Midwife Lina Duncan is a Global Midwifery Council friend living and serving birthing families in India. She helped Faruk and his wife find the resources to help their full term twins get head down on a recent Spinning Babies adventure. Here are Faruk’s own words:
…Me and my wife, Yasmin, went for sonography. We were all the time visualizing to have twins as that would make us more happy. And guess what, Sonologist said yes you have twins! ‘Bingo!’ So all happened as per what we had visualized.
Now, all the nine months went great we never had issues. We went for regular check up with a hospital that we felt was great in Jogeshwari (Millat), Mumbai [India]. Doctor in all my wife’s visits said 1 thing, that you are healthy and all is fine with you and babies, and we were as happy as ever .
We were in almost shock as how can she say this now or she should have informed as much prior as sonography reports were all same all these months.
Gail’s note: Her doctor was likely reserved due to the risk, especially in cases where the second twin’s amniotic sac has opened, that the second twin’s head gets in the way of the first twin when the first is breech and the second is head down. This would likely be fatal. With an intact sac for the second twin, this is less likely. I have noticed that twins usually come smoothly when a mother is well nourished, moves freely, and babies are full term. Their doctor declined helping a natural breech/vertex birth. So, Faruk and Yasmin continued their quest.
Still, we insisted her that we want to go for normal delivery. Doctor said that in her entire studies and work experience never ever she has seen such case end up with normal delivery. She said if you don’t trust me then better change doctor. She was not ready to listen. In fact, she was not ready to answer all our queries. She was just like closed door.
All right, now my wife looked worried and so was I. While we were on our way to home I was driving, I smiled to my wife and said, don’t worry that’s what doctor feels, not us. But we will get what we think and we want things just normal and it will happen, so just relax.
Now I started searches, all in google, [and] starting speaking to many people on this till finally I landed to Ms. Lina Duncan, miracle lady 🙂
She was the only person I found to be realistic in all her approach and I felt quite positive when I had spoken to her. She was in constant touch with me gave me many ways to come out of this situations. I [tried] whatever she told until finally she send me email links on Spinning Babies… and it was great.
Photo thanks to GlobalGiving
We understood the technique watched all videos in there and finally decided to make positive try on Spinning Babies techniques. Now we are in 9 months and 15 days. Babies are also big. Almost each are 2.7 kg and babies were very [far] down, we did the spinning like toe and knee on bed and both palms on floor [forward-leaning inversion].
We did for 2 days and went to a new doctor in HABIB Kurla, Mumbai whom we had spoken during this phase who was very positive ready to talk and ready to give positive try for normal delivery.
Just in the check up doctor said your baby is head down and not breech. We then did sonography to get it confirmed. Yes! It was head down ‘BINGO!’ 😀
We were very happy and in next 2 days my wife had normal delivery. The pain was just 10 minutes and babies were out with no need for NICU for babies so finally all went as per what was visualized.
My hearty thanks to Lina Duncan, her group, Mother Gail Tully. You all guys are amazing as you had created a whole new way of looking at critical situations into a simple fun and enjoyable exercise and change things overnight. Your team is a real time success team with 100% commitment, coordination, help, support.
I would request Mother Gail Tully that such education has to spread in India as the need is more here I have seen. Just in this 1 month, many other twin moms don’t want cesarean but are forced by doctors saying it is the last option. All these mothers need education…
Wish you all best of luck for all your future endeavors.
Kind Regards,
Faruk
From Gai’s response:
Dearest Faruk, wife of Faruk, and our mutual and gentle friend, Lina Duncan.
How lovely to receive your precious story! This beautiful fulfillment of your healthy birth of twins is a testament to the significant benefits that the faith of a father for his family creates for their birth. A father’s loving certainty relaxes his wife and allows peaceful hormones and a state in the parasympathetic nervous system which is ideal for helping mother’s relax smooth muscle and allow babies to shift head down.
You also did the technique called the Forward-Leaning Inversion that helps “make room for the baby.” The Forward-Leaning Inversion helps give a gentle stretch to the lower uterine segment which may lengthen a shortened utero-sacral ligament or release a tight posterior or transverse ligament whose job is to support the lower womb. This technique may resolve a twist or tightness that may make less room available in the lower womb. Perhaps it was this technique that made a bit more room for your first twin to slide head down towards the cervix.
With all this, dear Faruk, you and your wife kept your vision, kept your peace, and continued your determination to find a way for a peaceful twin birth.
Thank you for your kind request for this education to spread in India. I feel the pull of a billion souls and will work to make my next book so that I have something to show Indian parents…
Lina Duncan also posted on this birth at MumbaiMidwife.
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- Twins and Spinning Babies®
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