C-section vs natural birth when you have a disability?

mummytobeeewithCP

i have CP and I don’t know which is best from a disability point of view- it would be useful if I could hear your experiences 😊

Antonia_Alumni

Hi @mummytobeeewithCP

Congratulations on your pregnancy!  

Welcome to the community. I have you spoken to your Doctor about this? You may find our Cerebral Palsy, Disabled parents forums helpful and you may ask our Parenting Advisor @KellyParentAdvisor for support.

Sam_Alumni

We have this information about CP, pregnancy and birth:

Delivery

• Discuss where you want to give birth with your midwife or obstetrician. An advantage of hospital delivery is that equipment and expertise is nearby if problems arise. If you have a choice of hospital, try to choose one that has an obstetrician experience working with disabled mums.
• Your obstetrician will discuss with you and your partner your wishes around vaginal birth or elective caesarean section. You might want to have an elective caesarean if you have involuntary spasms which may interfere with delivery, pelvic impairments or if the baby is in the breech position. You may also have a caesarean if there are signs that the baby is in distress during labour.
• Before a vaginal delivery, try out some delivery positions. Side-lying or reclining positions may be an option. Epidurals are not generally advised for women who have severe and uncontrollable spasms. You should also discuss methods of pain reduction before the delivery.

We also have a few posts about pregnancy and birth as a disabled woman, not specifically with CP but they might help?

@courtzmelv wrote this post - https://community.scope.org.uk/discussion/42084/becoming-a-mum-as-a-young-disabled-woman

@GingerJaxx - https://community.scope.org.uk/discussion/41994/just-add-ginger-my-pregnancy-and-birth-story