How different is an elective c-section to an emergency c-section?

[DaisyChainsForever]

Would love to hear from anyone that has experienced both. Had an emergency one with my 1st and I'm having an elective with my current pregnancy in about 8 weeks. Did u feel different mentally and physically? (before and after).

I’m planning the same. Following!

Emergency first like you. Can't remember much, it's all in adrenaline. Had the spinal during contractions which was shit. Obv everyone very ""calm"" but it was pretty frantic.
Elective with my twins. Actually more stressed as had time to think about it all 😂 but everyone very much brighter and relaxed in retrospect.
Was incredibly nauseous in both until they gave me meds, that was the worst part imo but that's obv my reaction to the sedatives.
Recovery wise, first baby was very very poorly so I had no time to contemplate being in pain. We were in NICU for hours every day and I know I took painkillers every four hours regardless but can't remember much.
With second, in hospital in bed and Def remember the after pains 😂 oramorph is the answer 😂😂

A huge world of difference. With an emergency one, usually there are underlying situations that have led to a stall in labour and women are utterly tired by the time a c-section is decided. Recovery is harder and potentially more painful too. More so because the body has to recover from a nearly completely labour and c section both.
A planned c-section is where things go as per a set plan and recovery is much faster usually.
If given a choice, I will take a planned one any day. It nearly trumps natural birth if adverse effects are managed properly.

Emergency c section with 2nd baby, was completely rushed, I was signing paperwork on the way to theatre. Very stressful and worrying situation as I was only 36 weeks, and baby was in distress. 3rd baby ended up in a planned c section, but was only agreed the week before because she had stopped growing. It was much calmer, though I had to wait nearly all day to be taken in as I was least urgent. Got very emotional because I was starving (no food and v little water) and just wanted her here, but initially a much more relaxed experience. Had some complications and had to have a forceps delivery and my placenta disintegrated but she arrived happy and healthy.

My first was an emergency section after I was induced at 42 weeks. I was advised to have an elective section with our twins to avoid the same complications. I agreed and had a section at 38 weeks. It was totally different. Luckily, I was first on the list and only stayed in for one night. Both times I recovered physically very quickly but mentally I am still traumatised by my first section and all that lead up to it.

Yes, completely different!

You haven’t been through labour for starters so your body and mind are not exhausted already.

I knew early on with DC2 I was having a c section so physically prepared for that. I worked out all through pregnancy with a programme tailored to c section recovery.

Mentally, the biggest difference was I’d made my peace with not having a vaginal birth well before the birth itself. I felt like a failure when I had an emergency section.

Emergency with No.1 - a 'crash' after 24 hours of being induced and nothing happening. I was just meeting team who would be delivering him, signing consent forms etc. It was really relaxed then BOOM! Monitors showed the baby was in distress and I was out of that room and in the theatre within seconds and they whipped him out in minutes. He had his cord round his neck twice. It was a scary experience but I feel so lucky and so grateful that it happened that way.

No.2 was an emergency section after my waters broke and I was given a 24-hour 'trial of scar' because I wanted a VBAC. It was fairly relaxed and my 'wound' was about a third of the size of the first one, along the same line.

No.3 was an elective and it was really strange going in cold and properly aware of what was going on around me. I did take a fair while to recover from it though, I guess because by then I was an ancient hag-ridden crone.

In my experience it is really important to get mobile as soon as possible afterwards.

I had an Emergency section for my premature baby in 2009 - general anaesthetic so knew very little about what happened - but I was very poorly afterwards after a bleed and an infection. Not a nice experience.

Then 3 years later had my elective - a very different experience - everyone very calm and chatty in theatre - I felt very comfortable. It was a strange feeling - being pulled around on the table but it was absolutely fine. Recovery was much quicker and easier

Overall an elective is a much calmer and less scary experience

Hi OP I am exactly in your situation. Very messy emergency section with my first 10 yrs ago after failed induction on the drip for hours. Significant fetal distress, signing a form completely out of it on drugs. Epidural during major contractions messed up my back and I had a spinal puncture headache for two weeks and was in the hospital for one week. I discharged myself in the end as was about to fall off a cliff emotionally.

