shoulder pain after elcs

[Madigan]

I am about to have my 3rd elcs. Have been so lucky with first 2 - really quick recoveries, no complications etc, but on both occasions I have suffered excrutiating shoulder pain - the second time MUCH worse than the 1st.

No painkiller touches it. I am aware that this is common after abdominal surgery but is there anything I can do to relieve the pain??. I was in tears last time and could not believe that the actual c-s wound caused me no pain, but my shoulder was agony.

It was relieved at home eventually by a heated "wheat pillow" (one of those things you heat in the microwave and then it warms the affected area), but peppermint oil etc did nothing. Not sure I will have access to a microwave in hospital .............
any suggestions v welcome.
thanks.

Is it referred pain from trapped wind or something similar? I know that can cause shoulder pain.

Yes I think it is.

I had this too with my CS but doesnt sound like mine was a as bad as yours, very strange though like you say to have pain there and not much on the site of the scar.
Painkillers did help for me and it went completely after a couple of days.
Did you get up and move about quite soon? don't know if that helps disperse anything?
Sorry havent got any real practical advice! hope midwife can help

Peppermint tea with hot water - WARNING - you will be jet propelled after drinking it!

Should have said peppermint CORDIAL whoops

peppermint cordial??? where do I find that?

Kity, yes I was up and moving about .... I think I just had a really bad case of it - I am not a wimp, relatively high pain threshold, and this was just unbelievably awful -

much worse 2nd time than 1st time. Praying will not get it this time ..............

I think you can get it from most supermarkets. We keep an emergency supply on the postnatal ward!

ok - thank you. will get some!

[Adds to shopping list with elcs planned for June 10th....]

Ouch - had the same thing with my first ELCS (breech baby) - it feels like someone is stabbing you with a butchers's knife in the shoulder again and again and again, right?

It only lasted during the surgery (I remember complaining a lot about the pain, begging for something to make it stop, but nothing helped, so anaesthetist held my hand in the end to comfort me ), and for a few hours after surgery, but was gone by the next day.

Also dreaded that I would experience it again with 2nd ELCS 20 months later, but woohoo - no pain, no stress or feelings of anxiety about not being able to birth naturally, just a lovely quick c-section birth, meeting my baby and breastfeeding in recovery, within 30 minutes of him being born.

So - holding thumbs that you too miss out on the stabs this time.

I had that after my first cs but this time (7 days ago) I didnt get it but i wonder if thats because i was munching on thorntons mint crumbles that contain peppermint oil.

At my hospital they have peppermint water that they put in hot water, sounds like the same stuff to maltesa. Or you can buy japanese peppermint oil from holland and barrett.

Good luck

brightredballoon (or anyone else) - daft question I know, but what do you actually do with the peppermint oil?? Add drops of it to water? Sniff it?

I am very attracted by the thorntons mint crumble option.

southernB - yes, that's the one - but mine does not come on during the op,,,, rather, a few hours afterwards and then it stays for abour 4-5 days.

brightredballoon - that is what they gave me at hospital (St marys by any chance?) - but it did not do anything.

Will go to thorntons tomorrow and stock up.

Praying won't get it this time ........... because it really is a killer!

barkfox the MW put the peppermint in a small china cup and filled it up with hot water, it was so comforting and very effective.

I had never heard of this before my 2nd section. Didn't experience it at all after my first section. After second section it kicked in exactly 24 hours afterwards and was excruciating for about 6-8 hours. I was given morphine! Had two doses, which tided me over until the pain (and wind!) passed. Such a strange thing to experience, isn't it? I thought I was having a stroke or something!

Queenmuvva - ye,s that's it! Awful, isn't it? But painkillers did not help and it lingered for days .............

Just to report that i managed to keep shoulder pain at bay this time by using a heated wheat pillow on shoulder as soon as i felt any twinge of pain. It really worked!

God, I thought I was a freak for having this. I just remember being in agony, on mophonie, feeling sick and congested. I kept moaning about this shoulder pain but no one said it was wind. The doc came to see me too.

Horrible memories after a crash emcs.