Hi all, I'm 33 weeks pregnant with second DC. I was sexually abused as a child and have huge issues around vaginal examinations etc. For DS1' s birth I went out of my way (hypnobirthing, home birth) to ensure I had a natural delivery without much intervention. Ended up having a lovely birth with only one midwife down the business end (if you get what I mean) and had a really positive experience. I had to fight hard for my home birth because the doctors decided DS1 was a giant baby who wouldn't fit it off my pelvis, the midwives thought this was a load of rubbish funnily enough. Doctors tried to push me into induction at 35wks and then placed c section at 37wks. I ended up insisting on a home birth so they would leave me alone. I'm so glad I did because DS1 turned up without any issues at home weighing only 7lb5.
Anyway I'm expecting DS2 and once again the baby is supposedly huge and I am really being pushed to have a c section and the idea of a c section terrifies me.
To make matters worse my friend has just had a c section and has been left feeling pretty traumatised by it. Firstly she said she was left completely bare below in front of all the people in the operating room and was shaved with a blunt razor (she had been told that she couldn't shave herself) and then had a catheter inserted, she found this all very undignified. She then found the sensation of the c section itself rather frightening and was left distraught when she was only allowed to barely glimpse her baby before he was taken off and cleaned, I pretty much delivered DS1 myself and had him in my arms and straight away and I would have hated someone other than me cleaning him. She then said after they had finished stitching her she realised they were lifting and spreading her legs so her bits were on display. When she got upset they said they were cleaning her out and given her pain meds but she claims no one had warned her of this. Then she was left exposed again whilst they cleaned her up. She then said whilst she was in recovery they left her bleeding on a pad and a midwife kept coming in and washing out her vagina.
Do they really do all this or is she exaggerating slightly? To me get c section sounds way more undignified than a natural birth but I'm sure not every mum feels like this.
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Childbirth
C Sections: do they really do this?
58 replies
HollyRose6 · 17/06/2014 22:33
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