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Pregnancy

Talk about every stage of pregnancy, from early symptoms to preparing for birth.

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Original poster

After CS - how soon could you hold baby?

71 replies

Angelico · 09/07/2012 22:17

Just that really. Was talking to midwife today and asked about feeding baby in recovery after CS (it has it as option to put in birthplan). Apparently that 'doesn't happen' in my hospital

I feel a bit down about it now to be honest as I really want to BF and don't like the idea of delay for such a long time. In fact she admitted that I will be separated from baby at least an hour and a midwife may give her a bottle which will fuck up my BFing attempts.

The thing is they are always going on about skin to skin and BFing so why can I not have my baby with me in recovery? It's actually making me consider changing hospitals although have to admit current hospital is just round the corner and v convenient. Having my CS due to medical history and have been quite accepting of it as it wasn't unexpected but this is making me feel a bit :(

Someone tell me I'm being silly...

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Original poster

Angelico · 09/07/2012 23:12

Great link BigRed - thanks! I can't really find out what the hospital accreditations levels mean but I'll have a look :)

OP posts:

Original poster

Angelico · 09/07/2012 23:14

:o @ watery woo - that was always my impression, nothing wrong with it either but not much use when you know you're having a CS :) Something to look into for sure!

OP posts:

ValentineBombshell · 09/07/2012 23:16

Angelico, any chance you have an anti-CS midwife or just one not very well informed? I would contact maternity services at the hospital and find out if she's right.

There is nothing to do in recovery but lie flat and have lovely skin-to-skin with your nb.

Cheriefroufrou · 09/07/2012 23:17

nah from the ones I've research they've been the minority, most have supported CSs and just emphasis how they helped make it as positive as possible and helped with BFing etc

AThingInYourLife · 09/07/2012 23:18

Have PMed you.

Original poster

Angelico · 09/07/2012 23:25

Valentine they really are quite anti-CS to the point of pretending they don't exist. Ditto forceps / ventouse / induction etc In their defence they were lovely and on a tight timescale but they really skipped over interventions. I made a point of asking questions about CS partly to see how they would react but I was genuinely a bit at how dishonest they were about intervention rates. They kindof looked at me pityingly when I said about CS, answered questions in 2 sentences and scurried on. I just remember looking round the packed room and thinking "But about a third of the women here are going to end up having CS's! I'm just fortunate enough to know I'm one of them!"

It does make me cross that they go on so much about importance of skin to skin and BF and then when I ask, "How soon can I have skin to skin and BF?" it's like, "Ooooh, not until you're back on the ward and make sure the MW doesn't give baby a bottle or that'll be a mess for BF!" It's like great - you want us to BF, talk about how NI has worst BFing rates in the UK and then you make it as hard as possible to BF... hmmm, any connection I wonder?

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ValentineBombshell · 09/07/2012 23:41

Personally I found having a CS great for bonding and establish bf as no one expects you to be leaping around and you can legitimately retire to bed with nb. With my 2nd the amount of virulent opposition to having a CS from a number of mws was intense and with my 3rd once the community mw knew I was having a cs she couldn't have been more dismissive.

Just as an add on, get as much air as you can to the healing wound afterwards once the bandage comes off. And I've read the more you can lie completely flat immediately following the CS the better for you scar healing neatly ( no puckering or overhang here!). When feeding, nb is either in your arms or you can cushion your scar with a pillow from them to lie on.

OwlsOnStrings · 09/07/2012 23:57

I had an emergency CS with my first dc, after a very traumatic attempt at vaginal delivery, and was given her straight away as soon as she'd been checked. No formula or anything like that, and given the state I was in, I can't imagine that it would be necessary after a planned CS. This was in England, though, so it may be different where you are.

OwlsOnStrings · 10/07/2012 00:00

But there is one thing that I've been kicking myself for not thinking of at the time. When you're lying in bed attached to wires and things, if your baby is in a cot beside the bed... first of all, if there's someone there, get them to hand the baby to you. If there's nobody around and you have to lift the baby out of the cot yourself - FFS try to make sure that the baby is in the cot with its head pointed AWAY from you - i.e. opposite to the way you're lying. It stops you having to twist round to an impossible angle to pick him/her up.

I've been kicking myself for years because I didn't think of that at the time.

