Anyone follow the Jean Sutton teachings on Optimal Foetal Positioning for an easier birth ?

[Pearl327]

When I was looking for answers as to why the birth of my DD went so wrong after such an easy pregnancy I came accross the work of Jean Sutton a now retired midwife who educates women in the practice of optimal foetal positioning in preparation for and during birth.

My DD was a classic case of a persistanly posterier baby ( I only found out she was posterier after the birth, no-one mentioned it before) She engaged head down at 36 weeks but facing forward. I went into labour after being told less than 36 hours earlier that i was not even a tiny bit dilated or effaced (after 2 rounds of reflexology). I had back labour that started at 20 mins apart and continued constantly for the next 60 hours gradually reducing to 2 mins apart when I went to the hospital. I was examined and found to be 2cm dialated. and the midwife decided to break my waters (Worst thing that could have been done with a posterier baby. They need the boyancy of the waters to turn). Over the next two hours I dialated 1 more cm then nothing for a few hours, they decided that I needed to go in synotocin and have the epidural at the same time. Due to previous operations on my back the epi did not work and I was on the drip over contracting for 6 hours with still no progress. I did not know that the epi and drip in early labour is more likely to slow things down rather than speed things up. After all that at 11 pm that night with my blood pressure and temperature dropping slowing but steadily they decided that I needed a c-section.

I felt like a failure after the birth and I am really hoping for my VBAC this time around and was wondering if any of you lovely ladies have used the Optimal Foetal positioning to have a successful VBAC or even an easier vaginal one.

[Rosie85]

Never heard of it but both my babes were posterior, first was a section second was vbac. Second boy turned while coming out...his labor was very easy. The problem with her saying you can't break the water until the baby has turned is that subsequent children don't engage and drop until ready to deliver where first babes engage weeks before. You can turn baby all you want but they wiLl turn back if they want until they drop to come out which is after the water breaking for most.

[Rosie85]

My doc had said that's why he couldn't help baby turn around until I was pushing. Posterior babies can cause a more painful labor but it can be helped at the last second if doc knows what they are doing and catch it before its too late.

[Pearl327]

I think my problem with breaking the waters was that the midwife could feel DDs head and told me she had loads of hair so she was already low and breaking my waters only brought her lower with less space to try and turn. I know there is more room in there after the 1st one so baby is more likely to rotate into the correct position
I also want to do everything in my power to help my baby be in the right position before birth and there are a few techniques and guidelines for doing this from 38 weeks on. Such as not reclining back in chairs and trying to keep your knees lower than your hips and doing some yoga postures.

But anyway I am just trying something that made sense to me when I was reading up on it after DD was born in the hopes that I will get my VBAC

[LacePrincess]

So sorry to hear of your difficult birth. Yipes!! Makes me more grateful in retrospect that I ended up medfree (even though I'd really wanted drugs, but the labour went too fast).

My DS3 was a posterior birth. Not sure if he was posterior the week before birth. With me, my waters spontaneously broke at midnight at home, and DS3 was posterior and dropped too fast to rotate because of my waters breaking. Sigh.

By the time I got to the hospital I was in transition, and the midwife barely got there before he was crowning. Little bugger was almost out and promptly got his forehead jammed right under my pubic bone. Dammit!!! It was a REALLY GOOD thing I wasn't on an epidural, because I ended up pushing in all sorts of bizarre positions - on my back, on my side, squatting, in something resembling the reverse cowgirl in porn LMAO......and eventually the midwife turned him enough to get his forehead unstuck (owwwww) but not before having to give me a very-unwanted-but-necessary episiotomy. (Double owwwwww).

Poor baby came out with a giant horizontal welty bruise on his forehead right where he got jammed against my pubic bone, lol.

Anyways, I'm so grateful that I wasn't on any drugs because without being able to move around like crazy I would have ended up with a c/s for sure.

I'm sorry I couldn't really suggest anything for you, but I'm not sure there's anything you can do before birth to guarantee an anterior position. But not birthing flat on your back would probably be helpful. Breaking the waters certainly increases the risk of posterior birth, like in my case when bubs just dropped waaaaay too fast to rotate properly.