C-Section - What do you wish you'd known?

[freneticfox]

Ok, time for some brutal honesty!

I've got an ELCS scheduled next week at 39+4 (due to health reasons) and while I know it's the right decision for me and my baby, I'm still experiencing a certain amount of anxiety. I've read stories, both good and bad. I feel relatively prepared but yet I still feel like I'm careering into the unknown.

No matter how TMI, what are things you wish you knew pre-CS? At the moment my main anxiety is rooted in a phobia I used to have (emetophobia, fear of vomiting). For the most part I'm ok now, but I'm extremely anxious about being sick in theatre, or straight after when I have a very raw scar! Any tips to help avoid this much appreciated...

Thanks :)

Painkiller nagging not a prob, can do that! Gas also doesn't phase me. The only problem MIGHT come is that DH and I can be a little.. erm.. giggly and immature about that kind of thing.

Pants - I hadn't thought about pants! Thank you :)

I have to say that as I like you had had a lot of pain during pregnancy (gallstones) I really liked the spinal I just wished it had lasted longer!! In fact in hindsight I think an epidural would have been better. I found the spinal wore off after 2 hours and it was sore.

I did get some skin to skin with dd but unfortunately she had breathing problems and was whisked off to scbu, not related to the emcs though and didn't interfere with bfing or bonding

I didn't have a skin apron either. I'm overweight a bit but oddly enough my stomach pinged back okay! My arse has never recovered from pregnancies however.. All my cake eating rests firmly there!

I felt very sick after they wheeled me out of the theatre. But I didn't actually throw up. I just felt really in a panic thinking I can't be sick my stitches will pop open! Of course they wouldn't have. ..

I had an elcs due to a previous traumatic vaginal birth. My elcs was great and 200 times better even though I was found to have totally undiagnosed placenta previa during the op!!

You'll be fine.

And no one has ever questioned my decision.

I felt myself falling asleep in theatre and the anaesthetist gave me adrenaline. AMAZING

Huge, huge pants.

Don't dig the garden after 4 weeks like I did, which brought the bleeding back.

I drove after 3 weeks both times.

Be careful during the night in hospital. I slid down my bed with DD on my chest and got stuck. I couldn't reach my buzzer,

OP - with my 2nd pg I got to 37 weeks and asked the clinic to estimate the weight of the baby.
Baby was Transverse, so I walked like John Wayne, plus I had SPD (crutches this time) plus I had a 2.5 yr old on spectrum (didn't know at time).

This may out me, but I went to the greengrocers and purchased a large watermelon that weighed 5.5lbs (estimated weight of baby at time).

I took it to my clinic appointment, plonked it on the desk, and said to the Consultant: 'imagine walking around with that wedged between your legs on a wonky pelvis that has been separating for 30 weeks'. Anatomically incorrect and a Lot melodramatic but he 'got it' and I was delivered at 37.3wks.

She was 7.2 lbs and worth every moment of that /IVF/hypergravida/SPD pg.

Don't you worry about people judging you re wheelchair/CSec. I'd like to see them grow a new person on a separated pelvis and then ignore medical advice to have a CSec. You go girl!.x

When do you get to meet your little boy?

Granny pants are definitely the way to go! I didn't so much get a skin apron, more of a shelf.

Coughing, sneezing and laughing all hurt for a while, and getting in and out of the car was tricky for a few days. I had no issues with bonding, even though DS1 was whisked to Scbu after about a 30sec cuddle immediately post birth.

DH had to help me in the shower the following morning (MW insisted I get showered), and he had to get me dried.

I had the injections for 5 days post-cs, they weren't too bad at all. Take the pain relief, even if you think you don't need it. You don't want to wait til it wears off then be desperate! Just check the pain relief is ok with bf if that's what you plan to do.

With me they didn't let me home until I had successfully peed a decent amount after the catheter was removed, so I had to pee in a bowl and measure the volume!

Oh yes, I also didn't realise you'd still get lochia afterwards. In fact, I seem to have had more with my cs than the vbac I had after.

