If you have a c section, do you automatically get your own room?

[DetectivePotato]

I may have to have a c section as I had a bad tear with DS. The thought of having to stay on a ward again fills me with terror. It was one of the worse experiences of my life and I would rather have been stitched up in theatre again that go through that. Luckily the midwives realised and gave me my own room the second night.

I was talking to my friends last night and one of them said that if you have a c section, you automatically get your own room. My other friend who had a c section said she stayed on the ward, and I am sure when I was up there the midwives said that they keep you on the ward at least for the 1st night as its easier for them to deal with (I don't know why tbh).

Has anyone else heard of this?

I had a planned CS and in my hospital, I was told, you had to stay on the ward if you'd had a CS as you needed to be monitored. Single rooms were for women with straightforward births. However, having said all that, I did get put in a single room the first night as DS was in special care and apparently it was the only bed available . With hindsight, I would have taken the opportunity to bank some sleep, rather than reading OK! and texting in between being dopey from the morphine. Once on the ward it was like Grand Central Station, plus I was feeding DS every 17 minutes, and it was no easier to get a midwife's attention...

So, as people have said, it varies with each hospital - but also, be prepared for whatever they tell you to change last minute due to circumstances too.

GibberingGinger - the trick is to make sure they anchor your buzzer to the edge of your bed properly, then you can get a much attention as you need

It depends on the hospital.

I have had 3 sections in 3 different hospitals. First 2, hospital policy to put c-sections in a side room and the last hospital it was policy to use 6 bedded bays.

I'll just have to ask my hospital then and keep my fingers crossed!!!! Although they have just shut 1 maternity ward and are left with a total of 1 ward. Great bloody news.

I was on a 4 bed ward all with mothers with c-sections. I had no sleep for two nights before I got on there and no sleep for the two nights I was on that ward.

One of the others mothers refused to feed her child...seriously...one of midwifes ended up shouting at her saying the baby had to have something, breast, expressed milk or formula and she had to make a decision. Same mother left her day old baby to cry for hours, she told the staff she didn't want the brand new baby learning bad habits

Thank goodness I managed to get discharged after 2 days, I would of had to kidnap that poor baby if I had been there any longer.

I was on a 2 bed ward after my CS which is normal here apparently. There was no-one else in so I had it to myself for 2 days and then they moved me because there were more women coming in (I then got a private room but only because of my BP - they wanted me to be in a less stressful environment to try and bring it down).

I got my own room but I suspect that was to do with my baby being prem. when I had my otheres there were women who had had section son my ward. It was actually good for them because each time I was able to do stuff for them when mws were caught up. One was bfing and I passed her her baby when needed.

No, I don't think you do. I didn't get my own room with dd1.

I did with dd2, but that was in a different country where it is common to have private rooms anyway & I have a latex allergy.

DetectivePotato, if you don't mind me answering, were there specific things about your previous ward stay that you found especially hard to handle?
I'm just wondering, if you work through your previous experiences and find ways of planning and preparing to make each little bit more easy to cope with, then maybe you will feel more prepared and positive about possibly needing to stay on a ward - just in case you don't get a room.

Doesn't seem to be usual practice from my/my friends' experiences.

We opted to pay for a private room tho and although very pricey it was worth every penny.

The rooms will be given to women who have a clinical need (e.g. twins) as a priority so there may not be any available even if you're willing/able to pay.

The downside was being forgotten on the painkiller rounds!

I have never had a room with any of my c-sections.

However I understood that you could pay for a room?

Apart from that I'd have thought if you explain about your health problems they would probably let you have one. It's probably at their discretion. Your DH might be able to add a little extra persuasion too perhaps?

Oh and hoping to be able to pay for a room again this time round (tomorrow in fact!!)

EMCS with DS late at night -- I went to the post-op (or something like that) ward until around lunchtime the next day, then was moved to a single room (I think c-section women had first dibs on them, but not sure).

VBAC with DD and I was discharged straight from the delivery room after a couple of hours without setting foot in either ward or private room.

piprabbit The problems were dealing with the noise from other people. I just cannot cope with it and spent the whole time nodding off and waking up after a few seconds, all night. I was the same when I had a laparoscopy the year before and I was on a ward. They woke me up from the general then stuck me on a ward at midday. All I wanted to do was to go to sleep and even with the effects of the general, I was still awake at 9pm when they finally discharged me. I was almost crying as I was so tired but unable to sleep.

