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Pregnancy

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Original poster

How will I feel in the days following a C-section...?

37 replies

spur999 · 21/07/2016 20:49

Any advice and tips will be greatly received.
My partner seems to think I will be able to spend the day with him and the kids less than 24 hrs after the op... apparently other women are up and running immediately after so I have been accused of being a drama queen! this has sent my pregnancy hormones through the roof.

I had a natural birth last time and I was in pain from the stitches and was struggling with breastfeeding... Not in the mood to be observed by 2 kids all day - also I was dealing with new baby and nurses/drs etc. Please let me know what is realistic here...is it unreasonable to request some time to recover? Also, when is the best time for visitors...Thanks so much

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StrawberryLeaf · 21/07/2016 20:52

Your partner is being very unreasonable!

I've had fabulous recoveries after my sections, up and about quickly but even then it's slow to feel 100% again, I found if I stood too long I would get sore quite quickly. I just did a lot of lying in bed with the baby eating biscuits and watching Netflix

Good luck!

SpeakNoWords · 21/07/2016 20:54

You'll probably still be in hospital 24 hrs after the op I would have thought. Certainly I was. I would speak to your midwife about the practicalities of it at your next appointment. Your partner should not be pressurising you to be up on your feet sooner than you feel like. And he certainly shouldn't be calling you a drama queen. Just shows he has zero understanding of what s c section entails.

Christine88 · 21/07/2016 20:55

I had a cesarean with my first son so can't help with the while looking after other children after a csection but I know that I had my son at 9:42 in the morning. Visiting time was 4pm and I was still a bit out of it and not in the mood for visitors! I was out of bed very early the next morning but walking was slow and painful but apparently it's best to get moving as soon as you can! I was in hospital for a week as my son was poorly but in hindsight the time in hospital was a godsend for me as it limited visiting time, I didn't have to worry about housework or pets or cooking dinners and it meant by the time I left hospital I was feeling really good! Definitely take the time you need, everyone handles pain and recovers differently! Hope this helps

YorkieDorkie · 21/07/2016 20:57

Oh my god is it too late to LTB? What a prick. It's major surgery. Stick a scalpel in his abdomen and see if he'd like some recovery time. What an absolute bellend.

YorkieDorkie · 21/07/2016 20:59

And breathe... Sorry OP that just absolutely boiled my blood. For 6 weeks after my CS I was just contemplating driving again, I walked 5 paces behind everyone else and getting around was bloody hard. It's the worst I've ever felt. He needs a serious reality check.

FemaleDilbert · 21/07/2016 21:00

I've had 2 uncomplicated c-sections.

First 36 hours: pretty much unable to move abdomen without quite a bit of pain

Next 2/3 days: sore but able to move around mostly without wincing

After about 5 days: generally little pain unless moving in a way that pulls on abdo muscles.

GoldenWorld · 21/07/2016 21:03

We try and get people up 6 hours post c-section now but that doesn't mean you'll be running across the ward! Your partner will see when he's there how the women walk.....very slowly. Some are sick afterwards and in a lot of pain, and you normally have a catheter in for 12 hours afterwards. So no, you won't be running around after kids!

I'm a midwife, and you can tell him from me it is utter bullshit that women recover immediately afterwards. If all is well, then you may be discharged after 24hrs and electives tend to recover fairly well but there is no woman on earth who doesn't struggle out of bed the first time and not need strong painkillers.

You'll be seen by a physio on the ward but you shouldn't do any proper, strenuous exercise for 6 weeks afterwards. So that in itself goes to show you can feel okay, well even, but complete healing does take time.

thelionsleeps · 21/07/2016 21:05

I had a a natural birth with my first baby and then a csection with twins and no way was I up and about that quick. Although I had stitches the first time getting up and about was much easier. With the csection it was the next day before I got out of bed to have the first walk and wee which was really hard. I know everyone is different but even getting up for wees was really hard. I read somewhere about really try and walk upright although your gut instinct is to crouch a bit and protect your belly and that seemed to help.

You need help at first to even pick the baby up so don't think you will be up to much the first few days apart from focusing on your recovery, breastfeeding and have lots of cuddles with all your children. Hope everything goes well!

Bogoffdailymail · 21/07/2016 21:06

I was meant to be on a 24 hour recovery plan for my ELCS in Jan so was meant to be able to leave hospital the following day. But I lost a bit of blood and felt so shit that I was in for 2 nights after. I was shuffling around like Ozzy Osbourne and it took me a couple of weeks to be able to walk far without feeling sore.
The blood loss also meant I got breathless easily for a while. I could cope with visitors after a couple of days but only in short doses. My parents came up and stayed in a hotel - they were up for three days and lovely as they are, I was in tears on the evening of day two of their visit knowing they'd be turning up the next day. My milk took a while to come in - which apparently isn't unusual for a c-section - and I just wanted to stay in bed with the baby = sleeping and feeding her

possum18 · 21/07/2016 21:06

I had an emergency c section 15 weeks ago with twins. Was in hospital for 6 nights but that was due to the twins needing some time in special care, I was in recovery myself after the c section (they were born at 14:02 and 14:04) overnight and couldn't be moved onto a ward until lunch time the next day and even then I was struggling to move. I felt a lot more mobile on day 3 and pretty back to normal on day 5 with walking and lifting.
I drove on day 10 and had sex. I was super nervous before hand but it was actually quite a positive experience (the surgery) and so worth it.
Good luck and enjoy

eurochick · 21/07/2016 21:06

Does he actually know what a c section is?

