcome: the difficult, the triumphant, the still-processing, and the stories which haven’t yet been shared. Sharing your birth story can be freeing, healing and profoundly powerful. It can bring others hope, comfort, and reassurance that they are not alone on their birth journey.

Submit your story HERE: https://airtable.com/shrJOtXla9O9MVBaj

My name is Allie. This is my story of a failed VBA2C.

I spent my entire pregnancy finding a hospital and doctor that would allow me to attempt a VBA2C. I had realistic expectations but I did have high hopes of a successful VBAC. I found a great doctor who has had a lot of successful VBACs. The clinic she works at had a difficult time getting me on her weekly schedule so they started scheduling me with her co-worker. He was open to VBAC but I could tell from the way he approached our visits that he wasn’t a advocate like my other doctor was.

I went all the way to 40 weeks and wasn’t dilated or effaced. On my due date my water broke at 11pm. I went to the hospital a couple of hours later. I was only 1cm dilated. They decided to induce me with a IV drip and also a catheter in my cervix. The resident doctor was not either doctor I was seeing my entire pregnancy and definitely not a big advocate on VBAC.

They asked me to go ahead and get a epidural so if I needed a c-section they would already have a catheter in me to get the medicine in me faster. Within 20 mins of getting the epidural my babies heart rate dropped and they couldn’t get it back up. They immediately brought me into the OR for an emergency c-section.

My baby was born perfectly healthy and crying. My BP bottomed out and I had to stay in recovery for a couple of hours. We were fine with in a couple of hours. I am very upset about my experience and have learned I need a more knowledgeable person such as a doula with me if I decide to do any more pregnancies to help me stand up for my right and to have the knowledge needed to help me make decisions.

Even though I spent my entire pregnancy learning about my rights and about VBAC, I still felt pressured and also overwhelmed with the whole procedure. I have also learned no matter how much your OB/GYN is an advocate that you should make sure the hospital is also advocate for VBAC and the residents who will be doing the delivery are also advocates. Overall I am very disappointed with my emergency c-section after planning my entire pregnancy for a VBA2C.

Congratulations, Allie, and thank you for sharing your story with us!

Naomie’s Planned Cesarean Birth Story

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Share your story with ICAN to be featured on our Instagram and Facebook! All cesarean and birth-after-cesarean stories are welcome: the difficult, the triumphant, the still-processing, and the stories which haven’t yet been shared. Sharing your birth story can be freeing, healing and profoundly powerful. It can bring others hope, comfort, and reassurance that they are not alone on their birth journey.

Submit your story HERE: https://airtable.com/shrJOtXla9O9MVBaj

My name is Naomie. I am a native Kenyan living in the Netherlands. Together with my husband Tom we are raising 3 love babies.

My recent birth had to be planned for medical reasons. At 20 weeks scan we found out our little boy had transposition of the great artery, a heart condition that needed to be rectified immediately after birth for him to survive.

I held on to the hope that he could be fixed and that helped me enjoy his existence from then onwards. We decided to book a Doula for this birthday following a previous traumatic birth which left us with a disabled child to raise.

So I sourced out a dear colleague of mine, Laurina Cerredo in Amsterdam. There is a reason why it had to be Laurina. We clicked and connected on a special level from the moment we started making contact with each other on social media. Well, Laurina and I share the same story! Her own son was born with the same condition as my child, so she had walked this journey and it was comforting to know my husband would be supported fully on that day whilst I focused on myself and our little boy.

The whole 9 months I was attended to by one OBGYN at my local hospital and again, there was a beautiful click with this doctor, it was incredible. She gave without measure, she listened without judgement, she walked beside us never taking charge of authority. We felt VERY supported in every aspect of our pregnancy. We had the most difficult questions but she answered our questions very clearly and with lengthy elaborations too

To help make the birth as special as could be that day, Dr Haak offered me a clear curtain and therefore I was part of my son’s birth. I watched her help him birth himself because she was very gentle also in the way she assisted in getting him earth-side. She held our son in steps as he emerged through the incision, first the head, then the shoulders.. etc.

She instructed her team what to do according to our birth plan, she dimmed the lights immediately after my son was born, and reminded them that we had requested for calm, quiet room too. It was magical how we first locked eyes with each other, seeing him still attached to me on my belly separated by curtain.

My husband was even able to cut the umbilical cord of our son, and what was special was that this birth was featured on the TopDokters TV programme in the Netherlands (I am waiting for the subtitles version to share) because it is a story worth sharing!

I have been stopped in the streets from people who remember my face following the broadcasting of the program, well wishers, people wanting to know how we are doing now, and other mothers going through the same journey looking to speak to another experienced mama whose child had a tough start of NIC, ICU, open heart surgery etc.

Our son went on to have an open heart surgery at 6 days of life, that took 8.5 hours long, his chest was left open for 2 days before he could be closed back. The surgery was a success and today at 7 months old he is thriving and is a happy baby. I look at him in disbelief.

For me it is empowering and the knowledge that with the right team beside you, even the most daunting journeys can have a positive outcome and leaves an impact on how you travel that journey. For us, trust was a huge thing that helped us a lot. We trusted what Dr Haak would advise and she spoke to us not like a doctor but as a fellow mother, a fellow woman, and a professional.

Congratulations, Naomie, and thank you for sharing your story with us!

Hannah’s Cesarean Birth Story

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Share your story with ICAN to be featured on our Instagram and Facebook! All cesarean and birth-after-cesarean stories are welcome: the difficult, the triumphant, the still-processing, and the stories which haven’t yet been shared. Sharing your birth story can be freeing, healing and profoundly powerful. It can bring others hope, comfort, and reassurance that they are not alone on their birth journey.

Submit your story HERE: https://airtable.com/shrJOtXla9O9MVBaj

I had my heart set on a VBAC for baby two and was so confident but as due date approached, baby was found to be breech. I tried all I could to get bub’s head down, even a successful ECV.

At 40+4, my midwife checked and bub was breech again. The hospital wouldn’t take me if bub presented breech in labour. I was distraught and absolutely, soul crushingly devastated. Was it my fault? Did I not believe hard enough?

I couldn’t bare any more heart ache so my husband and I chose a date to have a repeat caesarean. My heart still aches from time to time as I feel like have been robbed but I am happy knowing that I have a beautiful baby girl and little sister to my daughter.

Congratulations, Hannah, and thank you for sharing your story with us!