Support thread for those of us who are requesting an ELCS after a previous traumatic delivery

[withorwithoutyou]

Hello everyone.

I have noticed a lot of threads regarding requesting ELCS lately, probably because I am in the process of trying to request one myself!

I just wondered if it might be useful for us to have a support thread where we can talk this all through as I know it can be a challenging process to go through.

Can I please also ask in the nicest possible way that anybody contributing to this thread can respect our desire for ELCS over VB? Thank you!

Anyway, I'll start - I have one DD, born 20 months ago by forceps after failed ventouse. She weighed 9 pounds 11 and I am concerned this one will be heavier! I am 30 weeks and have my first consultants appt tomorrow where I will be requesting an ELCS!

Good to know that healing is on track and all appears normal.

Going to try jeans on again tonight. Wish me luck.

Hello ladies, Just wanted to pop back and share my news and experience!

Had my elcs on weds 25th, our beautiful daughter Lelaina (Lainey) Grace weighed in at a healthy 8lb 12oz. Turns out it was a good decision as Little Lainey was an oblique lie so consultant said that if waters broke we would have been at risk of cord prolapse, so in theatre he said "this was the absolute correct decision" Which pleased me massively as I had ummed and ahhhed about my decision to ELCS all along.

Anyway, for those of you waiting to have yours just wanted to give a very honest account of what happened as everyone on here has been so so helpful and I've found this thread a huge support.

We went in on weds morning at 730am, booked in etc everyone was very lovely and very calm. Were lucky enough to be first ones in, so only had to wait until 930 before we were called to theatre.
All the staff (York Hospital) were just amazing, supportive and very kind, they really help put you at ease and I couldn't have asked for more.

Unfortunately my spinal took a very long time to get in, this happened last time and is something to do with my vertebrae? After about half an hour I did start to get upset and was panicking that it was going to have to be a GA which I absolutely didnt want, anyway the genius anaesthetist finally hit the spot and I cried with relief!

Having gone through an emergency section, I will say that although everything is much much calmer and everyone around you is chilled I found that because I wasn't in labour or in any pain that my senses really were heightened and I just seemed super aware of everything I wouldn't say it was scary but I was most definitely very nervous and very aware of what everyone was doing. Once the spinal started to work it did take a little while to get Lainey out as she was in such an awkward position, there was a lot of pushing and tugging and I felt more this time than I did last time. ABSOLUTELY NO PAIN (need to point out) but very very aware of tugging and moving etc.

When Lainey was born the consultant said "the scan was right!" (we'd been told girl) and it was a really lovely moment, she was brought straight round to us and cleaned and checked very close to us so we didn't miss a thing. I didn't feel in any way cheated of my magic moment, it was just lovely despite being in theatre.
I think we were in there a total of about 1hour 45mins then moved to recovery where I did start to feel totally out of it, I think I had quite a lot of pain relief so felt quite spacey for a while. Lainey was next to me having skin to skin contact and she fed beautifully which was another huge relief as my son took a long time to get used to BFing. The first night was pretty uncomfortable with the catheter and not been able to move much at all, but again the staff were very helpful and passed Lainey to me whenever she needed a feed.
I had lainey at 10.45 on wednesday morning and was up and about thursday am by about 8am although I have to say I was ready to get up way before then they just wouldnt let me!! Once I was showered and dressing removed catheter out etc I felt TONS better.
The other big bonus for me was that I was discharged on Friday lunchtime, I was expecting at least 3nights in there.

Anyway, I really am waffling on now, still on cloud 9 and loving every moment with my new family.
I suppose I just want to say that, an elcs is not an easy option which I know most of you will know already I've been in quite a bit of pain over the past few days BUT because you've done it before you know that there is an end in sight. Im now day4 of recovery and this is the first day I've felt kind of ok which I think is pretty good! Every day will get better and I don't for one minute regret my decision. Im so very blessed to have two beautiful children that i really don't care which exit they came out of!!

