Here is a fantastic video of a frank Breech taken last week.
This woman had an unusual journey into homebirth. She lives in rural Australia and had to come into the city to birth so had booked the birth centre. A few trips and hours driving each time for all the testing etc as the baby is breech. At 36 weeks the hospital attempted a cephalic version (which is successful about 30% of the time on primigravid women.) and it failed, so she was told that she had no choice but to book a ceasarian section. When she questioned this saying her choice would be to birth normally she was told that it would be fine if she wanted a brain damaged baby.
Having no home in the city but staying with her family she got in touch with me to help her with facilitating a normal birth at the hospital. The first thing we did was change hospitals and go and talk to the midwife in charge of labour ward and a sympathetic Ob. We negotiated clinic and made a birth plan and gave it to the ob. He was clear that he was very supportive to the woman’s request but if he wasn’t on duty he couldn’t guarantee the same reception from all, he even went as far as to say there were some you definitely wouldn’t want to be there.
Once she felt relaxed she went into labour. I don’t normally help women at hospital because of the awful atmosphere but I hadn’t had too much time to build up a relationship with this woman so I was happy with the plan. We went to the house to help her with labour until it was time to transfer to the hospital.
When that time came She didn’t want to move. We had a beautiful homebirth.
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ETA someone suggested I had hands on this birth. I assure everyone that The only part of the baby I touched is the cord. Other than that it was only the mother that I touched while the baby was birthing. Oh and falling forward as being born is NORMAL.
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You *are* the future of breech birth, my friend. With so much love and deepest gratitude from Canada –for ALL you do, Lisa.
And huge kudos to this birthing goddess for trusting in her body and her baby's innate knowing of how to birth.
xx
Great birth! I am an Amer. midwife working in the middle east, and vaginal breech is certainly getting rarer and rarer. Women at the hospital I work at can and do refuse c/s for it, but most opt for the section after the scare tactics of the OB's.
I'm curious why you aren't wearing gloves? I'm not judging, but curious.
Thanks to the family for sharing their successful birth!
None of my photos have me wearing gloves. The parents dont. I wash my hands and I'm hands off. I know my clients and their blood status and they know me. Who would want latex to be the first thing to come in contact with the brand new skin of a baby.
Thankful for continuing to share in birth in its purest form absolutely beautiful
Thank you and this mom for sharing this!
Amazing how that baby flops out like that! It may be normal but it has got to be a shock!
That was beautiful! I am linking from my blog. Could you explain about touching the cord and why it was done? I'd love to hear other things about how you deliver/catch breech babies safely anytime you feel like writing. Great video – thanks for posting!
Wow, what an amazing birth…I sat utterly enthralled watching it. The mama really trusted in her and her baby's ability to birth…many thanks to them for sharing, it's not something you see often.
Again, wow…
Breath taking. Thank-you to you and the Mama for sharing this moment
Sandi it's quite a different ball game birthing at home rather than hospital. With so few people there and being away from all the illness housed in a hospital there isn't the need.
Lovely, Lisa. Glad you figured out your tech problems on the video. Wonder if this woman/man/baby will ever know what you spared them. Congratulations to all.
thank you for being there for this woman, she now has beautiful memories instead of a brutal unneccessary surgery like so many of us.
I'm glad you're a non-glove wearing midwife, Lisa. What an awesome birth for a first timer, what a privilege for us that we can see a birth that is becoming more and more rare (I was born vaginal breech so was my hub so I am kinda a fan of vaginal breech. Kudos to you Lisa for making vaginal breech still a possibility in this country, and kudos to this strong brave mama and thanks for this awesome video.
Beautiful. thankyou and the mum for posting : )
Thanks for the question about touching the cord. I don't always do that and it is highly discussed as being the best thing to do to give an indication of how much stressed the baby is and how much time to leave before deciding to actively expedite the end of the birth. I wouldn't do an apex beat as touching the baby may result in a morro reflex and nuchal arms. The baby wasn't too floppy and had been pretty active in moving down the canal with kicks relayed to us by the birthing woman.
Falling forwards is normal. At the hospital they let the baby dangle from the next before the head is born, hanging over nothing as the woman is in stirrups. Now this seems horrific to me.
Thank you so much for sharing this with us!
Holy cow! That was incredible! I was a vaginal breech baby 30 years ago. Thanks mom for letting this be posted!
Shannon
Organic Baby Doula Services
<a href="http://blog.voguemum.com/>Rock Star Maternity Blog</a>
Amazing Woman, Amazing Midwife- How lucky are we to have you Lisa?!
I can't wait for my next breech birth with you………
Wow, what a wonderful birth!! I love it how the baby just sits there, just like it's waiting to be born, hehehe.
AMAZING!!well done you and your baby!!!congratulation and many thanks for sharing!!!!
So, so beautiful! Thank you and this strong mother for sharing this with us.
Watching this video, I was overwhelmed with this primal feeling, specially as baby makes an entrance with a bit of a plop. We are animals and given the space and peace to birth, it almost always turns out fantastically.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for sharing.
i cried….thankyou, it was a truly beautiful birth… blessings to all… blessings to you Lisa… i hope mum shows this to all the obs and staff who made life/pregnancy hard… bouncing her perfect non-brain-damaged baby on her knee as she shows them what IS normal…(use a portable dvd at a post natal check?) … go for it…it might save another woman the same fear mongering…I hear every day women getting the same line/lies and our culture deify's these 'gods' and the prattle they sprout in the name of coersion…(oh sorry was that 'safety'??).
she is a brave wonderful example of faith and knowledge in action!
