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

Original poster

C-section advice - how to prepare house/clothes/recovery tips

30 replies

BabyCJuly · 02/07/2020 20:41

Hi all,

I have a c-section booked at 38 weeks next week due to medical reasons.

All the tips please on how to prepare house, what to pack in bag, clothes advice and recovery tips please.

Also, I’m worried about manoeuvring off sofa and bed - whats best way for this?

Thanks so much!

OP posts:
sel2223 · 02/07/2020 20:48

Following as I'm booked for an ELCS in 5 weeks.

Good luck OP

Original poster
BabyCJuly · 02/07/2020 20:51

@sel2223 good luck to you too! :)

OP posts:
aaalll · 02/07/2020 20:56

Hi, my daughter is three and a half and I had an emergency section with her

Batch cook, get smoothies or other nutritionally dense liquids in, leggings, big knickers and things to layer, summer dresses. I can't reiterate big pants enough.

Don't psyche yourself out, keep the wound dry and on top of pain meds if you need.

The injections aren't so bad - just make sure to pop them in multiple places.

Learn what's normal for you and recovery and trust that.

As soon as you can walk, carry on, little and often.

Communicate your needs with your partner / family.

If you suspect it may get warm again and you dont already have one, get a fan.

Slide on footwear/ slippers are a godsend

Good luck 👍

7Worfs · 02/07/2020 20:57

Make arrangements so that you don’t do any housework for 6 weeks. And I mean any. Not even unloading a dishwasher.

Even if you feel well, you need to rest and take it easy.

Holding the baby so that it doesn’t touch your scar will be difficult. Research and practice feeding positions now.

Best of luck! Spend your first weeks lying around and cuddling your baby. Smile

firsttimemumma123 · 02/07/2020 20:59

Try and get joggers/leggings that don’t cut in where the wound will be( below knicker line) Bending down is the main issue, changing underwear etc I found I had to do this and put socks on whilst sat on the loo! Someone reccommended a litterpicker to me and it was a godsend for picking items of clothing up off the floor without having to bend! Also if you dont have some sort of shelf in your shower for shampoo shower gel etc I would recommend putting one in so you don’t have to bend to pick those up. Manoevering off the sofa and bed just make sure there’s something to grab onto so you can slide and lift yourself up at the same time. Good Luck! X

Pinkflipflop85 · 02/07/2020 21:01

Massive granny pants. Loose comfy clothing. Baby changing stuff downstairs (nappies, wipes, spare clothes etc). Bag with stuff you need for the day...mine had my kindle, tv remote, water bottle and snacks!
A feeding pillow comes in handy.

Pinkflipflop85 · 02/07/2020 21:02

I also stocked up on paracetamol and ibuprofen.

stormy11 · 02/07/2020 21:03

If you can afford it get a cleaner for a few weeks- i wish I did this.

All the above from previous posts is great advice. I'm 5 months on and I can still feel it when exercising.

Good luck Flowers

Ouchjuststoodonlego · 02/07/2020 21:07

Flight socks. I was given compression stockings and told to keep them on for 2 weeks but they laddered around my toes after my first bath and were really uncomfortable. Flight socks worked much better.
Long mobile charging cables.
A thermos cup. You rarely get a hot drink and having to get up to warm it up is a pain.

Accept help. I was determined to be independent and really hurt myself a couple of times. It's not worth it.
Good luck.

Original poster
BabyCJuly · 02/07/2020 21:18

Thank you everyone :) this is super helpful!

OP posts:
Anaesthetist83 · 02/07/2020 21:20

When people say massive knickers, I am guessing you mean granny pants, but what size? Am still wearing my size 10s at 32 weeks so what size would you buy???

Ouchjuststoodonlego · 02/07/2020 21:38

I bought 14s in the kind that I could have tucked my boobs into.
I assume that your size 10s sit under your bump?

Ouchjuststoodonlego · 02/07/2020 21:40

Meant to say that I am also usually a 10 and wore my normal pants under my bump until baby arrived.
was then in giant knickers for months

grisen · 02/07/2020 21:43

Basically keep everything at waist height when your partner goes back to work. I couldn’t comfortably bend over until I was 8 weeks postpartum, but had no problem going on walks so when he went back to work he left food out of the fridge, we had one of those under the counter fridges, for me and we always kept spare clothes in the top drawer of his changing table/drawers.

Cookies. A lot of cookies.

As PP said before, go for walks as soon as you can.

Paracetamol and ibuprofen every 4 hours for the first week or two. Then start scaling it down. Set an alarm.

