Positive elective c/s stories??

[maz]

Im in totally agreeance...every one should be able to talk freely about their birth and no I dont see a difference between a tramatic c/s to vaginal birth - their both tramactic no end...but you wanted to know our positive feelings about c/s hon not births in general

There's an appropriate time and place to talk about things...we choose for ourselves when we can speak freely about anything so I would be using this after your great c/s hon

BTW I wanna know how awesome your c/s is afterwards to

[Jandals]

but you wanted to know our positive feelings about c/s hon not births in general

Exactly! I guess what I am trying to get at was I wasn't really sure why the comment about the need to be sensitive to others not-so-positive c/s stories was important in a thread specifically asking for positive c/s stories. There are lots of threads that are out there for women to debrief and to have their stories heard after a traumatic c/s. I wouldn't dream of asking for positive c/s stories in those threads because it would be highly insensitive, which is why I started this one, kwim?

FWIW, there is no part of me that thinks I'm quaranteed to get a wonderful positive c/s experience - I'm very aware of the risks of having a c/s and the possibility for things to go wrong. Up until now that's pretty much all I had heard. And at the risk of repeating myself that is the very reason I was seeking positive c/s stories. Does that make sense?

My rant about traumatic c/s vs traumatic VB was an attempt to show that I feel I am sensitive to others experiences but that that was not what this particular thread was about.

Maybe I misinterpreted the initial comment about the need to be sensitive to others that have had a negative c/s experience. I kinda assumed that something had been said in earlier posts that rufalina had read as being insensitive to prompt her to make that comment?

I'll totally be back to share my birth story - good or bad

[rufalina]

Sorry girls... nothing was said by anyone that i found insensitive... sorry hun... it was more a statement about my thoughts but not well phrased. I am suffering a bit of birth trauma myself, and feel quite sensitive about this topic atm... So sorry if I came across wrong...

of course we should be able to discuss our birthing options, and discus our sections openly and freely. And that is what this section of BB is for... And I am more than happy to do share my experience and help others. So again sorry I took us off topic.

Hun, good on you for educating yourself about your birth, and learning that there are positive section stories out there. I too, look forward to reading your birth story and hearing about your positive experience too.

Oh, another tip, make sure that you buy some big thick maternity pads, i think maybe the stayfree ones, you know HUGE fat surfboards. And big high waisted granny undies... You can then use the surfboards them to pad across the area of your scar by sticking them in your granny undies... It was one of the best tips I had. And make sure that you have some loose clothes for a bit that wont sit on your scar line... Wishing you all the best. xoxo

[Jandals]

rufalina - It's so easy for messages to be mixed when you're not standing in front of the person you're talking to! I was just worried that I had totally unintentionally said the wrong thing. I do have major baby brain atm so there's always a chance my posts are really confusing Your stories were great to read btw

I'm sorry to hear that you're suffering from some birth trauma. It's something I've had to try and get through from last time and I think it's something that will always be with us Mums. I guess it's now a part of who we are. For me, allowing myself to feel the emotions as they came up was a big part of my healing. I hope you are able to find peace soon

I'm all stocked up with super size pads! Might get a few extra thick ones though for the scar. Does the pad just stop the scar being bumped etc? Someone has suggested that firm fitting undies are good to help you feel 'held in'. What are you ladies thoughts on that?

Did any of you have problems with the air in your stomach after surgery? My bowels can be a bit temperamental and I'm a little worried about the abdominal pain after. I also had the horrible shoulder pains after I had my appendix removed as the air moved up. This was key-hole surgery though so not sure if that makes a difference?

[rufalina]

yep the the pads are just good cushioning... i used them till i got the staples out. they really help. dont forget that after giving birth you can get a bit bloated and i went up an undie size for a couple of weeks till the bloating want down. so i personally wouldnt have liked firm undies...

from my experience there was no gas in the belly... but with the opiat drugs i had a lot of issues getting things moving in that area, and asked for help. Maybe take some prune juice or dried fruit to get things moving. if it gets bad they can give you an enema but i think that is a last resort.

