Gentle section?

[taylz12]

Hey ladies -

I'm having an elective section in feb, a few people have mentioned a "gentle section". Can someone explain this to me please and if anyone's ever had one could you tell me what your experience was like?

Thank you!

I believe m, this is where they don’t pull baby out, they just cut you open and leave baby to wriggle themselves out in a word.

Ive had two sections, one planned due to IUGR and baby couldn’t stay in any longer a any placenta was failing.

and one emergency as my water went but labour didn’t progress.

In both instances it was very calm and a good enough experience, I probably had a better than average experience of a c-section. I didn’t lose much blood - blood pressure was a bit funny on the second one but nothing traumatic happened, they just kept pumping me with another drug when I felt a bit nauseous.

but in both instances, I would have wanted them to ‘leave’ baby in me while I lay there cut open like a half-filleted fish. I wanted baby out, checked and in my arms.

Also, a small number of c-section babies can sometimes have difficult breathing as they don’t get ‘squished’ through the birth canal which is what expels a lot of the fluids from their lungs - so to me I’d rather they were out and made sure they’re healthy rather than faffing around waiting for baby to find the exit.

the ‘pushing’ and ‘tugging’ is barely anything, although I was given too much anaesthetic on both of my sections to where I was numb to the neck (a bit weird as it feels like you’re not breathing) so I was extra, extra numb 😂 so my first baby I felt literally nothing, but she was tiny anyway, second baby I felt a bit of tugging and could see my body moving where they were obviously pushing baby down but felt nothing but pressure.

I don’t understand the benefits of a gentle c-section, but that’s maybe because I’ve not e necessarily had one 🙈

Oh Lord, I can't think of anything worse. Like the pp, I would not have wanted that at all.

God that makes me feel a bit ill for some reason!

I had an elective and it felt quite gentle (for me anyway it ). They tend to be quite chilled and you get to hold your baby right away, there's music playing, etc.

Above pp i think has misunderstood gentle x section. A baby doesn’t climb itself out of your body. The head is delivered and then the baby is kind of squeezed out rather than lifted out, allowing some of the fluid which can cause breathing difficulties to c sec babies to be squeezed out in a similar way to a vaginal delivery.
lights in theatre (although not on you as the docs need to see what they’re doing) can be dimmed, you can often choose some music of your choice, and you can opt for delayed cord clamping and skin to skin.

I just don’t understand - the incision is too small for the baby to wriggle out of?

The silly name annoys me too, trying to
make people think it’s an actual option and like the normal process is brutal.

You can ask for music in the hospital I went to though, maybe you could ask for that.

That should say c section not x section

Eh

a ‘gentle’ section is what I’m having in two weeks. It simply means the curtain will be lowered at the point of the baby being removed so that I can see him being ‘born’, I can play my own music, have the lights dimmed, immediate skin to skin and DH can cut the cord. That’s it. Not much different to a regular section 🤷🏻‍♀️

Personally I found a regular effective c section quite gentle - it was bright, but I had my eyes closed a lot of the time and otherwise it was very calm. You can hear everyone talking quietly, have music if you want (I didn't), it wasn't an unpleasant experience at all.

*elective 🤦

I had an emergency section, they still lowered the drape for us to see him, did delayed cord clamping, and DH cut the cord.

I had an amazing elective. Music, drapes lowered, husband cut cord, baby fed whilst I was getting sewn up. Was discharged 9hrs after the section, minimal pain on lifting, was walking in the park 3days later. I really enjoyed mine, would definitely do it again!!

@taylz12 , I had a “gentle C section” with my third, after one emergency section and one planned section.

It was a world of difference! Calm environment, lights dimmed in the room (although not where they were operating obviously), quiet voices keeping me informed, the opportunity to watch the whole thing if I wanted (I did), baby delivered straight to the breast for skin to skin contact, DH could cut the cord if he wanted (he didn’t), nice classical music played.

It wasn’t a medical procedure “done” to me like both previous times, it was a birth I was part of. No feeling of “here’s one I prepared earlier” and plenty of time together with the newborn before getting cleaned up.

Yes! This felt exactly like mine, it was such a magical experience!

Another enthusiastic c section experience here. Two in fact.

The first was an emergency but we were offered options as we went.

the second planned for medical reasons. I cut the cord myself (DH didn’t want to), the music was provided by a nurse (thank you) as DH was running late.

With both I had skin to skin quickly, and breastfed. In fact most people think I’m a bit hippy as I did extended breastfeeding so they assume I did pool/hypno birthing

I’m a midwife and am embarrassed to say I really can’t work out how dad could cut the cord - anyone care to share the details? If it’s as common as this thread suggests I must work with someone who has facilitated it though - will ask tomorrow.

Haven't you ever been at a birth where that was offered? The emergency section didn't, obviously, because things were pretty fraught. Both other sections offered to give DH the weird scissors.

DH cut the cord with DD2 as he was too British to say no thank you when the midwife asked him. I'm not sure how it worked actually! It was after she had been taken out and was on the other side of room so think he just cut it at the baby's end, and the doctor has clamped and cut it at the placenta end 🤔

I can’t work out how you’d get to the sterile field to cut it at all, I am fully scrubbed to receive the baby and hold them for delayed cord clamping and then the surgeon cuts it.

I do always invite the dad to do it if the baby goes to the resuscitate but that slightly delays skin to skin.

I have been at a ‘natural section’ where the obstetrician replicated a birth through a smaller than normal incision with the drape down throughout and baby passed to their mother immediately and found it genuinely affecting, much more so than I expected to. Dropping drape for the birth/ music/ immediate skin to skin is all pretty standard now thankfully.

That's what I've been wondering too. Maybe it's a case of the cord deliberately left long for Dad to trim over at the resuscuitaire?

Is operating under dimmed lights safe?

We never say yes to that!

The operating lights themselves won't be dimmed, but the ceiling lights usually can be. There's a few computer screens that will be on too. However surgeons usually like operating with as much light as they can get. So the room lights get turned back up eventually