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bumpuser8448316
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C section moms
bumpuser8448316
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It's official- this baby is coming by C-section. Now I'm scared out of my mind. Tell me your experience, good or bad. Do do they break your water? What is the anesthesia like? How quickly after we're you able to care for baby on your own? My plan had been for DH to stay with me the first night and then go home to DS. Will I need him at the hospital every night?
Also, I'm GBS+ this time. Yay for me.
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Re: C section moms
Just remember the anesthesiologist is your new BFF. After the surgery, tell them you want the catheter out and to be up and walking as soon as you can. Stay on top of your pain meds the first 2 days. Walk as much as possible.
I've had an emergency cs and a scheduled cs and both were great, with very easy recoveries.
Oh and it might take longer for your milk to come in, mine was day 4 for 1st baby and day 6 for 2nd baby.
You might need your DH to stay with you at the hospital if the baby is in your room with you. They don't want you to be alone with the baby in case something happens and you can't get up/ lift the baby well enough.
Honestly, my experience wasn't great. The recovery was tough. But, I think a lot of that could have been avoided if my pain meds had been kept up better. The second day they wore off and I wasn't brought a new dose in time, so the pain got really bad. Be your own advocate and be sure the nurses stay on top of it. Also, I'd had twins so that might have made it worse.
Do they just give you an epidural or how is the anesthesia administerd?
Yes, know my OB will go over all this next week but I'm just in freak out mode and trying to research.
** Lurker **
I highly suggest you request belly band/girdle while in the hospital (they can give you one for free). I've had that surgery twice and I dont know how some women go without the compression. It really helps when sitting up and getting up.
Also take lots of colace. Some hospitals wont let you leave until you have had a BM.
I got horribly sick from the anesthesia, but I'm sensitive so that could have just been me. They tried to give me the baby about 10 minutes after being stapled to nurse but I was vomiting and couldnt hold her. Thank goodness for DH. You might need someone there every night. My DH stayed the first night and my mom stayed with me the second. You could always use that nurse button though.
Good Luck. After a few days its not so bad.
Married: 5/21/05 **~** Emery Aylin 6/30/12
BFP#1-11/5/10- Surgery for ectopic pregnancy 11/15/10 BFP#2-11/1/11 Due 7/8/12 Born 6/30/12
Oops we did it again... BFP 03/23/14 Due 12/6/14 Nora Born 11/23/14
I had an emergency c-section which I hear is different recovery wise than a planned c-section. My water broke on it's own, it was discovered during transition that DS was breech. I don't remember the anesthesia because I was put completely under; I woke up hours later. Recovery was horrible compared to the natural birth I had with DD. I was prepared to get up and be able to care for DS like I DD and it just wasn't happening. It was a couple of weeks before I could get up from a chair or out of bed without wanting to cry. They wanted me walking as soon as I woke up. I didn't think it would be possible to be walking for a long time, but I kept at it and I ended up leaving within 2 days of the c-section (sooner than with DD ironically). DH stayed the first night because I gave birth so late but went home after that because of DD. The nurses were great at helping out when needed.
If the hospital gives you a brace - keep it and wear it! I wore than brace for weeks after I returned home. It helped me get around without so much pain. Keep up on your meds and if people offer help accept it. I hear that planned c-sections are an easier recovery, but I wouldn't know. Good luck!
Epidural. And its ok to be open with the Anesthesiologist. I told mine that I'm really sensitive to drugs and he tried to give me zofran and a few other things to help.
Married: 5/21/05 **~** Emery Aylin 6/30/12
BFP#1-11/5/10- Surgery for ectopic pregnancy 11/15/10 BFP#2-11/1/11 Due 7/8/12 Born 6/30/12
Oops we did it again... BFP 03/23/14 Due 12/6/14 Nora Born 11/23/14
It's nothing to be scared of, although I was too. Anesthesia was easier than an epidural, although I got super nauseated. She was out before I knew it though, and recovery was a breeze! DH went home to spend time with Dd1, so I was on my own. It was fine though.
I've had 2 C/S.
