Hi Henci,
I am a doula and I have been asked to attend a home VBAC. I am absolutely thrilled and although it is the first VBAC I have ever attended I am truly honored to be of assistance. I am passionate about serving birth and I feel strongly that birth happens most smoothly when the birthing mother is the voice everyone else follows. My client has run into problems, however, with her midwife. My client's midwife told her that she would not be able to attend my client's birth if she did not have an ultrasound. My client had an ultrasound against her own wisdom and found thankfully that the placenta is not placed over the cervix. My client has consistently felt that her placenta is in a healthy position and that there is nothing to worry about. However, now the midwife is sharing her fear that because the placenta seems to be placed near the scar from the previous cesarean it is possible that the placenta could detach from the uterus during labor. She also told my client that while doing an internal exam she felt a sacral bone that was out of place and she is worried that my client's pelvis may not have room for her baby to pass through. I am not a midwife and have not studied all these particulars... I have searched for information and have not found anything suggesting that a placenta placed near a scar could cause the placenta to detach. Additionally VBAC is very new for me. The midwife is now suggesting that she needs to have a doctor's second opinion in order to feel comfortable allowing my client to have a homebirth. I am concerned because due to the statistics I have read, an attempted hospital VBAC has pretty slim chances of resulting in vaginal birth.
I have to admit, also that I've never really felt confident in my client's choice of a midwife and I feel that she is bringing way too much stress to my client. My client feels very stressed out and scared and alone. Her blood pressure has gotten very high since all of this worry from her midwife began, and she is now wondering if she should look for a new midwife. She is due on Sept. tenth!!!! I have suggested she get second opinions from other midwives that she knows and somehow she resists my suggestions. I am feeling very frustrated and perhaps a bit too impassioned, because i would like my client to be feeling secure and confident in her ability to give birth at this point...
I hope I have been clear...do you have any advice or suggestions about how I can support her ?
Thank you so much,
In peace,
Aya Rebecca