Beautiful! I was a breech bub by section
how I wish my entrace could have been a boringly miraculous as this
Beautiful. Just.. beautiful. Thank you (and the family) for sharing. My last babe was born 5 months ago in the USA. She didn't settle vertex until nearly 39 weeks, so we were actively pursuing all our options. (Up until then, she was sommersaulting every few days!) Videos like this were part of what helped me decide to go for a vaginal delivery, even if she had stayed breech. Thankfully, there was one doc in our area who was willing to work with me. Even better, I she finally turned, and I didn't have to deal with it at all! Still, vids like this give pregnant mamas hope that it CAN be done – safely, peacefully and beautifully. Congrats to the mama.
Magic to see
Thank you so very much to this amazing birthing goddess who trusted her body at the crucial moment to birth her baby at home. Congratulations! Enjoy the natural ecstasy and be proud every day of your enormous achievment.
Lisa – What can I say, you're fabulous! Thank you for all that you do for SA mums and for showing the world what is possible
Lisa,
I had the pleasure of meeting you in Ottawa in October. As a breech mama x 3, I can't thank you enough for the faith you have in women, babies and birth.
It is interesting to me that she decided to stay home at the last minute. I had allowed myself the contingency plan of going to a hotel near a hospital, but when labor hit, I knew staying home was the right thing to do.
With much admiration,
Christie, Coalition for Breech Birth
Breathtakingly beautiful indeed! So grateful that this strong mama is willing to share. Thanks for posting. I wish you were around for me when I was forced into a c-section for my breech baby.
Beautiful! As a midwife I look forward to supporting women in this way…have been at a few vaginal breech extractions where doctors took the lead but spontaneous birth lead by the women is so much better.
Thanks for this post Lisa and the mother.
I am especially pleased that you were able to agree with the plan to go to a supportive hospital, and the mother had confidence to proceed.
I have been enjoying Michel Odent, in Birth and Breastfeeding (pub Clairview, 2003). Here's a quote (p101) "I have come to the conclusion that, in most cases, the first stage of labour – that is, the period of dilation – is the best time to detect the women who should not give birth at home. The first stage of labour is the only time when the quality of the uterine contractions can be evaluated by an experienced birth attendant. As a general rule, the risks are minimal when the first stage has been straightforward. (Of course, an evaluation of the physiological potential of the labouring woman is only possible in an atmosphere of complete privacy.) Thus, following this strategy, I do not refuse to attend a woman for a home birth in advance of the onset of labour just because she happens to be expecting her first baby at age 40, or expecting her first baby who is in breech position, or because she has had a previous Caesarean section, for example. It is not too late to make a decision about the ultimate place of birth during the first stage of labour."
amazing, brilliant, beautiful! XXX
It was magic just looking at that beautiful baby. Well done to you and the mum Lisa!
Lisa, the video appears to have gone. Any ideas?
magnifique de simplicité… merci pour cette vidéo.
Thank you for sharing this video. My first child was born footling breech at home almost 9 years ago. As a midwife, I have only had the opportunity to attend 2 (both as a student). I would love to gain more experience in attending breech birthing mamas. If you don't mind me asking, how many breech homebirths have you attended so far? I love the hands and knees position for this birth. My midwife required the "lay at the end of the bed and have my bum hanging over the edge" position. I wished I could have been more upright.
Lisa,
I put it on my blog!! If you do not want me to put it there, please tell me” warme zwaai @ g mail. com
Warmly,
Eugenie
Hi, since I changed blogs I didn’t realise you could take video. I am going to put a protection on them but I’m happy to wait until it drops off your front page now you have asked. Thanks Lisa.
My girlfriend is about to give birth to a frank breech baby. She lives in the Philippines and we just dont have enough information to heelp her get through this. It is common (as she lives in the province) to give birth at home but her oby/gen wants her to have c/s. The death rate due to infection there is around 90% so my girl is scared.
Could you please send me a link to download this video to show her. today is June 3. i am leaveing to go there from Australia on june 6 at 5am. Im sure it would help if she could see this but there is no interner access where she lives.
Thank you.
I’m sorry but you can’t download this video. She will be fine with a normal birth.
what a great birth, thanks for posting. You are truly hands off which I so admire.
I loved that the first person to touch both of my babies (born at home) was ME.
arohanui,
Emma
This is amazing, do you have it with sound?
I am at a 1st time moms labor & the couple enjoys their privacy so I have been able to read many articles on your site & I appreciate all of them! The breech video is inspiring & beautiful.Thankyou for sharing.I had my 3 children at home, the 1st in 1977. I have been a midwife in Fairbanks Alaska for 25 years. We have a non-profit birthcenter and do homebirths too.We are not nurse midwives but are labeled certified direct entry midwives (quite a mouthfull !) We are in the “system” and are boggeled by rules but also are able to practice and provide gentle birth.Birth is a political football, I agree! Anyway, this is my 1st time writing in & I wanted to introduce myself. Blessings, Dana
Hi , I am a Midwife working in a busy city hospital , the c/s rate has climbed to 40% !! Yesterday I was incredibly lucky to attend a workshop “Birthing in Country” with Inuit and Aboriginal women and Midwives who are taking the lead telling politicains they demand birth options . They have just opened their 5th birth centre and their statistics are amazing , not to mention their cultural revival , training of local Midwives and sense of empowerment has drastically reduced mental health/drugs and alcohol use . Birth is so spiritually powerful , it was wonderful to hear of this transfomation of thinking and empowerment . Loved it !! The tide is turning and seeing your video this morning gives me inspiration !
Thank you from Oz , Kat .