Getting Cleared for a VBAC

When I was about 6 weeks pregnant I made an appointment for a free consultation with the nurse midwives at IHC's Intermountain Medical Center.  The first question I asked was, "Can I do a VBAC?"  I was told that they do a lot of VBACs and all of the midwives in the clinic were very supportive of VBAC.  The nurse midwife also told me they had a high success rate but she wasn't sure of the exact number.

After thoughtful consideration I decided to put my care in the hands of the nurse midwives at IMC.  It has turned out to be a good decision.  They are willing to answer any and all of my questions honestly.  At my first prenatal appointment at 8 weeks we went over my history.  I told the midwife what had happened with my first child.  She told me I was the perfect candidate for a VBAC.  I was thrilled!

At my 15 week appointment I asked about the ultrasound and what the procedure was in their office.  She said that because I was doing a VBAC I had to go to the Maternal-Fetal Medicine clinic and have the doctors there do my ultrasound.  The reason being, if I end up needing another cesarean section then one of those doctors will be called in to do it.  I was told that in addition to checking out the baby and making sure it is healthy the doctor would check to make sure the placenta isn't covering the uterine scar.  If the placenta is covering the uterine scar then I won't be able to do a VBAC. 

We have our ultrasound appointment next Monday.  I am nervous but at the same time I feel like everything is okay.  It's just one more hurdle to jump over on our journey to having a successful VBAC.  We are grateful that we are being given the opportunity at all.  Joe watched the VBAC portion of More Business of Being Born with me last week.  Watching it again buoyed me up even more.  Knowledge is power!  The battles for VBAC that women previously had to face are becoming less and less.  It is awesome!  I'm grateful for those women who fought before me so I don't have to fight much at all.

Another thing the midwife told me at my last appointment was their VBAC success rate.  She said it is over 90%!  That's much higher than the average with is around 75%.  We are excited!  Hopefully the baby will be happy and healthy in it's cocoon and hopefully everything will be well with my scar.