If anyone has any questions at all about ELCS, whilst its all fresh in my head feel free to ask!
Wishing everyone else out there the best of luck, and hope all you ladies who've had you're babies continue to recover well
KityX

Congratulations Kity, that's wonderful news! What a lovely name. And such a relief that you went for the section given her position. Now you can concentrate on enjoying your baby daughter and putting all the birthing worries behind you. All the best for your recovery, and for life with your baby daughter.

Kity congratulations, and thanks for sharing your experiences - hope you continue to recover so well

kity - thanks for letting us know all the details! I am delighted she and you are safely through the birth and hope your healing is quick and simple.

Congratulations Kity, I'm so glad you had a good experience.

Hazeyjane - really pleased to hear you're feeling much better now. Thank you for being so honest, it's really important for everyone here to hear of your experience - I think all of us want to make an informed decision and not have anything sugar coated.

congratulations kitty what a lovely birth story!

glad ur feeling bit better hazey.

i have my section in less than 4 weeks, just trying to sort hospital bag out, after having a natural birth last time iam convinced i will forget something!

off to holland and barret to get arnica and peppermint tea. any other things u took that were very helpful or u forgot and wish u had remembered??

wen i thnk about after the section i just think about how bloody awful it will be when i have to stand up, is this the worst bit standing after? how long before u think u could sleep on ur side ? do u bleed as much down below as when u have natural birth?

iam sure i will have many more questions in the next 3 weeks!!

Hi, I had 2 ELSC's the last one my fourth baby at 42!( A little surprise) The last csection I had to fight for tooth & nail & was made to feel by my consultant A Woman, I was putting myself & baby at risk & being very very reckless!!! I had bad experience after second baby & consultant for third baby was very supportive & agreed straight away to c- section with all supporting med risks spelt out etc, so was real shock 8 yrs later to be made to feel like a bad person to even suggest it.
Lets face it who would elect for section if they didn't have a good reason, I think there are very very few woman who are "too posh to push."Should add was also advised by a trusted friend & midwife with years of experience that if I was on her ward she wouldn't touch me with a bardge pole if I went for a v-bac due to my age & history.
Any way they wouldn't agree to section untill 2 weeks before my due date, so I had loads of stress during my whole pregnancy which I'm really really fed up about, to top it all i was told, off the record, by hospital friend that the bloody consultant had her second baby by section (elective section 6 months later) no medical grounds!!
In the majority of cases elec c -sections are refused or advised against purely for financial reasons.

Hi Sophie, Just a quickie, have just jumped on to check in with how all the mnetters are doing.

I got peppermint capsules from Boots (recommendation from here) and they absolutely worked a treat, had hardly any referred wind pain at all. I took them before I ate and I think it really helped with the digestion, Im still taking them now!

I did take arnica with me and took it for the first three days but then forgot after that, so I couldn't honestly tell you if it made any difference?

Bleeding, I had minimal bleeding after my emcs and its been the same this time too. First few days like a heavy period then its much lighter, am still bleeding now (day 9) but its really not much at all. Gets heavier when I BF though but thats normal.

Standing up for me was just a huge relief! Its not as scary as you think it will be, they make sure you rest enough and then get you up when they know you're ready, just remember to stand up slowly and tall! the sooner you straighten up the easier it is. You will feel much better for getting up having been laid out for 24hours! And that first shower is absolute bliss (even though you have to take your dressing off, which incidently doesn't hurt as much as you think it will either, just drench it with water)

Funny you mentioned the one thing that really really bothered me was not been able to sleep on my side!! Oh I daydreamed about the day I could lay down and be comfy again. Well bad news is yes you will have to sleep on your back in a fairly upright position first few days but I finally laid on my side prob around day 5. Tip, I did have a pregnancy wedge that Id used to support my bump in bed and i used this to support my tummy when I decided to lay down coz the weight can still pull on your staples and scar. So if you put a pillow under your tummy you should be a lot more comfy.

