To challenge oneself as a childbearing woman—the lived experience of vaginal birth after caesarean section in Sweden

ABSTRACTPurpose: There is a need to gain deeper knowledge about women’s experience of vaginal birth after caesarean section (VBAC). Considerable research has been conducted on VBAC; however, only a few qualitative studies focus on women’s experiences. Therefore, the aim of this study was to describe the lived experiences of VBAC among women resident in Sweden, a country with a high VBAC rate.Method: This studywas performed in accordance with a phenomenological reflective lifeworld approach. Interviews were conducted with nine women in an urban region of Sweden one year after their VBAC birth.Results: The essential meaning of the studied phenomenon is “to challenge oneself as a childbearing woman”, which is further described by its four constituents: “striving for support from professionals”, “desiring the experience”, “contrasting and comparing memories of two different births” and “being part of the birthing culture”.Conclusions: The experience of VBAC meant regained trust in the ability to give birth va...