Catsycat · 10/07/2012 00:58

I've just had my 3rd CS (elective after 2 x EMCS). After each I had skin to skin and BF in recovery. I was offered to do this in theatre as I was being stitched, but found this too tricky due to the weird angle I was lying at, odd armrest type things, and various wires, tubes etc... DH just held the baby close to me instead. It was much easier to have skin to skin in recovery, so within an hour or so of delivery. DD1 never did learn to latch on properly, I ended up expressing for her. Never had any BF problems with DD2, DD3 is successfully BFing too.

I don't see the hospital have the right to insist on something you clearly don't want, which is normal procedure in many other hospitals, without medical reason, which they evidently don't have. If they persist in this silliness, then do consider changing hospitals - I did this quite late in pg with DD2, and it was one of the best decisions I made.

Original poster

Angelico · 10/07/2012 10:37

Thanks for all the tips :) Seeing community midwife tomorrow so will suss her out first and find out procedure for changing hospitals. Then can ask consultant next week.

He is very nice but an older gentleman and I know that the hospital have been slow to introduce other 'developments' including newer pain relief. Not sure if they just have their way of doing things.

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ballroomblitz · 10/07/2012 10:58

I had ds in Royal Jubilee and while it was a different experience for me as he had to go straight to NICU and I spent 12 hours in recovery, I was aware of others being wheeled into the recovery bays straight after their cs and holding their babies.

HappySurfWidow · 10/07/2012 12:27

Hi there,

I had an Emergency CS at 12noon and due to various issues I was unable to even hold my baby for hours. I really wanted to try BF so the midwives only gave baby a tiny syringe of milk to keep him going, but otherwise he was so groggy and sleepy he didn't seem hungry till 2am.
But at 2am he latched on happily and the rest is history. I BF him for just under a year.

So what I suppose I want to say is that as much as I believe you should fight for skin-on-skin contact as quickly as possible, don't stress too much if it's not as soon as you'd like; it may not mean it fucks up your chance to BF.

Perhaps your hospital can give your baby some milk via syringe rather than bottle?
Goodluck with it all.

HaitchJay · 10/07/2012 13:16

I was in recovery an hour & dd3 went to the ward with dh. No bottles. She came to me as soon as I came up and did the crawling across me

I didn't have the option to have dd3 with me but I couldn't feel anything below my neck anyway

AhsokaTano · 10/07/2012 16:12

I've worked in maternity theatres in the UK and have also had a CS with another one planned for Sept.

If the op has gone to plan, you have had a spinal and baby is healthy when it appears there is no reason why you can't have skin to skin immediately he's lifted out of you. All the weighing and checks etc can be done when you are happy to let them.

My plan for this time is to take my arms out of the gown after I've had the spinal and am lying down, TELL the midwife who will take the baby from the surgeon that she can towel him off and weigh him but not wrap him in blankets etc then hand him to me to lie on my chest under my gown.

DH will be sent off to change back into his normal clothes whilst I am stitched up, the staff can transfer me from the table to my bed with me still holding baby and I'll hang on to him in recovery.

My DH would never question the Docs or Midwives so I shall tell everyone in sight beforehand what I want and instruct from a supine position if necessary.

It does help that I've been the staff in that situation and am therefore brave enough to know no one will bat an eyelid!

Hulababy · 10/07/2012 16:16

I was shown DD immediately and then she was checked, etc. Then she was brought back to me for skin to skin after that - so 5-10 minutes max.

skandi1 · 10/07/2012 16:23

Had an EMCS and elecs. Both times I had skin to skin in theatre and bfed the moment I was wheeled into recovery. And the deliveries were at different hospitals.

If there are complications with either you or baby during delivery it may not be possible but if it's straight forward then I can't see why not.

OwlsOnStrings · 10/07/2012 21:57

Just to second what HappySurfWidow says about the BF.

Obviously I only know from my own experience, but with my dd1 - the one who had immediate skin-to-skin and BF after an emergency CS - we had terrible trouble establishing BF. With dd2 I had a straightforward delivery but was quite ill afterwards due to blood loss. DD2 was taken away overnight and given some formula in hospital. I was upset but it had no effect at all on establishing BF, which was very easy.

So it doesn't necessarily follow that BF will be disrupted by lack of immediate skin-to-skin. HOWEVER it still seems completely unnecessary, from what you've said, assuming that there are no known problems with the pregnancy.

