May 2013 Moms

C-Section Recovery

My LO is a week and a day old, and I'm still slowly recovering from a CS. Even though this was my third, it was my first CS and I hadn't anticipated how slowly I would recover. Any other CS mamas in the same boat? Or any CS veterans with advice? When can I expect to feel normal again? Will the scar always look like this or does it change?

Re: C-Section Recovery

  • Thursday I will be having my 3rd c-section. My first I was back at work at 6 weeks pp. FF 7 years later and my 2nd was a little harder but I also had a 7 year old to take care of as well. I overdid it and it took longer to recover. There will only be 11 months between sections so I'm curious as to how I will recover this time especially with a mobile 11 month old and 7 1/2 year old. My advice is to rest whenever possible. Do NOT overdue it. All that is going to cause is a slower recovery. Also, if you need pain medicine take it. Don't try to battle through. There is a reason they keep section patients out of work longer pp. It does take longer to recover for most people. It was a major surgery.

    As far as the scar goes, it should change. After a couple months it will start to fade in color and the slight swelling should go down. Because of my awesome dr. last time my scar right now looks better than it did after my 1st section. I'm having the same dr. again as long as I make it to my RCS so I figure my scar will again look good after the healing time. 

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  • With ds1 I went thru 32hrs of labor and 2hrs of pushing and a vaccum and had a emergency csection so my recovery was awful took me three weeks to finally feel better. With ds2 I was feeling normal almost right away and I had to really watch what I was doing bc I would regret it soon after.
    With ds2 I used a binder for a few days and It was wonderful and with this baby I plan to do the same. The binder let me sleep on my side and kept things more together.
    It could take two or more weeks to finally feel normal. Don't push it!! It's rough but you did have major surgery.
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  • aanchoraanchor member
    This was my first section as well and the recovery has been tough! Thankfully my mom has been here but she is leaving on Monday so I am a little worried how I am going to take care of both kids. Anyway, no advice just wanted to let you know you aren't alone.
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  • I can't totally remember your exact circumstance, but you labored first, right?  Emergent cs?  I've had one emergent and one scheduled.  The recovery for both was a bit rough, but for completely different reasons.  With the emergent cs, I was exhausted and in a medication related fog (I also had general anesthesia) so I didn't move around as much as I should.  With my second, my recovery would have been a breeze, but I vomited for 12 hours straighter after my cs and the force/pressure on my incision opened it up and cause a lot of bleeding.  They put a pressure dressing on for 24 hours withour realizing my incision was no longer closed and so I had to have my incision packed with gauze three times a day for about two weeks until it closed up.  I did get up and move right away that time and that seemed to help.  The incision scar gets less red and less noticable over time. 

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  • The first CS was the worst for me. I feel it took the longest to recover from. I remember still bleeding at 8 weeks and not moving slowly for about 4 weeks. I just had my 3rd and the 2nd and 3rd have been a much faster recovery.

    As for the scar...probably depends on how you typically heal from things like this. Mine prior to two weeks ago was almost invisible. A very faint line.

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  • it felt like it took me FOREVER to heal from my c-section. i was in labor for 28 hrs and i stopped dilating so they sent me in for a emergency section. its hard to get past how long it takes to heal, but you do eventually! lol everyones different, even though by now, thats saying is annoying to hear. my scar is invisible. I have super white skin so, once it healed and it was gone. it was stitched from the inside i think (don't make my words) but now that im 39 weeks pregnant, its much more noticeable. good luck with healing!! try to take it easy!
  • Sorry you're having such a hard time.  I had a scheduled CS last time and my recovery was a breeze.  I moved around a lot and had no complications, though.  If you labored/pushed first and then had an emergency CS, your recovery will probably take longer, as you have all the negative effects of both options.  Take it easy, but do move around as much as your doctor allows.  It does help.

    My scar is currently almost invisible, and I am scheduled in one week for a RCS.  It's the same doctor doing the procedure 6 years later.  I am counting on him being as skilled as he was 6 years ago!!

    I have had tons of surgeries in my life - back surgery, shoulder surgery...  The CS was by far the easiest recovery.  Some women have a really tough recovery from vaginal births, too.  Many tear down there, or have to have an episiotomy and stitches, and many have really severe hemorrhoids that take weeks to heal, as well.  You just put your body through hell either way, so do give yourself a break and accept all the help you are offered.

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  • imagehogrefea:

    I can't totally remember your exact circumstance, but you labored first, right?  Emergent cs?  I've had one emergent and one scheduled.  The recovery for both was a bit rough, but for completely different reasons.  With the emergent cs, I was exhausted and in a medication related fog (I also had general anesthesia) so I didn't move around as much as I should.  With my second, my recovery would have been a breeze, but I vomited for 12 hours straighter after my cs and the force/pressure on my incision opened it up and cause a lot of bleeding.  They put a pressure dressing on for 24 hours withour realizing my incision was no longer closed and so I had to have my incision packed with gauze three times a day for about two weeks until it closed up.  I did get up and move right away that time and that seemed to help.  The incision scar gets less red and less noticable over time. 

     

    I labored for 36 hours before my CS-- so not planned, but not emergency since LO was stable. They gave me morphine during my procedure which made me SO sick the next morning... So I wasn't up walking around as soon as I probably should have been. So far, a week out, I feel ok as long as I keep up with my medicine. At first I had a lot of trouble related to anemia and barely avoided a blood transfusion... I also gained ten pounds after delivery and got extremely swollen, apparently also related to anemia. I have been told that things get better around the two week mark, so I'm looking forward to that.  

  • imageTradeMama:
    imagehogrefea:

    I can't totally remember your exact circumstance, but you labored first, right?  Emergent cs?  I've had one emergent and one scheduled.  The recovery for both was a bit rough, but for completely different reasons.  With the emergent cs, I was exhausted and in a medication related fog (I also had general anesthesia) so I didn't move around as much as I should.  With my second, my recovery would have been a breeze, but I vomited for 12 hours straighter after my cs and the force/pressure on my incision opened it up and cause a lot of bleeding.  They put a pressure dressing on for 24 hours withour realizing my incision was no longer closed and so I had to have my incision packed with gauze three times a day for about two weeks until it closed up.  I did get up and move right away that time and that seemed to help.  The incision scar gets less red and less noticable over time. 

     

    I labored for 36 hours before my CS-- so not planned, but not emergency since LO was stable. They gave me morphine during my procedure which made me SO sick the next morning... So I wasn't up walking around as soon as I probably should have been. So far, a week out, I feel ok as long as I keep up with my medicine. At first I had a lot of trouble related to anemia and barely avoided a blood transfusion... I also gained ten pounds after delivery and got extremely swollen, apparently also related to anemia. I have been told that things get better around the two week mark, so I'm looking forward to that.  

    Oh yeah.  Given your anemia, your recovery will probably be a bit slower.  I hope you make up those red blood cells in short order.  Don't feel like you have to slow down on your pain meds just yet.  I titrated myself off of them quicker than I would have liked, but that's because I didn't have any help a couple random days and wanted to be able to drive in the case of an emergency.  
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  • NDaryaNDarya member
    I had an emergency c-section on May 1st after 23 hours of labor and an hour of pushing. First few days were rough. Dr made me get up and walk 8 hours after the surgery which was scary. Now 11 days later I'm off pain medication and feeling much better walking around a lot. I still have swelling around my scar but it's not so painful anymore.
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  • This is my first c sec and I have to say that the second day and night have been hard. My uterus is super sore from contractig and it feels like I can't stand straight up. I also had to be put right under as it was a major emergency one and they say that will make recovery extra tough. Your not alone in feeling that way.
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