Natural Birth and Baby Care.com

Is it smart to have another vaginal delivery when the first one dislocated/bent my tailbone?

by Amanda
(Eau Claire, WI, USA)

My first child moved my tailbone so that after the labor I was able to move it into a few locations. I'm not sure if this is referred to as a "floating tailbone" or just a "dislocated" one but no DR's that I've been to seem to have a clue.

I've had several treatments and nothing has worked. Now I am pregnant again and the pregnancy hormones and widening of the pelvis have decreased the pain dramatically which has been quite a relief - however I'm terrified that if I go through with another vaginal delivery that it will be re-injured instead of "fixed" (I've read a few success stories that the 2nd child fixed the issue).

I could live with the pain as it is right now but I don't want to risk it being re-injured, it's horrible to bring your newborn home and you can't even sit and rock them.

Any advice you can give me would be greatly appreciated as I've come to dead end everywhere I've looked. I'm due April 21st 2011 so I don't have much time to decide if I should opt for a c-section (which I really don't want but I don't want the tailbone injury worse). Are there any statistics about re-injury occurring? I guess I'm just not even sure where to begin.

Answer:

Hi Amanda,

I am so sorry for the pain you have been in! Like you, I've found getting information on your issues with your tailbone has been a challenge.

It's especially hard knowing that you are getting so close to labor again.

I would honestly hope to have another vaginal birth in your situation - but I would want to go into it with a lot more awareness of my pelvic structure and how a baby affects that.

I'm actually pretty familiar with my own little tailbone because the Pink Kit covers learning about your own pelvic structure very intensely.

If you do hope to try for a vaginal I would recommend the Pink Kit for this reason - you will understand how your pelvis works. Most childbirth classes show you a diagram, computer model, or an anatomical model of a pelvis. This is fine for getting a general idea. But the Pink Kit actually helps you feel how your pelvis is structured - including your sacrum, the flexible bony plate your tailbone comes off the end of... and of course the tailbone itself.

The Internal Work is part of the Pink Kit - it's similar to perineal massage but gets much more in-depth, literally. You focus on the internal muscles of the birth canal (which rest in what is called the "Minnie Mouse" ears) and how to help them stretch and loosen for birth. Being close to labor you don't have as much time to work these muscles, but even a week's work can make a huge difference. You can actually touch/manipulate the coccyx during the internal work, so it could be helpful to you in figuring out where it's sitting and perhaps feel why it's so "off."

Helping these muscles and ligaments to loosen - and understanding where you hold tension - can help you work with your body and your baby during labor. These muscles do hold a lot of tension and keeping them tense can cause your baby's head to put a lot of pressure on your sacrum/coccyx. Learning to loosen can help the sacrum flex with your baby.

The Pink Kit also includes a lot of information on positions during labor and how you can widen and open the pelvis to help your baby come through as smoothly as possible.

If you decide to try and labor vaginally I would get the Pink Kit - you can get it as a digital download so you can get started instantly. I would go through the main guide (Essential Preparations for Your Birthing Body) and its video segments right away, go over the Internal Work audio right away, then go back and add in the Breath/Touch/Language and other resources once you've covered those first three things. This is because those are the resources that deal directly with your pelvis/sacrum/tailbone.

I would also absolutely insist that your doctor and nurses allow you to labor in the positions that feel right for you - and to birth how you want. It could be that hands and knees or a side-lying position are going to be best for you to deliver your baby in - sitting on your coccyx is probably NOT the best choice! It may be beneficial for you to stay at home as long as possible so you can avoid getting forced into a position that hurts and impedes your baby's progress.

I think a vaginal birth attempt is reasonable, but I would definitely choose to go in very well prepared and with a strong understanding of your own pelvis, muscles, sacrum, and coccyx/tailbone. I would also be prepared to advocate for yourself (and prepare your partner to) so that you can work with your body and your baby to have as smooth a birth as possible.

Again, I recommend the Pink Kit because the resources are uniquely suited to help a birthing woman in your situation. It's the only course I know of that really focuses on your own anatomy and how to work with that and your baby. Click here for more info and a link to get the course.

Best of luck to you, I would love to know what you decide and how your birth goes, or if I can help in any other way. Feel free to reply or use the Contact link to send a direct email :)