WARNING- any boys reading this may want to stop right now as girl parts will be talked about in this post. You have officially been warned.
OK, so many have asked me what the high risk doctor told us about having a 4th c-section. Let me start by telling you how we ended up at high risk in the first place. I went to my doc for a checkup and he asked me if Ammon and I were planning on having any more kids. I said we would probably have one more and he said "no, just be happy with the three healthy ones you have and don't risk having another" (which I thought was a bit inappropriate). This comment came as a shock to me because when he did c-section 3, he said everything looked pretty ok and we should be OK to have another baby. I think this is the speech he gives to everyone having a 4th c-section and not me specifically which also is annoying. Anyway, he suggested I go see a high risk doc for a consult about 4th c-sections. So- the high risk doctor basically said that the risk goes up quite a bit between 3rd and 4th c-sections for developing Placenta Accreta. I am no expert so I may not say this exactly right but basically it's when the placenta attaches itself to the uterus. This is risky because when they do the c-section, the placenta could rip or get cut and cause some major bleeding. This bleeding could result in them having to remove the uterus (which actually wouldn't be the end of the world for me since this would be our last baby anyway) or it could lead in rare cases to death if they cannot stop the bleeding. He also said there is a chance the placenta could attach to the intestines, bladder, etc which also could cause complications. He said it is more common in a 4th c-section because where they have cut the uterus repeatedly in previous c-sections is very thin. Plus there is usually quite a bit of scar tissue which also complicates things. He said, in a 4th c-section, the chance of developing Placenta Accreta is 10 percent (although I have seen some articles that put the percentage lower than that). If you are one of those 1 in 10, there's a 50/50 chance it could be dangerous and thus high risk. Placenta Accreta can sometimes be seen in an ultrasound but often is discovered during delivery. Either way, there isn't anything that can be done about it prior to the birth. SO- now Ammon and I have a big decision to make! I wish my doctor (who is very conservative and old school) would have never even mentioned this and we would have been blissfully ignorant. I asked a friend of mine who had 5 c-sections if she was warned of the risks of having that many c-sections and she said- "I didn't even know there were risks with having multiple c-sections." Must be nice!
Anyway, any advice, experiences, etc would be greatly appreciated!!!