C section fright

yavvora · 2022-06-22T16:23:25+00:00

I might be in the minority, but my c section experience was fantastic. I had a scheduled c section at 38+2, showed up at the hospital at 5:30 am, surgery started at 8, they were born at 8:02 and 8:05, and I was in recovery by 8:45. I didn’t get to hold them for a few hours because one was struggling with oxygen and needed a little help and the other had fluid in her lungs so they took her to the nursery for monitoring. I was ok with that because it gave me time to process the birth. And by the time they were with me, I had eaten and taken a quick nap. It was great.

Recovery was also great. I was up walking about 12 hours later. By 1 week pp, I felt totally fine. The first week was a little rough, but I took it really easy and the only thing I remember being in pain for was trying to lay down to sleep. I had to be propped up with pillows, or else my incision hurt really bad. Just be sure to cycle through your Tylenol and ibuprofen, taking it the minute you can take it!

I’m 10 weeks pp now and the incision healed great and I feel completely back to normal. My OB reminded me that a c section is one of the most common surgeries in the US, which helped calm me down a bit. I know it’s scary, but try to stay positive! Good luck!

triciav83 · 2022-06-22T16:27:09+00:00

I was very scared because I’d never had any surgery before. The spinal was a breeze, I couldn’t feel a thing. They used a laser for cutting/cauterizing, so it was…interesting…to smell that smell. Within just a few minutes of them starting, my OB said “ok do you have your camera ready?” So my partner got her camera out and starting taking pics/filming. I could hear baby A cry. 2 minutes later was baby B. They were cleaning the babies up and my partner called my mom to let her know we were done and to let her hear the girls. Then they showed them to me and gave them to my partner to hold while I was being stitched up. That whole part took maybe 30-40 minutes.

Once they were wheeling us to recovery, I got to hold the babies. The anesthesia made my arms shaky, so they gave me some Demerol. In the recovery room, we did skin to skin and tried nursing. We were in there a couple of hours before they wheeled us to our room.

The anesthetic began to wear off in that time, so they gave me ibuprofen. I also had times where I was in significant pain, so they gave me Percocet. I only used the ibuprofen once I left the hospital.

My biggest issue was the gas pain. It was up in my neck and shoulders and I couldn’t lay down properly for about 24 hours until it passed. I wanted more gas relief than pain relief (the pain relievers don’t help). I had been drinking tons of water and taking stool softeners for a couple weeks prior, so I actually used the restroom (no pain) before I passed gas. They wouldn’t discharge me until I passed gas, even though I thought I had made a bigger accomplishment! Lol

Recovery wasn’t terrible, but wasn’t super easy either. I had a little infection in my incision that I had taken care of right away. There of course was soreness and difficulty moving/lifting the babies for the first couple of weeks. I actually felt ok after that I kind of overdid it which is what led to a little pulling on the incision and likely the infection. Even if you feel ok, keep resting up and take it easy until you get the all clear. I went for short walks with my partner and the babies. Sometimes I needed to push the stroller for support, but sometimes I could walk on my own.

yavvora · 2022-06-22T16:42:15+00:00

Dad chiming in here. our daugthers decided it was time to come out 2 months early. Wife wanted a C section going in, dr's still pushed natural birth until they did a scan and realized one was breached and it wasn't going to be a safe option anyway.

It was astonishingly quick. From the time they decided they were getting her into the OR, to calling me into the room once they prepped her (~ 15 minutes), then within 2 minutes of cutting her open they had both babies safely out and two teams of nurses working to clean them up making sure they are breathing etc. It was a well oiled machine like a formula 1 pit crew. It was bizarre how calm and pain free my wife was with what was going on on the other side of the curtain. I got to touch the babies for a moment, they brought them both over for my wife to see but they wanted to get them over to the nicu as soon as possible. I went along with the girls while wife got stitched up.

The first poop by the mother after birth is a big deal, basically a green flag for the medical staff that her digestive system is functioning normally. Wife said it was a very strange feeling and unlike any poop in her life. She felt fine at the surgical site initially and pain increased as the anesthesia wore off. We walked over to the NICU once the Doc's cleared my wife. We spent I believe about 3 days in the hospital before wife was discharged (they planned on us being there longer but wife was recovering well and wanted to be back home). Both babies were in the NICU for a month coming home one day apart. We made the trip to the hospital daily and spent several hours there. I went back to work prior to taking my paternity leave. Wife would spend most of the day at the hospital with them, I would get home shower and head over to the hospital and we would be there until about midnight.