[melbel]

Defintely get the snug fit on the undies to make you feel held in...it made a huge difference to me. Don't laugh but I actually ended up wearing my mum's bonds cottontails full briefs as they were the only ones that were large enough and high waisted enough not to cut in across the belly which was a bit tender from all the poking and prodding. (new ones in th epacket still of course!!). they were a few sizes bigger than my usual size and being so high waisted were able to contain all the jelly belly quite well.....wore them for about ten days or so till the belly had deflated a bit and am now in some target brand full brief ones I had picked up in my normal size.
I didnt get any wind type abdominal pain at all.....Keyhole surgery has shocking wind pain associated with it because they actually blow you up with a gas so they can see what they are doing...have had that shoulder pain with laparoscopies but I think maybe because a C section is full open surgery you get less of that...maybe...not sure.....
I would also be taking a wheat bag as i found that helped hugely with various aspects of the pain after the first couple of days and greatly reduced my need for painkillers.

[briggsy's girl]

my c/s wasn't an elective as such - was deemed an emergency, but i made the call myself and it was an informed decision and all that stuff - it was just in the very early hours of the morning when an induction didn't work!

my c/s wasn't at all traumatic. i didn't feel like my "control" was taken away at all - i was heard in what i wanted, i was supported in what i wanted. i was even respected in not having the mask on during the surgery as i knew it would make me unwell

i had a fantastic team of people with me - my hubby, the midwife, that anaesthetist - they were there for me - they answered any questions i had before, during and after. i was kept informed every step of the way. the surgeon and registrar didn't say much to me, but i was ok with that - they were doing a job - that paed included DH from the outset - he was with DD while she was being checked etc.

i don't talk much about my c/s - i don't feel a need (and perhaps that's why you don't read much) - i don't need to debrief or ask for answers - i know what happened, i know why it happened. i am not at all traumatised by it. i guess, to me, it makes sense that you don't read a lot about positive birth experiences as, once they've been shared once (in a birth story) it's not something the person dwells on. we don't feel a need to have those pressing questions answered because there are NO questions.

my birth story is in my sig (it's long! lol) - i gave birth around 5am and was up and about by lunch time, without assistance. we had BF issues to start with as we waited for my milk to come in - but it wasn't anything major.

if we're lucky enough to become pregnant again, i will probably book an elective c/s around my EDD (not in advance - there is no reason that i can see) - if i go into natural labour, i may try for a VBAC, but if not, it won't stress me out going for a c/s again



my recovery was like Maz and Mel - very easy - but for many, this isn't the case. i know you mentioned having issues recovering from your VB so you may also struggle with healing from the c/s if it's the way your body heals. don't be ashamed of asking for pain relief if you need it. don't be afraid to admit you're not as comfortable as you thought you'd be. a c/s IS major surgery - yes, you get your wonderful baby at the end - but there is no shame admitting it hurts if it does! and if it doesn't go the way you want and you're traumatised in any way, there is no shame in admitting that either! just because you're opting for a c/s doesn't mean you have to be perfectly content with the way the birth goes.

good luck!

BG

[Emma1979]

i wish wish wish wish wish a million times i had of gone for an elective c-section 5 weeks ago instead of a vbac.... if only i could turn back time maybe i wouldn't be where i am now... anyways sorry not really related to your original request, i'm just thinking out loud and feel i was out of control yet again with my labour and can't believe i didn't follow my initial instinct and have a caesar.

[*Belle*]

Here is my elective c/s positive story of Tara's birth :

We got to the hospital at 2pm, I had bloods taken then went up and checked into my room which was to be my room after the birth. Midwifes visited and I signed forms and they asked me what my birthplan was and feeding plans and prepped me for my c-section. I then got a visit from my anethetist he was great and asked me if I decided on the Spinal or Epi, I decided on the Spinal. He said see you in 15 mins at theatre! Im like EEK! already! here we go! so different than Julia's induction, 32 hour labour and emergency c/s.

