When I was planning my own VBAC, the thing that I knew was the most important key factor was making sure that I had a supportive provider that practiced evidence based care and believed in me and my baby.
It’s important to interview a provider PRIOR to being under their care.
Signs that your provider is 𝐍𝐎𝐓 VBAC friendly:
❌wants to schedule a repeat cesarean on the calendar “just in case”
❌requires you to go into labor on your own by a certain week
❌will not induce you under any circumstances
❌requires you to have an epidural or other interventions, like an internal monitor “just in case”
❌uses a VBAC calculator to see what your chances of being successful are
❌baby must be measuring below a certain weight
❌labor must progress under a certain time limit
❌shares an on-call practice with other providers who are not VBAC friendly
❌requires you to have double layer sutures
❌requires you to come into hospital in early labor
❌requires a pelvic exam to see if your pelvis is “wide enough”
❌discourages having a doula
❌talks only about risks of VBAC and not risks of a repeat cesarean
❌thinks having a birthplan is bad
❌his/her VBAC rate is low or has a high cesarean rate
❌already thinks a VBAC will fail based on your past birth
❌says he/she wouldn’t let their spouse VBAC
❌says the word “But” frequently when talking about a VBAC
❌requires cervical exams in late pregnancy to see if your cervix is open/soft and “works”
❌requires baby to be head-down
❌pushes hospital “protocol” or “rules” above your desires and health
❌wants to measure thickness of uterine scar
❌says you are too obese to VBAC
❌says you can’t have more than 1 previous cesarean to VBAC
❌won’t let you VBAC with twins
❌uses fear tactics to get you to do what he/she wants, like talking about you dying or you killing your baby
❌talks about horrendous birth stories of rupturing
❌requires at least 18 months in between cesarean and VBAC
