C section recovery - is this normal?

[Blue3Trees]

Hello, I'm nearly 5 weeks post a c section and am getting these shooting pains and twinges in my groin and rectal area. Has anyone else experienced this, is it normal and does it go away? They're unpleasant rather than extremely painful but seem to be getting worse.
Also, what is your experience with how long it takes for the scar to stop pulling so much?
I'm feeling like my body will never be the same again and quite negative currently as I also have a lot of back pain and feel like my core is non existent. Some positive stories would be helpful, thank you!

Following. In exactly the same position and feel pretty down about it

Yes completely normal! And may be a sign you’re doing to much take it easy you’ve been through major surgery. Each day gets a little easier even though you probably feel it’s never going to end but it does and before you know it you’ll have a 6 month old baby x

I think I had these with my first but not my second. They will stop!

With regards to the pulling, once again I can’t really remember when it stopped, but I don’t have it at all now and have a 4 month old. Can’t remember having it for a long time, maybe around the 8 week mark?

Yes normal! Don't forget everything they cut through is fusing back together and I agree, could be a sign you've over done it.
I've had two, my first after a five day induction so took longer to recover and I had no idea what recovery would involve.
My second was an elective so I didn't have the days before hand to recover from also, so do bear that in mind.
You'll be surprised how quickly you do start healing, congratulations.

I had two sections and don’t remember this. Are you taking pain killers. They got rid of all pain for me.

I don't remember shooting pains, but I did get back pain (probably from awkwardly holding a baby for hours) and I remember my scar pulling for quite a while. Definitely after four weeks I still had to walk slowly. But after four months I walked around London for a day with no problems - so somewhere in between.

If the pains are getting worse I would suggest getting checked out to make sure you don't have an infection. How's your scar healing?

I did a post-natal recovery exercise class later on run by someone who'd had a c section which focused on gently knitting your core back together - that really helped my body feel more like it used to (although it is permanently changed) and with the back pain too.

All sounds completely normal and just your body recovering itself.

DS is 21m now and I still have days where my scar bothers me a bit. I'll have random days where it ends up red raw and itchy but then clears up as quick as it comes. I've been known to use DS's metanium on it before now

Mine is four and my scar still twinges sometimes! Usually when I'm ovulating or when I'm ill (I assume from general inflammation). It's not painful exactly though, just uncomfortable for a few seconds.

I wasn't right for about 10 weeks post emergency CS. Even standing up straight was hard. Planned CS was easier as I rested a lot more.
The internal stitches take a while to recover. You need to rest while everything mends.

5 weeks is very early days. You’ll still be healing for a while. Remember you’ve had major surgery and they’ve cut through all the layers of your body! You’re recovering from that as well as going through all the usual post-childbirth changes.
When I was a few weeks post CS, I went to the GP because I was still getting various pains and I thought it should all have healed by then. GP said it takes at least 9 months to fully recover from a section. She’d had them herself.
Do rest as much as you can, easier said than done but

Your uterus will be shrinking too which causes discomfort

I'm 15 weeks post c section now, and until your post I had completely forgotten about the twinging, pulling and backache. I've been exercising for about 5 weeks now (on week 4 of couch to 5k) and for the last couple of weeks I've been completely back to normal. The backache eased when I did gentle walking, so might be worth giving that a go if you haven't already. The feeling like my core didn't exist anymore was the last thing to fade - it's feeling fairly strong again now. You'll get there! It just takes time.