post-c-section, when did you eat solids? What did you eat?

MommyMar2010 · September 2011

With my first I was able to eat solids about 12hrs after the section and no one advised me on what to eat or what not to eat. I knew nothing about the bowel troubles there were ahead. The nurse gave me a senakot every day and the doc would ask me everyday if I was passing gas (lovely! but apparently that's a sign your bowels have kicked in again). Anyways, I didn't end up being able to go for nearly a WEEK after and it was so horrible and painful (even with the daily laxatives). This time around I want to eat SMART so that that first BM is easier and I'm not in so much pain. ANY TIPS?? I'm thinking high fiber, fruit--stuff like that?

One of my friends only had shakes until she had her first BM then she went on regular foods, and said it worked great....

pepomntpat · September 2011

I had LO around 8 PM. I had a liquid breakfast and then a normal lunch. I don't remember what it was.

ETA: I did not have any bowel troubles. I did not need stool softeners. Make sure you drink your water.

ChiTown Bridget · September 2011

I had my c-section at 2pm and by 7:00 that night I had eaten soup in a bread bowl and an apple from Panera. I was told to avoid any rich and greasy foods the first couple of days and the nurses gave me a stool softener along with my pain meds and I didn't have any bm issues. I would also have one cup of coffee each day which I think really helped too.

MommyMar2010 · September 2011

after reading these posts, what the hell were my nurses thinking giving me a laxative EVERY single day (I was in for 5 days) and then they told me to take one everyday I was home. The first BM was horrible..then after that I had ridiculous diahrea (sorry TMI!) .....ugh, I went through so much that really seemed like it could have been avoided!!

RayRay007 · September 2011

I had my section in the morning and wasn't allowed to eat until supper time. The nurse let me have a portion of what was served that night for supper - a whole grain roll and some sort of chicken stew. My ILs brought me a fruit cup from the cafeteria. I got a stool softener right away when I got up on the ward, and went the next morning and had no troubles (except for being terrified of my guts falling out lol).

Gummybear · September 2011

Am I the only one that had absolutely no appetite for almost a week following? I had dreams of hoagies and beer and sushi and pizza after delivery but the feeling of actual food in my mouth was disgusting, like chewing on a dirty rag. This happened both times; the first time when they made me stay on the transitional diet the entire hospital stay and the second time when I got normal food.

All I could tolerate was yogurt, ice cream, and pie Stick out tongue And lots of hot tea. I had no issues farting or pooping.

monica92603 · September 2011

I had my c/s at 7:45, went to recovery and think I was in my room around 9:30 or so. I felt awesome and was starving so I requested breakfast. Threw it all up. After that, felt awesome again and a few hours later requested lunch. Threw that all up too. I think someone said something about the spinal could make me nauseous??? I didn't feel sick at all till I would eat. I wasn't able to keep anything down till dinner that night.

As far as my bowels.....I think my first bm was sometime the next day around noon. OMG it was horrible! The worst I ever had. I could not believe how constipated I was, but it got better and I had several more before leaving the hospital (3 days later). I had low iron and they sent me home w/ a script for an iron pill. YAH.....didn't happen.

amyegunnip · September 2011

After recovery, my OB said I could eat whenever I wanted to. I was starving by the time I got there! (I had my c-section at 9:45 pm and got to my room at about 12:30 am) I ate Wheat Thins I think? I really had no appetite for a week after my c/s and I attribute that to the pain meds & having abdominal surgery. GL!

LadyXaverian · September 2011

I was eating solid foods almost immediately, though they were somewhat bland for the first 24 hours, if I remember correctly. Definitely no grease or dairy, as a PP mentioned.

It was a full week.. maybe 10 days! before my first BM and then another few days after that before the 2nd.

SarahRae812 · September 2011

Ugh! I'm so jealous of those of you who had easy BMs! My nurses wouldn't let me have solid foods until I passed gas. After that, I kept it pretty bland: yogurt, oatmeal, eggs, pudding. However, it was almost a full week before my first BM & it was HORRIBLE! No one told me that Vicodin makes you constipated. Stool softeners did nothing to help.

