At my weekly prenatal visit last Wednesday, I saw the obstetrician in the practice instead of my usual midwife. At my 36 week appointment, my midwife thought baby's head was down, but at 37 weeks the OB felt my abdomen and suspected that I may have a breech baby. After an internal check where no head was felt, she sent me for a quick ultrasound that confirmed her suspicions: baby is breech.
I'm not completely shocked, since we had a similar situation with Hayden. An OB thought he might be breech, but thankfully an ultrasound at 37 weeks showed that he had turned vertex. Of course, as I mentioned in his birth story, Hayden came our completely tangled in the umbilical cord - probably the result of his last-minute gymnastics!
Our prayer is that this baby will turn on her own without getting as dangerously tangled as her brother did. If she is still in a breech position tomorrow afternoon, the OB will perform an external cephalic version to try to manually flip the baby. While I would rather avoid the procedure, I certainly think it is worth trying, and because this is my third pregnancy and baby is not too big yet, I am a good candidate for the version. Statistically, there is a 60-70% that the version will help baby to turn (and only a 15% chance that she will revert to breech if the version is successful).
There is also a small risk that the procedure could cause complications such as fetal distress, so I would certainly appreciate your prayers tomorrow. In spite of the temptation to worry, it is a great comfort to me to know the One who formed this baby girl will also control how she comes into this world - whether head first, foot first, or through necessary surgery, my baby girl is in the hands of the Lord.
This is what the LORD says—
he who made you, who formed you in the womb,
and who will help you:
Do not be afraid...
Isaiah 44:2
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