With my first I was allowed to stay up to 5 days post-op if I wanted, which I did because my baby was in the NICU so I wanted to stay as close to her as possible. I don't know what the requirement is though, I think it's based on how well you're doing. I don't think they let you go home the next day here, but I could be wrong? I personally couldn't imagine leaving that soon. And I think they want you to at least pass gas or poo before you can leave.
I needed help for a bit for the first two days, and I didn't know what I was doing and neither did my SO, when it came to cleaning myself, going to the bathroom, figuring out how to use the breast pump, etc, so I really liked that the nurses were always there to help me. I do think I could have gone home the third day though, I was able to walk around by then. I haven't really thought about how long to stay this time. If for some reason this baby has a NICU stay (I had sudden pre-e with my first and had her at 30 weeks... we are praying for a full term normal pregnancy this time!) I will stay as long as allowed. I know my parents would watch our dd and my SO will be able to stay home with her if needed. I guess if all goes as planned I will decide if I'm ready to go home by the third day.
I may be crazy but I enjoyed my hospital stay. I was there for 7 days (2 before delivery) Everyone was so extremely nice to me, maybe because of the situation? And although I was woken up every 2-3 hours for meds and blood pressure checks, I loved being taken care of, having food brought up to me for every meal (the food was good!) and of course just being downstairs from my baby in the NICU. Now with already having a toddler at home, I'm not sure how I will feel.
