Total spin off from the csection question....
For those of you who have had more then one csection, how was the 2nd one different from the first? easier, harder, no labor so not exhausted as much, recovery easier or harder due to having another child to chase, more scared due to 1st one being rushed and second one having more time to process what was going to happen? Etc.
Re: SO: csection ques
With my second it was scheduled because she was breech. My scar healed great and she did what she called a zipper where she opened me up in the same spot. She also cut out a section and all the old scar tissue like a mini tummy tuck. You can almost not see the scar. Afterwards they kept me on an epidural for 24 hours and by then I was just taking Ibuprofen as needed. I felt great and was up and showering and moving around. Plus I didn't change a single diaper the whole first week! Had we not had blood draws and weight checks I would have been able to rest more and recovered faster.
The age gap of my kids meant there were really no issues. He got that I was in pain and was a huge help. It also made the "Where do babies come from" conversation super easy. I showed him my scar from him and explained the doctor was going to open me up like a zipper and pull the new baby out.
My second csection was scheduled for Jan. 15, but I went for my reg. ob appointment on 1/7 and my bp was super high. I was admitted to l and d and they delivered dd2 the next morning. I worked up until the day before my appointment plus I was chasing DD1 around all the time. My recovery in the hospital was easier, but I think that may be because I knew what to expect. I will say that I took more pain meds in the hospital and took them for longer upon returning home. I still take them some days. I've definitely had more soreness and I haven't gotten nearly as much rest with the 2 kids. I'm also still bleeding at almost 4 weeks out, but back to the uterine contractions, dd2 had some health issues that prevented us from breast feeding.
If we have a 3rd, I will opt for another RCS.
My first c-section was planned, sort of. My recovery was horrible and I felt the last few staples going in because the spinal wore off. I moved myself off of the operating table. Then I couldn't sleep in the hospital because I couldn't get comfortable.
DS was after 56 hours of non productive labour. The anesthesiologist said he put a little something extra in my spinal because I had earned it and I couldn't feel anything from the waist down for 24 hours. It was glorious. I fed DS and then I slept for 4 hours. It was pretty great.
My first c/s was due to 36 hours of labor and failure to progress past 7 centimeters. Awful surgery experience, with way more pain than is normal and my recovery was brutal-including an incision that wouldn't heal. I also had bad PPD and PPA.
Second c/s was after a failed VBAC attempt. Surgery went well until my uterus didn't continue to contract and I ended up losing a ton of blood and required transfusions. 12 days after being released, I was back in the hospital with a nasty infection in my incision. 3 days of hospitalization and being away from both kids was awful. I recovered well after that point.
Number 3 was a planned c/s. Much easier process regarding prep, etc. Like LisaJay, I had a very long surgery--almost an hour and a half--due to all of the scar tissue and my tubal. I was super uncomfortable and cried throughout most of it. I was in surgery a full hour after Jack was born. My doctor used staples this time because of my history of issues with my incision and because I had been in surgery so long, he wanted to get it over with for me.
The following day I was crazy sore and a had a lot of pain but I think it was due to the tubal and having my insides more manipulated this time. My incision has healed amazing and while I was more sore for longer this time, I have no complaints. Taking care of a 4 year old, 14 month old and newborn was rough at first for sure--especially because I couldn't lift my 30 lb giant one year old. Now that we're 8 weeks out, I'm getting the hang of it and am about at 90% back to feeling normal.