I don't know what it is, but from my books it says that M.E. means you cannot deal with lots of noise etc and I have since found the same with tinnitus. If I am on a ward, I will have to be prepared for the fact that I will not sleep at all and that scares me more than giving birth again.

Unfortunately we cannot afford to pay for a private room, otherwise I wouldn't hesitate. The midwives were aware of my health issues last time which is why as soon as a single room opened up, I got it straight away as they knew I hadn't slept and they came and moved me. They also took DS both nights which according to my friends, is really unusual and they haven't heard of anyone else having their baby taken at night.

My DH never ever speaks out, even when I begged him to go and find the nurses so I could be discharged after my laparoscopy. This time though I am adamant that he is going to tell them about my previous problems just in case I am too out of it.

DP you must persuade your DH to be your advocate. It sounds like there is every reason why you need to have some space to yourself.

I remember the midwives taking DS for a while one night I was in because he wouldn't settle and I hadn't really slept for hours and I was exhausted. They brought him back for feeding though.

Depends on the hospital and you may be better off on a ward. I did not have a section but ended up on an 8 bed ward with mostly c-sections and at least one baby crying at any one time. No sleep but I ended up looking after/fetching midwives for those not able to get up! Those in single rooms would not have seen a nurse/midwive/doctor for days... (wild guess here but it was chaotic and I had to go in search of a sheet and pillowcase for my bed myself because it was bare and was told I could not have a blanket because there were none left )

I did twice. Once for an emergeny and once for an elective.

I got my own room for the emcs, after a few nights. But it was quite traumatic and my baby was in NICU/SCBU. I suspect the hospital was also at fault for the crash (midwife did not notice heart decels for 15 mins).

For my elective cs, different hospital, I was in a ward with other cs mothers. Hospital so overcrowded we overflowed into the gynae ward. I was moved twice in 36 hours. I got myself discharged early after 36 hours, so horrible it was. The hospital would have laughed if I asked for my own room.

So it all depends...

Detpot
I have a friend with ME who uses big headphones that block out extraneous noise. She loves to come to my kid's parties, but can't cope with chatter, so wears these, and seems to enjoy self.
Is the last thing you need on a ward. With DD2, a lady who was scared of her pg was put on 6 bed ward with 2 c sections, and 1 16 yr old REALLY loud mother. (These epiduruals don't work, birth is nothing, I felt no pain...(maybe cos it worked luv)). I don't know what the thinking was behind this, I felt really sorry for her, she was four mths gone, but she had her radio on all night every night...v loud. No-one dared say anything to her, at least I didn't, 'cos she was obviously v fragile. But must admit, when her DH finally told her to turn it down I was so relieved I could have kissed him!

I had my own room in the hospital I had my first baby in, but it was by fluke, I think. to be honest, it wasn't great. I could still hear other people's babies crying all night, but was almost totally forgotten by the midwives who were busy on the wards.

In the hospital I had my second baby at they had a c-section ward.

GibberingGinger with you on that one, my twins were 6 weeks early and I found being on the ward listening to everyone else's babies quite traumatic as mine were in SCBU. I did take earplugs in though! The private rooms were taken up by mummies who had their babies even earlier than mine, so I didn't grumble too much! I had to keep pulling the curtains closed though, as the midwives were quite insistent I was sociable - humph!!

Scrab806ble

Headphones would be a good idea and DH keeps telling me to use earplugs but my tinnitus is so loud, anything in my ears makes it even louder and it seems to be getting a lot worse too. Sometimes I want to cut my ears off but I don't think that will make the ringing, buzzing and pulsating stop somehow!! Grrrrrr.

May be preferrable to listening to other people on the ward though.

I had to be on the ward after section. That was the hospitals policy, so the mw's can see us all easily I suppose?

With DD I was on the ward and hated every minute and left on day 2, 2 days before they wanted me to go. No private rooms at all there and 36 women and babies in an old fashioned ward. Unbelievably noisy.

Since moved and DS was born in a very new hospital which has lots of private rooms and a max of 4 bed ward. Booked and paid £150 for a room for 4 nights. Was money well spent! Had sections with both and was ignored more on the ward than in a private room.