Positive experiences of caesarean under general anaesthetic

[Sunworshipper]

For a number of medical reasons I am booked in to have my first baby by elective caesarean under general anaesthetic in June. The only information I can find appears to stress that this is the one option you want to avoid. NCT teachers, midwives, anaesthetists have very little information to offer or tell me that it will be difficult to establish breastfeeding. Hospital policy is very strict that my DH cannot be present and it has taken a while to come to terms with the knowledge that neither of us will actually witness our baby's birth. Obviously I want to cuddle my baby and do everything I can as soon as possible afterwards but I have had a lot of GAs in the past and I know that I am completely useless for 24 hours or so. Yet all the midwives have told me that I will be expected to care for my baby as soon as possible and I'm worried I won't get the support I need. Can anyone offer any advice, encouragement or positive stories of their experience of having a baby under GA.

I have 3 friends who have had CS with GA, although all 3 were emergencies. As you say, the dh's were not allowed in for any of them. All 3 managed to establish breastfeeding with no more difficulty than many other mums (myself included) who have given birth every other way. In my (admittedly very limited) experience newborns are a bit out of it for the first 24 hours themselves.

Do you have a sister/mum/friend who could be around to help you and your dh out when you're in hospital?

I had an emergency cs with my ds and although it wasn't under GA, my ds was taken down to special care, so there was no skin to skin contact or anything like that and we didn;t have a problem establishing breastfeeding, despite the ward I was on being busy and the midwives not bringing me the breast pump regularly to express and get my supply going.
Some of my friends had emcs under GA and also successfully breastfed. So I'm not sure whether the issue they have is that in your case it won't be an emcs, but I'd have thought that in terms of your body's readiness it is no different that being induced?

I had a similar situation wth MrsMopple only DS was taken to a different hospital. I never established bf (mostly bc he was sooo early) and it took me ages to come to terms with the birth afterwards and if i'm honest it affected our bonding process .
DP wasn't in the room as it was so full already and I couldn't see DS until days later.

Reading you OP you have the advantage of readiness. Your going into this with your eyes open. Think now about how much you can do for DC even under GA...do you want to wait until you come round for you and DP to find out the sex? Do you have a special blanket they can wrap DC in when s/he's born...even sleep with it so it smells of you? Even if you are under, you can ask them to make sure s/he touches you...whatever you need and believe will help you to bond.

With DD (also taken away to NICU - same hospital) the experience was so different bc I expected it. When I 1st saw her, she had her tiny hand on the little bear that I had spent weeks carrying around with me, I felt that overwhelming love I imagine you get from that first cuddle. I knew/believed that she could smell me on it and was comforted by that.

With my first I was scared to be too pushy and ask for what I wanted, I just let it all happen around me, but you shouldn't. This is your birth and only you will know what's right. You already know it won't be how you hoped, but you can still make it perfect.
xxx

Dd1 was c section under GA and I had no problems. I had an epidural but it didn't work so they put me out. Xh saw her asap which was quite quick & bf was no problem. By the second night I was doing most of her care but occaisionally MW helping with bf holds etc.

Dd2 was GA but emergency & I lost two days, much more complications with me that timethough.

Dc3 will be a section & I feel I should have an epi but am quite terrified of hospitals & that may cause problems in theatre.A GA wouldn't be the end of the world though as long as DC is ok.

I had a CS under GA. Mine was an emergency though after a long labour. I think the positive in your position is that you will not have experienced labour prior to the delivery so you will be in better shape than most!

Yes, it's far from ideal and you will be zonked.

So I think your Dh is the most important factor in 'protecting' your experience of birth (and his own experience!) Make him your advocate. Make sure he knows what you want and is prepared to speak up for you. Make sure he is there at the ward door as soon as visiting starts in the morning and stays with you until they chuck him out in the evening. He can bring the baby to you, change it, do what needs doing, speak up for you to get cups of tea/meals/breastfeeding help.

And don't worry - if you want to breastfeed this is not the end of that wish. Even if you are too zonked to express or think oh, I just can't do it, it won't necessarily stop you breastfeeding in the long term. Even a few days later you can stick the baby to the breast and see how it goes. I read someone say this on this site - when I got home, bottlefeeding, I thought that was it and I'd missed my chance, but apparently it can be established a bit later, although I don't suppose that's ideal either or possible in all cases.

Above all, remember that all you and Dh can do is your best - and whatever the delivery, whatever the way you feed the baby, the main thing is to look after YOU so that you can enjoy as much of the experience as possible

Lots of luck x

I had my second emcs under general.
It was not difficult to establish breastfeeding. It is the removal of the placenta that triggers milk production.

I had an independent MW in with me who afterwards toook the baby straight to my DH for skin to skin. She also told me details about the birth so that I know, for example, that DD started breathing when her head came out. There is no reason why an NHS midwife can't do this.

