External cephalic version, or version, is a procedure used to turn a fetus from a breech position or side-lying (transverse) position into a head-down (vertex) position before labour begins. When successful, version makes it possible for you to try a vaginal birth.Version is done most often before labour begins, typically around 37 weeks. Version is sometimes used during labour before the amniotic sac has ruptured. A scheduled caesarean is used to deliver most breech births if a version doesn't work.
When I met with my midwife and she brought up this procedure to me I had NO idea what she was talking about. It wasn't something that was ever mentioned or discussed with my other 2 pregnancies and I hadn't heard of any of my fellow mama friends going through it. Of course as soon as she said the word procedure, my heart dropped, I went into panic mode and thought the worst. It was the fear of the unknown that got to me. A million questions ran through my head; is this procedure safe for my baby? is it necessary? maybe she will flip on her own? what if she doesn't flip then what? how painful is it going to be? will Chris be able to be with me? I fretted over this procedure pretty much until it was over LOL so I thought it would be helpful to share my experience with all of you so that it can hopefully put your mind at ease. I want to start off by saying though that this is my experience, and everyone's experience with this procedure will be different. I am sure every OB has a different method, success rate, etc. with these procedures so just keep this in mind when reading my experience.
I've been under the care of a midwife for this pregnancy. However, the procedure is done by an OB. So the first step in getting the process started was to contact an OB and schedule an appointment. The procedure was done at the hospital on the labour and delivery ward. From what I was told the procedure is done typically around 37 weeks or a few weeks prior to. I was 37+3 days when I had the procedure done.
The reason I was told that the procedure is done at the hospital in the labour and delivery unit is because there are some risks associated with the procedure so they want to ensure that they have all the equipment readily available if needed. For example, I was told that the procedure could cause my water to break and the baby's heart rate could drop which would require an immediate c-section.
The first thing that needed to happen was I had to have an IV put in and blood work drawn. The IV stayed in until the procedure was completed just in case something happened. They hooked up heart monitors to monitor Violet and gave me a button to track any movement while we waited for the procedure. Prior to the procedure the OB came in to review the entire procedure with us and make sure we wanted to move forward and didn't have any questions. Chris was with me the ENTIRE time. After we consented to the procedure they conducted an ultrasound just to confirm that Violet was still breech, which of course she was.
The OB returned with 2 other team members. One just observed the other helped him during the procedure. The ultrasound machine was at the bedside and the checked on Violet often to see if her position was changing and to monitory her heart beat during the procedure. I was laying flat on the bed during the procedure. Chris was right beside me holding my hand the entire time. I was not required to put on a hospital gown either just pulled up my t-shirt. In total the procedure probably took 20 minutes. They tried 4 attempts to flip Violet and took a little break in between each attempt to make sure I was okay. How I would describe what they did was;
the OB pushed on my lower stomach/pelvic area to try to lift the baby up and out of the pelvis to encourage her to flip
then they would push in a clockwise motion around my stomach to try to get her to do a somersault
they continued to do this a few times and then would ultrasound to see if she had moved and was tolerating the procedure okay.
sometimes it was just the OB doing it, sometimes it was the OB and the 2nd team member doing it together to help hold a position and encourage movement at the right time
If you asked me to describe how it felt, I would say EXTREMELY UNCOMFORTABLE! Was it painful, a bit, but it was more uncomfortable. The worst part was when they pushed on my lower stomach and groin area. But that may have been because I've had bad groin pain the entire pregnancy so I was more sensitive there. But once they stopped pushing, the uncomfortable feeling and any pain went away. I found squeezing Chris' hand during the procedure to be helpful because it helped me focus on something else and allowed me to try to relax my abdomen so they could do what they needed to. I also found breathing through the procedure helpful. I didn't see anything they were doing, I closed my eyes and because I was laying flat on my back I couldn't really see what was happening. Chris watched the procedure and afterwards told me he could see the outline of the baby while they were trying to move her but it didn't really look like much.
After the procedure was done, they hooked me back up to the heart monitors and asked me to track movement again. They wanted to make sure that Violet was recovering okay from the procedure. I had to be monitored for 1 hour following the procedure. While we were waiting the OB returned to the room and reviewed what the next steps would be and what our options were. This is when we decided it was safest to schedule a c-section. There is still a chance that Violet may flip between now and then and they will ultrasound to make sure she is still breech before proceeding with the c-section. After the hour was up, my IV was removed and I was able to go home.
I will say, that is when I started to feel some pain. I had a bit of tightening/cramping after the procedure which I was told is normal. But once I stood up to leave I felt pretty sore. I didn't want anything touching my stomach or groin area as my skin felt pretty irritated from them pushing on me. I wasn't bruised but I did have some red marks on my skin but was warned about that especially because I am fair skinned. I would say for about 3 days I was sore from the procedure.
I can definitely tell you that it wasn't as awful as what I pictured in my head. The worst part was the disappointment that the procedure didn't work and what that meant for us moving forward. I think it was harder on me emotionally than it was physically!
If this is something that you are having to go through and you have any questions or just want to chat please feel free to message me! I had 2 moms reach out to me after I posted that I needed to have the procedure done and it was so helpful hearing their experiences, which I may add were both successful ECV's. So don't think just because mine didn't work, yours won't. And if it doesn't one mama reminded me that maybe that meant that Violet just wanted to be closer to my heart before she arrives and that me feel better!