The first was unplanned and came after 24 hours of hard labor due to failure to progress past 8cm. The C/S itself was okay, there were some things I really didn't like about it, and recovery was really bad.
I ended up with a scheduled C/S this time against my best attempts. It was SUCH a better experience. I was really worried about how anesthesia would go because last time when I had my spinal it was after 2 failed epidurals and I was like OMG I don't CARE what you do just get this baby out of me and don't let me feel it! This time, I felt perfectly fine and really really wasn't happy about the C/S situation. Anyway, I used some deep breathing techniques to calm me and it also helped that my favorite MW was in the OR as my support person for that. Prior to that and the surgery itself waiting was hard, we were there for maybe 2hrs beforehand? But it went by faster than I thought it would. They were doing things the whole time - monitoring, taking blood, putting in IV and administering antibiotics, medical questions, etc. No, they don't break your water ahead of time.
A few things that made our experience SO much better this time:
- we did skin-to-skin on the OR table. This was an amazing moment for me. It was something we had to clear with everyone involved before we went back to surgery
- ETA my arms were not strapped down this time, which I very much preferred.
- we didn't have to be separated post-delivery like last time. This was HUUUGELY important to me. The first time we were told that being separated for 2hrs post delivery for "monitoring" was something that had to happen for all C/S. Turns out this isn't true it's done for the hospital's convenience and if I had pushed for it this didn't have to happen. I wish I had known.
My point with the above is know that you have options.
- the OB ordered that morphine be added to my spinal block. I felt SO much more comfortable after surgery than I did last time. However, like I said it was under different circumstances last time so I'm sure that had something to do with it too. Anyway, I will be requesting this next time if there is a next time. Apparently some docs do it, some don't.
- the OB put on a support dressing, this was big for my comfort level too. I don't know if this is an option, I know this was something special that this particular dr does. If I could request it, I would.
- the OB also requested that I wear a support band (like a Belly Bandit) which was also hugely helpful to my comfort levels postpartum. Last time they had me hold a pillow to my stomach when I moved around and I wish so much than I had known about the support band. I kind of hate my first OB for not having me wear one.
IME yes, you will need your H at the hospital. Everyone is different, but I wasn't able to easily get out of bed with either C/S. If MH hadn't been there I would have had to call a nurse in every time I needed to put the baby into the bassinet or take them out. Also, at least at my hospital, they really strongly recommend that a support person stay with you as much as possible with a C/S. I needed help getting in and out of bed too. Again, you could probably get by with a nurse, but I know I would prefer MH help.
If you're interested I have both birth stories on my blog.
GL!
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They gave me an epidural once I was in the operating room. At that point I was already in labor (water had broken) and with the painful contractions I hardly felt a thing while getting it. They also gave me a low dose of morphine for it's calming effect and for the pain immediately after.
The scrub nurse had given me a great run down of the procedure a few weeks before (we knew I'd have a CS because baby A was breech). It was so helpful to know what was going on, and about how long each step would take. It's all a blur now or else I'd tell you more... but when you talk to your doc get the specifics of what to expect time wise, who will be in the room when, and so on.
It's weird because you can feel them pulling and pushing things around, but it doesn't hurt. I was surprised by how much it felt like they were yanking on things. Also, they strap you down which was a little unsettling, but is for safety.
that was a lot of great info, thanks!
Peeing after a catheter is always an "interesting" experience.
Drink PLENTY of water and LOAD up on fiber rich fruits and vegetables for DAYS leading up to the surgery. Day of post-op take any bowel movement inducing stuff they'll give you.
Get up and WALK as early as you can afterward.
They won't break your water until you're surgically open and they have to get to the baby. It's not like a vaginal rupturing of the membranes.
Take your meds on time, do not wait for the pain to start in. Do this for the first 24 hours, then see how things start to feel.
Get a compression girdle -- it will help with passing gas. You NEED TO FART!! Fart here, fart there, everywhere a fart, fart. Seriously, it doesn't matter who's in your presence at the time. Gas pains are monumentally worse when you hold it in after a c-section. When you're open it allows gas into your abdomen. You're farting that out. Go with the flow...
