C-Section Questions

Aubs13

Okay, ladies.  I have a few books that I'll catch up on reading tonight, but do you have any good recommendations for informational websites on c-sections?  Or, do you have any advice? 

Thanks!

docmay25

I've has 2 c- sections if you have any specific questions. Definetely keep up with medication while in the hospital. I had a nurse forget to give me one dose and having them wear off is painful. Walk around as soon and as often as you can. It will hurt in the beginning but help in the recovery. Be open with the nurses and doctors. I was so nervous with my first one and letting them know how I felt helped. They talked me thru everything.

ambs21

Don't wait for them to tell you to get up and walk.  Start moving around, walking as soon as they will allow (ask them when you can).  It will hurt, but your recovery will be much quicker.  I waited until the following morning when the Dr. told me to walk, and I really should've been up much sooner.  My friend got up and showered and walked a bit as soon as she could feel her legs, and she was out walking with the baby in no pain at all immediately upon her return home from the hospital.  I know it's different for everyone, but I really think that is a huge part of the difference.

lewis514

1. Like the others said - walk, walk, walk. I tried to walk as much as I could.

2. Take what pain meds you need (I only needed Motrin after the first day) and take the Sennakot (or whatever they give you) to help you have a BM.

3. For when you go home, you will probably want some granny underwear so that it doesn't touch your scar - same goes for pants, make sure they can come up high enough.

4. Nap when needed and stay hydrated.

5. If you live in a multi-level home, plan to have as much as you can on the main floor so you don't have to go up and down too many times.

Aubs13

Thanks, ladies.  I do appreciate the advice!  Some specific questions:

*Stupid question alert*
1.  I was planning to go get a mani/pedi before LO arrives.  I *thought* I read somewhere that you can't have nails/toes painted during surgery.  Is this true?  I hate to spend the $$ if I'll have to take it off!

*Not-so-stupid questions*
2.  Will I be restricted from stairs?  I know walking up and down might be painful, but I've read on one site that you can't do stairs at all.

3.  What are my driving restrictions?  Obviously I know I can't drive home from the hospital, but how long will I be on that restriction?

4.  Is there anything else I should plan to pack for the hospital that I may not have thought of when planning for a natural birth?  Anything I can take out from my current bag (ie:  I know I won't need the bathing suit top since I won't be in a tub...) 

Thanks again!

damabo80

Alright. Here's what I call "Crap I wish someone would have told me about c sections rather than forcing cute puppies up my butt":

Moving SUCKS. Staying still is divine. I didn't have any pain as long as I wasn't getting up/down out of bed.

But, they will make you get up and move 12 hours later. You will want to curse at the nurse. Honestly, I don't really get the "the sooner you move the better you will feel". If I could have just stayed in bed for 2 days after the c section, life would have been much better, as right around the 2 day timeframe is when the pain starts to ebb.

Have a pillow, and push that pillow against your incision site whenever you get up/down/move/cough/laugh/turn/stretch.

Stay on top of your meds. And take a stool softener and a gas pill to counteract the side effects of the pain meds. I finally pooped 4 days later and I consider what I pushed out that day that my "natural birth experience".

Getting the staples out doesn't hurt. Getting the tape off (they took mine off after 2 days, I think?) hurt like a motherfvcker, or maybe I just had a satanic nurse. I wanted to b!tch slap that wench. I told her to go slow, but she thought it would be better to rip it off quick (like a bandaid). You could have heard my screams down the hall.

Forget wearing pants (even comfy ones). Cotton sundresses will be your mainstay for about a week and half afterwards. The mesh underwear the hospital provides is perfect. I didn't buy any "special" underwear. By the time I ran out of the ones the hospital "gifted" me, I could wear my normal panties again.

For the first 3 days, have someone help you shower, and go to the bathroom. Bending down sucks to wipe, pull down your underwear, dry off, etc. Kiss any sembulence of modesty goodbye.

I had heavy bleeding for about 2-3 days afterwards, then regular period type bleeding for about 2 weeks afterwards, and then spotting for another week. Nothing since (other than a day of weird brown sludge type stuff 6 weeks later...random.)

For the first 2-3 days, you will think that a c section is the worse thing in the world, and a vaginal birth would have been so much better. But, give it a few weeks, and the fog of pain will lift and you'll think "hey, that wasn't so bad. a c section is easy!"

You'll feel down right normal at about 2w PP.

Your belly will feel weird. Besides the normal PP sagging, the skin between your belly button and incision site will feel numb on the surface, but the tissue under the skin will be extra sensitive.

One side of your incision may hurt more than others. For me, it was the left corner of my incision. It was like someone had a red hot poker right there whenever I moved.

Keep your incision site clean and dry. My belly sagged over my incision site for a few weeks, so it got a little "ripe" if I didn't dry it off properly.

damabo80

Aubs13:

1.  I was planning to go get a mani/pedi before LO arrives.  I *thought* I read somewhere that you can't have nails/toes painted during surgery.  Is this true?  I hate to spend the $$ if I'll have to take it off!

Not true. Enjoy your pedi . They will shave the lady bits, so you may want to take care of that before so that some underpaid medical tech doesn't have to do it They WILL make you take off all your jewelry, so give it to DH beforehand. I'm not sure about contact lens. I wasn't wearing mine when I had the c section, but I don't remember them asking me if I wearing them. I had mine under general, not an epi, though.

*Not-so-stupid questions*
2.  Will I be restricted from stairs?  I know walking up and down might be painful, but I've read on one site that you can't do stairs at all.

