have to have gen anaesthetic with c section

[lu9months]

I have been told because of problems with my blood not clotting I will have to have my third child under general anaesthetic (managed the other 2 sections with epidurals). this means that my husband wont be allowed in the operating theatre. feel very upset, but obviously safety is paramount. has anyone else had experience of this?

is this definite? i know several women with blood clotting issues, but obviously might not be the same as yours, who have been able to stop their meds in advance of a planned c.s and been able to have a spinal block... even if it is the case, your DH can hold the baby after delivery, and can give skin to skin until you come round from the GA.. it is an upsetting thought he wont be in there , but he will see the baby within moments of birth, hopefully.

Yes, I had this although not pre planned, emergency section. Yes, its sad that neither you nor your husband will witness the birth, but like you say safety is most important. My ds is now nearly 3 and I can honestly say that its made no difference at all - as soon as he was in my arms that was all that mattered.

It was a bit odd, though, waking up from my operation to find a wee baby wrapped up next to me and a midwife saying "you've had a little boy"!

Oh yes, Lulumama has reminded me that dh of course got to hold baby quite soon after delivery and knew that we had a boy etc before me. It was wierd for him, but special too.

After my first (epidural) section I was in recovery ward with a woman who had had an emergency section under GA. She was a bit more woozelly than me iyswim, and also felt some nausea (which I think is fairly common with a general) but when they brought the toast she perked up very quickly and was fine and able to hold baby etc. TBH epidurals make my blood pressure drop quite a bit and so I'm not 100% 'there' when they do the whole here's your baby bit anyway. It's a bit of a shame but I really don't think it will make a difference.

thanks very much , very helpful comments

Yes, with DD as emerg cs.

Bit strange but I bonded as soon as I laid eyes on her after waking after an hour. I needed hundreds of mini milk ice lollies to stop my throat beingsore though!

Had crash c/s with dd. DH got to hold her pretty much immediately after the operation was over, a long time before I was woken up. I was allowed to see her for a minute or two before she was taken to scbu for 12 hours.

I breastfed fine, I bonded fine, no PND.

I still don't like the fact that I don't really know the story of my dd's birth and that neither of her parents were there to see her come in to the world. It is a gap in my knowledge, but I live with it. Its a small thing now.

This happened to me with first DS. It was due to placenta praevia and apparently the way it has to be in case of heavy blood loss. The consultant said it would be worse if they did a spinal and then had to administer ga as you would know something had gone wrong. It was a weird situation as you go to sleep pregnant and wake up with baby beside you. I had blood transfusion too so I think it was best I was unconscious. DS drowsy too for a little while effects of anaesthetic wore off. It's all in the past now but I remember feeling upset as it's just like having an operation for anything and not be able to witness the birth means it's all a blank. DH was more worried as he was outside and didn't know what was happening but they came out right away with DS for him to hold whilst I went into recovery.

I had a crash CS with DD2. She was in my DH's arms within minutes. I think the best thing about a section is that the dad gets to be a bit more involved. In her first few days I could see DD really listening whenever my husband held her/talked to her. They have a special bond I think.

My MW was able to tell me little details about the birth - e.g. that DD gasped for breath as soon as her head came out which I loved hearing.

And of course the second I was vaguely alert in recovery she was handed to me and my MW latched her on for me.

My first CS was under a GA and the following 3 (!) were elective - the main difference for me was the recovery time. Took me much longer with the GA.

As the others have said though, it is all about the safety of you and your baby.

Best of luck

I wonder why they wont let dads into the theatre with a GA but will with an epidural? anyone know?

I had GA with my twins. I was heartbroken at the time and was most worried I wouldn't bond because of it.

However having had DD3 with a normal vaginal delivery I was so so pleased that I loved her hugely just as much as my twins, but not more because I had been awake.

I would say that I bonded with all three equally well and that was such a relief - in fact it made my whole year!

I would talk to the staff about your wishes - just because you won't be awake doesn't mean that you can't have a birth plan. I requested skin to skin as soon as possible with my twins.

Also be prepared to feel extra groggy and that if you are breastfeeding the GA can slow the milk production so try and be patient! No one told me this and I got very upset!

Is your problem with platelet levels? Mine dropped to 50 something at the end of pregnancy causing the GA to be done - but they quickly went back to a normal level afterwards.

DH also crept up to the door and videod the babies being pulled out which I treasure! He also videoed me meeting them for the first time. I look like death but I don't care it's still reinforcing the memory even if I can't quite remember all the details!

I had to for the birth of my twins - emergency section and the epidurals went wrong. To be honest I found it very traumatic (I missed the birth of my babies after a month in hospital beforehand with placenta praevia and bleeding) but I think because it was so unexpected and I'd had to time to get my head round it. It came on the back of a night of horrific bleeding too so I was hardly in the best state physically and emotionally.

If you have to have one my top tips would be: -

1. Give the theatre staff a camera to take a photo as your baby comes out. There's no reason why someone shouldn't be able to do this.

1. Your husband will be allowed to hold the baby. Ask that he have skin-to-skin following the birth. This wasn't an option for my babies who were premature but it would have helped me to know that soon after birth they were having a lovely, bonding time with my husband. It didn't matter who it was, as long as one of us got to bond with our babies.

1. Have some crackers or oatcakes for later. I felt incredibly nauseous after I came round and had an afternoon of dry retching, which was very painful. Once I'd eaten some bread (offered by a lovely man in HDU whose wife had also had an emergency section that afternoon - the hospital kitchen was apparently "closed" so without that I'd have had no food all day to combat the nausea) I felt a billion times better.

1. ASK FOR A DEBRIEF the next day. Not the day of the birth as you might be groggy but get one of the theatre staff (consultant, anaethetist, midwife...?) to come and talk through your notes for 5 or 10 minutes. If you miss the birth of your baby then this is a way of getting a clear picture. I don't know the events of my daughters' birth and it really bothered me. Someone else knew, but I didn't and once I had the information I got a lot of peace at last (it took me a year to get a debrief as it didn't happen in the hospital and only when I asked for my notes and a hospital debrief through their PALS). Knowing which daughter cried when she came out, what happened, why that happened? It allowed me to get a picture of their birth when I didn't have one. It's a second hand picture but it's better than a blank for me. You might have to push/nag for them to talk through your notes but it really IS worth doing.

1. Chase all the pain relief you can. Caesareans under General can be more painful, especially if they don't give you a spinal or epidural (or if in my case they don't work). You'll get morphine post op but it can take time to kick in and if you still hurt then ask for more. There's a myriad of drugs and there are no rewards for being stoical about pain in this instance. The less you hurt the more you'll be able to enjoy your baby and feed your baby. I took everything they offered me and it really helped.

1. You might need to cough following the operation which can be a hideous prospect after abdominal surgery. If you do need to then get a midwife to hold a pillow over your scar. They'll use the right amount of pressure (you'll be too frightened to) and you'll be able to clear all the gunk from your chest/throat that rattles around after an anaesthetic.

Also, ask if your husband can stay in. Mine was booted out - apparently they find that husbands can get very traumatised by the process of anaesthetic intubation/tubing and can faint, etc. but I HAVE heard (anecdotally) of some people being allowed to stay in. Perhaps he could come in very briefly or hover by the door? It's worth an ask after all.

Good luck and I hope this helps.