After A Caesar - How Much Help Did You Need In The Hospital?

[fionas]

24 hours. I know it's normally less. I have SPD which means my pelvis needs the extra rest time. Given that it took me 18 months to recover from the birth last time, believe me, I'll be following my physio's advice TO THE LETTER.

[wysiwyg]

After my c/s I didn't have my DH with me at all he had to leave after had seen me back in ward as had to work next day and DD born at midnight - the nurses helped me with everything (there were three of us in a room so they were in and out all the time) and I very rarely had to wait long (although after first 18 hours I could do most stuff myself). DD just kept in bed with me alot of time anyway so didn't have to worry about the lifting of her in and out of the bassinet next to the bed. I was in hospital 5 days and DH only came in a couple of hours after work each day, I so looked forward to his visits but I am not sure what he would have 'done' if he had been there more and it gave me loads of rest time.

[Jandals]

Hi Fiona. Just wanted to let you know that for the first 12 or 24 hours (can't remember which sorry) after my c/s I had obs done every hour. I assume this is standard as I didn't have any major complications - just very low blood pressure. It would mean you probably wouldn't have to buzz too much to start with as there should be a midwife checking on you all the time any way. I was worried about the same thing as my DH wasn't able to be there much as he had DD to look after. He was really only there for a few hours during the middle of the day. The only time it was a problem was the first night when DS had a big mucous vomit and was choking and I buzzed but no-one came I ended up grabbing him myself but it was pretty sore. My bed moved up and down and had the adjustable bed head so I could kinda grab him if I put the bed high enough but it wasn't the best thing to do as I had to twist and that action does hurt to begin with. I had DS on me a lot but I was always a bit worried about holding him just after I'd been given my pain meds as I got so drowsy so I would buzz the midwife then if I needed to.

I went home on day 3 and it was so much easier to be at home but if you're still feeling quite sore I recommend asking the dr to send you home with a script for some decent pain relief. I only needed it the first night home but I would have been miserable without it - I have a friend who went home and only had panadol/nurofen and she was in serious pain that first night.

If you're bed-bound for the first 24 hours I would also suggest that you try and lie flat as much as possible to stretch out your tummy so it doesn't 'seize' up in sitting position. I think that will make it easier for you once you do get up. It can be a bit scary straightening up!

And I don't know if this helps but, the thought of a c/s and the recovery was a lot worse for me than the reality. Good luck hon

[feeb]

Up and moving 12 hrs after a cs is the norm as you need to get moving to avoid DVT.

Most woman need help up to the shower and once up are ok.

First 12 hrs you will need help, buzz the mw that's what they are there for to help!! They know that after a cs woman are stuck in bed and don't like feeling helpless.

After I was up I showered then bathed baby and was doing eveything for myself. You are different as you have SPD severly but you still need to get up and do things for you and your baby. They will not be asking you to walk a marathon but to get out of bed to change baby, etc is not to much giving that you can lie in bed to feed etc.

[didispunk]

OH ya i forgot about DVT they are concerned about that as well. I changed baby on the bed while i was sitting there etc, that was not hard to do as I was trying to do as much as I can to help the MW and Doc etc and bond with baby!

[fionas]

You are different as you have SPD severly but you still need to get up and do things for you and your baby. They will not be asking you to walk a marathon but to get out of bed to change baby, etc is not to much giving that you can lie in bed to feed etc.

I'm really not interested in debating whether my physio is right or wrong about the 24 hours thing. Naturally, I will have another conversation with her before the caesar and see what's OK and what's not but I won't be taking advice from well-meaning people who just happen to have had caesars themselves but know nothing of my own medical background.

Wysiwyg and Jandals - that's all very encouraging, thank you!

[didispunk]

Fionas only trying to give advicee on the name of the tread
"After A Caesar - How Much Help Did You Need In The Hospital?"

Feeb is a MW, so I guess her taking care of others in hospital with bad bad bed rested SPD just giving you some advice on her experiences with other patients with worse SPD or just really bad.

