if i have a c-section..

qwertytlk

Hi, im 38 weeks and may have to have a section if my breech baby cant be turned by ECV so am just wondering are there any different preperations i need to make to that of a vaginal birth? I haave my hospital bag packed for the labour for a while now, is there anything extra i will need in it or that i can take out? thanks:)

wolfpawnat

Any pants/underwear that go up to about your naval, anything low lying will rub against the wound (not fun). Also a lot of women use bandages to go between their stomach and their clothes to stop them rubbing. Loose clothes essential also.

All the best

January

Don't pack them but lay them out so your partner can find them, extra babygro's and vests for baby, he can take the dirty ones home and bring in the clean ones. You'll be in hospital for up to 5 days with a c section.

Also extra pyjamas for yourself (in the same place!)

qwertytlk

well i was already expeting to stay in for 4 or 5 days so im sorted in that regard, as for the high rise pants...hadnt thought of that. Have either of you had sections? truthfully, how bad is it? iv heard you cant pick up the baby properly or anything because of the strain on your stomach? im not sure if this was just a horror story or not though... and is it harder to loose weight on your stomach and tone your stomach back up after a section?? Thanks

silja

I recommend shaving your pubic area, it is nicer to do it at home in peace than having the nurses do it. Arrange for more help than you may have planned for both in hospital and when you come home, as you may be in pain. If you plan on breastfeeding, a breastfeeding pillow will protect the scar and mean you don't have to lift baby so much. Arnica is said to help with healing after the op. Some ladies say that the milk can take longer to come in, but I didn't find that- the more you put baby to the breast, the better for milk production. With twins, that was no problem for me! You may be a bit out of it due to pain meds for the first 12-24 hours, so be sure your partner takes lots of photos, and has a list of people to call/ email photos to.

I had a c-section with my twins; they simply didn't want to come out and induction failed, so it was "semi-planned" (the consultant said the induction would probably not work, but was willing to try as I really wanted a vaginal birth). I healed well, so it wasn't that horrendous for me- I did have my husband home and then my mom, so was never alone for the first 8 weeks. You will need to be careful with lifting the baby, especially from bent over (say over a low crib- put it up as high as you can, or have baby in bed with you). TMI, but what really got me was the constipation- some is normal after birth, when all your organs settle back into place, but the pain killers can make it much worse. Truly, that was more painful for me than the scar.

It is recommended you do not drive for 6 weeks after (I don't rive anyway, so no experience there). I had lost all baby weight by 6 weeks after birth, I put that down to breastfeeding. But between being uncomfortable from the surgery, and having twins, I didn;t go out much for 4 months, and really only went for long walks after about 5 months, so I had a very flabby tummy and it took most of a year to get back into shape. be prepared to have a slightly odd, hard "roll" of skin around the scar. Be sure to shave gently around the scar for the first few weeks, so as to avoid ingrown hairs.

metrovelvet

I couldnt walk that well for a couple of weeks, couldnt walk at all for the first three days. And no I couldnt get to the baby. Had to call nurse to do it or if someone was vsiting. No hard roll around my scar. I was told not to bathe, only shower for ...cant remember exactly...i think two weeks.

lynski

I had an em section on no1 and I was up and about about 2 wks later, due to infection, I was 'normal' at about 8 wks, but it took longer to settle properly. I do not mean to be negative, but no point in not being prepared.
Breastfeeding afterwards was not a problem at all for me, but I would recommend looking at the 'laid-back' approach beforehand to prepare for it, as it was definitely easier that way. I can't imagine trying to make/sterlise/wash bottles, so it might be worth considering for the first few weeks anyway so you get more time lying down.
I also went on to have 2 successful, 'gentle birth' VBACs afterwards, so it had no long term effects.
Related, but an acknowledged off topic comment: If you can, find an acupuncturist near you and moxibustion might help - certainly did for one of the moms in our playgroup last month.
Here is a link to an irish site with details.http://www.meizenclinic.com/acupuncture/moxibustion.html

What is moxibustion used for?
In traditional Chinese medicine, moxibustion is used on people who have a cold or stagnant condition. The burning of moxa is believed to expel cold and warm the meridians, which leads to smoother flow of blood and qi. In Western medicine, moxibustion has successfully been used to turn breech babies into a normal head-down position prior to childbirth. A landmark study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association in 1998 found that up to 75% of women suffering from breech presentations before childbirth had fetuses that rotated to the normal position after receiving moxibustion at an acupuncture point on the Bladder meridian. Other studies have shown that moxibustion increases the movement of the fetus in pregnant women, and may reduce the symptoms of menstrual cramps when used in conjunction with traditional acupuncture.

