Scared but starting to accept it

[Elizabean]

So this whole pregnancy I knew I would be induced and I was OK with that. This week my doctor said I really should be considering a c section due to the large size of my baby. To be honest the thought terrifies me as I have never had any kind of surgery so it seems like a massive deal.
But after talking it through with dh, speaking to a few people and reading all of your stories here I'm starting to feel like this may be something I can do. Did anyone else feel like this to begin with and end up having a positive experience?

 

[sethsmummy]

hey hun i just wanted to say that you could birth a big baby. I think they try to scare woman whos babies look "larger". my sister had 3 babies 10lb and over. then again sometimes they can be wrong too... i was told ds1 was going to be 9lbish and he was born almost a week late at 5lb 14oz

as for the section.. a planned section hun is fabulous! i had one for ds2 and i loved it.

what are your biggest concerns?

 

[Elizabean]

Thanks for that, my doctor said the size guesses can be off- in his words "imagine if I said to you I could estimate your weight based on the length of your leg and the circumference of your head, you would think I was crazy!". I am pretty sure they are close to being correct here though as hubby and I both come from families that make HUGE babies!

I think the scariest part for me is the anticipation- I can be a worrier at times and having weeks to think about a planned date will probably churn me up inside. I think I just need to work out how to relax as I am on my way there and being booked in etc. I think once it is happening I will be ok. Did you get that or just excitement?

Another reason I am coming around to it is that I am a type 1 diabetic and my husband pointed out that it will be a lot less stressful on my body and we wont have to worry about my sugar levels as we would if I was in a long labor rather than a 1/2 hour procedure.

What did you find so positive about your planned section? And was your first bub a v birth or an unplanned c?

 

[ButterCup17]

After 30 hours of back labor I was sooo glad to finally have a c section! Over and done in no time at all!

 

[sethsmummy]

I had a bit of both hun, I was excited leading upto it.. then the night before I got really nervous and scared. The midwives were fantastic and 2 of them sat with me for over an hour the night before and answered every question i had and i felt a lot better. On the morning of the section i was just excited to get going lol. I loved the fact thati felt in control the whole time i knew nothing would go wrong. I had a "natural Section" where it was all done slowly and delayed cord clamping.

my first born was a v birth gone wrong. the whole labour was pretty traumatic for me with midwives/consultants who just didnt care. then it ended in going to theatre where they tried vontouse but failed and had to use foreceps. they damaged my son and they damaged me. I had severe problems with pain for 2 and a half years after his birth and still now get some pain while DTD because of the rough manner they handled me in. xx

 

[hopettc3]

My first daughter was breech so I had a scheduled c-section. The recovery is definitely longer than a vaginal birth, but it was way better than trying to delivery my baby butt first. I was planning for a vbac for my second but my little girl just didn't want to come out so I had an emergency c-section for my second. This time I am having another c-section and am glad I'll have a date set so I'll know when I need to have everything ready.

Good luck with your delivery!

 

[Elizabean]

Thank you all, that really helps. I'm going to keep lurking around here to see more stories to help me feel better!

 

[Ward]

Hi there.

I figured I'd share my story with you and try to ease your mind a bit.

I have 5 children. Four of them were vaginal births. My fifth was an emergency c-section that started out as a planned one. I had placenta previa and it didn't want to to go away.

Many ultrasounds later, they decided I would have my c-section around 38 weeks, but the morning after my 34th week appointment, I bled and ended up in an emergency situation.

I am grateful every day for the swift actions of the doctors. I feel like they saved my son's life and the c-section pain was nothing in comparison to knowing he was going to be okay.

The whole thing went pretty fast. I was out before I remember much. When I woke up, I had the shakes and was kind of a mess, but as soon as they wheeled me over to see him, things got better.

