C-section Question - Griffith,IN

I just want to give you my input. I had an emergency C-section with my last son and everything was fine. I never had to take an special care. I ate solid food right away. I was able to go to the bathroom the next morning. The only thing that happened to me was I got sick from the anesthesia. I had slight discomfort when I laughed and that lasted for about 3 days.

you maybe little sore for a few days after your c-section so plan some meals ahead of time. or have some friends bring in meals. and you probably won't feel like going anywhere for a few days either so have your regualr grocery shopping done for at least 1-2 weeks ahead.

A lot of good advice here.
I had two scheduled c-sections. The second was the hardest because my son was only 17 months and I tried to do to much. Give yourself permission to take it easy and concentrate on you and your children.
My hospital had a c-section class, which helped me know what to expect.
Get and accept help! The stairs were the hardest thing for me for me.

i have a c section with my twins ,try to rest but also try to walk if you walk a little evry day it will helpyou during recovery ,be patience because will need to stay home and no driving for next 3 weeks,drink a lot of cranberry juice to preven any urine infection and plum juice to help you going to the bathroom.

Put a stool next to your bed (unless your bed is low enough that you don't have to "reach up") ... it is hard to climb in and lay down. Be careful on stairs. You will have to ab muscle control for a few weeks .... that is the worst part.

Recovering from a c-section is painful! You will not want to move around much, so try to have things planned out ahead of time. Have the house stocked with groceries. Make some meals before hand for the freezer. Have family/friends bring meals. Will your husband have some time off? Have him or someone else there for the first week or so to take care of your older child and household tasks. You will not be able to lift anything heavy (like your older child). Take offers of help from others so your body has time to heal!

Hi AL,

I had two C-sections because my children absolutely refused to come out, lol....so I can't compare the two. Since the C-section is surgery, you need to know that the incision cuts through several layers of tissue to get to the baby. That means layers of stitches. That makes it a little harder to maneuver like lifting yourself out of bed and getting up out of chairs. You may want to make sure your stuff..the chair you like, etc. is positioned where it needs to be so you can reach more than getting up. Exercise and getting those muscles back in shape is still very important but you want to make sure you do it right. You have to make sure you don't pull any stitches.

My funny story, that wasn't funny at the time, is my sister was helping me shower the first day. She didn't know that the last stitch dangled from the incision and just assumed that it was something on me that wasn't supposed to be there....so she pulled it to remove it......OUCH! It still hurts when I think about it :) It's also easy to pull when your drying off or even sitting still...

Prepare your daughter for the fact that she'll have to cuddle up next to you for a while and not sit in your lap. She'll have to be mommy's helper and hand things to you and not put things in your lap. I kept a bed pillow on my lap anytime I was sitting to protect myself from an excited child or visitors that don't understand exactly where an incision is.

Hope these few tidbits helped! Congratulations and God bless!

M.

hi
get one of those bands or soft support wraps that help support your lower back and lower abdominal region. I had a c-section and found the wrap really helpful in my recovery. once you have the c-section, it does weaken the area so having the extra support made my lower back feel better. I have also read that pressing the skin (we aren't talking MASHING it) but applying some pressure to the area that had the incision helps to get blood flow to the area, which in turn can help speed healing. I believe that once you cut an area , it does cause some stagnation of blood flow. so the wrap could help. As for soreness.. oh I was sore... but once I was well enough to get up without too much pain, I made myself walk around (not rigorously) but I did so because after surgery and (usualy bedrest) if you sit around too too much, you get really stiff in the abs.. .so try and walk..slowly.......
lastly, the drugs they use to numb you or even put you out, may cause you to cough afterward, in which case, because it HURTS to cough.... hold a pillow up against your stomach, I found that help brace the stomach area and I could cough more readily..
ummm what else. IF you can... get someone to bring the baby to you.. in the night, it's hard the first few days to pop up for feedings.. in our case, our son was bottle fed so his dad was able to help out A LOT and thankfully so..
oh IF they do hook up a decathater AFTER surgery, take advantage of NOT having to get up and use the restroom.... and drink LOTS of water so as to flush out any drugs they may have given to you.. I drank TONS of water .. I figured IF I had to have that thing on, then I was gonna drink drink drink and cleanse my body..
best of luck

It looks like you already have a lot of great advice so I'll keep it short. I had 2 emergency c-sections and the one tip I found really helpful was to chew a piece of gum every couple of hours after your delivery. You will most likely be on clear liquids or a light diet for a while, but the gum stimulates your digestive system and gets things going again. Believe me, you will want that first BM as soon as possible. :o) Good luck!

I had 2 csections and both were very very different. My experiance during surgery was the same. I felt slightly weird with the being numb but other than that my experience was fine. With my 1st daughter it was difficult to sit up and having contractions when I breast fed was uncomftorable. I also wasnt able to have a bowel movement for a few weeks. I also needed help getting out of bed for a few days and couldnt lift anything heavier than my daughter for a few weeks. That csection was a surprise, my daughter breached when I went into labor! My 2nd was planned and much easier! I had tons of groceries in the house and had premade some and froze them. I also was able to go to the bathroom the next day with no discomfort! Walking was easier, everything was easier and maybe cause I was prepared for the surgery and knew what to expect.