I got wheeled down to theatre with Jeffrey and he held my hand, we were in the anesthetic room for ages waiting. I then got given the canula and then local in my back and then the spinal. Took a while for spinal to work, felt weird like the Epi did, like it was hitting my funny bone and then my right side would go real numb. After about 15mins of the administering it was all done and I layed on my side for it to take affect. I was wheeled into theatre at 5.05pm or thereabouts. They set the screen up and then topped up my spinal and I could feel the anesthetic go further up. Made me bit hard to breathe and they saw this and gave me oxygen, that scared me as with Julia's c/section I didnt need it. I felt heaps of pressure tugging etc and about 30mins later Tara was born! I thought she would be bigger but she was tiny! she had apgar scores of 9 and 9 which were good. She needed a bit of oxygen at the start but was good after that. She weighed 3.05kgs (6 pounds 11 oz) and 50cm long, head circ of 34.5. I got to hold her straight away which was great, I held her the whole time while they were stitching me up, however they were having issues with my uterus, my OB said and so did the OB's assistant that my uterus wouldnt start to contract so they gave me the drug to get it to contract, there was so much pushing and pressure and it went on forever, I also looked at the ceiling at one stage and eek, the ceiling was silver and I could see a bit of the operation! I told myself not to look.

I was in recovery for about 45mins, but got given oxygen again when I left as they had to give me a PCA for Fenteynl (allergic to morphine) and they dont give you the drugs without oxygen anymore. Got back to my room and BF Tara it went really well then about 45mins later my mum and Jeffrey's parents arrived and Julia! Jeffrey got Julia and took her in the room first to meet Tara and then we asked the grandparents to come in! they didnt stay long which was good as I was quite tired, but not in pain.

My recovery was really good, The PCA drug was taken out of my arm the next morning as was the canula and catheter and I just took Panadine Forte for the pain every 6 hours and then on day 4 I didnt need any pain relief and we went home on day 5.

[Jandals]

Thanks everyone!

Emma - that really sucks that you ended up feeling out of control. And without knowing your personal circumstances I understand how hard it can be to go with your instincts when others are telling you not to

BG - great story! I'm hoping I'll recover well - I usually do but my VB was a bit of a mess. The Ob had a few issues when stitching me up and didn't do a very good job, which led to a whole new set of issues I'm no martyr so I'll be taking any pain relief I need. I figure no-ones' going to give me a medal for suffering I totally agree with you about women that have a good c/s experience not needing to discuss their birth at length. It's probably similar for VBs. Hopefully this thread will be helpful for ladies that are having an elective c/s and want to know about the positive experiences that can happen

[Peg]

it is great to hear so many positive c-s experiences.

I've had 3 c-s and never had any complications with any of them.

the most recent was the only elective c-s and it was a great experience. I must admit though that i had a sudden case of nerves going into theatre, but overall the experience was calm, relaxed, controlled and I felt really well looked after by the medical team - and the midwife who was assigned to me was a great support.

A planned c-s is soooooo much different to being taken in from the labor ward. We turned up to the RWH early in the morning, about 8am, I went up to some prep room, then had a talk with the anethetist and me the surgeon, then I was taken to the theatre where i was waiting just outside for a short while. I could see them preparing the room and i think this is why i got so nervous.

then they preped me for theatre, catheta, ivf tube and the anethetist did the spinal anesetic. Once that had all happened the surgeon did his thing and 10 minutes later the midwife brought emmy over to me all wrapped up and placed her on my chest for a few minutes so I could say hello. Then hubby and emmy went with the midwife while they cleaned her up and checked her out.

40 minutes later i was in my room with hubby and emmy waiting for me. Couldnt have asked for a smoother process.

[Peg]

I'm all stocked up with super size pads! Might get a few extra thick ones though for the scar. Does the pad just stop the scar being bumped etc? Someone has suggested that firm fitting undies are good to help you feel 'held in'. What are you ladies thoughts on that?

