At this stage I'm thinking it will be lovely to have a week in hospital with my new bub, meals served, and plenty of rest time...and apparently they use "do not disturb" door signs and screen your phone calls if you want. Bliss. However I will miss hubby and my kids very much and will hang out for their visits!
I think each hospital has its own policy. It will depend on whether the wound gets infected, too, and what sort of post-operative care you need. I was in for 5 nights with my daughter, then 7 nights with my son (I was actually discharged after 1 night and re-admitted to a different hospital for a maximum allowed stay which was a further 6 nights, due to his major health challenges).
After Samantha I was in for ten days(medical reasons)
Jareth until the stitches came out.
Xander the next day.
My first 2 were at Manly hospital where you're surrounded by bush and ocean, all the rooms open to outside and the staff are just wonderful, so I was quite happy to stay. Xander was born at Dubbo which is fully enclosed, climate controlled and the staff aren't the most caring so I signed myself out and just went into Wellington hospital when it was time to have the staples removed.
I went home on day 6. I really wanted to go home on Day 5 and asked ob about going home and he just said that it's best to stay for 5 days. I didnt push it. I have heard something about the first 5 days being when most of the complications of c-sections come out. After day 5 infection etc is rare. Dont know though. The midwives continued to take my temp each day unti I left. I had the one long stitch done (which I recommend if having a c-section) and that came out on day 5.
I certainly dont like that the idea of being encouragd to leave on the DAY of surgery, as has been mentioned!!!!
I trust the qualified medical staff members advice to stay for at least 3 days.
Last edited by EllyBoo72; August 9th, 2007 at 11:36 PM.
I went home after 3 nights.
I wanted to be in my own bed where I could be comfy and get a good night's sleep cuddled up next to my baby.
I had midwives visiting me at home but they only made a few visits because DH was a fabulous nurse (bless him) and we were coping ok once we got over the first BF hurdles.
My hospital had a 5 day average but you could leave earlier if your Ob signed you out. My Ob has a strict 5 day minimum rule. I was furious at the way I was treated by hospital staff and wanted to go home on day 3. DH convinced me to stay because he knew I really needed to be there. Next time I'll be going to a different hospital, different Ob, and organising help for at home so I can get out as quick as possible! But I also missed the "meals on wheels"!
I left on day 5 (the day of surgery was counted as day 1), which was the hospital policy following c/s. They did offer an early discharge program, where you could go home 48-72 hrs after your c/s and have a few midwife visits from the Blue Nurses. Before Jambin was born, we were planning to take advantage of the early discharge program, whether he was vaginally delivered or c/s, but as it turns out I wasn't nearly well enough to leave that early and it didn't enter my mind at the time.
I ended up having complications after my c/s (an internal stitch tore through my abdominal muscle and rested on the nerve to my right leg) so I couldn't walk or place any weight on my right leg and was in extreme pain and taking morphine. They recommended that I stay an extra 2 days (i.e. 7 days total), but when I told them I was desperate to go home they agreed to discharge me on day 5 with a supply of pain relief medications, a wheelchair, and a shower/toilet frame.
I don't know what the policy is at John Hunter where I delivered but I happily stayed until they kicked me out on day 8.
My baby was in NICU and I'm not from newcastle so I think they let me stay a bit longer than usual, and as long as they did not need the bed. (I had my own room and they let DP stay with me too!!)
I stayed a full week at the John Hunter, mostly because, like August, I had a baby in NICU and I had a private room. They told me I could stay longer as a "boarder" if I wanted, but we live in town so I didn't need to. It was my 2nd c/sec and I felt good enough to go home after 3 days. I'm sure I could have discharged at that point, or gone home AMA if I had wanted to. I didn't because:
1) The easy NICU access was important
2) everyone else in the family was sick
3) I had an 20 month old who wanted to be picked up
After my first caesarean, first baby, I was discharged at 3 days--delivered Thursday pm, home on Sunday morning. This was not long enough. After my second c/sec, I could tell the next day that I felt much better than after the first one--ironic that I needed to stay for other reasons!
It should be based on your own comfort level--physical and psychological--and you don't always know in advance how you will feel. I think it's important to be flexible, both ways.
When I had my kids (both C's) I had to wait till the stiches were ready to come out which was 5 days. I had my first at the Royal North Shore private in Sydney emergency C and had a running stitch then with my dd I had her in Darwin at the Darwin Private and had staples. Both times I was there for 5 days 6 nights. I remember asking if I could go home early with my second but the dr wanted me to walk the stairs at the hospital before letting me go (we had stairs at home).
WEll I am like the one night stayer! With my first c-section they kept hinting that they were running out of beds and that I could have the house midwives come visit daily for a week and so I left the next day. OMG it was sooooooooooo painful trying to walk down all the way through the coradoors to the taxi, I thought my tummy was going to fall out. And they never even offered me a wheel chair damn them!
Second c-section which was five months and they did the same again, I had him at 12.oopm and they kicked me out the very next morning at 11.00am but thank god the pain was no where near as bad as the first time around. Again no offer of a wheel chair thugh. They are pigs at that hospital, more like a backyard shack.
I would suggest to stay for at least 3 days sweetie of not more, its major surgery and the body needs time to heal.
OMG! I couldn't imagine walking all the way down the hall and to the car after just 1 night and they didn't even give you a wheel chair, that's appaling! you poor thing I'm stunned what kind of hospital is this?
Tiff its a hospital on the central coast need I say more! The midwives all sat behind the counter watching me barley able to take a step, and not one of them offered a wheel chair to me. I will never forget that pain, it was excrusitating. And my legs were massive from swelling omg I was so imbarrest, and to try and swing my legs to get into the taxi wholy cow I culd have busted all the staples in my tummy, not to mention when I had a home visit two days later, I stood up to go lay on my bed for the midwife to look at my healing and I got a massive pool of blood pour out of me, it was like I was weeing and could not stop it. She just said oh dear!
i left after i had a c-section the next day so 24 hours, it was basically because i was really unstable mentally and i didn't have one empathetic nurse, i was crying hysterically and the charge nurse (old bag) came in and said if you want to go we can't stop you, so i left i was told to wait in the day room with my baby while my DH went to get car seat sobbing while everyone walking past was staring at me. they were cleaning my room for the next patient. it was at mitcham private hospital and i hated it. i was much better at home with my family around me looking after me and i could have pain relief when i needed it.
remembering this is surprisingly hard, i think i just don't think about it as it was such a horrible time. i think i was in shock after having 2 natural vaginal births with no intervention at all and then to end up with a c-section was such a big surprise.
beckles
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