You get a spinal block... you're getting stabbed in the back and you'll lose all feeling from your neck down. It's eery trying to breathe with that feeling. It's almost like there's a ton of pressure on your chest.
Some people (OK many people) report tugging and pulling. I don't remember all of that.
Have your DH talk to you... He won't be allowed in during the spinal. As soon as it's placed and you're laid down, they'll invite him in. Have him talk about THE most mundane crap. Let him know his job is to distract you for the entirety of the procedure. We talked about DH's job for crying out loud. I had to keep my mind occupied.
I got a morphine kicker in my epidural. It made my vomit, but I was absolutely pain free the entire time I was recovering. It was amazing.
You can request that the baby never leave you; some hospitals allow you to be wheeled into recovery with your baby.
If you have DH stay with you in your recovery suite, he can pick baby up and bring himher to you when you need to BF. It's nice to be able to stay still for the smaller things. Although, like I said... get up and walk as soon as possible.
No problem. If you have any other questions I would be happy to help if I can.
*My Blog*
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At the time of my first C/S I was actually taking daily medication to manage anxiety. I was not in a good place on the OR table the first time. They had DS out very quickly (DD too. It just doesn't take very long to actually get baby out) and as soon as he was out the anesthesiologist gave me something for my anxiety. I will say, it helped with that. It also made me extremely out of it and I lost memory of a short period of time. I didn't have the same thing this time around (I'm not longer on medication for anxiety. It still creeps up, but I'm able to control it through deep breathing essentially.). I did discuss it with the anesthesiologist beforehand though and they said they could give me something after baby was out if I wanted it.
I will say, I felt very anxious while on the table. It's not a good feeling. My arms were free this time, which I very much preferred, but I'm going to be honest with you, your body is still strapped down, you are numb from the chest down, you're hooked up to all sorts of monitors, and they have a cloth hanging right in front of your face. It is what it is and it's just not a good feeling. If I were you I would make sure you know what to expect and when there just keep telling yourself that it will be over soon and think about your baby. That's what I did. Over and over again I just kept telling myself we were almost at the end of this journey and I was going to hold my baby in just minutes. Then, once she was out and on my chest I was too happy to worry about the other stuff.
*My Blog*
10/50 Read
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I've had 2 C-sections and was not strapped down for either nor did I feel like I couldn't breathe.
First was an emergency after 12 hours of labor, 4 hours of pushing and baby being stuck. I already had an epidural so they just gave me a booster and sent me in to surgery. C-section was fine, I was so exhausted that as soon as I heard DS1 cry I fell asleep and woke up on my way to recovery. I ended up with an internal infection that landed me in the hospital for 6 days total with IV antibiotics but it really wasn't that bad. I was up walking the day after and aside from being a bit sore and it hurting to sneeze, it wasn't that bad.
Second was planned for 39w6d and was a breeze. I checked in, they gave me 2 bags of IV fluids and wheeled me back to the OR. I got a spinal but wasn't numb from my neck down...I would say rib cage down. I was nauseous when they laid me back but not surprising because I was on Zofran the entire pregnancy. Once they put some Zofran in my IV, I was good to go. I felt no pulling, tugging and didn't have difficulty breathing. Baby was out in about 10 minutes then I fell asleep again. DH went with DS2 to the nursery for measurements and such but they would have allowed him to stay with me had I been awake. I was in my room and holding DS2 within 45 minutes of him being born. Took probably 5 hours for the feeling to return to my legs.
After my second C-section, my nose itched SO bad that I ended up rubbing it raw. Apparently this is a common reaction for some people to duramorph that was put in my spinal to help with pain.
Walk, walk, walk as much and as soon as they will let you. I had to pass gas before I was allowed anything other than a liquid diet and walking helps. Also, with my first, I ended up with AWFUL pain in my shoulder that was referred gas pains. DH stayed in the hospital with me each night because my parents were visiting to stay with DS2. My mom or MIL stayed with me each night with DS1 because DH was deployed. I needed the help because getting out of bed took me awhile and I hated to hear them fuss/cry long enough for me to get up. Also, at the hospital I had DS2 in, I wasn't allowed to have the baby in my room without another adult.