MDmama519 · September 2011

I had solid food the next day. They went ahead and gave me stool softeners as a precaution but, that ended up giving me diarrhea (tons of fun with visitors on the other side of the wall).

g00dg0llymsm0lly · September 2011

They let me eat while I was in recovery, before DD was even brought in to me, so within an hour of my section- because my induction began at 4-AM, Csection wasn't until 5-PM, and I hadn't eaten a single bite in all that time. It was just a turkey sandwich and some applesauce, but it was DELICIOUS!

lewis514 · September 2011

They gave me crackers and juice in recovery. I started meals the next morning and also took sennakot to help. I had a BM on day 3 I think. I took the sennakot at home too bc I didn't want to strain to go.

lilydeven · September 2011

my son was born at 5:52 pm. by noon the next day, I was eating solids, whatever the hospital allowed.

RoxBride · September 2011

Born at 630 pm. Had crackers that night, a full breakfast (I think toast and an omelet) the next morning. I knew I was headed for a c/s so they had me on lots of stool softners prior, and they encouraged me to walk small amounts as soon as I was able.

Zero issues going to the bathroom for me. It seemed to do the trick.

ILoveRunning · September 2011

I had a really tough labor (65 hours, 2.5 hrs pushing) that led to a c/s and then had a rough recovery (incision became infected and had to be re-opened and pack with gauze daily by a nurse for three weeks). But the worst part of the entire experience was the pain associated with my first BM. I was taking stool softeners 3x daily but they didn't seem to help. I ate ~8 hours after surgery (turkey, mashed potatoes and steamed carrots), however like other PP, I had no appetite. Most days I could only eat a piece of toast and a few steamed carrots. My DH tried to get me to drink shakes, but those ended up making the constipation worse. I normally have ~2 BMs a day, but the first one post-op took almost a week. I was very close to going back to the hospital because I was worried and in so much pain. It also didn't help that I had massive hemorrhoids due to the desperate pushing I did during labor. I never, never, never want to repeat that experience again. I ended up using an enema to get things started. I'm not sure if it was the right thing to do, but I was desperate.

In the future I hope to VBAC, but in either case I plan to start laxatives early, eat lots of fiber, and drink a ton of water.

magdalina.h · September 2011

4 hours and I was eating normal food. I had chicken noodle soup a burger and a side of fruit. Every time you get pain killers, make sure you get a stool softener.

capulet · September 2011

I had DD at 1:56 AM after a few hours of labor - I threw up in surgery (I had eaten dinner about eight hours earlier) but was allowed to eat a normal breakfast since I didn't get sick again. I ate as much high-fiber food as I could order off the menu - stuff like granola, fruit, whole wheat pasta - drank a lot of water, took the stool softeners, and had my first BM within a couple days. It wasn't that bad considering I had issues with constipation during pregnancy.

annabelle.27 · September 2011

I was told I couldn't eat solids for a day and a half. It was hell. I ate a dinky cup of ice cream, some tomato soup, some mushroom soup, and some other junk that didn't do squat to fill me up. My first meal was hospital food lentil stew, which looked disgusting but tasted like heaven, probably because I was starving.

I didn't have any problems with my bowels.

austenreader85 · September 2011

He was born at 2:22 pm but by the time all the visitors left and I was feeling hungry the cafeteria was closed. So my sister went and got me a sub from 7-11 or something. I ate pretty much everything right away. I had GD and the OB said basically as soon as DS was out that I could enjoy carbs again. And boy did I!

I had read ahead of time on the importance of colace, so I stayed on top of that just as much as I did my pain meds. I was passing gas later that night and was released a day early from the hospital. If I remember correctly, I had my first BM on my second day home. It really wasn't so awful. I just allowed myself a lot of time.

I drank a lot of water too. I totally craved water!

aandg · September 2011

I had really bad nausea and didn't eat for a day or so afterwards. I had a hard time even drinking water

First BM was 3 days later.

Leap08 · September 2011

I ordered food the moment I they moved me from recovery to my room. I had a veggie burger, fries, and grapes. The next morning I had eggs and toast for breakfast. My husband brought me a sub for lunch. Basically I ate like normal. My c/s was on a Thursday afternoon. My first BM was Friday night, and it was horrible and painful. I think the first one always is.

biblionerd · September 2011

I had my c/s at 2 or 3 pm, fasting from midnight the night before, and had pudding and fruit for dinner around 8 or so.The next day I ate normally.

byrne15 · September 2011

I didn't have a BM until 8 days pp. It was awful.

I don't think it related to foods I ate....except the fact I didn't eat food at all. I always have trouble eating after general anesthesia and not-so-good BMs.

I just start taking stool softeners as soon as I am done with surgery.

girllennon · September 2011

I was on a liquid diet for 2 whole day because I couldn't pass gas (lovely). Once I did pass gas, the nurse did not instruct the cafeteria that I could eat normally and still gave me liquid diet. Yeah, I was STARVING for the first two days.

