Caesarean section experiences

milliebear00001

I had an EmCS with my first, andd found that one much more difficult to recover from. Partly the shock of having a baby, the fact she was so big and hard to lift, plus difficult to move around/walk. The pain was worse with this one, although I got by with codeine. Second was a planned section. No probs with the op except I lost a lot of blood (was threatened with a transfusion, but my iron count rose quickly so didn't need to in the end). I was on my feet with catheter out by the evening (op in the morning) and went for a shower the next day. I had almost no pain the second time and didn't need any pain relief at all (this is unusual and there were women on the same ward crying for morphine).

Both babies came out screaming immediately and were immediately shown to me, then given to dad to hold while they stitched me up. I wasn't apart from them for a second, except for their Apgar check etc. I fed my second in the recovery room without any problems. My first was much sleepier (possibly because of the drugs during the labour).

Like vaginal births, sections are very different experiences for different women. You won't know what yours will be until you get there. Good luck!

P.S. I drove 100 miles to an important college interview two weeks after my second section, and was fine. You need to get permission to drive from your insurance company, who normally say 'if your doctor is happy then so are we'.

Oh yes, and after the birth it can be hard to care for your baby, which is frustrating. I often had to wait for somebody to come and pass me my first because I couldn't get out of bed to lift her. That was very frustrating. I didn't have any problems caring for my second because I was much more mobile.

I was in hospital for three days with my first and two days with my second. I had to quote the NICE guidelines at the staff after my second though, as they wanted me to stay an extra night.