Home Birth After Caesarean (HBAC): Sarah’s amazing and empowering birth story

There are so many things to say about vaginal birth after caesarean (VBAC, or in this case HBAC - home birth after caesaream). Often sold as impossible or far too risky when the reality is quite different - but that’s a post for another day! I will defo come back to this because there is lots of really important info you need to know to help you decide, and loads of great places to access support info and support.

But the purpose of this blog post is to allow my absolutely amazing, strong and courageous friend Sarah to share her story, in the hope that it will inspire others who may be considering a vaginal birth after caesarean. This is not Sarah’s first rodeo guest blogging on here, she shared the story of her positive planned caesarean with her little boy 3 years ago - I know that has really helped others too and am so grateful she is choosing to share this story too.

Here are her own words:

My first birth was a planned Caeseran and although it was a positive experience for me I knew I wanted a physiological birth with little to no intervention this time around.

When i booked in with Mandy for her 121 course she asked me where I thought I would like to give birth and if I had considered a home birth. I answered, no, not for me as there is an increased risk of uterine rupture so I would be in the hospital. She recommended a book for me to read for more information on this and I wasn't even half way through the book when I had decided I wanted a home birth. Knowing the real statistics and information relating to my situation made me realise that home was in fact the safest place for me to birth my baby and so began the plans for my HBAC.

My husband did take some convincing but after we attended the course with Mandy he felt much more informed and although he was never 100% on board I had his support which allowed us to continue making our plans together.

Contractions started for me on the Friday evening. I wasn't fully convinced that they were contractions as while they felt different to the regular braxton hicks l'd been having, they weren't painful. They woke me a few times during the night but didn't really increase.

On Saturday morning, I wanted to go to Edinburgh to walk around the festival but thought something might happen so we agreed to go to Livingston Centre instead. While we were there the contractions were very regular but again not painful. I was struggling going round the shops though and felt really tired so we went for some lunch. By this time I knew the contractions were definitely regular but they still were not painful. I decided not to time them as I felt this would add too much focus on them but knew they must have been the 3 in 10 minutes you are told to look for.

We went home and I had a nap while our 3 year old, George, was napping. Then we decided to call my husbands parents for them to look after George for the night as we thought something was definitely happening and was definitely getting more intense. They were on their way back from the shops when we arrived which I was glad of as my waters broke as soon as i sat down on their couch!

When we got home the contractions were starting to become more intense so l decided to have a bath to relax and do some breathing exercises while my husband set up and filled the pool. Pretty soon after I got out of the bath the contractions were non stop with little to no break in between so we decided to call the Midwives. We were told to see how things went and call back in half an hour. By this time involuntary pushing began and Ihad to really focus on my breathing and used my comb to help me do this.

The Midwives arrived and while Ihad stated on my birth plan that I did not want any VE's they offered which Iknew they would and I declined. They were totally respectful of this and my plan and they just left me to it. I did think at one point that it was really hard work keeping my focus and thought if this part is so intense how would I manage the actual birth! I asked the midwife if she thought I should have some gas and air and she said that didn't think I needed it as I Iwas doing fine which I'm really grateful for.

After 2 and half of involuntary pushing the midwife advised me how long it had been and that she thought I should try sitting on the toilet as I still couldn't feel the baby moving down. She also asked if I would like a vaginal exam to see where baby was. I agreed and straight away she told me I was fully dilated and they helped me make my way to the bathroom. The baby was so low and the constant contractions made it really hard to walk. I had some gas and air on the toilet to help for the walk back which really helped and by the time I was back in the pool the contractions slowed a little so I was able to get a little break in between and could even have a chat.

The walk must have helped as I could now feel the baby moving down and with some guided pushing from the Midwives we worked on getting him out together. My poor husbands hands became my focus and by this time I was doing a lot of very loud groaning! Finally the head was born with the body following soon after and at 1.51 am on the Sunday morning, Wilson Taylor Firth was born weighing 8lb 12oz. I caught him myself and brought him up in to my arms. I rubbed his back until he cried and at least a minute passed before we even remembered to check if he was a boy or a girl!

He started feeding really quickly and we stayed in the pool until it was time for my husband to cut the cord. We got out and sat on the couch where I delivered the placenta with no issues. The Midwives helped to clean up and after some toast and a quick shower we were cuddled up in bed where our family came to visit later that morning. It really was everything I could have hoped for. At no point was I scared or thought that I couldn't do it. There was no fear and while I wouldn't describe it as painful it was very intense and very hard work!

I believe this was down to the preparation I done during my pregnancy. Doing the course with Mandy and educating myself as much as I could

led to me making informed choices throughout, knowing my rights and having a strong birth plan in place.

Sarah and Baby Wilson

Wow! What a story - going against the grain is not always easy, it takes a lot of mental strength, determination, research and self belief and I’m sure you’ll agree that Sarah absolutely SMASHED it! So proud of her.

Mandy x