After each surgery, I had to wear compression boots on my legs to help prevent blood clots. I had them for 24 hours with DS1 (able to take them off if I was up and moving around) and about 8 hours with DS2 (I was up walking a LOT trying to get the gas moving so I could eat some real food).
Good luck!
I've had three, went into labor three times as well.
For DD1, I went into labor, my water broke and I made it to 6 plus cm but her heartrate kept going down during contractions so I was rushed for a C-Section. That entire situation was a surreal experience because everything happened so quickly. '
With DD2, I went into labor again two days prior to my scheduled C-sec date. Because I wasn't an emergency, I kept getting bumped from the OR. I made it to 4 cm before they took me back. It was a completely different situation than the first. I had a epidural w/DD1 but w/DD2 & 3 they did a spinal. While c-section one when I was wheeled into the OR everyone was already there. prepped and ready to go. Whereas with DD2, there were only two nurses in the OR when I walked in. Casually all the other docs & nurses made there way in.
With DD3, again I went into labor on my own, but when we got to the hospital we literally were the only people in Labor & Dellivery triage. From the time I got to the hospital to the time I delivered, it was less than 2 hours!
My .02
1. Take the pain meds. There's no reason to be a hero. They help.
2. Take the stool softeners. Stay away from binding food and load up on the "p" fruits- plums, pears, peaches, prunes (I know). With DD2, I didn't have a BM and the nurses were threatening an enema. With DD3, I popped those stool softeners and had no issues.
3. Let the nurses help. I thought I had to do everything by myself since I was the mom. I roomed in and was crazy w/the first two about doing it all. With DD3, the nurse told me the first night that they were taking her for a few hours so I could rest. It was awesome to sleep w/o worry. They brought her back to nurse, and then took her again the first two nights. I swear that helped w. my recovery.
4. Get up and walk. I know others mentioned it, but do it! It honestly helps to move as much as you can.
5. Stay hydrated!
I should add, my third c-section was my easiest and best recovery! I think because I finally just relaxed and gave up the martyr complex I have!
I didn't even know I was strapped down until a friend mentioned being freaked out by it about a year later. I had to ask DH about it. I did always wonder how I didn't shake off the table.
Also, gas pains are NO JOKE. I had them in my shoulder!! Worst pain ever.
I have had two.
When you go to get up use a blanket or towel folded up to press into your incision. It sounds weird but it holds you together and hurts worse.
Gas is the worst so stock up on gas x
I was rushed out of the hospital csection Thurs 11:30 p and discharged Sat 4p and that was my biggest problem. Stay on top of the meds, drink lots of water, and walk! Also, checking out the csection board here helped me with my pp experience.
I know it is terrible to think about, but in reality a planned cesrean is easy peasy. I did all care for my LO right away. They break your water once they make an incision into your uterus. Mine exploded everywhere and the nurses had fun cleaning up my bloody legs post op
I would have hubby at the hospital every night, but that is just me. GBS isn't much different for you as a patient- they will give you antibiotics for the c section anyway.
I felt good enough to stop and shop with my newborn and husband on my way home from the hospital. I chose to stay "just" 3 nights last time (they wanted me to stay four) and next time I will only stay 2 nights. 3 was far too muc. Good luck!
My Ovulation Chart
I had an emergency cesarean. 50+ hours of laboring at home, went to the hospital, my water broke when I vomited and I was induced. I was given an epidural and finally slept a nice 6 hours which was heaven. However, I could not get past 4 cm and she was not dropping. This is going to sound terrible, but since I was so swollen down there and exhausted, I was beyond excited when they told me I would have to have a c-section.
I felt a lot of pulling but nothing horrible. They held her next to me cheek for a bit. They did not let my husband cut the cord. I have claustrophobia and RLS, I was fine during the surgery until they were putting me back together. Then I became aware of the fact that I couldn't move my legs. This was the only part that really bugged the crap out of me. My feeling did not come back for about a hour and I was in a panic the whole time trying to move my legs.