As its MW in there caring for you.

[fionas]

The midwives in hospital last time didn't have a clue about SPD - I don't know whether feeb does or not. That's why I'll primarily be taking the advice of my physio who has treated thousands of women with SPD.

[feeb]

Lots of woman have it, I had it worse in my 1st preg than my 2nd.

MW work with physios and other allied health professionals ALL the time we refer woman too then for various things, its called collaborative care.

If physio writes a managment care it will be followed, when woman have SPD physio's generally should give them or place in history positions for birthing that will not further aggrivate there pelvis

[fionas]

Like I said, I will check with my physio but despite what you've said feeb, I'm not convinced that the condition is widely understood by the midwifery or obstetric, for that matter, profession. It took me 18 months to recover from my first birth and if you've read any of my previous threads on SPD you will know the impact this has had on my life, relationships, finances and choice of where to live.

I trust my physio - I will primarily be taking her advice, not anyone else's on 'how long' before I can do this or that.

[Janie]

Fiona, I was up and having a shower about 16 hours after my c/s. It wasn't so much that I was sore (still numb, and doped up ) I just literally couldn't move well, at all. I managed to shuffle into the shower, then sat down on the stool to wash. I couldn't dress myself, DH had to do it for me (well, bottom half) and I ended up using a wheelchair to get to SCN once I was dressed and ready. I didn't use it to go back to my room though just took it slowly. So yeah, it probably was about 24 hours until I could manage okay on my own. And even then, it was still pretty slow for another couple of days.

Good luck, it's not an easy situation you're in. I hope your DH can be there AMAP, but if not BUZZ BUZZ BUZZ! That's what they're there for, do NOT feel bad

[Beatrix]

Isnt SPD a pg related condition?

therefor MW will pretty much be in the know about how its cared for since they treat pg women?

I know even after natural births (SPD in last pg) the MW were great with me.. told me to rest up and def no marathons for the first 24hrs lol .. but i was required to walk to and from toilet and shower and one step to the cot next to my bed was ok, other then that they told me to lay back and relax.. so cant see why specially after CS things would be too different

[fionas]

Isnt SPD a pg related condition?

therefor MW will pretty much be in the know about how its cared for since they treat pg women?

I know even after natural births (SPD in last pg) the MW were great with me.. told me to rest up and def no marathons for the first 24hrs lol .. but i was required to walk to and from toilet and shower and one step to the cot next to my bed was ok, other then that they told me to lay back and relax.. so cant see why specially after CS things would be too different

That's great but that wasn't my experience last time and no, the midwives I had did not seem to know much about SPD. It was three years ago so things may have changed.

[Mother Goose]

Fiona - is your physio affiliated with the hospital you are birthing at? Or does she know a good one at the hossy who knows about SPD? Considering the severity of your condition, I'd probably be inclined to only get out of bed (the first time) with them present so they can assess how you're doing and what you're going to need. An OT (occupational therapy) assessment might also be in order - especially for home on the off chance you haven't already had one. When a hospital does the OT home assessment, they can often provide you equipment for home at little to no cost as well as organise any home help.

I know it's stressful and frustrating but I think you're probably going to have to wait and see how you go. No two people are the same, so no two people will have the same recovery. There are "guidelines" for when they will want you up and what they want you to do - but guidelines are just that, guidelines.

You originally asked how much help people needed - it is going to depend on several things for you. How sore you are after the surgery, the abdominal incision may make it painful for you to lift your shoulders off the bed to reach for baby - but you won't know until you try.
You won't know how easy or difficult it is going to be to pick baby up from the crib until you try.
You're not going to know how difficult it is to roll in bed, or stand or walk...until you try.

I know you don't like to be dependent on others - but you're in hospital because you need to be. If you could have that recovery at home, you would be at home! Use the nurses as much as you need to and don't give it a second thought. You and your babies needs are what's important - sure there are other patients but if you don't ask for the help, the staff won't know you need it and so you won't get it. Pride recovers a lot quicker than SPD and major abdominal surgery

I hope things work out with a carer for DD.

