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Placenta delivery
I'm trying to decide on what I want for my third stage delivery and Im a bit confused. (This will be my first birth).
I'm planning on a natural home waterbirth and at this stage I'm guessing I would like to deliver the placenta naturally (i.e. physiological third stage) as well if all goes to plan with the birth - whether in or out of the pool (Im thinking out at the moment). My mw gave me a book to read from AIMS which I found to be a confusing read as I wasn't sure which direction I was reading in as it seemed to be all over the place, plus it's over 10 years old so a bit aged in terms of the research it references!
My confusions are..
What constitutes an Active Third Stage? Does this mean all of the below?:
- you get the injection to help speed things along
- with the injection, is this given to you in the buttock when the baby's shoulder comes out (sounds like a bit of an interruption to me whilst you are focusing on giving birth right then!! if Im in the pool do I have to stand up and pull my butt out of the water??? hmmmm...)
- as soon as the baby is out the cord is clamped and then cut (I'm not keen on this as I would like the cord to stop pulsating before it is clamped and cut so that my baby gets all the nutrients and oxygen he needs in the final transition)
- the mw places her hand on your bump to feel the next contraction and awaits the placenta to deliver
??
OK, with the injection:
- what is best and why and?
syntocinon?
syntometrine?
ergometrine?
- whey should it be mixed and why?
Natural/Physiological Third Stage
- if this takes too long, how long is too long? and can you then have the injection afterwards to speed things up?
If I can get through birthing my baby without any drugs I don't want to then need to resort to them to deliver the third stage. Im also not keen on having any injection in the middle of giving birth to my boy - the interruption is one thing, and the fact that it would pass across the placenta is another reason I would prefer not to have it.
If anyone can help answer my questions I would be grateful so that I can make an informed decision. Also I'd be interested in everyone's own views or experiences and reasons why you chose to or did it the way you did, or are planning to with your upcoming birth.
Thanks heaps
xx
32+4
I'm planning on a natural home waterbirth and at this stage I'm guessing I would like to deliver the placenta naturally (i.e. physiological third stage) as well if all goes to plan with the birth - whether in or out of the pool (Im thinking out at the moment). My mw gave me a book to read from AIMS which I found to be a confusing read as I wasn't sure which direction I was reading in as it seemed to be all over the place, plus it's over 10 years old so a bit aged in terms of the research it references!
My confusions are..
What constitutes an Active Third Stage? Does this mean all of the below?:
- you get the injection to help speed things along
- with the injection, is this given to you in the buttock when the baby's shoulder comes out (sounds like a bit of an interruption to me whilst you are focusing on giving birth right then!! if Im in the pool do I have to stand up and pull my butt out of the water??? hmmmm...)
- as soon as the baby is out the cord is clamped and then cut (I'm not keen on this as I would like the cord to stop pulsating before it is clamped and cut so that my baby gets all the nutrients and oxygen he needs in the final transition)
- the mw places her hand on your bump to feel the next contraction and awaits the placenta to deliver
??
OK, with the injection:
- what is best and why and?
syntocinon?
syntometrine?
ergometrine?
- whey should it be mixed and why?
Natural/Physiological Third Stage
- if this takes too long, how long is too long? and can you then have the injection afterwards to speed things up?
If I can get through birthing my baby without any drugs I don't want to then need to resort to them to deliver the third stage. Im also not keen on having any injection in the middle of giving birth to my boy - the interruption is one thing, and the fact that it would pass across the placenta is another reason I would prefer not to have it.
If anyone can help answer my questions I would be grateful so that I can make an informed decision. Also I'd be interested in everyone's own views or experiences and reasons why you chose to or did it the way you did, or are planning to with your upcoming birth.
Thanks heaps
xx
32+4
0
Replies
Without going into too much detail, i had just given birth at home in the bath but i had no midwives with me, they turned up about 10 mins later. They cut the cord and sorted baby out etc then came to sort me out. I got out the bath and went onto the sofa and after already having had 4 babies i though seeing as they had given me the injection for the placenta to come out i thought i'd leave it and let nature take it's course. After about 1/2 contractions a couldn't bear it!! lol The contractions for some reason feel more intense after the birth so i asked the mw to give me the injection and she told me it's best anyway cos it helps with clotting too.
The needle goes right up at the top of your thigh and you honestly don't notice them doing it when you're pushing your baby out.
As for the 3 different ones, i didn't even realise there were different ones!
I'm due no 6 and will be having the injection again, it makes things quicker and you can settle with your new baby without more pain and discomfort.
Don't know if this helps at all.
michelle xxxx
Iv just had my 1st baby and i had the injection. In all honesty i didnt even know they had given me it! I asked my partner when we got home if i had it because i didnt know the midwife had done it.
From what i have heard its best to have the injection. It's supposed to stop you bleeding heavily after the birth plus to deliver the placenta naturally can take a long time and i cant say how your labour will be but after i gave birth i just wanted to relax with my baby... i wouldnt have wanted to wait to deliver the placenta. my labour was 31 hours and after that long i was so tired i just wanted to be with my baby.
At the hospital the midwife asked me my preferences for the birth as soon as i was moved to the labour ward so she knew what i wanted. She asked things like did i want the baby delivering onto my chest or cleaning 1st and if i wanted him to have the vitamin K injection etc... one of the things she asked was did dad want to cut the cord and did we want the cord cutting straight away or to let it stop pulsating. So hopefuly your midwife will ask this too... if not, let her know thats what you want when your telling her how you want to give birth.
I'm sorry i cant help with your other questions... Your midwife should be able to give you some more info and talk through things wih you.
Hope all goes well xxx
I would also like to try naturally if our plans for a natural birth go well. She supports this and said to see how I go and if I decide at the time to have the injection then she can give it to me at any time to speed it up, or if she feels that there are any dangers to me and I need to deliver the placenta faster.
So I'm going back to my original plan and getting out of the pool, getting warm, and taking my baby with me to sit and have a breastfeed on the loo (nice to tell him that in years to come!!) The mw will put a bin bag under the seat to catch it as she says this is an easy and comfortable position to deliver it, then they just take it away. I also don't want to see it as in the past things like that (lots of blood) have made me faint!
So I feel a lot better about it now and plan to just let it happen, or change my mind or be guided about it if necessary. Another thing to strike off the list to get me stressed
xx
33+4
Hope all goes well for you huni, good luck!
xxxx