Sa039ra · September 2011

48 hours prior to my c/s my doctor recommended a 'soft' diet. (Jello, yogurt, milkshakes, soup, etc.) After my c/s, I was on a liquid diet for 24 hours. I had zero gas issues and my first PP BM was 3 days after my c/s. I will definitely follow this plan next time. It's also mentioned in the book 'The Essential C-Section Guide.'

Soon2BMrsN · September 2011

I had horrible nausea for about 3 days after my c/s, so I wasn't really able to keep anything down. I think by Thursday night (DS was born on Monday), I was able to keep down jello and crackers.

First BM was 5-6 days after delivery. I'd been taking gas pills and it wasn't too bad.

neya28 · September 2011

SarahRae812:
Ugh! I'm so jealous of those of you who had easy BMs! My nurses wouldn't let me have solid foods until I passed gas. After that, I kept it pretty bland: yogurt, oatmeal, eggs, pudding. However, it was almost a full week before my first BM & it was HORRIBLE! No one told me that Vicodin makes you constipated. Stool softeners did nothing to help.

I had sorta the same experiance. I had the c-sec at 6pm and wasn't allowed to have solids until i passed gas which was like 3-4 pm the next day. Then it was bland things like yogurt, oatmeal, jello. About a week later when I was home already I had my first bm. It was memorable. I was on percocets so those didn't help w/ the constipation either.

capulet · September 2011

MommyMar2010, I just noticed your avatar - I've moved and I can't change mine, so I won't assume you're still in the same place, but I was living in Woodbridge when DD was born and I had her at Yale-New Haven.

MommyMar2010 · September 2011

you're kidding! I lived here when I had DD and also delivered at Yale New Haven!

Where did you move in CT--our house is actually on the market and we're trying to move!

capulet · September 2011

We're in upstate NY now, actually. I took a break from the Knot and then when I came back they had changed the website and I couldn't modify my location in my avatar (I haven't tried lately, but this was still an issue a few months ago). But we moved into New Haven from Woodbridge after we'd been there about a year and were there until the summer of 2010.

ghdst1 · September 2011

For me it was 24 hours because I was on a magnesium drip due to pre eclampsia. SO I was on a liquid diet for 24 hours after birth. The first thing I ate was a cheese pizza. The Dr recommended something less hard to digest and get out but I didn't care. I pooped fine. Ha.

genekelly · September 2011

They only gave me liquids in the hospital until I passed gas which took about 2 days. Then they started allowing me to order reg food(for a hospital anyway). That said, the first BM really did suck and actually the percocet I was on made it worse when i got home. I weaned off the percocet after a particularly bad day and only used ibuprofen to control pain. That was ~1 wk post c/s. I used the colace for at least 2.5-3 wks until things were working better. My digestion really didn't go back to normal though for 4-5 wks. I don't think it had anything to do with diet b/c I was eating lots of fiber and fruit. I think it did depend on how much fluid I was taking in so be sure to drink lots of hydrating liquids.

starlettedir · September 2011

pepomntpat:

I had LO around 8 PM. I had a liquid breakfast and then a normal lunch. I don't remember what it was.

this

hopkins5 · September 2011

I had liquids-only for the first 24 hours, then it was back to normal. My best friend showed up with Swiss Chalet for dinner. Yummmmm.

MrsCali_Bride · September 2011

A couple of hours after my c-section they sent up a liquids tray for me - popsicles, apple juice, Jell-o, chicken broth and something else that I can't remember. Since I was able to eat/drink all of that and keep it down I was allowed solid foods shortly after.As for the senekot and such, they started me on those shortly after my c-section. Also, make sure they give you gas pills. I could feel and hear my bowels moving as well as feel the gas making it all the way down but I couldn't actually get any gas out. I mentioned it to one of my nurses a day or two after my section and she is the one that started me on my gas pills. I did a little cheer once I was finally able to pass gas. I had my first BM at 3 days pp and I did a little cheer then as well. It's the little things

justrachet · September 2011

My c-section was around noon. I had clear liquid lunch and supper. I wanted food for supper, but they wouldn't give it to me until I had passed gas. They did let me have some ice cream. I had clear liquid breakfast the next morning, followed by gas, and then they brought me regular breakfast - scrambled eggs and biscuit. I ate normal foods after that. They gave me something for gas pain and a stool softener in the hospital, and I continued the stool softener after I got home (I'm still taking it). I had my first BM after 3 days. It was pretty easy, not painful at all.

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