I was on the move very quickly as my baby was in Nicu in another part of the hospital. 12 hrs after the op I needed to be wheeled down to see her. 24 hours after I could manage the walk using the "section glide" - you sort of walk without really lifting your feet as you have no ab strength and can't bear any jolting. You can spot the sectioners a mile off.

I was discharged after about 40 hours and managed a glide around mothercare to pick up some premmie sized close but I was still in quite a lot of pain.

It's major surgery. He is being ridiculous.

ShowOfHands · 21/07/2016 21:07

I was up and about within 4hrs each time. No painkillers, no pain. I was home 12hrs after one of them. I had easy recoveries.

There are women who have terrible recoveries.

Then there are women in the middle.

You won't know until post op and what you will need is to go at your own pace and to be supported in that. This doesn't make you a drama queen. It's surgery not a fucking disco. Can he be present at your next midwife appt? They'll help him understand perhaps.

GoldenWorld · 21/07/2016 21:07

Sorry forgot about visitors.

If you're only in for 24hrs and your c-section is in the morning then normal visiting time is fine in the afternoon but be prepared you might not feel up to it. If it's in the afternoon, I'd recommend against having visitors just because I've seen quite a few women vomit afterwards and you may feel lousy.

ShowOfHands · 21/07/2016 21:10

there is no woman on earth who doesn't struggle out of bed the first time and not need strong painkillers

Not true. I wasn't in pain at all and took no painkillers. This is NOT the norm though.

littlepooch · 21/07/2016 21:11

I had what everyone said was a "quick" recovery. But even so I was wiped that first evening (DD was born just before 6pm) and the midwives didn't get me up and standing to use the loo until the next morning. I couldn't have contemplated any visitors until the day after the cs, just my parents came late that afternoon to see me. Even though I was back in my feet relatively quickly I was still sore and found simple things really hard like going for s walk or getting out of bed - my DH or my mum had to help me. I was very very careful and I think that helped my recovery.

It's major surgery. Everyone reacts differently. But what everyone needs is the love and support of those around them. I wonder where he got this idea, that you're being a drama queen?

SansaClegane · 21/07/2016 21:15

It always took me weeks to recover, not days! Your husband IBVU!
I always thought it was a bit mean that women are expected to 'get up and get on with it' after a c-section; you wouldn't expect that of someone who's had an appendectomy or similar.
Walking, going to the toilet, showering, even sneezing/coughing are incredibly painful in the early days. Add to that trying to look after a newborn and getting breastfeeding established, and then maybe also looking after a couple of toddlers, and it's practically unachievable.
I had complications after my last ELCS and was very lucky that my mum offered to come down and help us out for a week, leaving me to just feed / look after the baby and do fuck all else.

louisejxxx · 21/07/2016 21:15

He sounds like an ass.

I had a section at 9pm at night...I can't remember if I was up and about the next afternoon or the one after that. Ds was in a children's hospital down the road and 2 days after the section I had to be wheelchaired to the car park at the hospital entrance because I just wouldn't have been able to walk that far at that point. Carrying a lunch tray back to bed was a struggle.

You need to get him a reality check because he sentiments are in no way reasonable.

Bogoffdailymail · 21/07/2016 21:16

eurochick the section glide - so that's what it's called! Grim!

Bottomchops · 21/07/2016 21:17

Can he just watch some on YouTube or something? Dickhead.

Fomalhaut · 21/07/2016 21:20

Jeez. He's being unreasonable. I had a section and I felt like I'd been run over. First 24 hours you're just aiming to get out of bed and shuffle to the sink. You'll likely still be catheterised too.
You need to remind him that several layers of skin, fascia and some of the big muscle groups have been gone through - it's major surgery. Even if you're lucky in and not in much pain you need to physically be careful for a few weeks after - the whole core has been opened up, you can't just be lifting and running around, you could do yourself a lot of damage!

My recovery was thus;

Day one - lots of pain, bearable as long as I moved very cautiously. Up once, catheterised, only able to shuffle with a nurse helping
Days 2-4 in hospital, it took me two days to be able to turn on my side for example.
Day 5- home. Needed help up and down stairs. Unable to move fast or lift
Week 2 - felt much better. Overdid it a bit and set myself back, bled a lot
Weeks 3-6 gradually back to normalisation- although spd pain still there - the scar still hurts with certain movement nine months on.

My dh did all the cooking, cleaning and general running around for the first couple of weeks so I could look after the baby. Your dh needs to realise, and take on board, that you will not be back up to speed for a couple of weeks.

Amanda89x · 21/07/2016 21:22

I had an emergency section 4 weeks and have needed two courses of antibiotics because it got infected from me doing too much too fast. Please make sure you look after yourself as much as possible (I know this is really hard with a newborn and another child)

Racheyg · 21/07/2016 21:25

I think it depends on the individual. I had a emcs with ds1 and elcs with ds2 there is a 22 month age gap.

I was up and about the next day and played with ds1 on the floor.......but that is only because I felt up to it. Do not push yourself and let your body tell you when your feeling up to it

Fomalhaut · 21/07/2016 21:25

Oh and i lost a couple of litres of blood too - that alone makes you feel squiffy. I passed out a few times shuffling to the loo.

You tube a full c section - preferably with a nice close up of them going through the fascia and pulling the core muscles apart... Make him watch. Then give his head a wobble. On no account should you be doing anything strenuous for a bit - you could do yourself a lot of damage! He needs to step up and do some bloody childcare and cooking!

If he's likely to be a twat about it, I heartily recommend batch cooking to fill the freezer and getting family help in.

Racheyg · 21/07/2016 21:27

Hope all goes well op

Original poster

spur999 · 21/07/2016 21:29

Thank you all for your replies. That is very helpful indeed... I feel much better now :)

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