The VBAC Link

“The deck was stacked against me: advanced maternal age, circumvallate placenta, marginal cord insertion, gestational diabetes, induced VBAC, delivery after 41 weeks, 4 hours of pushing, and vacuum assisted delivery.”
After 38 hours of labor, chorioamnionitis, and late decels, Stephanie’s rainbow baby boy was born by cesarean. His umbilical cord was only five inches long, her husband missed the birth after being forgotten outside the OR, and their son spent five days in the NICU.
For her VBAC, she tried all the things to go into labor naturally before being induced at 41+3 with low and slow Pitocin. With the support of a patient OB, doula, and her husband, she labored unmedicated and pushed for four hours before welcoming her daughter with the help of a vacuum. Even with a second-degree tear, postpartum hemorrhage, and a retained placenta, she says that her VBAC was much less traumatic than her cesarean.

The VBAC Link Blog: The Best VBAC Induction Methods 
The VBAC Link Blog: Operative Vaginal Delivery
The Ultimate VBAC Prep Course for Parents
Online VBAC Doula Training

Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

Joining us all the way from Edinburgh, Scotland is our friend, Mhairi. Her first birth in 2023 began with PROM (premature rupture of membranes) without regular contractions or cervical change. She was induced, and after concerns came up for both Mhairi and her baby, the birth ended in an emergency cesarean.
For her second birth, Mhairi planned a waterbirth VBAC despite it being outside her hospital’s protocol. She spent her pregnancy researching her options and met several times with consultants and the head of the birth department. After going into spontaneous labor, she had one final meeting with a doctor while in active labor to discuss waterbirth. Mhairi went on to have her unmedicated VBAC waterbirth, and it was just the empowering experience she hoped it would be.
Keywords: VBAC, waterbirth VBAC, waterbirth, NHS, UK maternity care, emergency cesarean, induction, spontaneous labor, unmedicated birth, doula, midwifery care

The Ultimate VBAC Prep Course for Parents
Online VBAC Doula Training

Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

Caitlyn is our ultimate IT girl. She’s a Certified Nurse Midwife, L&D nurse, doula, two-time VBAC mom of four, inventor of Lila Laborwear and the Lila TENS Unit, Air Force veteran, and was crowned the 2020 Mrs. United States while pregnant with her twins! 
Caitlyn’s motherhood journey began with that surprise twin pregnancy, vasa previa, and twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome (TTTS) which led to a lengthy hospital stay and a cesarean birth with a T-incision. 
During her second pregnancy, Caitlyn was strongly discouraged from going for a VBAC. But she knew the evidence, trusted her intuition, and went for it. Caitlyn’s labor was long and challenging, but ended in an empowering VBAC! She went on to have another VBAC with her third that was unexpectedly unmedicated, using her very own Lila TENS Unit as her only pain relief.
Caitlyn shares what she wishes she had known about vasa previa, including treatment options she learned about too late, and dives into pregnancy dating, induction, nipple stimulation, membrane sweeps, castor oil, labor coping, epidurals, unmedicated birth, and preparing for labor regardless of your pain-medication plan. She explains why medical interventions should be approached strategically rather than as all or nothing by asking yourself: 
“Is this going to improve my chances of having the outcome that I want?” 
When used thoughtfully and appropriately, sometimes interventions are just the thing that will get you there. 
Lila Laborwear Website
The Ultimate VBAC Prep Course for Parents
Online VBAC Doula Training

Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

After a breech C-section in 2022 and an elective repeat in 2024, Darby switched providers to the “king of VBA2C doctors” at 34 weeks to go for a VBA2C. She hired the best VBAC doula in North Texas, did all the things to prepare and educate herself, but at 40 weeks learned her supportive doctor would be out of town. At 40+5, she labored for nearly three days while facing anti-VBAC doctors, repeated pressure for a C-section, and “dead baby” fear-mongering. She ultimately left the hospital AMA, continued laboring close by with her husband and doula, then returned two days later.
Darby finally had a doctor from her supportive practice arrive during an overnight labor, and despite baby’s heart rate struggling with contractions, meconium, severe dehydration with ketones, four IVs due to rolling veins, an epidural, and 45 minutes of pushing resulting in a third-degree tear, she got her VBA2C and the perfect skin-to-skin moment she was dreaming of. 
Darby’s message to you all is to know your rights, advocate for yourself, trust your intuition, and stay flexible. 
About her resistance from doctors, she says, “It was the most intense and probably most medically traumatizing thing of my life, but the end was the most empowering thing ever.” 
Women of Strength, the way you are treated in birth matters. Get educated, and don’t settle for any less than what you deserve!

The Ultimate VBAC Prep Course for Parents
Online VBAC Doula Training

Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

Stephanie’s first two births were vaginal deliveries, her third was a peaceful, scheduled C-section after declining an ECV, and her fourth was an empowering VBAC with an ECV at 37 weeks. She is a doula, prenatal/postpartum fitness specialist, and the founder of Mission Rise and Mission Motherhood. 
We loved this piece of advice Stephanie sent us in her intake form: 
“One thing I don’t think we talk about enough is that birth preparation should evolve with each pregnancy. 
“For a first-time mom, that often means learning as much as you can so birth doesn’t simply happen to you—attending childbirth and breastfeeding classes, considering a doula, and preparing for postpartum (your bedside, having a meal train, etc.). 
“For moms who’ve given birth before, preparation often means processing your previous birth before preparing for the next one. 
“Every birth deserves to be treated as its own story, and each pregnancy offers a new opportunity to advocate for yourself, explore your options, and prepare with fresh eyes instead of assuming this birth will be just like the last.” 
This episode was SO fun to record. We just basked in the beautiful way Stephanie talked about birth, advocacy, faith, and all of her practical tips. And another fun piece of her VBAC was that Stephanie and her sister were pregnant together and got to be each other’s doulas at their births, only 13 days apart!

Vote for The VBAC Link
Natural Hospital Birth, The Best of Both Worlds
Stephanie's Website
The Ultimate VBAC Prep Course for Parents
Online VBAC Doula Training

Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands