Vaginal Birth After C-Section, the Facts

Birth After Birth: What Do You Know About VBAC?

July 23, 2010

After having a C-section for their first baby, some mamas opt to give vaginal birth a try for the second. It's not always an option, but qualified candidates may get to experience the miracle of childbirth both ways. Take the quiz to see how much you know about vaginal birth after cesarean (VBAC).

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15 Comments

2 years 42 weeks

seems like your the one thats wrong sugarpop. none of these answers are true, it IS safe to do a home vbac with a midwife, it IS safe to do a vbac after two c section

LittleMzFit 2 years 42 weeks

I wonder why it didn't show my score? Oh well!

LittleMzFit 2 years 42 weeks

5/5 :)

chicagojlo 2 years 43 weeks

I agree that the questions were very badly worded, the answers could vary immensely by who's opinion you were considering to be correct.

katedavis 3 years 26 weeks

Good luck GMarie and bellafranki! I had a VBAC and recovery was a DREAM compared to my c-section. I hope it works out for both of you.

3 years 26 weeks

And so I'm clear, even though I said big babies/small mother doesn't automatically equate a c-section, that's not to say it's not a factor and a cause. It very well can be.

3 years 26 weeks

It's simply not true, Lauren. There are babies too big for the mother even without underlying conditions. It's not common, but it's not impossible either. However, big babies and small mothers do not automatically equate being too big to birth. The main factor is the size of mom's pelvis versus baby's shoulder, neither of which really has anything to do with mom's or baby's overall size. A very small woman with a small frame can easily have a pelvis that expands easily, and a 10 lb baby can have shoulders that fit through a small pelvis. Likewise, a woman who's 6 ft tall may have trouble birthing a 6 pounder. Not dilating completely, that's what can cause any size baby to be caught in the birth canal, obviously. And even though I was dilated completely and my first baby was only 6 lbs, she stuck in the birth canal and we had to do an emergency c-section. No underlying medical condition. It's really unfair to make blanket statements like "without an underlying medical condition, your body won't make a baby too big to birth." A small amount of research will show you it's not only untrue, but something that's really dismissive and sometimes even cruel to women who were unable to progress. Their body failed, right?

LaurenG22 3 years 26 weeks

Nadia- that mother had GD. Naturally, a mother would not grow a baby bigger then you can handle unless you have an underlying medical condition that needs to be monitored.

Nadia24gv 3 years 26 weeks

My second will be a c-section as well. I don't dilated completely and have HUGE babies and I'm very small. It's stupid when people say "your body won't grow a baby bigger than you can handle". Oh, really? What about that 19 pound chunk that was born a couple of months ago? But I did get 4/5!

3 years 27 weeks

Actually, 60-80% of women have successful VBACs. "As many as 4 in 10 women" having c-sections does not equate a flat 60% success rate. A "trial of labor" is when a woman having a previous c-section attempts labor, not when any woman labors. Question 3 is awful. It MAY not be considered safe, but having two previous c-sections isn't the only thing taken into account. How well the woman recovered, how much scar tissue she has, and other factors go into it. #5 is also worded incredibly poorly. Basically, all in all, this is a very poorly worded and even worse, poorly researched, quiz.

GMarie 3 years 27 weeks

That's true about how doctors view home births, unfortunately. Looking back, I would have LOVED to have had my son at home. I'm sad that will never happen for me.

3 years 27 weeks

"Ideal" and "not safe" are *not* the same thing.#3 is badly worded. And since most US doctors consider all homebirths as unsafe, #5 is also a bad question.

3 years 27 weeks

Phew! I wasn't sure I'd do as well as I did (4/5) and considering I had two VBAC's, I thought I was an expert on the subject!

FrankiLee 3 years 27 weeks

Yes, 5/5! I too am hoping for a VBAC. I have done a lot of research on it as well and I think it's the best option for whenever baby #2 comes along. Of course if a c-section is necessary then we will just have to go that route again, but I definitely do not want to go through that recovery again.

GMarie 3 years 27 weeks

I had an unplanned c-section with my first child and am hoping for a VBAC this time. Everyone keeps telling me to ignore the risk of uterine rupture, but I read up on it, and it's no joke, man. I'm definitely hoping to go into labor naturally and deliver without complications, but I trust my doctor to keep a close eye on me and do what's right. If I could go back and change the doctor I went to last time, I would. If I could go back and refuse early induction last time, I would. I'm here now though, so I'm just hoping for the best!

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