C section tips

I’ve got a c section on Thursday latest, has anyone got any tips for recovery or any positive experiences to share? Feeling overwhelmed and nervous..

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I’ve had two and both were amazing! Both calm and happy, no trauma, no drama. No pain at all in theatre or afterwards, only mild discomfort for the next week. Nothing worse than a bad period and the meds are great.

Get up and moving asap, the more mobile you stay the faster you heal and the pain/discomfort decreases. Laying in bed is the worst thing you can do.

Wear big knickers, set alarms on your meds and get some stool softener in. The meds are good but they can block you up which is just a discomfort you can avoid. Good snacks, peppermint tea if you have trapped wind and that’s it ☺️

My third will be done the same way. Both times I got skin to skin in theatre and for 2 hours afterwards, delayed cord clamping, music playing and the whole thing on video ❤️ the midwife on duty took photos of us both with baby, dad cut the cords and the staff had me distracted and laughing throughout.

The hardest part is being brave waiting, once in there it’s weirdly calm xx

I had one on Tuesday and I was so nervous but the whole experience was amazing.

Hearing my baby cry for the first time is honestly the best moment in my life. Plus, you can give your phone to the midwife and they'll take lots of photos for you!

The worst bit for me was the IV in the back of my hand but even that wasn't too bad!

In terms of recovery, my advice would be to make sure you keep going to the toilet for a wee after your catheter is out (even if you don't feel the need) because I didn't really get the feeling that I needed to until it hurt from the pressure of a very full bladder!

In terms of the pain from the surgery, I've found it's really well a manged by the medication they give you and by doing everything slowly.

Have a wonderful time on Thursday and enjoy meeting your baby for the first time!

Thank you guys so much for the positive comments. I’m so glad you guys had such positive experiences. You have both definitely reassured me! 💖

I agree, the worst part was the cannula in my hand. The spinal didn’t hurt at all but the cannula is just uncomfortable for ages especially when trying to bend your wrist and feed.

OP, you’re going to do amazing on Thursday. When you hear and see baby for the first time the whole room fades away and the surgery is so fast. From start to me meeting my son in December was 6 minutes! The rest of the hour flew by. 2 hours in recovery, into my room and Percy pigs and a cup of tea (best post surgery snack in my opinion).

The best of luck for Thursday and congratulations! Keep those phones charged and ready to go ❤️

I can’t remember, I had a an emergency c section in 2021 with my son, having another on Friday for my daughter.

How long is it after getting the spinal, are you able to move your feet and get up etc

hey I’ve got mine on Thursday but my midwife said could be around 5/6 hours. But this is my first one so can just say what the midwife has advised me :)

I could move my legs and feet in recovery which is about 2 hours after the section but I’m ginger and drugs wear off faster. I could move but I couldn’t feel them for about 6 hours and then standing and walking is about 12 hours to be steady xx

They’ve called me and they have a space for my section tomorrow! Eeeek xxx

C section also affects your milk supply so if you plan to breastfeed, try to help the milk come in with some hand expression soon after birth and skin to skin. 💕

You can get some tips in my blog https://mylee.life/blogs/mylee-blog/tagged/advice

in our community

Anyone else up feeding their Bebe?

As above. Trying so hard to keep my eyes open

Oh my God, oh my God I hope this is not true!!!! I’m kind of scared

I’ve been throwing up and taking a shit all night!!! I just hope that it’s not what I think it is

Is this normal??

I’m 29 weeks pregnant and having really aching legs and they’re all lumpy and swollen. Above the knee and behind the knee . Should I be worried ? My legs have never looked like this up until a few days ago. ??

Anyone else experiencing this?

Gave birth (vagina) 5 days ago and yesterday morning and this morning getting lot of pain in my right bottom side and lower back

Induction experience

I just wanted to share my experience with being induced as I wasn’t sure what to expect and thought it may help others.

I opted for the foley balloon which was inserted at 8am Saturday morning, I had to stay in hospital due to hypertension and protein urine however usually you can just go home once this has been done. The insertion of the balloon was not painful, was slightly uncomfortable as there was slight pressure. I actually found having the cervix checked prior to be worse (again not painful at this point just uncomfortable) The balloon had little effect and after having it removed I was still only 1cm. Removal also was pain free and hardly even noticeable.

I then had my first dose of the gel and definitely noticed a difference, I started experiencing period like cramps almost immediately however they were light and manageable. After 6 hours I had another cervix check and although my cervix was soft it was still only 1cm and was only open at the front. I had another dose of the gel and felt an increase in pressure and more intense cramping where I now required pain relief (codeine). After another 6 hours I had another cervix check and I had now dilated to 2-3cm however was still quite difficult to get all the way through so a third gel was recommended which I agreed to.

Almost immediately I noticed the difference and was in considerable pain, I had paracetamol and codeine however the contractions had now become intense and a lot closer together (around 3 minutes apart). After a couple of hours I had my last cervix check and was 4cm and taken down to the Labour ward to have my waters broken and an epidural.

I had been in my room for approx 20minutes when my waters broke by themselves and I was now 10cm and actively pushing…. There was no time for the epidural and my beautiful girl arrived into the world within 2 minutes of pushing.

All in all I would say the cramps/contractions were manageable up until the third gel where it became pretty unbearable however it was for a very short time a gas and air helped take the edge off. The worst part about any of it was actually the later cervix checks where after stimulating the cervix my contractions were at their most painful.

If I had to be induced again I would skip the balloon and opt for the gels immediately as thy had a quicker effect and I would have been out a lot sooner if I had done this to begin with.

One more thing, I’ve never believed when people say “you forget the pain once they’re here” but I can honestly say this is true. It’s been 4 days and I would do it all again in a heartbeat.

Would you bring 9 week old to a family party of 35+ people?

These are also people who will want to pass the baby around and get a turn to hold him. He just got his 2 month shots two days ago