.the Roger Banister effect.

Yesterday, I listened to a podcast on VBACs sent to me by our doulas. I found it informative and encouraging. It sparked my interest to look up successful VBAC stories though at the time it was more for curiosity's sake than anything else.

That afternoon, while feeding Wee Bud her afternoon snack, I turned on the radio and caught the last few minutes of a program. The host was saying something about the Bannister Effect and apparently was getting blank stares by the others in the studio. He went on to explain that the Bannister Effect is based on Roger Bannister, the first man to run a sub-4-minute mile. In 1954, when Bannister ran one mile in 3.59 seconds, it was generally thought to be impossible for the human body to run a mile in under four minutes. Bannister proved that it wasn't and dozens of other runners went on to run sub-4-minute miles in the following years. It is now considered a standard time for serious runners. The host's point was that it took one person showing that it was possible for others to be able to accomplish the same feat. The program ended, and my heart and face both turned upward in a smile, thanking a loving Father for giving me encouragement from random places.

When I put Wee Bud down for her next nap, I pulled up the internet and typed: "successful VBAC stories after cesarean due to failure to progress". I found numerous sites and have been reading through them ever since. Each successful story feels like a grain of rice on a scale in my heart, tipping it's way from doubt to hope. No, no one's story is going to be the same as mine. No story that I have read has been the same as any other. But there is hope. This is possible.

I may never run a four minute mile, but by God's grace I can bring this little Sprout into the world without the need for surgery.


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Side note: the stories that I have read have been encouraging but there has been one so far that has caused tears to form in my eyes. It was just one little piece of the story but my heart resonated strongly with it. I wanted to include the excerpt here:


"Dr. N arrived at my side a couple of minutes later, checked me, and then very calmly said, 'Well..., you’re definitely fully dilated, so bear down whenever you get a contraction, just like you’ve been doing.' Oh. My. God. I choked up, grabbed his hand, and said through my sobs, 'Dr. N, I have been waiting for so long to hear someone say that to me! Thank you, thank you, thank you!'"   (http://community.babycenter.com/post/a18423245/birth_stories?cpg=2)


This can be me. My body is able and, more importantly, my God is able. I trust Him fully with whatever the outcome.