Flipside: Booked caesarean or natural labour?

Caesar, please…

Jenny chose to have both her children - Caitlin, 3 ½, and Archie, 3 months – by elective caesarean

With the hyperemesis gravidarum I had through both my pregnancies, on a good day I would vomit about 10 times, on a bad day up to 20 or 30 times. I was hospitalised several times due to severe dehydration and at times I actually couldn't walk.

With my first pregnancy I didn't commit to a birth plan initially, but as I got closer and closer to my delivery date I started to feel like I couldn't bear the thought of a full-on physical labour. I was present at my sister's birth before I had children and I realised how physically demanding a natural delivery could be. I just didn't think I had it in me after the pregnancy I’d had. I realise to some people that will sound like a cop out, but I didn't feel like I had the mental or physical capacity to deal with a natural labour.

I spoke with my doctor and I decided to have an elective caesarean. I remember feeling great relief when I came to that decision.

I had really great experiences both times with my caesareans. I never felt ripped off that I didn't get to experience a natural labour. For me it wasn't about the experience of labour, it was about having a child. And while a lot of women say the recovery from a caesarean can be tough, for me it was great. Anything was better than the horror of my pregnancies! In fact I have heard several stories from women who gave birth naturally who have ended up with long-term pelvic floor and bladder problems and severe stitches.

Another thing that’s often said about caesareans is you don't have the beautiful bonding moment when your baby is finally born. But I disagree. The whole process was so relaxed and friendly. Often in theatre you end up having a caesarean due to an emergency. But with an elective caesarean it's not the case. I remember both my children's births vividly and I remember the joy I felt when they came out and were placed on my chest for the first time. It's not a blurry memory obscured by pain and exhaustion due to endless hours of labour. I also felt it was a much more controlled environment than if you were giving birth naturally.

Even though I initially made the choice to have an elective caesarean because of my hyperemesis, I now know if I ever had another baby and had a normal healthy pregnancy, I would choose an elective caesarean again.”

The ‘can do’ approach

Vanessa chose to have baby Zoe, now 4 months, without any drugs and as ‘naturally’ as possible

It was part of my birth plan that I wouldn’t use any drugs during my labour. However I acknowledged that if there was a need for intervention for my safety or the baby's, I’d be okay with that. I've always tried not to rely on medication unless it was necessary. If I have a headache I try to relieve the pain by other means such as drinking water or having something to eat rather than popping a pill.
During my pregnancy I did prenatal yoga and I met a bunch of wonderful women who told me about this course called CalmBirth. It's essentially a course for parents to learn how to use visualisation, breathing and relaxation techniques during labour and how a woman's body is actually designed to cope with child birth. The focus is to have a positive birth experience and instead of using words like 'pain' they use 'waves' and 'surges.' I was confident I could make it through without medication because I'm pretty fit and I know I have a good pain threshold.

When my labour started I was able to manage 12 hours of it before going to the hospital. When I got there my waters hadn't broken and I was only 2cm dilated. Once they broke my waters it all came on pretty fast. I used a lot of visualisation. I chose a place in Santorini we had been to and my partner Tony helped to talk me through it. I remember I'd say, “Tony, take me to Santorini, quick!”

I also did a lot of thumping of the bed to distract my pain and really tried to relax between contractions.

My acupuncturist also taught me a technique where you push a comb into the creases of your fingers where there are certain pressure points. I clung to that comb like anything! The hardest thing was the pushing stage which lasted about 90 minutes and I was chanting out loud “I can do this, my body is designed to do this.”

I was so focused that it wasn't until after Zoe was born that I noticed for the first time the stark hospital walls and all the blood around me.

I did feel a sense of achievement at the end but the main thing is that we all came through it happy and healthy.


1) Jenny Atkinson with children Caitlin (3 1/2) and Archie (3 months)
2) Vanessa D'Souza with her daughter Zoe (4 months) and partner Tony Barrett.


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