Did the healing process hurt? Yes. Much more than any of my vaginal births. It took six weeks to heal up well. The first week or two were the worst for the pain. After that, it wasn't that bad. It was mostly having to be careful of what I picked up and did, etc. because I didn't want to pop any stitches. lol

I had zero complications, healed like a champ and was back at work by the 8 week mark.

If it's something you can't avoid, don't be afraid to go through it. Just listen to your body and the doctors. Take care of yourself and you'll be fine.

If I got the choice, I'd choose the vaginal birth any day. Only because the recovery time for me was like nothing. Same for the pain. It was decent for a few days with each vaginal birth, but that quickly dwindled down to soreness and it wasn't long until I was back on my feet with each.

Hope my experience helps you. If you have any questions, feel free to ask.

 

[Melly Belly]

Hi! i am 3 weeks post c-section, it wasnt a planned one per say, but in the back of my mind i knew it would be a possibility...little girl was breech until about 38 weeks, but then at my 40 week appointment i was having contractions on and off, but no progress as far as dilation and effacement..my BP was higher than normal through my whole pregnancy, but at 40 weeks it was around 152/ something, so they sent me to be induced as the previous day there was protein in my urine (but not that day, weird!)...my plan was to have a normal birth still...around 4:30pm they came in and did my ampicillin (GBS positive at 36 weeks) and then did the dilation suppository near my cervix twice before starting the pitocin..my waters broke that night at 7:30pm on their own, they did another dilation pill the next day (i was around 3cm) and they managed through the day to get me to 6cm, but only through stretching manually..my cervix was soft and looking good, contractions were good (and the epidural was still good at that point) but baby did not want to move, hated it when they shifted me to lay on my right side (hb sped up) and wasnt moving down to the light, so my ob recommended the csection..once i signed the paperwork, they came in and got my hubby ready in his "monkey suit and hat" as they called it and we were taken to the surgical suite...it was over pretty quickly oncei was done throwing up the popsicles i had been allowed to eat, and our little girl greeted the world with a glare for everyone in the room

they stitched me up, the top layer they did dermabond and a mepilex silver dressing..and we were back to the l and d room for skin to skin time, baby's first feeding and boding with mommy and daddy..i was in the post partum ward at about 2am-ish...didnt have alot of pain, mostly was able to keep the edge off with ibuprofen until my second night, i had a weird experience that they called a vasovagal reflex, where when i went to have a movement, i got suddenly nauseuous..and then my incision hurt like the dickens and the offered stronger pain meds were welcome...ive been healing really well, had a small area where it looked to be a minor infection in the incision, but they put me on antibiotics and it seems to be cleared now...i will say it is important to be up and moving as you feel ok to do, but dont overdo it..i have to keep telling myself that i had major surgery and its OK to relax more than normal!

 

[Mrsb3]

Well, I gave birth naturally 11 months ago and let me tell you... I can't bloody wait to be given the go ahead for a c section this time around. I have my scan on Wednesday and I hope she is still breech. The thought that I may gave to give birth naturally again scares the crap out of me. It was a very traumatic experience I do not ever wish to re live.

 

[Elizabean]

Thank you for all of your different experiences and perspectives- I feel like it is not something that people often talk about so at first it all seemed like a big mystery to me!

I get that it can take longer to heal, but what is a few weeks of recovery in comparison to having my beautiful baby safe and well?

I'm feeling a lot more positive now!

 

[sethsmummy]

Thank you for all of your different experiences and perspectives- I feel like it is not something that people often talk about so at first it all seemed like a big mystery to me!

I get that it can take longer to heal, but what is a few weeks of recovery in comparison to having my beautiful baby safe and well?

I'm feeling a lot more positive now!

im glad your feeling better hun

I have to second melly belly get up and moving as soon as you can. as soon as you get on ward start wiggling your toes and feet.. and have a shower the morning after! makes you feel like a new woman!

Mrsb you should be able to request a section anyway. I was granted my section on the basis that my vaginal delivery with ds1 was very traumatic for me and took a long long time to get over.