C section pain relief...can anyone advise?

[Willow4987]

I’ve got a planned c section in 3 weeks and I was hoping someone would be able to advise what sort of pain relief schedule I should be on when I get home?

For my first birth (forceps) the midwife said a combination of paracetamol and ibuprofen but I can’t remember what schedule she said. There was something about combining them together for one dose and then only one of them for the next but I can’t remember

Ibuprofen, paracetamol and some dyhdracodeine for the first few days I took it on a schedule with alarms (including at night) and honestly, I've had worse periods. The only pain I felt was from constipation and birth after pains. The elcs was basically pain free, and I was out and about doing normal stuff within a few days.

Make sure you write the timing and dosage instructions on each box. I got in a right muddle with mine first time around.

I was allowed to come home with a couple of morphine tablets as I couldn't bear it after my emcs. It was over a month before I didn't need pain relief.
Planned one was much easier.

Yes the after pains were appalling this time (2nd time) for me. Only for 3 days or so, but owwww.

It definitely depends where you have your baby. I had oramorph in the night on the second night (hadn't realised I had to specifically ask for something stronger than paracetamol and ibuprofen or I'd have asked the first night too). They then said the wouldn't discharge me if I thought I needed more than paracetamol and ibuprofen!

I did what a PP mentioned about alternating a different one of paracetamol and ibuprofen every two hours. It worked so much better than in hospital where they give you both at the same time but sometimes there's 8 hours between drugs rounds so you have nothing in your system at all for a while!

I didn't find the clexane painful at all so think that differs person to person to. They did make me bruise worse than the actual section did though!

Either way hope it all goes smoothly for you and don't be afraid to ask.

Thanks everyone!

If there’s maybe 8 hours between drug rounds...what am I supposed to do in that time? Can I just take my own paracetamol/ibuprofen?

My hospital gave you meds to keep by your bed and you self administered. I didn't use any painkillers but did self inject the tinzaparin blood thinners for 10 days. I also used peppermint for trapped wind pain (in my shoulder).

I think it’s bloody shocking that you have to ask for something stronger than paracetamol and ibuprofen in some trusts (including the one I live in). I was only given paracetamol and ibuprofen and was in a lot of pain. I just thought that I was being a wimp/weak/needed to get a grip or more sleep or maybe it was because I’d had a long Labour before my EMCS which meant that I was knackered already and therefore wasn’t tolerating the pain as I should. At no stage was i offered anything. I naively put my trust in the professionals to be doing all they could for me.

@WellTidy lots of women are just fine on paracetamol and ibuprofen, certainly most of the women on my ward were and the one who wasn't, asked if she could have something else and was given oramorph. Did nobody ask how you were during obs? Did you ask for anything else?

That sounded accusatory, it wasn't supposed to, was wondering how they let that happen. I'm sorry you were feeling so bad; it is shocking that you were in so much preventable pain.

Yup paracetamol and ibuprofen. In my experience they only gave me one box of each so start stocking up on both as you can only buy 2 boxes at a time in the shops. Have plenty on hand just in case. The best thing anyone advised me to do is what a Pp has said, set them all as timers on your phone - preventing the pain is better than curing the pain so if you take them on the regular schedule throughout the day even if you're not in pain it will keep it at bay. If you skip a dose it's much harder to wait for the tablets to kick in when you're already in pain. For me I only had to really take tablets regularly for just over a week. After that I took them as and when I needed them. Good luck and congrats!!

My experience was that

A) they strongly encouraged you to take paracetamol and ibuprofen
B) they also encouraged you to be in charge of taking them - not a great idea when still somewhat off your face on the drugs from the surgery/sleep deprivation/hormones.
C) the staff varied wildly in their attitude towards oramorph. One lovely midwife strongly encouraged me to take it (turned out to be a good plan), others asked whether I was sure I really needed it, and more than half of the time they forgot to come back...

Finally, once home, if the pain relief is too effective you may find yourself doing too much and paying for it later

Show no, nobody asked how I was. And I didn’t know that I could have asked for something else. I thought that I was just not doing well enough and needed to do better. And that I was a wimp, as I said. I ty ink I could have coped a lot better with the pain had I not been in labour for three days prior to my EMCS and therefore knackered and sleep deprived, mind you.

The sleep deprivation really won't have helped. I had simar labours, long, lots of intervention and a haemorrhage after my first. I was so tired I was hallucinating. No pain though thankfully. I'm genuinely sorry you were in so much pain. I think the expectation of pain and sometimes the trauma, leads women to not ask for more support, including pain relief. We have a way to go in changing the culture and practice around childbirth in some trusts.

I absolutely agree Show. Experiences differ so much from Trust to Trust, even between neighbouring Trusts. My friend living two miles in the other direction, so within a different Trust, had a very positive experience, which I’m glad of.

Discharged at 24 hours and took paracetamol for 4 days. Very lucky to have a great recovery. Elcs

I got discharged with diclofenac and paracetamol and the fragmin jabs. Agree that you should take them at the right times even if you feel OK. I was v lucky with my section recovery and didn't find it overly painful, but I did notice the discomfort if I skipped a dose!

Oh and I was home after 24 hours and it was an emergency section, so I seem to have been very fortunate!