That's a disapointment then andrea - I remember that you really wanted to avoid a section this time. If you remember, I am the one that had two 13 months apart - 1 emergency and one planned. If you can, I would really recommend trying to get some support so that you can have a epidural/spinal. I had this for both my sections, and your images of having the baby handed to you for you to enjoy are more or less the same as a normal birth. They lift the baby up over the screen for you to see, conduct the usual quick checks and hand it back to you, you then lie in recovery for a little while with your baby, before going up to the ward. For me that would be the best preparation, rather than trying for a normal birth, then ending up in the situationw here you need to be knocked out again. At least, if you try to deal with the epidural, if you do try without a section, and it becomes necessary, you could then have the epidural.
The epidural for me, is a much less scary prospect than being knocked out - it is strange how we are all different isn't it?
Incedentally, I had sacroilliac hip disfunction as well, which did not help during labour, as there were very few positions that I could adopt without passing out because of the pain in my hips - that probably contributed to the need to have a section as well.