Panzee · 10/07/2012 22:00

My husband took my son for a cuddle while I was stitched up - only 20 minutes or so. Although it didn't occur to me to attempt to feed in recovery, my son was tucked into the bed next to me. I was shaking a hell of a lot so holding wasn't an option, although I held his hand the whole time. I was back in my room half an hour later, and then I was asked about feeding. There was no question while I was in recovery. They can last that long. :)

Northernexile · 10/07/2012 22:05

Hi Angelico, I had a CS in a hospital in NI in Feb- baby was cleaned up and given to DH while they stitched me up. They sat by me for the ten or fifteen minutes that took, so I was able to touch her, and then DD was placed on me and we were wheeled through to recovery, where we had skin to skin. She was never out of my sight, and when not with me she was with DH. What you are being told seems completely out of order to me. Definitely don't accept without further questioning!

wonkylegs · 10/07/2012 22:09

Another emergency c-section here, I was shown DS immediately, then they took him with DH to otherside of room for checks etc. And whilst I got sorted out. I then got brief skin before they took me into recovery where DS was tucked up on my chest, for an attempted BF and we both slept (4days of labour ending in surgery was exhausting)
DS was always in the room with me, if not next to or on me all the time we were in the hospital.
It's all a bit hazy but I remember that much.

Original poster

Angelico · 11/07/2012 00:02

Thanks so much for all your great stories. Really good to be armed with a few pieces of anecdotal evidence. And Happysurf that is reassuring.

NorthernExile would be really helpful if you could PM me which hospital you were at and consultant name - AThing did the same and it's great to know other more supportive options.

Have to say DH isn't wildly enthusiastic about moving hospitals, I guess he's thinking at least baby will be with him, not just with strangers. An hour just seems a long time to me to be apart from baby after having her with me for 9 months :) Can understand it if I need some recovery time for various reasons but not if all goes well. The thing is we are literally five mins from hospital so it is so convenient, especially for visiting and coming home. If I change it will mean a fair drive or staying with family for DH so can see why he wouldn't be so keen.

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ButtonBoo · 11/07/2012 06:38

I had DD on my upper chest/neck 5 mins after she was born. DP took her while they stitched me up and then when I was wheeled out to recovery we did skin to skin and had an 'attempt' at first bf. I was up on the ward after an hour and buzzed the mw to ask her to pass DD to me for a cuddle. After half an hour I put her back in the bassinet and slept and by morning I managed to pick her up myself.

Your mw sounds awful. Move hospitals if you can if that's their attitude. Can't believe that's really true.

GrapesAnatomy · 11/07/2012 06:55

'Cherie I can't be sure but my impression is they take baby out, show baby from a distance, cart her away (possibly with DH in tow) and then stitch me up and take me to recovery where I have to lurk for half an hour before finally being reunited with DH and new bean'

This is sort of what happened to me but how you have written it sounds much worse than it is, honestly!
For a start you will feel a bit out of it with the section. So both times my dc were shown to me, checked over and then given to dh who sat with me so I could touch them. TBH though you have the screen near your face and a group of surgeons the other side of it stitching you up, you can't really hold your baby comfortably and personally I wouldn't have felt safe doing at that time.

DH kept hold of whichever dc it was until I was taken into recovery (this probably was at least half an hour but didn't feel like that long because of the slightly out of it feeling (having a section is very surreal!)

In recovery I was given my dc to hold/feed. With dd that was the place/time that I had the massive rush of love thing happen (amazing experience) - with DS it took until that night. Both of mine fed a bit in recovery although it was more of a bonding time than feeding as we were both tired!
Don't forget in all this too that your dh will need bonding time - I know my dh loved the time he held them whilst I was being stitched up.

The thing your MW said about bottle feeding them is just a load of cobblers, she does sound very negative. You can insist your dc is not given a bottle.

Good luck with it all.

AmandinePoulain · 11/07/2012 08:28

Has the hospital got WHO Baby Friendly status? Because one of the 10 steps that all maternity units should follow is that formula milk should only be given if medically necessary - eg, if the baby has low sugars or if the parents have chosen not to bf - if you have chosen to bf then your baby should not be offered formula just because you've had a cs. I'd google the 10 steps to successful breastfeeding, have a good read and show it to your mw, then write it in your birth plan.

I had a cs, dd was checked over quickly and in dh's areas within about 5 minutes (I was too busy vomiting to take her myself!), then when I felt up to it she was given to me, she stayed with me on our way to recovery and I bf her there.

Good luck, I hope you are able to get the birth that you want

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