Just how bad is recovery after a section?!

[SnowWhite90]

There is a possibility that I'll need to have a section, while the thoughts of surgery actually doesn't really frighten me, I am more concerned with the recovery?!

So just HOW bad is it?! I'm afraid I won't be able to look after baby and OH will have to take extra time of work to look after baby and me!!

Any advice would be great?! Thanks xx

 

[xloulabellex]

My friend had on on 22nd December.. she said she is still sore but can drive in a week or two.

She needs help with the feeds cos 1) she couldn't breastfeed so has to FFeed..and 2) She is "not allowed" to pick up a kettle.. so her OH has to be there for every feed.. which is ALOT because baby has/had jauntice so needs feeding every 3 hours.

She said it's not too bad.. just sore xxx

 

[Ashlee B x]

I no a few people who have had them so from their experiences, a few said they were really sore for a couple weeks and cudnt really pick up their LO's properly for a few days.

But a few have said they felt perfectly fine n was walkin around the next day.

As for not bein allowed to pick up a kettle, well thats a lil off key lol, ur not supposed to hoover or drive for about 6 weeks, but a kettle is perfectly fine lol it probly weighs less than a baby haha.

I wud jus much rather go thru the pain before baby comes than after but if i need it then so be it x

 

[xloulabellex]

I no a few people who have had them so from their experiences, a few said they were really sore for a couple weeks and cudnt really pick up their LO's properly for a few days.

But a few have said they felt perfectly fine n was walkin around the next day.

As for not bein allowed to pick up a kettle, well thats a lil off key lol, ur not supposed to hoover or drive for about 6 weeks, but a kettle is perfectly fine lol it probly weighs less than a baby haha.

I wud jus much rather go thru the pain before baby comes than after but if i need it then so be it x

Apparently she's not allowed to pick one up.. according to the MWs..

Either way, I don't like that hospital so won't be attending anyway

(fingers crossed.. providing no complications)

x

 

[Mamaof5soon]

I had one in March my first out of 4 births. It's not fun , my hubs took 2 weeks off but by the 1st week I could move pretty good and by two weeks I was taking all four by myself to baseball practices and doc visits...it's not the way I would want to deliver and my first three were natural with no pain Meds or epi's! Recovery is rough.

 

[SnowWhite90]

Midwifes eh?! Sometimes I am fully convinced they don't have a notion what they are talking about!! have gotten some really conflicting advice from them!!

Grrr ...

 

[lalitas charm]

I had a great recovery after my c-section. I was doing most housework within a week, I was driving after 3 and a half weeks Oh and I was mucking out horses after 3 weeks as well lol. I had no issues with BFing!! Yes it is sore but it wasn't that bad! I suspect the kettle comment is a bit of a blag on the part of your friend as nobody I know who had a c-section has been like that and this includes the 1 person I know who had bad complications (probably caused by her poor general health).

DD was a big baby and I had no issues picking her up, the only time I really felt in a bad way with it was when I was in hospital sleeping with the lights out and DD cried which made me jump up and yes that was a bit of a shock as I didn't know where I was or why I was sore for just a moment lol!! After that I slept with a lamp on until I got used to it all.

If you are going to have a c-section I would recommend that you get some big kidney warmer knickers which go right up to your boobs so they don't annoy your wound and also a changing station is a godsend

PM me if you have any questions

 

[Ashlee B x]

REally, a mw told her that. never heard that before haha.

Yes i have too, some say one thing, some say another soo confusing!!

But from what i gather youre pretty rough for upto 2 weeks, is that right? but then again ur foof is really sore for about a week, not as bad as a section tho mind lol. but im not gona completely diss it as u never no how anyone's birth is gona go lol

x

 

[xloulabellex]

Yep! Some are so overdramatic, and i've heard Poole hospital MWs ARE ridiculous sometimes lol!

If you think though babe... people sometimes ASK for C-Secs.. they've had them before and want them again..

They can't be THAT bad surely?

(like when we worry about labour.. then remember people often go on to have more children lol!) xxxx

 

[Mamaof5soon]

Mine was an emergency c section after a scary placental abruption, so AshleyB is very correct, you never know how your birth will go. I was planning a home birth which here in the US is not common. I believe everyone's pain tolerance is different and it also depends on your other obligations...other kids and so on. I don't understand people picking that as their preferred method of birth? But to each their own...

 

[SnowWhite90]

I had a great recovery after my c-section. I was doing most housework within a week, I was driving after 3 and a half weeks Oh and I was mucking out horses after 3 weeks as well lol. I had no issues with BFing!! Yes it is sore but it wasn't that bad! I suspect the kettle comment is a bit of a blag on the part of your friend as nobody I know who had a c-section has been like that and this includes the 1 person I know who had bad complications (probably caused by her poor general health).

DD was a big baby and I had no issues picking her up, the only time I really felt in a bad way with it was when I was in hospital sleeping with the lights out and DD cried which made me jump up and yes that was a bit of a shock as I didn't know where I was or why I was sore for just a moment lol!! After that I slept with a lamp on until I got used to it all.

If you are going to have a c-section I would recommend that you get some big kidney warmer knickers which go right up to your boobs so they don't annoy your wound and also a changing station is a godsend

PM me if you have any questions

Thank you so much for you reply!!

Its really reassuring to hear that you had a great recovery!!

I would of never though about the knickers, great tip! Thanks ... Bridget Jones eat your heart out eh?! hehe


xxxx

 

[twilliamssbt]

The kettle advice is actually true.

Women are also told the same after having a hysterectomy.