Other thing I would say, take some dried apricots with you or anything that you know will get your bowels moving again! (lactulose works a treat too) It was one thing I worried about so much and first time around I went a good few days without going to toilet and it was really painful, This time I was munching on dried apricots and went to the loo after 2 days which was a huge relief!!! Sorry that is a bit TMI but it was important to me!

Really hope that helps. Just give yourself time and you will be just fine. I feel great today, just tired but in terms of scar or any other pain there is nothing, I haven't had pain killers for the past two days which I think 9 days after major surgery is pretty good!!
Best of luck Sophie, ask anything else you like am happy to help as will the other Mnetters no doubt!!!

Thanks everyone else for kind words, I am feeling 100% better now! Hope everyone else doing well X

"I am seeing a consultant who a medical friend knows is pro-choice on the same day as my 20 week scan so I am hoping I can have an agreement then and stop thinking about it! Would that be too early for them to agree do you think?"

At my 16 week appointment with the consultant (in fact it was the registrar) she said "right well you have obviously done your research and I agree that you can have a c-section so when you come back at 36 weeks we will book you in", I smiled and politely asked to be booked in now so I didn't spend the rest of my pregnancy worrying about it. I have my date.

thank u kity for taking the time to reply,

right i will add peppermint caps to my list. so they dont take the dressing off for u? i guess its best to get air to it.

u mentioned u had staples? i take it u have to have those removed? how long after c-sec do they get removed and is it as painful as it sounds??

i no ive 100 percent made the right decission as far as opting for elcs, but getting scared about recovery now its only 3.5 weeks away.

iam planning on taking my v pillow with me, which is my new best friend!! is there any other food that helps with the toilet thing as the thought of apricots makes me wanna puke!!!!

can i ask how is tummy/scar looking and do u massage it to help with any over hang??

sorry 20 questions again!!

Sophie cheers for asking the right questions, I am following Kity's replies and off to boots tomorrow too for the peppermint but will have prunes instead of apricots!

when is ur section hev? i have a child free day tues afternoon so thought i would go in town and get everything i need for hosp.
thought i would treat myself to some 8 hr cream and beauty flash balm! its not as tho ive had my usual quota on clothes this last 9 months!!

Hi Ladies,
No probs with the questions, all my hints and tips were picked up from here so am really happy to help!

No, they didn't remove my dressing, it was like a giant band aid and to be honest I think you prob are better doing it yourself. They just said to totally drench it in the shower and it came off really really easy, it honestly didn't hurt at all. They then just left it open for the air to get to it. So I never had another dressing on. I did have super big pants though which kept it covered so it didnt catch on anything.

Aswell as my dried apricots I had lactulose in my bag! I had used lactulose last time with my emcs and its not quite a vigorous as a laxative just kind of helps things along if you know what I mean so I would defo get some from Boots and put that in your bag. Just tastes like sugar water.

Staples were removed on Day 5 at home by the midwife, again it doesn't hurt, some can feel a little bit tight and pull a tiny bit when they take them out. But it really isnt painful.

Oh and youre totally right to take your V pillow! I am still best friends with mine and sleep with it every night, its sooooo comfy. Plus its great for breast feeding (if you plan on doing that)

Another thing loads of people have mentioned is food. DO take some food with you, you may well be up and down in the night and depending on what time you have your section you might not have access to food. I took flapjack, crisps and chocolate with me! and yes I did eat them in the middle of the night I was SOOOOOO starving!

Please don't worry too much about recovery, yes it takes time for your body to get back to normal. But I am now day 11 post surgery and I've just had my sons 2nd birthday party at home, lots of guests, no pain killers walking around totally fine. Just very tired and scar twinging a bit, but I think thats all just healing pain. Just don't rush!! Trust your body and rest when you can.
Just think, only 3 more weeks and you'll be holding your baby Sophie!

Hi Sophie mine is booked in for 5th Oct so 3 days after DD's 3rd birthday - also child free on Tues so plan to get organised!!!!