If I were you I would ask lots of queastions to your doc and asking other moms is an awesome idea! Go grocery shopping and the house cleaned before you go in so you wont have to worry about it when you get home. Try your best to get a good night sleep and I would try to schedule the surgery in the AM so you dont spend the day in suspence! Also dont be afraid to ask for help! I would also explain to your other daughter so she understands and depending on her age talk to her about your limitations with her as far as picking her up and physical interaction with her. My oldest wasnt even 2 when my youngest was born so it was hard to explain some things to her. Good luck!

Ok I had a c-section and I am a huge baby about pain and I have to say that yes the first couple days are tough but once you get home and get comfortable you will be ok.

Ok my c-section was scheduled for 8:30am. We arrived about 8:15am and they took me up to a labor and delivery room where they put in my IV and hooked me up to machines then prepped me for the surgery that took like an hour and my husband and mom were there the whole time. I asked to have the spinal before they put the catheter in which someone told me to do and that made things MUCH easier for me once your numb you know nothing...lol. Then they put me in a wheel chair and took me to the OR my mom and husband stayed behind and got dressed in the scrubs. Once in the OR They helped me up onto the table and the anesthesiologist talked me threw the Spinal and that went quick and was very painless compared to the stories I hear. They helped lay me down and then they brought in my mom and husband and gave them chairs by my head and about 30 minutes later my son was born @10:05am. They kept telling me or asking me if I felt things or that I would feel pressure but I felt nothing. While my doctor was stitching me my mom was with me and I started feeling super nauseas and started throwing up then I remember nothing...my mom said they knocked me out completely and finished working on me and with in 10 minutes they took me to the recovery room where they woke me and moved me to the hospital bed which I sort of remember being uncomfortable but I was pretty drugged up. I was in recovery for about an hour and they let guests come back and see me 2 at a time, but my mom was with me the whole time too. My husband stayed with our son that whole time and they let him try and feed him and what not. Then they took me and the baby to our room and let everyone in the waiting room come and see us. I was very out of it, but I don’t handle drugs well...LOL a little bit goes a super long way with me. I slept a lot that first day and really only remember a few hours of the whole day. But the second day First thing in the morning they were there to take the IV out and the catheter and wanted me on my feet. Oh also if you do not breastfeed or at least attempt it they will give you patocin (??sp??) to help contract your uterus back to its normal size...and that is not fun...sometimes I would be sleeping soundly and get a "contraction" and nearly jump out of the bed, wow was that uncomfortable and NOOOOOOo one ever mentioned that to me. Also that morning they wanted to look at my incision to check that it was ok and that had some gauze taped to me and the nurse let me take it all off she said it would be easier if I did it...it took me a couple house to slowly and comfortable take it all of. But once I got it all off I was able to shower and that really helped me feel better. The second, third and fourth days were just a lot of walking around and resting. Once home I felt great!! Yeah I was uncomfortable but once I got all the pain killers out of my system I felt great!! I took Aleve a couple times a day for 2-3 days I just had to stop the painkillers they were making me too sleepy. But I would recommend having a few dinners in the freezer maybe a weeks worth just to lighten the load on your body for the first week after all it is major surgery. I was glad to have things to snack on once home. I too have to agree with the others My son is 2.5 years old and my scar is still sort of numb. Also I don’t know much about it but since having a c-section people ask me all the time if I used a “wrap” around my abdominal area as I healed and I did not but I talked with a mom the other day who swore by it!!! If I should have another child I think I would research it greatly. Oh another helpful hint…a nurse told me to use a small flattened pillow to help support myself as I would get up from a laying position. When I got home I found it easier to lay on the couch or in the guest room because our bed is super high and it was a mission to get in and out of it so I slept in the guest room for a week or so. The only thing I might do differently next time is have that pillow in the car for the car ride home because I swear my husband hit every pot hole on the way home…lol But I had my c-section on a Monday; Thursday I went home…4 days later, 7 days after having the c-section we went to see my doctor I was feeling pretty good. We went to target I picked up some things I needed and felt fine. I was sore sometimes and I did not lift anything outside of my son but I was completely shocked at how well I was feeling. Good Luck!!! I hope this helps!! If ya have any questions please feel free to ask!! :o)

A heating pad REALLY helped me in the hospital-- you may want one for home. The recovery time is about 2 weeks. I had 2 c-sections. For the second one, I got up and moving too soon and I think I never deal heal right, so be ready to have lots of help for 2 FULL weeks if you can. Set up a station near the bed and another one near the couch which has everything you need when you are nursing (or bottle feeding) the baby, like a box of tissues, a box of baby wipes, burp clothes, a bottle of water for yourself, small toys/books/snacks/etc for the older child. When people say, "Let me know if you need anything", be prepared with a list of things you need so you can say, "Actually, I do need something! I need____." You need to have several meals frozen ahead of time so you or your husband or whoever is there helping you can just pop them in the oven or microwave. Let people do things you may not normally have friends do for you, like laundry.