MG

[Jandals]

At the risk of getting caught in the cross-fire... I think Fiona made it pretty clear earlier on in this thread that the length of time she had to spend in bed wasn't up for discussion. What she was looking for was comment on whether she would manage without her DH over the first 24 hours or so - I think

As far as I understand there are plenty of exercises you can do while still in bed to help with DVT that won't separate your pubic bones, which I'm sure your physio will go over before your c/s. There must be loads of women that are not able to get up after 12 hours and therefore you would hope that you won't be pressured with scare tactics to get moving too early. At the end of the day it's irrelevant how many other women have SPD - what's important is that you feel you will have the care you need while in hospital. Hopefully your physio will make it clear in your notes what needs to be done. All the best. I'll be looking out for you birth notice

[fionas]

Thanks MG - that makes a lot of sense! I had a choice of Freemasons or St V's. Went with Freemasons last time and had an awful experience so went with St V's this time. Subsequently found out that my physio is affiliated with Freemasons but not yet with St V's. Typical!I could probably arrange for her to come in though I would think and do an assessment?

I'm actually not expecting to be too bad, it's just a bummer that I'm trying to balance my reluctance to be reliant on strangers with my reluctance to leave DD with strangers. If this were my first baby, there would be no issue. DP would just stay the night and that would be that.

Thanks for all that info. I think I'll just look into hiring a nanny for that first night so that DP can stay if I need him. DD is pretty adaptable - she walks into new situations with absolute ease and she understands more each day. So I'm sure if I arrange someone who can babysit a couple of times before I have DD2, all will be fine. Just still don't like the idea of it IYKWIM.

[AnyDream]

Yeah, like Janie, I was pretty much on a very slow shuffle for the first 2-3 days. I needed help to shower and I was a bit wobbly going to the toilet on that first day out of bed. Mind you I had a bit of a rough landing pain-wise after the surgery and I really rode the PCA button overnight, so perhaps it was the after effects of the drugs as well.

I had my CS around 2 in the afternoon, so 12 hours later would've been in the middle of the night??! It was late morning before they got me up and I went all of a metre, if that. I agree with MG, if you need to buzz that button, do it. I wanted DH there because of the experience I had with DD1, when for reasons I still don't understand, there were several occasions when I really needed help and the staff just literally *never* came. I wasn't about to risk that again, plus I was scared about how debilitated the actual surgery would leave me. It's a big thing, giving birth and having surgery all in one hit, but for the staff it's just a normal routine thing. So you need to speak up and be very specific about the help you need. I discovered after my last surgery when I was in bed for 2 full days, some nurses are fantastic, they come in and look around and think about what you need and just do it for you. Others are clueless and will happily leave without checking basic things like do you have a drink, or if you need the light turned off at bedtime. So if it looks like you can't roganise to have DP there, then you just need to ask for the help you need. Not easy when you're used to being so self-sufficient and managing by yourself even in extreme circumstances - but that's what those nurses are there for.

[Mother Goose]

Fiona - if your physio isn't affiliated with the hospital, it is going to be difficult... encourage her to get affiliated!

Re: DVT's - don't stress. There are exercises you can do in bed but there is also medication and TED stockings

Now, I know how independent you like to be but here is what I'm going to say. And don't just say no because I wouldn't put this offer on the table if it wasn't doable for me or genuine... I work VERY close to where you are going. VERY VERY CLOSE. I am more than happy to pop over before/after shift and help you with bubs. I'll sit quietly in the corner and do what you'd ask DH to do if he can't be there. If, by chance, you are birthing on a Tuesday, you can have me all day because I don't work Tuesday's If you just want someone to hang so DH can go home and feed DD and get her into bed, that's fine too. With a bit of co-ordination, I can get a shift that will allow us to work out what's best for you. I birthed at St V's and am fully aware of how they work so if you say no and then change you're mind, it's not an issue. You can have my mobile and just SMS or call. Honestly, I work scarily close In fact, you'll probably have prime view of where I park my car!