Did any of you have problems with the air in your stomach after surgery?

i've never heard of using a pad on the scar. I never needed to use anything on mine. I had the tape stitches, so the scar was covered anyway. Its not like the scar bleeds or anything.

with regard to air, i never experienced any air problems. The only real side effect I had was a nerve pain in my upper back. The pain came on when i was lying flat on my back after my first C-s. But strangely enough, after my 2nd c-s the pain was not as bad and I've noticed with this pregnancy, the pain has gone completely and for the last couple of months i've been enjoying sleeping flat on my back and not needed to change positions.

And with regard to tight underware - IMO No. I wouldnt recomend it. Not until your scar is healed anyway. Give the scar a good 3-4 weeks to heal properly and the ache to go before you wear anythign that will rub or push on it.

[Jandals]

Thanks Peg. I'm already starting to feel a little nervous. I think it's partly the unknown factor and also that there are risks associated with a c/s. Although for me there are a lot of risks if I was to have a VB too I just hope I don't freak out when going in to theatre. Hopefully DH will keep me cool, calm and collected

Thanks for your opinion on the undies. At my last appointment at the hospital the midwife said the physio will give me something called tubi-grip to support my tummy if I need it so think I'll leave the firm undies at home.

I think the pad is just to give a bit of extra padding - not to soak up blood or anything. More of a protection factor from what the others have mentioned.

We also have to be at the hospital at 8am with the c/s booked for 10am. Not sure how accurate they are with the times though. What time was your DD born? I guess as a public patient it will depend a lot on any emergencies that pop up. I hoping it will be all go from when we arrive so I don't have too much time to over-think what's about to happen. Will have to try and focus on the fact that we'll be meeting our baby very soon.

It's a bit strange knowing exactly when he's arriving. Most of the girls in my Belly Buddies group are going mad not knowing when their babys will arrive, and I remember feeling like that with DD. So it is nice to know I only have 4 sleeps to wait, but a little scary at the same time. How's that for confusing

[briggsy's girl]

the pad on the scar site is definitely just to make it more comfy. stick it to the inside of your undies (if you are planning the higer cut ones rather than low cut) and it puts nice padding on it. i didn't think of it at the time, but then, i didn't have too much pain so wasn't thinking of the scar at all! lol

the tubigrip mentioned is just a circular elastic type band - if they feel a need to apply extra pressure/support they will put it on you. i didn't have any need for it though! be prepared, you may have a drain in when you come out of surgery. it's just to make sure any swelling or bleeding that is happening in the muscles etc is drained away. comes out a day or two after bub arrives. that was probably the most annoying thing for me - that damned drain! i kept forgetting it was there (again, lack of pain meant i wasn't conscious of things) so i'd stand up and go to move, and drop the drain lol. the tubing was long enough that it could hit the floor without hurting me at all.

make sure you pack comfy clothes for your bottom half - i had plain colored pj pants with a draw string so that i could dictate how firmly they pulled on me - they were a size or three too big but so comfy after DD arrived. i also had light trackies - same deal.

good luck for your c/s!

BG

[Peg]

We also have to be at the hospital at 8am with the c/s booked for 10am. Not sure how accurate they are with the times though. What time was your DD born? I guess as a public patient it will depend a lot on any emergencies that pop up. I hoping it will be all go from when we arrive so I don't have too much time to over-think what's about to happen. Will have to try and focus on the fact that we'll be meeting our baby very soon.

I dont remember the exact time, I'm sure we got started about 10am. I was in the maternity ward before lunch time because i remember the ladies were bringing in the lunch trays around. As you are booked in for C-s, i dont think they'll leave you waiting around for too long. The longest part of the c-s is the preparation. You'll get to speak to the medical team prior, your midwife will shave you and i think she even had a quick check on bub....but you'll be in and out before you know it.

good luck with it, be sure to come back and let us know how it all went.

[Peg]

be prepared, you may have a drain in when you come out of surgery. it's just to make sure any swelling or bleeding that is happening in the muscles etc is drained away. comes out a day or two after bub arrives. that was probably the most annoying thing for me
BG

i agree on that one, the drain is awful. I only had it for my 2nd c-s and i remember that when the nurse was taking it out it really hurt. thankfully it only stays in for a day or two, but much better if you dont need it in at all.