What a bummer. My first was a scheduled c-section for breech presentation. I wrote up a cesarean birth plan (cruise the web for ideas on this; there are lots of suggestions) and talked through the surgery with my doctor. My priorities were (1) we didn't know baby's sex and wanted my husband to see it first instead of having it announced, (2) husband wanted to cut the cord, (3) Assuming no medical emergency, I wanted my husband to hold the baby next to me as soon as he was dried off, (4) I wanted to have the baby as soon as I could hold him, and be able to breastfeed in recovery. I had some other requests that they could not accomodate, but all of these things I was able to do. We scheduled the surgery for first thing in the AM (maybe 8 or 9) and that was nice b/c everyone was fresh and not in a hurry. I had the whole day to enjoy my baby, and had a good night's sleep the night before. It may sound corny, but I had a long talk with my baby the night before the surgery to tell him that it would be his birthday and to get ready to come into the world. If it is safe for you to be in labor at all (I don't know that much about previa) then you might consider letting yourself go into labor and then heading straight to the hospital for the surgery. This has two distinct advantages: (1) you know your baby was ready to come out on its own, and (2) the adrenaline and contractions will wake him up and get his breathing going better.

As for afterwards, make sure you stand up and walk as soon as you can. Have some help lined up since you won't be able to carry anything heavier than your baby, or drive, for 2 weeks. You won't want to move off the couch or bed much for the first week, so you'll need someone to help with diaper changes etc. Get lots of easy to eat snacks for yourself esp. if you're nursing. Peanuts, frozen pizzas, fruit, drinks, etc. Best of luck with your baby. Hopefully your placenta moves and it's safe to have a regular vaginal birth. The recovery is SO much easier.

Ask your OB about the different types of anesthesia that may be used. Although it's not necessarily up to the OB to pick the anesthesia, she may be able to influence what's used. My first c-section was the "typical"...I was sore when trying to get out of bed for the first few days, needed a morphine drip, etc. My 2nd c-section was awesome! A different type of anesthesia that lasted 24 hours -- I was ready to jump out of bed the next day! No problem getting up, laying down, etc. What a huge difference!

You will be told no driving for 2 weeks. You will also be told only one trip up and down the stairs a day for at least 2 weeks. That's really tough to do when you have another child at home. But be aware that you will start bleeding heavily if you don't take it easy enough. (Yes, it happened to me and my OB threatened to send me back to the hospital. I felt so good that I was carrying my 15 month old toddler up and down the stairs...and that was a *big* mistake.) If you notice your bleeding becoming heavier, it is a crystal clear sign that you MUST slow down and give your body rest to heal.

I do NOT think having a c-section is a "bummer" like a previous poster. Some women feel negatively about c-sections, but I'm so glad I never had to go through labor! No matter how you deliver, we are all a Mama at the end of the process. Please do not be overly frightened about c-sections. My experiences were very good -- even though my first was an emergency situation.

I had one, not planned. It would be important that you have things set up to make moving around easier for you as you might have a tough time....not all people do so dont get all worried/worked up. I did, I could not walk or get up from a chair and I had to sleep on the couch, my husband thankfully was there to help me walk/get up and down and bring me the baby to nurse. You will deff. want help w/ your other child too....esp. if you cant move much. you will also want comfy pants/undies as you wont want anything touching your ins. good luck and dont over think it, it is great that you are asking around. Oh and one thing I did not do that I regret is stock a freezer with pre cooked foods. esp. since you HAVE to feed your daughter, and you need food to make milk if you are goign to nurse.

I agree with the others - having a few things planned ahead of time is a good idea (just like with having a baby vaginally). :)

I was glad that my parents were here to help out, but one of the things that I was especially glad for was that they encouraged me to walk around and not just stay sitting. We went for slow walks outside which, I think, really helped me feel better faster. We didn't do anything strenuous, just very slow walking outside. Even walking around in the house was helpful.

I know this doesn't really help you with answering your preparedness question, but as I'm sitting here thinking, I realize that I can't really recall what was especially helpful to me beyond that. (Guess it's just a blur at this point, huh?) My husband does most of the cooking in our house and my parents did housework like laundry, changing sheets, etc...

Also, be prepared for your c-section scar to feel really weird for a long time. To this day, the area is still a bit numb to the touch and it's a strange sensation to me. (My daughter is 16 mos). The scar only feels weird when I touch it, not in my clothes or anything. I don't think that that slight numbness ever goes away, but I could be mistaken.

Oh wait, I did think of something...if you have things you'll need that are on a different level in your house, have them already on the same level as where you'll be spending most of your time. My doc didn't want me going up and down stairs for the first few days and having most of what I needed near me versus asking people to constantly get stuff made it easier.

Hope this helps a bit!
H.