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What does your belly look like after a c section heals i have heard so many horror stories of flaps of skin and overhangs and muscles not knitting back together does it matter what weight you are as to what the after effects are i am not over weight and after 4 natural births my belly is still flat but i am scheduled for a c section for my 5th on the 16th of march and i am terrified of the surgery and risks and after effects.
I just googled to find a site for you, and lo and behold, one of the results was a BB link! :) Here you go :)
My tummy went back to normal :) Only difference was the scar which is below my pubic line anyway. It's still slowly fading.
Ferrals, it is just a line about maybe 10 cm or less, low on your abdomen ( below undie line jus above pube line) . If you are slim it is unlikely you would get an infection or breakdown so don't stress. Depends on your skin whether the scar is thick or not but it usually is barely noticeable ( some people's scars overgrow I can't remember what its called keloidsomething) Its usually better than people expect. Best of luck for the 5th I bet you can't wait to meet your little girl xxx
ps get a wax before you go so the midwives don't have to use the clippers
i have the dreaded overhang. i believe maz (??) calls it a GUNT!! lol.
i am overweight, so it's probably worse than someone who is fit etc, but i know my aunt (size 6) has had 3 c/s, and has a tiny gunt.
i don't have a scar though, i have fast-healing skin. so if you're in fairly good shape, i wouldn't worry too much.
Careful on the wax / shave... I read on the Mater Woman Website that it not advised
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It is important not to shave or wax your pubic hair in the week prior to your operation as it may increase the risk of developing infected hair follicles which may cause a wound infection.
i've gotten a wax before both of mine, and no infections :)
A mate showed me hers at 5 weeks PP (CS) and her bod looked better than mine at 10 month PP (VB)! If your body recovers well after pregnancy, i think you will look pretty similar just with the scar that will fade.
I have a tiny line just above the top of my pubes. It is barely noticeable, if you're not looking for it you won't see it.
I would suggest that you look at c-section photos on The Shape of a Mother.
I think that every mother should look at that site at least once just as a counter-point to the air-brushed celeb mothers that we usually compare ourselves to.
I'm pretty sure I waxed prior. I certainly wasn't expecting a c-section so I did the gardening as usual.
Yup, same here.:
I am overweight and I don't have any overhang. Just a neat little scar that is covered by my undies anyway :D
I dont have an overhang Ferrals, i am heavier than i was before my c/s, so i dont know what it would be back at 'normal weight, but i assume it wouldnt be worse!
Everyone is different though.
I would imagine that as you are tiny anyway and havent put on much weight at all, you will go back to what was normal for you, other than a scar.
I waxed before i had mine as i wasnt planning a c/s - no problems with infection at all
THere are risks with everything, try not to stress about them, they have to tell you about it all thou - Afterwards i was on a normal bed straight away, i had pain twinges when getting up quickly, but had no problems looking after MJ, putting her down or picking her up - bending was fine too - only thing i avoided was carrying and hanging the washing... You are fit and active, so hopefully you will bounce back quickly
xx
I was a tad concerned too. Needn't have worried - tummy fine and flat, scar barely noticeable. I've shown it to various people (midwives, MCHN, partner, physio) and they have all ooohed and ahhhed over what a nice job my ob did.
It really depends on how & where it is done. After my first i had just a scar & nothing else. After my second I have an overhang & I am not overweight. The thing that happened the second time was that the incision didn't go straight across it went upwards a little bit so more into the muscle which is what has caused the overhang IMO. The left hand side is normal, but the right where it goes up has the overhang.
Same here, lol. The midwives were saying what a great job it was even before I left hospital. You really have to look for my scar to see it.:
Ferrals, If your tummy went back to normal after your other children then you should be fine after your c/s too.
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Same here, but I have had 2 CS's :D
Thankyou so much girls you have put my mind at rest i will go into the c section with a positive outcome in mind thanks again.
Mine is just a scar also.... can I just ask a question though... after 4 VB's... how come you're having a c/s? I'm assuming there is some medical or bubby issue?
Ozziehoffy-I have total placenta previa grade 4 the placenta covers the entire cervix so noway for little miss to get out.
Ahhh bugger!!! Hope it all goes well for you :) Mine is very low down and you can't see it.
Bugger is right i am sh#tting myself but nothing i can do but thanks anyway.
Yeah I remember that feeling, although I only had 2 weeks to ***** myself!! The night before I barely slept... it all turned out well though, but I understand, it's a scary thing to have surgery and it's a great unknown to you also. :hug:
My tummy went back to almost normal after my 1st cs but after the 3rd the overhang is yucky :( If you are already a healthy weight and so on I think it should bounce back reasonably quickly..
One thing I had done was a tummy massage when they stitched me up and I asked what it was for and apparently it is to help the uterus contract like it would if in labour but due to a cs it doens't so they make t do so..
I think with a planned c/s you are less likely to have overhang issues etc as there is time to do a neat job (unlike an emergency when it is just get that baby out!). Having said that, I probably look pretty much the same, if not better than pre-c/s and mine were both emergencies.
I have had 5 natural births and two c-sections and I still have a flat tummy.
I have a tiny bit of loose skin the slightly over hangs but nothing overly noticeable (except by me :p)
I had two emergency c-sections (one classical) 13 months apart and my scar is about 14cm long and still a little red (but it is fading)...but it is under my knicker/bikini line so no-one else can see it.
my mum had a c/s for her third, and said her stomach went back to normal... the only time she got the "flap" was when she was carrying a few extra kg's
i have the GUNT/apron :P after 3 cesars...i am a bigger girl and my 'three ' scars are all hidden by my knickers :)
i have shaved before all 3 cesars and not had any infection
Nothing to do with weight, everything to do with where and how they cut. I have a tiny overhang, only one one side. Thanks doc. Didn't cut me straight. Let's face it though, a huge swollen uterus doesn't help :lol:
I wonder ... if it has something to do with being an emergency c/s? Maybe with a scheduled they have more time to consider the incision?
I've had 2. Both technically emergencies and I don't have an overhang either. My belly isn't flat, but hell it hasn't been for the last 5 years anyway lol.
You can't even see my scars and that's not cos they're overgrown lol, they're so faded you can't see them.
Neither of mine were planned and I've waxed before both (but have been waxing for some 10years previously anyway), not had any drama.
I've had one CS after one VB, 4 months on scar is still red and tender at times, but kinda hard, I have no overhang or anything (I too was worried about it prior to my CS), I'm only 6kg off my pre-pregnancy weight, and at my 6-8wk check up my OB said that I didn't even look like I had only recently had a baby, let alone a CS :D I think she would be more than impressed now :lol: I am in the "normal" weight range.
I think you could be right. Mine is not straight either and I have a little more over hang on that side...both mine where emergencies. My first one was terrible...huge and it kelioded but they cut it out and the second is better.:
Thanks ladies.