Bleeding c-section scar in 3rd trimester - Bugger! Bugger! Bugger!

[whomovedmychocolate]

Just back from a week in France and 30ish weeks pregnant with a ginormous baby boy.

CS 18 months ago and was diagnosed at 16 weeks with an infection in the scar (it'd always been bumpy, but then got bumpy and hot and sore).

Swift application of antibiotic cream for a few weeks later and it went down, pretty smooth, no pain & redness gone. Hurrah!

Baby head down and doing well. Booked home birth. Hurrah! Off for a quick week's holiday before baby number 2 shows up.

Scar a bit sore. Lift up ginormous bump to peer underneath. Can't see a bloody thing. Quick poke, something sticky - eek blood, eek goo. Bugger! Bugger! Bugger!

Get DH to look. Two large bumps have appeared in scar and one of them is leaking.

It healed up the next day. So thought it was okay to leave it till I got home. The following day, baby decided to have a flip to breech and got foot stuck on sore bit of scar and once again it bleed. Not much and it's only a surface wound - it clearly doesn't go down too deep and doesn't appear to be infected (it's not hot or red - but is sore).

Next day, healed up fine, no pain. DS then does another flip so his head is resting on the scar. Can anyone guess what happened next? Yep, soreness and a bit of blood.

So we came home and I tried to phone the midwives but they were on answerphone - four times - plus because I don't know my mobile phone number couldn't leave a message (was on the way back and couldn't have gone in anyway). (Not filled with confidence that they'll be around when I'm in labour at this rate either).

So now I'm home, and planning to go see the labour ward tomorrow to have a chat, but have no bloody clue what they are going to say. Anyone had this before? Is there any point in having an ultrasound of the scar to establish depth?

Have just seen this.

Oh arse WMMC, I hope things are ok with you and the lo.

omg!poor you!

I'm back - thank you all for worrying about me. They let me out yesterday afternoon.

Okay the cs scar problem is an ingrown hair follicle which has become infected. I've been told to (ready for this folks? ) exfoliate the area so that the skin doesn't build up too much. I guess it's because I've always kept the hair short and they cut me so low it's gone over a fair few hair follicles (to give you some indication, my scar is actually on my pubic bone).

The D&V - well the V has gone but up until this morning I still had the runs - lovely. Made the supermarket run quite exciting. Luckily everyone assumed I must be in labour and opened tills for me and shepherded me through very quickly.

The ketones - dehydration, the protein, the infection.

Olly (the baby) is doing fine. He's 2.6 pounds already (at only 29 weeks) and he's been leaping around constantly for the past three days which is reassuring.

We had a nasty moment on Thursday night when I had a bad vomiting episode and started having contractions which had the midwives calling the obstetricians and the SCBU next door but it all calmed down almost immediately.

So I'm back on for a homebirth and a normal pregnancy - fingers crossed. Have to go see the midwife on Monday and every week from now on, plus I've been told to eat bananas because I have v low potassium levels.

Pinkyminky - I had PET with DD and they don't leave you on a monitor but do BP checks every two hours. I don't think they were concerned too much about the protein because I had too high a temperature and was too obviously infected with something.

Right off to defoliate and exfoliate now . Am so happy to be home. DH had to put breastfed DD to bed on his own on Thursday (which he managed in an hour bless him), but she was so lovely when she came in Thursday morning. She looked at me, looked at the midwife said: 'I want booby' and jumped on the bed next to me.

That's great news, WMMC. Hope the infection clears up soon.

Good news WMMC, am so happy for you that things are back on track.

glad everythings ok!

Thanks everyone, am still puking and poopy but have a deforested ladygarden!

Tip for anyone out there with a cs scar with hair growing under it - press down on the scar and the hairs pop right up so you can tweezer them out (and it doesn't actually hurt because scar tissue has compromised nerve endings!) -TMI I know but it took me ages to work this out.

You are doing pioneering work, WMMC, and we are grateful.

hope the puking etc. eases soon.

WMMC - how on earth can you see your scar and lady garden at the moment? I'm v impressed!

With a mirror while sat on the loo with one leg up on the bath - actually I fell off while doing this and DH ran in to find me with my head in the nappy pail, starkers with a half plucked fanjo! My how we laughed

Ah, the dignities of pregnancy

pmsl wmmc!
Gawd- its all so glamourous isn't it, this baby lark!

LOL! Not only a pioneer, but you manage it with such elegance and poise.

h'oookaaaaay ! naked in a nappy bucket.. that is so not a good look!
glad you are on the mend though.

Luckily the nappy bucket was not too full

Having said, looks like I may be heading back to the hospital again fairly shortly, my temperature is way up, I have ketones again (doh, doh, doh), still throwing up and feel like crap.

Buggeration!

But hey, I have the world's neatest bikini line (even if I do look like an overfed, overplucked christmas turkey)

Oh dear. Did you get any antibiotics last time? Infections can make you sooo sick when pregnant. Poor love.
Perhaps wash you nappy hair before you go?]

Nope, just fluids. There's no point in giving antibiotics when they don't know what's causing it. It could be viral, it could conceivably still be food poisoning. Could be something as weird as dysentery apparently.

I have washed the baby poop out my hair though pinkyminky. DH helpfully pointed out that like vinegar, urine was probably really good for making your hair shiny

I see what you are saying. I am trying to remember what I was given when I had an infection last time. I was so out of it, though. You are doing really well. A fluid IV can make you feel loads better. Hope all goes well.

lol at your nappy-hairshine! You could probably market it.

How are you doing WMMC?

Sorry tmi to follow, but have they taken a stool sample to see if that shows anything?

I hope you're felling better soon xx

I am bloody fantastic. I haven't thrown up or pooped for 24 hours and slept 12 solid hours last night. DH snuck DD downstairs and kept her quiet so I could stay asleep and I woke up feeling so much better.

Hurrah!

Thanks all of you for worrying about me.

Just seen this thread, WMMC.
Sorry that you've been unwell, but glad you're feeling better now.