Kitty glad you said about the party as I am hosting one 17 days post section and people keep telling me I am mad, praps they don't realise I plan on smiling sweetly and guarding my space on the sofa...

wow hev, my dd is 3 on the 3rd of oct!! so iam having my c-sec on 29th so i will hopefully be out forher 'real bday' as we have been calling it, doing her a party next sunday.
is ur dd excited?? mine is, she keeps saying how many weeks mummy!! she want the baby to be called either ben or holly!!!!

thanx for ur replies kity, i hadnt really thought of taking in food so i will do that. and big bot of water.
i wasnt aware u could buy lactulose over the counter that can be next thing on list, i had tons of the stuff after dd.
as far as the recovery i just will keep in mind to sod the house work and take things at my own pace, my recovery was awful with dd couldnt sit stand walk anything without extreme pain, so hopefully ive had the worst!

did u know that lainey was a girl or was that a suprise??

Hello hello!
Forgot to answer the scar/overhang question!! Scar is looking super neat. Last time it was a bit messy (prob coz of emergency) so consultant kindly said he'd tidy it up for me!! And my tummy has gone done LOTS but I think that is mainly down to BFing, I remember from last time been quite surprised by how quickly it went down. Im not in my normal clothes yet, as its still comfier to wear elasticated waists but Ill be trying on my old jeans soon!
Sophie sounds like you had a really rough time last time, which I think is harder when you're not expecting it? at least this time you are going in prepared and expecting a period of recovery which will make it so much easier for you.
Yes you can get lactulose in Boots or chemists, I did get my mum to get mine for me though as wasn't sure if they would sell it to preggers women over the counter?
Funny, we were told at the 20 week scan that it was a girl but then we had a growth scan at 34 weeks and they weren't sure but still said girl. It was such a nice moment when they said sonographer was right! I was convinced up to that point it would be a boy! Would have been overjoyed either way though.

Hevster, not long for you either! you can officially say that in less than a month you will have your baby, hurrah! And yes my sons party was very very important. With all the fuss over Lainey and having a new baby in the house I really wanted him to have his day. I did have a LOT of help though from mum and sister, so as long as you've got people to muck in you will be fine. And yes sit down a lot, think I poss overdid it yesterday a bit as am bit sore today but I had such a good day and my son was so happy, it was worth it!
XX

ah sounds like yesterday was a nice day for u,
i have to say my dd bday is the day after iam ment to get out of hosp. so ive said just my parents and dp parents and nobody else to visit, we will have them at the same time for couple of hours. so the whole day is about her, with the age she is dont want her to feel put out at all. got her nice little pressie from the baby to.

i dont no the sex of dc2 but have a boy feeling! altho i did say that last time, even brought blue dummies (dur) and how wrong was that.#

it does wind me up a bit that people just assume u want the oposite to what u already have, i will be over the moon with another girlie.

that encouraging about scar over hang thing, iam not slim and will never b! after dd i went back to a 12-14 which for me is perfect, feel comfy at that size and have to say even tho it took me 18 mnths to get there my tummy looked better than b4 dd (ignoring streatch marks!) but flatnest wise, so iam hoping my pouch isnt to big!!!

. - just marking my place whilst I read through.

Hi all - what a great thread, congratulations to all those with new arrivals. I'm currently going through the VB/El CS dilemma at the moment.

Dd1 (40+3) was back to back with a 45 hour labour (failure to progress despite syn. iv, continuous monitoring of her via pads to her head and various bloods taken from her scalp whilst she was still inside) finally emerging with the help of forceps and episotomy. Problems siteing the epidurual didn't help, neither did the student midwife who complained about my snoring, when I fell asleep between contractions having been awake for 3 days straight . Dd1 was 7lb 2.5oz.

I was induced with dd2, due to high bp at 40+2, shorter labour of 15 hours with epidural, but again taken to theatre as shoulder dystotia and dd2 delivered using McRoberts and forceps and ending up in neonatal for a couple of days with broken clavicle as a result of the delivery. Dd2 weighed in at 9lb 6.5oz.