Honestly though apart from bending down it was a lot quicker than I expected, and I had an EMCS. Just enjoy it and take it slow.

Needcoffeeimmediatley · 02/07/2020 21:45

Breast feeding pillow/pregnancy pillow around your waist for when your sat down holding your baby and again big pants!

barneymcgroo · 02/07/2020 21:50

Massive pants - ones that end far above your scar. Near your tummy button. You can buy special c section ones, though I'm sure you can get just high waisted pants. I bought 2 pairs - was doing so much washing anyway that I always had a clean pair.

Blueelephant2020 · 02/07/2020 21:51

Bring your painkillers, glass of water and Injections upstairs with you at night! I wish in my baby haze days I had of thought of this! It was excruciating climbing down the stairs to get the painkillers in the morning.

Buy big knickers x2-x3 sizes bigger than you usually wear, I had to cut mine at the tops of my legs as they dug in!

firsttimemumma123 · 02/07/2020 22:32

I was also wearing size 10 knickers until the birth then ended up having to rip size 14’s as they were tight! Don’t think the mattress thick maternity pads the midwives stuffed in there helped though..

Anaesthetist83 · 02/07/2020 22:41

Ah ok thanks. I have ordered some 14’s so hoping they’ll do the job.

lorisparkle · 02/07/2020 23:02

I think keeping well fed and watered was the key to my recovery. I have had 3 Elective c-sections and discovered that having lots of easy to eat, healthy snacks within arms reach and nice drinks to drink made my stay in hospital so much easier. I also found that having something nice to wear, a bit of make up and nice 'smellies' made me feel better too afterwards. Similar when I got home I made sure there was always something easy to eat, my phone, and the remote control all close by especially when I was breastfeeding.

I found taking this slowly but as normally as possible helped. Don't do too much - I did far too much after ds3 and had problems with my stitches.

LittlemissAWOL · 02/07/2020 23:02

Huge knickers.

If your bed frame allows a dressing gown belt tied to it to pull yourself up for the first few days.

Keep up with your ibuprofen/paracetamol. It's surprising the difference they make.

Im the opposite of a previous poster who said do nothing for 6 weeks. I did what I could as soon as I could and was just Mindful not to push myself. I was fine after about 4 days to do 99% of what I did before.

Next to me crib to avoid having to get up and down.

Make sure you keep wound dry so it heals. I gave mine a blast with the hairdryer on the cold setting

DonaldJTrumpet · 02/07/2020 23:08

Make sure these massive knickers and joggers are the type that start at your waist. You need to make sure there is no chance of them sitting on the scar/wound.

Do not stop taking ibuprofen and paracetamol within the first few weeks. You may think the pain has eased and you don't need it but it's just the painkillers doing their job. It will take ages to build that up again.

Set expectations with your SO. They are going to have to pick up the housework, any lifting etc. Make it clear from the outset so there are no surprises.

DonaldJTrumpet · 02/07/2020 23:12

My knickers were 16/18 I think. They were baggy but stayed up. I wore a summer dress in the hospital that was quite short. It gets hot in there.

You should be able to do basic tasks quite quickly. Some people say they can't even pick up the baby which I find weird.

Those cotton wool pads for boobs. I'll never forget having something dripping down my top and pointing it out to everyone visiting at that moment (DP and Teo friends, one male and one female) how strange. I think I have spilt something. Nope. If was breast milk and I was squirting it everywhere. Took me days to realise.

Snufkins · 02/07/2020 23:16

You have to use your upper arm strength to be able to get out of bed/chair etc as it hurts if you use your stomach muscles...tricky when you’re holding a baby! Try to avoid any twisting, I remember reaching left to get something whilst sat on the sofa and the edge of my wound split a little. Your body will let you know if you’re doing too much.

Following from that, I did nothing round the house for about a month which might have been overkill but on top of sleep deprivation and soreness I don’t think I could’ve managed. My DP was great he waited on me hand and foot.

High rising knickers, any clothes that press on the wound hurt. I used disposable ones.

changedmynam3 · 02/07/2020 23:22

I second the pregnancy/feeding pillow to go round your waist, whether you breast feed or bottle feed! I didn't get one until a few months after having my LO and wish I'd got it sooner as it made everything so much more comfortable!

Just keep on top of your medication and set an alarm on your phone for the next set of painkillers.

You'll have injections to give yourself for 10 days later but don't worry- the needle is tiny and they don't hurt but I got my husband to give the injections to me as I am a wimp at doing these things to myself.

Good luck! x