Its generally not down the weight, when you pick up a baby, you use 2 hands, pretty much all you should pick up is your baby. The reason is that you lift a kettle with one hand, if this causes a sudden pain in your uterus or abdomen where the stitches are, you will likely drop the kettle, which has boiling water in it, hence you will likely end up scalded.

I was always told to tel women this after a C Section when I was student midwife for 12 months years ago.

 

[Aero]

Everyone is different so it's hard to predict what you will feel if you have one. I had an emergency crash c-section just over a year ago.

The c-section itself was horrible (there wasn't any pain but I could feel everything they were doing) however the recovery was easy. I stopped taking the painkillers (and got told off repeatedly for doing so) on the day after because I had no pain whatsoever. My wound healed really well (and this is coming from someone who heals appallingly normally) and the dressing came off after 3 days with no issues. However I am left with a horrific scar, but I half expected this as I do tend to scar quite badly.

In terms of future pregnancies - with this pregnancy, I had about 2 weeks where there was a little bit of bearable pain around the scar on the "inside" when my bump first started growing but aside from that, it hasn't bothered me at all.

 

[ashlee23]

i had my baby by c-section on saturday and can honestly say i dont think a natural birth couldve been better, i would have another in a heartbeat. you will hear some awful stories and all i can think is i must be the luckiest person ever if any of what id heard is true. the surgery itself was painless, i felt a bit of pressure like someone pushing on my tummy, i had skin to skin pretty much straight away, i was up and walking with minimal pain the next morning and only on paracetemol, i was offered stronger painkillers but didnt feel they were necessary. picking up baby was fine, could lift her out of hospital cots which are pretty high the next morning too and was advised to do so by midwives and doctors. i had a shower the next day which was fine - only uncomfortable part was my dressing was really thick and soaked up loads of water lol. my scar is tiny and will be hidden under bikini line, although the big knickers advice is definitely essential! i got home after 2 days and am perfectly capable of looking after my little girl by myself. i feel no pain at all lifting her, although i set up my changing station and actually prefer changing her on a mat on the floor. and i am fine with a kettle i do get tired more easily so need to sit down if ive been up and moving around for more than about 45 mins. the only real pain i now feel is when i forget ive had surgery and try sit up quickly in bed or jump up off sofa without using my arms to assist me! official advice i was given in hospital is no lifting anything heavier than baby, try move as much as is comfortable and whilst walking with pram is good, no housework - hoovering etc for a couple of weeks and just to check my insurance for driving. if you need one dont worry, they can be fantastic! you just need to take things a bit easier but as others have mentioned any birth is unpredictable, a natural birth could be longer recovery! my friend delivered naturally and her recovery was far worse than mine xxx

 

[_Lexi_]

In regards to the driving after a c section, I used to work in insurance, please check with your car insurer that you're still covered. We were a broker and most companies we used, your insurance was invalid for 6 weeks after a c section as hospitals advise you not to drive. Same as if you usually wear glasses and crash when you're not wearing them, you won't be insured x

 

[BeachComber]

I will be having my 4th c-section in just a few short weeks. I can tell you from PLENTY of experience that c-sections are NOT that bad!

You will be pretty sore for the first week or so, but if you take things slowly like getting up from sitting, picking up LO, etc you will be just fine. Also you will be given good pain medicine which helps a lot so it's really not that bad.

After the first week, you will be able to move much easier and probably even drive. At least this was how things have gone in my case.

As for picking up a kettle, I was told to just not lift anything heavier than the baby. Also all of my babies so far, have been big, weighing at around the 9 pound mark and I have never had an issue with picking them up, OR nursing them through my recovery. There are lots of good comfy ways to deal with all of that if you are planning to nurse or if you just want to stay comfortable.

The very best thing you can do for yourself in recovery is to move around and get up out of bed as soon as possible, like by the following day. Just take things slowly and you will feel better just from moving around.

Anyway, just wanted to let you know that c-sections if they are needed, are not always as horrible as people will make them out to be.

 

[Macme]

Maybe ive been lucky but I've had 2 csections and recovered quickly and smoothly after both, my first was an emergency and my second i chose as I have also had a natural birth which ended in a third degree tear and that took a lot longer to recover from than either of my csections both physically and mentally, I'm having my fourth baby in April and will be having another section. I was doing most things after 2 weeks maybe a little more slowly than before but it wasn't too bad

 

[misshopefull]

I had no problems recovering from my c-section. It was uncomfortable for a while but I wasn't in terrible pain. I was up and about quickly. When ds was 2 weeks old we did a 6 hour car journey to visit my family. When ds was 3 weeks old OH went back to work and I was on my own with ds for 11 hours a day. Nobody came to help me and I managed fine.

This time I am having an elective c-section and have got help lined up for the first 5 weeks weeks [OH and my mum are taking time off work] but this is mainly to help with ds as he is only 3 x

 

[beanzz]

My mum had a section with my youngest brother, was out of hospital the next morning and because she already had 3 other kids just got on with life as normal straight away she was just a tad sore and wasn't allowed to drive.
As long as its not an emergency section then recovery should be alright you're gonna be sore from birth anyway no matter how baby gets here

 

[Nathyrra]

If you've had any type of surgery before then it wont feel much different to how you've recovered in the past. If it's your first, it may take a bit of getting used to.

Generally, you'll prolly not manage to get up at all the first day, second day will be painful, third day less so, and so on. By the fourth day I was feeling ok enough to get on and do things for the baby. By the beginning of your second week, it will feel much much easier. How long is your partner taking off for babys birth?