Both girls looked like I'd thrown them down two flights of stairs after birth - so bad that the Bounty woman took one look and decided to bypass us both times..!

Was pretty keen to try another VD this time around, but after thinking events over (had pretty much filed both deliveries to the "don't think about this ever again" shelf in the back of my brain) and discussing with DP I'm now thinking that a elective CS would probably be the best option - since I had to sign the waivers for a EMCS both times previously.

Mentioned it to the mw yestersay who advised she would get me an appointment with the consultant midwives, but told me to be prepared that they would try strongly to dissuade me. I'm currently under a consultant due to previous pgs and as I'm overweight with hypertension. However, I've only had one appointment and that was with his registrar who told me to consider a CS (nice conflicting opinions there then). I've got another cons appointment on Tuesday and will be using the tips from this thread to see if I can get a definite yes for an elcetive.

I'm thinking that due to both previous pgs being "non-standard" and assisted, and with dd2 being such a heiffer. I should be in with a relatively good chance of getting a CS. I had a growth scan at 29+6 and baby is around 75th centile for head and abdomen circum. but actually off the scale for femur length . Good fluid volume and the estimated weight was 3lb 10oz so it looks like this one will probably be over 9.5lb at term.

My main issue is that I'm not sure how much of a part maternal weight will have to play in the consultants decision. I've actually lost 5kgs since my booking in appointment but am still massively overweight (morbidly obese category). Does anyone know if this would have an impact on the CS descision?

TIA

Sophie laughing at Ben/Holly - am waiting for the suggestion of Peppa from DD but at the moment she thinks we should call DD2 Basil (same as the dog)! Also annoys me that people thing you want the opposite sex for the second one, I am finding myself cracking jokes about the economy (clothes wise) of having 2 girls before they can comment now!

Boris blimey after your experiences I would def be asking for 1 too, no idea if weight is an issue they take into account or not but I guess they wouldn't care how big or small you are if doing an EMCS. If it comes up against you you could point out that you have lost some and are following a healthy eating plan and ask if they can refer you to a dietician to help you, thus working the theory that people are less likely to say no to you when you are offering to help yourself?

well we have also had mickey or minnie- or 'the baby hasnt got a name cos it just doesnt want one, so iam going to call it baby!!' she obviously not understanding that it wnt be a baby for long!!

the boy thing very annoying my mil gave me a knitted blue cardi yesterday and keeps saying 'rite the min uve had it ring me and i will be out getting blue this blue that etc!!' it just get me because we just want a healthy baby i dnt mind if i have boy or girl, but she seems astho she will be sorely dissapointed with another granddaughter which i find very sad!

aaaagahhhhh mils!

boris- i will be very suprised if u have a problem with getting elcs, ive got 3 weeks left and am just under 16 st so as u can c not slim in the slightest and it didnt even come into it.
my work friend was about 18 st when she had her dd by section and at under 5 ft she was very heavy again didnt come into it. but hev is right if u mention u have lost weight and are happy to help urself etc then should help.

not that u need to but lay it on and make sure they take the time to listen to u, take a list of pros aswell as cons as my consultant seem very impressed that i had done my homework and that made her think i knew what was best for my body, good luck and let us no how u get on xx

Slightly different in my case as I requested a c section with my first baby, so not post traumatic birth! I was adamant about it from my booking in appointment! I has IVF and was on blood thinning injections throughout and was 38 so was consultant led and high risk from the start.
My consultant asked me about my birth plan and I burst into tears and said I never thought I'd have got this far and couldn't bear the thought of being out if control and being panicky. She never tried to persuade me otherwise, she said she understood and said her only proviso was that I meet with the consultant midwife to talk it through with her so they could show I'd made an informed choice. So I did! All fine, and delivered by c section at 38+5.

ah congratulations bagofholly- how was ur recovery? will u go on to have a 2nd?

Sophieandbelly my recovery was fine - no complications and I just took it easy for a few weeks. I'm pregnant again, 20 weeks with twins and saw my consultant today who has recommended another c section, which I'm happy with!