You are suppossed to "take it easy". Meaning you shouldn't do flights of stairs multiple times a day. I came home after 4 days, and there are 3 stairs leading from the garage to the house. I was fine doing those. I didn't go up/down a full flight of stairs until about 2 weeks later, and that was more than enough "healing time". Here's a hint. If you need to do a flight of stairs, walk up them backwards. They don't require belly muscles that way. You can walk down them normal, but go slow.

3.  What are my driving restrictions?  Obviously I know I can't drive home from the hospital, but how long will I be on that restriction?

The pain meds will dictate your driving restrictions. You'll be told either 2 weeks or 3 weeks. I was told 3 weeks, and started driving at 2.5 weeks. I was more than fine.

4.  Is there anything else I should plan to pack for the hospital that I may not have thought of when planning for a natural birth?  Anything I can take out from my current bag (ie:  I know I won't need the bathing suit top since I won't be in a tub...) 

Cotton sundresses/skirts. Don't bother bringing underwear or pants. The best outfit was a nursing tank with a cotton skirt (with a drawstring waist).

I didn't even have a hospital bag when I went, so I consider myself the resident expert on "crap you really don't need". Here's what I had DH bring for me:

cotton skirt

cotton sundress

toothbrush/paste

travel sized shampoo/condition/bodywash

lipstick and eyeliner

camera, charger, phone, laptop

I wish I would have had a nursing tank/bra

I bought (at the hospital) a hands free pumping bra (very handy if you'll be pumping)

ambs21

Aubs13:

Thanks, ladies.  I do appreciate the advice!  Some specific questions:

*Stupid question alert*
1.  I was planning to go get a mani/pedi before LO arrives.  I *thought* I read somewhere that you can't have nails/toes painted during surgery.  Is this true?  I hate to spend the $$ if I'll have to take it off! I was worried about that when I had to have a c-section, but they said it was fine.  One of my favorite pieces of advise to anyone about to give birth is to make sure her nails look great.  The rest of you will be in some pics, but your hands will make appearances in many more!

*Not-so-stupid questions*
2.  Will I be restricted from stairs?  I know walking up and down might be painful, but I've read on one site that you can't do stairs at all. I wasn't given specific instructions on stairs.  I walked several flights of stairs multiple times a day at 2 weeks pp (that was because I was visiting DH who was working out of state during the week and living in a 3rd floor apartment... I wouldn't suggest it if unnecessary!)

3.  What are my driving restrictions?  Obviously I know I can't drive home from the hospital, but how long will I be on that restriction? They didn't tell me before leaving the hospital.  I went for my 2 week post-op check-up and was told I could drive again... which I had been for about a week and a half.  It really just depends on whether you are taking pain meds or not.  I didn't like them past about 5 days pp and just took tylenol.

4.  Is there anything else I should plan to pack for the hospital that I may not have thought of when planning for a natural birth?  Anything I can take out from my current bag (ie:  I know I won't need the bathing suit top since I won't be in a tub...) My hospital didn't give any mesh underwear.  I had to send my mom to buy me some granny panties because regular ones were no good with the incision.

Thanks again!

Be prepared to feel like your insides will drop out when you stand up.  It is not a sensation I was expecting, and I thought something had gone terribly wrong.  It goes away eventually, but it is really weird.  It doesn't hurt as much as it feels strange.  It gave me chills every time.  I would have liked to have been warned so that I didn't freak out thinking my ute had just fallen out of me! 

Also, take gas pills and lots of them.  The gas on day 2 was more painful than the incision. 

As for the incision itself... I didn't have staples.  They sutured the inside layers with dissolving stitches and glued the skin.  I was able to peel the glue off after a week or so.  It really didn't hurt at all, I just rolled it off in the shower. 

As a pp mentioned, you may want to go ahead and shave your business if you can so that a nurse doesn't have to.  I was so happy I had already done that and didn't have to lay there while someone else did it for me!

Oh, and also as pp said, definitely keep a pillow on hand to hold tightly over your incision for the first month or so pp.  Use it when you sneeze, laugh, cough, or drive over bumps. It helps immensely!

If you think of any more questions, feel free to ask!  Hope this helps!

jamilynn9

Good Q&A ladies! As of now, I'm not having a section, but that can always change so it's good to know.

tigers413

Thanks ladies this is helpful to me too! Aubs good luck on your c-section next week!

lewis514

Thanks, ladies.  I do appreciate the advice!  Some specific questions:

*Stupid question alert*
1.  I was planning to go get a mani/pedi before LO arrives.  I *thought* I read somewhere that you can't have nails/toes painted during surgery.  Is this true?  I hate to spend the $$ if I'll have to take it off!

This is possible. As an RN, if they can't get your oxygen level with the polish on, they will take it off. It doesn't happen a lot but it is possible.

*Not-so-stupid questions*
2.  Will I be restricted from stairs?  I know walking up and down might be painful, but I've read on one site that you can't do stairs at all.

We live in a 2 level home with about 15 stairs. I was told initially to just do them once per day if possible. So I would go up at night and then come down in the morning and stay on the main level the rest of the day. I gradually started doing them more than once.

3.  What are my driving restrictions?  Obviously I know I can't drive home from the hospital, but how long will I be on that restriction?

I was told 2 weeks. You can't be on narcotics (Motrin or Tylenol only) and you should also not drive because of the incision. If you have to do anything suddenly, it can be quite painful.

4.  Is there anything else I should plan to pack for the hospital that I may not have thought of when planning for a natural birth?  Anything I can take out from my current bag (ie:  I know I won't need the bathing suit top since I won't be in a tub...) 

Just the granny underwear so it doesn't touch your incision.  

Thanks again!