Only one person was stupid enough to say I'd done it the easy way. I offered to perform abdominal surgery on her and see how easy she found that (was a tad emotional at the time!)

yes good tip Cockbollocks I had forgotten about huge pants, I had asdas own brand big black granny pants in size 16 when I am somewhere between 10-12. I was sad to see them go, they were possibly the most comfy things I have ever worn!

I had a really positive experience with my c section. I would recommend taking arnica afterwards. You can buy it in tablet form from Holland and barrett. It's herbal so doesn't interfer with meds and it helps with swelling,and aids healing.

The big surprise for me was the feeling surgeon rooting around. It wasn't uncomfortable I was just surprised at what I could feel.

Hope it goes well. Be kind to yourself and don't overdo the lifting afterwards. Xx

That when you stand up your stomach will feel like it is going to fall out!

Peppermint tea is good for wind

Keep taking pain relief at regular intervals even if you feel you don't need it for the first few days. I was really sore the first night and even tho I thought I'd had my allowed medication dh told the midwife and she brought better drugs!!

Get some super big granny pants - you don't want any that finish around where your scar will be.

Freneticfox I wonder if you wish you had not asked. I had two ceasarians about 14 years ago and I cant remember anything about them except it was much less painful and distressing than the labour I went through first when I was making no progress and baby was distressed.

The birth lasts a few hours, even less for a ceasarian. It is not the important part about having children. For me and probably for you as well caesariin was much safer than natural birth. Whatever happens the staff will lookafter you, and if you are anxious you could see if you could get some sedative to relax.

I was also itchy after. Really itchy.

Also don't try and get your baby out of the cot, buzz the nurse and she will do it/change him or her. You will literally not be able to move because it does hurt.

Also when you are in theatre and after the spinal etc you will lie back and then they tilt the table slightly, I felt like I was sliding off and I was yelling to them that I was falling and could they catch me. Having your legs go completely dead and trying to move them is a very odd sensation indeed.

When a CS is described as feeling like rummaging in a handbag, well it really does. It doesn't hurt but some of the rummaging can take your breath away so don't be surprised. You will feel stuff going on but it won't be a sharp pain as such.

Seeing your baby being presented to you over the top of the screen before being whisked away is unreal. Nothing like it. My second was all big hands and a very angry face.

Cheap big comfy pants for the lochia.

Don't try and shower yourself even if they insist. Wait til someone visits and can sit with the baby and then someone to help you. I found getting into the tub to use the shower attachment painful. I was doubled over as needed stronger meds.

Let us know how you get on! I wish I knew what I know know when I had my first section, makes a huge difference.

Dopey - next Weds. Can't come soon enough!

Mumm - some uncomfortable reading for sure, but at the same time I'm very much FOR not sugar coating things so no matter how tricky the reading, I'll do it and go through the panic. I'd rather know what COULD happen, if that makes sense rather than have a symptom that I'm completely in the dark about and flip out over. The wind pains in the shoulder for example I'd have never tied to a CS...!

Ah, next Weds! How lovely - will be thinking of you.

You will both be safe and cared for - a perfect birth.

Mumm300 is right - 'how' your baby is born afterwards doesn't matter - the fact he is here and you are both safe and well will be ALL you care about (and big pants and no gaps in pain relief too)

GOOD LUCK

My second baby was delivered seven minutes after the surgeon made his first incision. They write all the stats on the board:

"Knife to skin"
"Time of delivery"

By no means is major surgery an easy option. Don't be concerned if it takes you 4-6weeks to recover. I had lots of people telling me that they were driving/rock climbing/dancing a week after their section. Well bully for them. Not helpful comments. You will heal as you heal. Don't do too much too soon and listen to your body. Sod everyone else.

My elc was v easy and I wish I had been calmer before hand. I didn't sleep the night before with worry - which is silly thinking back as it was my last chance of a decent nights sleep!
We did gave bf problems which I think may have been caused by ds not having a natural delivery and not being ready if you know what I mean. But loads of people have bf issues anyway ( most natural thing in the world bollocks) great for the baby but hellish and no one tells you that before hand incase they scare you off!
Constipation yes but ok. Injections had completely forgotten. Also move about as soon as you can.

Lot of people in the room but they are all quite sunny - it's the birth of a baby and that's a good thing. One of them had had her baby in the same operating theatre as has the wife of the surgeon. They all introduce themselves before hand.