The anaesthetic they give for a cs is quite light so you may find you are not all that useless afterwards. Anyway, with me I just lay about with the baby plastered to my chest for 12 hours after I met her in recovery and we would have stayed that way had someone not offered to get her dressed for me!

You will manage to care for her, and anyway babies fortunately don't need much in the first few days. Plus, the MWs on the post-natal ward will help you, even if they are not able to constantly be at your beck and call. You will be fine, honestly.

The one thing I would say is make sure that the doctors write you up for decent pain relief afterwards. Because you will have had a general you won't have the benefit of having had an epidural. I was in a fair bit of pain afterwards and was only written up for paracetomol and ibuprofen which was a bit of a joke really. As soon as I got them to prescribe something stronger things became a lot easier!

You can't believe how much better and less alone it makes me feel to read your stories and advice and feel your encouragement. I think I have probably been a bit too passive at the antenatal appointments and let people push me around a bit or fob me off.

Threesilverballoons and MrsMopple it was really helpful to hear that you and your friends had all the same highs and lows with breastfeeding whether you had a GA or not. Feel the more I hear this the more it will help me to believe I can do it despite the doubting thomases. I've asked my Mum to be there with my DH and she's seen me through lots of surgery so will be able to take control if DH a bit overwhelmed. Thank you.

Springy I'm sorry you had such a difficult birth with you DS. It must have been awful being parted from him at such a tender stage. Such a contrast to the birth of your DD even though she also needed extra care. I love all your suggestions - particularly the blanket. Thank you

Cirrhosisbythesea thanks for pointing out the 'preparedness' factor too. I guess I am lucky that I know what is going to happen and I'm not going into an emergency situation so I can plan and prepare with my DH and get him sharing in the first few days much more. I was thinking of asking that the baby could be taken straight to DH if he/she is ok and he could do skin to skin. even if I can't. Thank you.

Nymphadora so reassuring to hear that you were able to take care of your DD1 by day 2. I'm just so worried that the post-natal support is going to be non-existent. Thank you.

Haliborange Strong drugs definitely on my list of requirements now. Interesting to hear that the GA is not quite so heavy duty as other GAs. I will speak to my midwife - never see the same one twice - about someone being able to talk me through the birth story because this is the bit that I want to be able to tell my child when he/she is older. Thank you.

I had a CS under GA (some years ago now). I wasn't mobile as quickly as I would have liked. It probably took me at least 48 hours to be walking around and getting out of bed without help. So I needed someone with me most of the time to pass me the baby and change nappies. On the positive side, I had no problems with breastfeeding. I think you'll be fine, as long as you can have someone there to help you in those first couple of days, or a midwife to come at the press of a button. Also some help in the following few weeks at home so you can get some decent meals made for you, keep the house and laundry ticking over so you can get the rest you need.

Sunworshipper, both my dcs were emergency c/s and both under GA. It was not what I would have chosen but it was what happened. I attempted a VBAC for DD - wish I hadn't!
I woke up to find myself nose to nose with DS (that was lovely) and next time DH was holding DD right next to me.
The nose to nose in bed together was lovely.
I BF them both for a year.

Good Luck !

I had an emergency c-section under GA with my first born. I had a failed epidural and I could feel them cutting into me and so they put me out. My DH was whisked away (worse for him). They put me to sleep and I woke up with a lovely baby next to me (and my husband !). I had a wonderful nurse who helped me express some colustrum and give it to the baby via syringe that night. She said there was no rush to breastfeed as we were both tired (the baby wasn't interested). The next morning (the op happened at 7pm), I tried breastfeeding and had no problems whatsoever in feeding or bonding. It was a bit fiddly, but this was because I had never breastfed before. I fed for 14 months.

After a c-section you are quite sore and will need help to care for your baby initially (mainly to pick them up to feed, change nappies etc). Don't let them bully you and take it at your own pace. I had a bad experience with a midwife that I would never let happen now that I have had more experience. My baby was crying the next day after my c-section and I couldn't get up (still had a catheter too) and I wanted to try to feed him. I rang the bell and one came and I said can you pass me my baby and she said 'just let him cry it out' and walked off. I think she was in the middle of something. Bitch. I was hormonal and in floods of tears as I couldn't get to my baby. Hopefully you wont get someone like that ! I would just keep on and on if that ever happened again, or ask one of the other mothers in the ward to help me. They are there to care for you and your baby. Ring the bell whenever you need help.

I felt a lot better the next day and actually discharged myself after two days when I managed to have a shower.

Good luck.

My sister had aan EMCS under GA - lots of false labour, failure to progress, foetal distress before hand, and my sister was exhausted. After the section she was fine, dn breastfed fine and exclusively for 5 months, and is a happy healthy almost 5yo, with a wee sister of 3 who was born by elective section.