The section was very scary. No-one would talk to me. The anesthitist at my head ignored me throughout. I had to ask the student midwife and then my partner once he was allowed in to ask him questions about what was going on as he just ignored me. I am guessing it was a very tense delivery and DS needed rescussitstion which I read three days later on my pregnancy notes! I found it hard to breathe and then started passing out. Seems to have been due to long induction, drugs and being exhausted but it was very scary. I remember yelling at my husband at the time to keep me awake in case I fell asleep and died!

So hearing the stories about elective section is really reassuring. Think it is night and day. There are still risks obviously but it is def the right choice after the mess of DS. I am older and have a high BMI, but was reassured when someone shared a link on a thread here to their hospital of a woman having an elective and it looked lovely. Reassuring for me is that she was older and a high BMI and it all was rosy.

I don't remember recovery being hard but my spinal headache took up much of the focus as it was agony and was drugged up most of the time. My would healed pretty well and don't remember being worried about it. Fingers crossed this time.

@DaisyChainsForeveraisy mine is in 7/8 weeks too j less they take me sooner. Have a scan on Thursday x

I had and emergency with No1 and an elective with No2.

A huge difference ime. The first was after 36 hours of labour, lots of difficulty getting DS back out, lost a fair bit of blood )borderline transfusion) had difficulties with breastfeeding, staff on the ward were pretty shit, kept on missing drug rounds, would promise to come back and help but didn't, they forgot to take the tube from my spine so basically had an open tube into my spine until I noticed next day.

Elective (13 months later), I went in in the morning, was first on the list, nice relaxing op, got to choose which music I wanted, was back up in the ward with a baby feeding well within an hour or two of the Op, staff in ward were great, got a quick bed bath (didn't get anything first time - not even an opportunity to wash my face and hands!) and they even took the baby away for a couple of hours during the night to let me rest.

I checked out both times after 2 days, the first time I probably shouldn't have and it was against medical advise, the 2nd time they were happy for me to go and i felt fine to be going home.

I had both, and although it was many years ago now the experience fits with what pp have said - you don't forget the experience! The elective was so different because I had time to prepare and felt I had some say over things. It was still quite scary, but of course it's only like being prepped for any surgery and I'd never had any surgery before for anything. So you need to be prepared for the whole process of signing forms, being wheeled to the theatre, etc, though I suppose seeing everyone in PPE will seem more familiar these days. I was just relieved that I wasn't going to be in any doubt about what was happening like the emergency where it was just a blur. DH couldn't be with me for the emergency so it was lovely he could for the elective, made such a difference, though I don't know if that's happening now. Best wishes to all of you going through this now.

One other point, which did surprise me, being so much more with it and aware of what was going on, it seemed to take ages for them to stitch me up after the elective. In reality I suppose it didn’t and I was just too out of it the first time round to notice. I also noticed a lot more of a tugging sensation which had completely passed me by with the first. None of it unpleasant, it just took me by surprise a bit because I thought I knew exactly what to expect!

My elective turned into an emergency - just warning you! Anaesthetic didn't work so ended up being a general. On a scale of zero to horrific, it was horrific. Sorry!

Oh and it was my second child after an horrific first birth (not a section - ended in 4degree tear, forceps , permanent bowel damage etc etc)

I never thought anything could be as bad as that, but this was worse.

Needless to say, I didn't have child 3!

in my emergency section, the tugging was more apparent as I'd got to 6 cms dilated and because he was almost 10lb and lying back to back, he'd got jammed solid. DH and the anaesthetist had to hold me down on the table while they tugged him back up.

Thank you everyone for your replies, they are all really helpful. In a weird way it's also nice to read about everyone else's traumatic 1st births (as everyone i know IRL had a straightforward vaginal birth).

@StarUtopia The BACS midwife talked me through a few scenarios where it may turn into an emergency. Obviously i'd rather that didn't happen, but i'm at least prepared for it mentally. A c-section hadn't even entered my head the 1st time around!