Oh and it takes longer to sew you up then to get baby put but by that point I had wonderful ds snuggled next to me and nothing else in the world mattered as I had waited 10 years and there he was.

Wind pain (thought it was colitis returning - surgeons came to see me). Midwife brought peppermint oil in about 50ml of water - did the trick!

Getting out of bed for the first time (mine was 48 hours later) took 30 minutes to get out of bed and walk to my (private) shower. Afterwards walking was easy but needed a bit more concentration to get out of bed!

The drain! OMG! I had an abruption so had 500ml drained into a 'coke' bottle. The drain was THIRTY BLOODY CENTIMETRES long and though not painful, was so uncomfortable and weird that I had to employ my breathing techniques!!!

I wish I'd been told what a breeze it was to recover from in comparison to a forceps delivery after induction. I'd have fought tooth and nail for a lovely cs first time round if I'd have known how much more relaxed the delivery was and how much easier and less painful the recovery was. Oh and how much easier bf is when you have a cs compared to a traumatic VB. You will be fine

When the day midwives swap to the night midwives (and sometimes vice versa) they don't always check your notes. I found they assumed i had a normal birth and that i could get off the bed and get the baby out of the cot myself. Also I found some of them pretended they had made that assumption even though they knew I had, had a c section, just so it was less work for them. You need to tell every new midwife that you meet that you've had a c-section and that they will need to bring your baby to you to feed.

I've had three (GA) sections. I have an apron. I'm also an ODP, you will have one in theatre with you helping the anaesthetist.
You will have an itchy nose, it's a common thing with opiates, you have opiate receptors in the tip of your nose, every patient I've recovered wakes up and the first thing they do is scratch their nose.
If you need to cough, laugh, cry post op, hold your scar, it will hurt but it will hurt a heck of a lot more if you don't.
Big 'huge' pull em up to your ribs knickers, a few sizes bigger and comfy loose clothing, waistbands rub.
Take your pain relief as prescribed, even if your managing. It's much easier to control with regular analgesia than it is to get you comfy if your in agony.
Try to mobilise the next day, it reduces DVT risk (the injections also help with that)
It is major abdominal surgery, take your time to recover, rest.
One tip I've found with the gas/abdomen pain is the positioning. If your in an electric bed raise the headrest and the feet so your knees are bent, if not ask for some pillows to place under your knees.
They should catheterise you in theatre after they administer your spinal, if not ask them too.
You will hear things a fad if you don't want to see the inner workings of your abdomen dont look at the theatre lights above you, they reflect everything.

Also, I wouldn't wear nail varnish, we end up having to use acetone to remove it, we can't get a good sats reading from the probe otherwise. We like to monitor you carefully, so you will have a sats probe on your finger, no cuff that will inflate every 5 mins, ecg monitoring, you will need a drip, nausea and shaking are very common side effects of spinals, let them know if you feel sick, they have the best anti emetics and given through your drip means the act very quickly.
The table is tilted at a left lateral tilt. It will feel strange, you wont fall, you are strapped (legs) to the table, it's to move the heavy uterus off your vena cava.

*bp

Bunny! Thank you for clarifying that! When I was having my section I kept saying to DH 'I'm banking to the left! I'm banking!'

I was shushed!

Oh, and my jaw trembled a fair bit too!

I have had two emcs. No pain and never took painkillers, up and about within hours (2nd was at 3.30, was up and having a shower that evening), discharged after 12hrs with the first. I didn't need any help, midwives didn't need to get the baby for me or anything.

You just don't know. I recovered quickly and easily, didn't even need a paracetamol and was back running at 8 weeks.

Just to give you an alternative story to the 'it will hurt, you will struggle to do xyz'. You just don't know. I was very lucky indeed.

Good luck!

More thank yous!

Bunny, thats really useful to know about the table tilt, that would have been a guaranteed panic moment for me!

Now in the less than a week countdown. Feeling a lot better about anything unknown!

DH also has three weeks off (his work are amazing) so knowing I have the support there is a huge relief. My Mum is also coming up (we live away from family) to fill our freezer with meals on the day.

Now need to stock up on pants...

I have peppermint capsules, are they worth taking in with me?