They wheeled me into the recovery move and they were amazed about how I effortlessly I moved into the bed. I wanted my daughter immediately and I was able to nurse her without any problems.
I guess to sum it all up, I had a pretty easy recovery. I was up and moving around in no time. I HATED the catheter and the IV, but other then that it wasn't all bad. Use the spirometer if they give you one, that is very important. Also use the binder to help you get out of bed. Take the pain medication when you feel like you are hurting, ask for medication when you start to feel sick.....
I have had one vaginal delivery and one C-section, and if I were ever to have another baby I would absolutely do a repeat C-section. With my oldest son, I was in labor for 27 hours. It took forever for me to progress past 2 centimeters, the Pitocin had me digging my skin off, and I ended up with 4th degree tears and a million stitches. His head was enormous, and they ended up having to use the vacuum because he was stuck on my pelvic bone. It was horrible. My OB was worried about permanent damage with another delivery like that, so she strongly suggested the C-section. I LOVED it. You go in, get your meds, and the next thing you know- here's your baby.
I doubt that being strapped down will bother you, because your body is pretty much numb. I don't even remember noticing it, and I have issues with clausterphobia, etc too. I also felt like the recovery was a lot easier, but I also had an unusually brutal first experience.
Logically I know that. Emotionally it just feels like one more issue. This hasn't been an easy pregnancy (but then neither was my first!)
I had a planned c/s, it was so easy and quite pleasant. I went in at 5:30am and went back to the operating room around 7:20am. They gave me a spinal and then I had to hurry and lay down. The procedure did not take very long, my son was born at 7:57. I felt pulling and tugging, but I was not in pain or uncomfortable at all. I did have a drop in my blood pressure and felt a little nauseous, she gave me some meds and it worked in seconds. I was up walking right after the epidural wore off. I never took any pain meds, never felt like I needed them. Also, I didn't want it going to my son through breast milk. My son stayed with me the whole time. We stayed 4 days.
Overall, great experience. Hopefully yours goes smoothly.
The worst of it was probably when they were administering the anesthesia, it was uncomfortable as they are inserting a needle into your back. But soon after my legs went numb and I felt nothing! Not even tugging or anything like they said I might.
They had music playing, all the drs and nurses were chatting and it was like a party going in in there. I had a nurse who stayed beside me the whole time telling me what was happening, and my husband was on my other side. I asked if they had started to cut me open yet and the nurse said oh yes, they are just about to take the baby out! And then she was out and my H brought her to me. A few minutes later she was whisked away to get a bath and all the tests and I got stitched up.
My H met me back up in my room with the baby and the nurse helped me nurse her. I have to say that I loved having the catheter in cause all I wanted to do was lie in bed all day. I was really sick from the anesthesia so that entire first day I was throwing up and was dizzy. Not fun. That night they made me stand up and sit in a chair in the room.
The next day I felt so much better but I couldn't take the pain killers as they also were making me sick. So for many hours I was not on painkillers and surprisingly it was not terrible. They took out my catheter in the morning and I didn't even feel it. Then they got me up and by lunch I was walking all the way down to the nursery on my own. LO had jaundice so she was under the lights in the nursery. My H had to work that night so I walked back and forth from my room to the nursery and pushed LO back in her bed so I could nurse her in my room.
I felt a bit more pain that night so they gave me a different pain killer to try.
I went home the next day so I only spent 2 nights in the hospital. My H stayed home each night as we have pets that need to be looked after. LO stayed in the nursery and they brought her to me during the night when she needed to be fed.
Once I got home I pretty much resumed my normal life. I had to take it easy of course but I felt good. I started driving at 1 week post op and went to get groceries by myself. I so badly needed to get out of the house alone!
When LO was 4 days old my H and I took her to run errands, shopping and out for dinner.
My biggest piece of advice which I think helped me tremendously: get one of those belly wrap things. They gave me one at the hospital and I wore that thing for 3 weeks straight. I swear it helped me shrink my tummy fast. I also felt a lot less pain when I wore it. It kind of held everything in and together.