[Jandals]

Thanks girls I have a good supply of nanna knickers. Made sure I held them up on me at the shops to see that they sat nice and high. Sexy

I just have one more question Is there anything that makes it more likely I would need a drain, or is it just one of those things that depends on how the surgery goes?

Thanks again for the support and advice that all of you have given It's made me feel a lot more prepared going in to this c/s thing. I will definitely be back to let you know how it went. Only two more sleeps

[TaRhLi.]

Hi Jandals

Hope all goes well for you, I thought I might add the tale of my elective c/s to give you another positive spin. For me my c/s was a breeze and everything went to plan... Here goes...

I was booked in for a c/s at 9am (lucky first on the list), arrived at hospital at 7am and was shown to my room and told to get myself all settled in and to change into my gown. The midwife came in and did some routine checks, blood pressure on me and check baby h/b and position. Once all settled, unpacked and in bed waiting to see the anaethetists and dr to explain the procedure. Once all done I was wheeled down to theatre with DH by my side, while all the checks were done on me DH was taken away to get changed and I was taken to have my spinal put in.

As I have bad veins, it took a while to find a good vein for my drip but once found and drip established it was time for the spinal. So sitting up hunched over the local needle went it, wow made me jump as it is like getting stung by a bee, then the spinal injection, didn't feel a thing but the medication took effect immediately and before I was laying down again my legs were completely numb (I'm not too tall so the medication moved quickly). Then wheeled into theatre, but because the spinal hit so fast I started to feel sick so quickly onto the table and some extra meds put into my drip to help with the nausea.

Once on the table it was explained the catheter was being inserted and a wedge was placed under my side to take pressure off my main artery, then the screen was put up and all systems go. I didn't feel much at all, only pressure as they were moving the baby around to get to her. I only knew she was born as all of a sudden I felt immense relief that I could take a deep breathe again from the baby being moved out from under my ribs. Baby was then taken to the resus table to be checked out and DH went over to see her, all o.k although she took 2 minutes to start breathing and cry and she also had a forcep mark on her head where they had to get her out. While this was all happening the dr's finished up with me and stiched us all up.

I was taken to recovery for monitoring, baby was with me the whole time and DH went off to change back into his normal clothes. After 30 minutes I was taken back to my room (around 10.30am) and baby was put on my breast for feeding straight away. After about 45 mins, the midwife then took baby to be weighed and measured but this was all done in my room so once born she never left my side. After spending about another hour bonding with my baby the midwives then came in and gave me a bed wash and helped me to change into my own nighty.

By around 1pm that afternoon, I was getting feeling back in my legs and could move them around and sit up in bed (although you do have morphine in the spinal which last for about 15 hours so you feel fabulous) but of couldn't get up as the cathetar stays in for 24hrs. Next morning after the cathetar is out the midwives helped me to get up and shower, not an easy thing to do and yes you are in a lot of discomfort although I found the worse thing was that my legs were all like jelly but once the blood started flowing back into them I could walk with help. Midwives got me into the shower on a chair and left me to it (it was nice to be able to shower myself even if sitting down) and once finished they came back to help me get all dried and dressed.

By the following day I was able to get out of bed myself (slowly) and was sitting in a chair during the day as it was easier for me to get up and down as you had the arms of the chair to help you. Everyday got better and better and within a week I was able to walk around fine, it just took a little longer to get out of bed.

Just to add, I didn't have a drain and only had 1 stitch in my tummy which was removed before I left hospital (5 days). All up I found my c/s to be very positive and have no hesitation of going through it again. Just a word of note though, after I came out of surgery all I wanted to do was sleep (due to the meds) and I didn't have that excited glow about me of just having a baby. It is completely normal to have all different kinds of feeling after a c/s so don't be surprised if you feel differently than what you expect.

Good luck and I hope your c/s is smooth sailing, will be looking forward to hearing how it goes.