My desired birth plan for this delivery: An unmedicated VBAC
My doctor's suggestion: A medicated (epidural) VBAC
What actually happened: An unmedicated VBAC
Let me preface this story by saying -- after having experience both a C-section and an unmedicated "natural" birth, I can honestly say -- they both suck! They both result in babies...they both have different painful recoveries...one should not be elevated above the other. Okay, end rant.
I knew that when I got pregnant with my second son, I wanted to have a VBAC. I wanted to experience the birth with my husband, because I was placed under anesthesia for my first and did not get to watch him be born. I wanted to have my husband cut the cord, and do all those things that you see in movies. My first son's birth deepened my relationship with my husband greatly, and I expected nothing less this time around. I was grateful to have an OB that supported my desire to have a VBAC and believed me to be a good candidate for it. The rule at my hospital, however, was that I must go into spontaneous labor on my own by 41 weeks, otherwise a repeat cesarean would be scheduled. This means that induction was not an option for my hospital. My OB, and the hospital, strongly suggested the placement of an epidural so that - should something go wrong and a C-section was required, a port would already have been placed and anesthesia would not have been necessary.