Also, Gentle Birth Ireland have some recent stories of vaginal breech births.
Good luck.

holidaygirl

I ended up having an emergency c section 8 months ago today. So many have told me that you recover better after a planned section as opposed to an emergency one (can't confirm or deny that, but my friends that have had more than one section have) I think this is because a lot of the time in emergency situations you have already gone through many hours of labour and for some reason intervention is needed.

I my case I was admitted with high bp on the Monday and was been monitored to see what they would do, however ds decided he wanted to arrive and I started myself on Tuesday evening, on Wednesday afternoon I was told I needed to be sectioned. I basically hadn't slept since Sunday night bare a few bits here and there!

Anyhow ds was born safely and although I didn't get to hold him properly for over an hour, dh was able to bring him over to me and place him up to my face and I was able to hold his little hands. I had planned to bf and even though ds ended up in Special Care baby unit for a few nights I still managed it. I Was up and about the day after but to be honest I think all the going up and down to SCBU didn't overly help my recovery. Anyhow it took me a little more than 6 weeks to recover but it was fine, nothing unbearable at all. Just needed to take things easy, no heavy lifting etc.

I found the giant sized underwear a god sent and used the green maternity pads to project the wound! Used arnica as well, if you van get your hands on the higher strength one all the better I know a few places stock it. Don't be a marter when asked about pain relief take all you can and get a prescription going home and have them in case you need them.

The one thing I wasn't prepared for was my first proper bowl movement (doesn't happen to everyone) but it can be very very uncomfortable. I needed to get dulphac after coming out of the hospital and had a few painful movements that I wasn't prepared for at first. Plenty of water & fruit though will probably help.

As for the hospital bag I had a lot with me and I had my dh and family take home and bring me in things as needed, I had things well laid out so they were easily found. I had ds little bits in a separate little sandwich bag so that was easy for the midwife to pull out of my bag when it was decided I needed the section. I hadn't myself tidied up in that dept as I was admitted early (thought I would be home again) easier to have this done yourself. Although at the time I honestly didn't care.

Best of luck with it all.

Winnie

Looks more likely now that I will be brought in for a section in about 2 weeks.....anyone had an elective section, have any tips on preparation or the aftermath??

Moonbeam

Merged the 2 threads as they are asking questions with the same answers.

Winnie

Fair point!

lonestargirl

I had one in January, from my own experience and reading about others it seems that many people with elective sections recover mure quickly than those with emergency ones (makes sense as you are not exhausted from labour etc). I did have mine in the US not Ireland so some things may be slightly different. I went in 5am Friday morning and was the 1st person on the theatre list, I had a spinal which was fine - Liam was born at 8.59am. He cried straight away, they did their APGAR and then wrapped him up and gave him to my husband who brought him around to me. It took about 15 - 20 mins to stich me up and then we went to recovery (with baby) and we were there for about 2 hours, there was another women in the room but we had a curtain for privacy. We got skin-to-skin time and the lactation consultant came in and helped to get him to feed. When I was going up to my room they took Liam off to the nursery for an hour for checks and his 1st vaccination.

I had a catheter in (because of the spinal) until the next morning and I had these compression balloons on my legs to prevent clots. The next morning I was able to get up and walk the corridoor no problem and also have a shower (my doctor put Dermabond (like a glue) over my scar so it was watertight). I went home on the Sunday morning and was sore for the next day or so. By Wednesday I was driving, there was still some dull pain but nothing particularly bad - I still have most of the painkillers I was prescribed.

Liam is now almost 5 months, the scar is neat and I don't have any pain (I do have sensation also, some people report that it takes a while for it to come back but that was not my experience). At this point I wouldn't know I'd had surgery if I didn't have a scar - I was swimming last week and I can tumbleturn and do butterfly just like before.

I know that I had a particularly good experience - and it was certainly easier that I had expected - and that not everyone is lucky enough for it to work out so well. But there is no need to go in thinking that it is going to be a bad experience either. Good Luck

Winnie

Sounds like you were quite lucky........Im not actually really worrying about the surgery just wanted to know if anything in particular i need to do beforehand or afterwards that the doctors may not tell you. I dont really mind what they need to do to me once my baby is born safe and well.

tara2

i had a c.section 13mths ago and in now 8mths pregnant with my 2nd! section is sore but not as bad as the 26hrs of labour i had,i recovered very fast and i bet u will 2,dont worrie ul get lots of painkillers and when ur at home in ur own bed ul recover even faster,u will be able to lift ur baby but nothing heaver,all will go well 4u,ul b fine x