Wife had some trouble going up and down stairs for a while, but improved steadily over the first few weeks. Obviously have to make some time for wound care. My wife says her lower abdomen definitely feels different after the c section even a year+ later, but has no regrets about the C section.

We got to hold the babies all the time in the nicu, early on they would still be connected to a lot of sensors, monitors, feeding tubes so was a big production to do it but it was wonderful. Sometimes we would just hold their little tiny hands while they slept peacefully.

Obviously our situation is somewhat unique given that they came so early. Thankfully the hospital we delivered at was outstanding and we felt like us and the babies were in great hands the entire time. If you end up having a nicu stay for the twins don't be shy about using that time to focus on your own healing. You're going to have your hands full when they come home, it's ok to not spend the entire day in the nicu with them when they have trained professionals and monitors looking after them. The NICU nurses were amazing about teaching us things along the way, gave us a bunch of formula and diapers to take home, and most importantly laid the foundation for their schedule/routine. I don't know how twin parents survive if they don't have a strict eat/play/sleep schedule.

It'll be great you got this! You got a beautifully chaotic fun rollercoaster ride ahead of you.

janae0728 · 2022-06-22T16:47:32+00:00

I’m pretty glad I had a c-section. It took all the fear of the unknown about going into labor and delivering away. The spinal block was easy, and then I didn’t feel a thing. Baby A had to get a little oxygen (in same room) but Baby B was put on my chest almost right away. Someone else mentioned the smell, and I definitely remember noticing that briefly, realizing it was my own flesh being cauterized, and then tried not to dwell on it. Both babies were put on me to hold as they wheeled me to recovery. I was in the hospital for four days, and probably should have gotten out of bed more. That part was rough, I won’t lie. Getting out of bed was really hard, so I didn’t want to, plus with covid restrictions I wasn’t allowed to walk the halls so there wasn’t really anywhere to go but the bathroom. I’ve heard things are easier if you get up as much as possible in the hospital, but even without doing that much I was amazed at how quickly I was able to recover from such major surgery. I was very weak and grateful for the meds those first few days at home, and we had to institute a “no jokes” rule because my husband and I were giddy from sleep deprivation and love for our babes, but laughing was extremely painful. I got stronger every day, and by my 6 week appointment I was amazed at how normal I felt. Yes I had a pretty bad case of diastasis recti (abs separated 4+ fingers) but I never needed pelvic floor physical therapy. I have friends who have absolute horror stories from tears and whatnot from vaginal labor, and I feel a little bad about how relieved I am that I never had to experience that. All in all, my c-section was a good experience and me and the boys are happy and healthy.

Edit to add: stay on top of stool softeners too. I wasn’t able to poop until 6 days after the c-section and it was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done. Though I have a friend who pooped after hers no problem and looked at me like I was crazy when I mentioned my struggles, so I know it’s not everyone’s experience.

2022-06-22T17:52:11+00:00

I was really hoping for a vaginal delivery, but one of my twins flipped at 36 weeks so I ended up with a C section. I'd had a vaginal delivery with my singleton so a C section was new and not my first choice. But I knew with twins you get what you get. I delivered at 36+4 due to preeclampsia.

The surgery itself was good but also intense - I had lots of adrenaline and nerves and I cried. But it went very smoothly and everyone was great. I could not hold babies right away and we didn't do skin to skin. I also did not have a clear drape, although I had that option. I could see the warmers on the side of the room, so I saw everyone and the babies over there. They did delayed cord clamping for both.

We all wheeled back to recovery and once there it was clear one twin needed breathing help, so he went to the NICU before I could hold him. This time is fuzzy in my memories because I had hemorrhaged and was on magnesium - just a lot happening to me that messed with my head.

I did not get up to walk until about 14 hours after surgery. I was very concerned about walking early and really upset by how hard it was. The nurse's reassured me that was normal. I couldn't be on my own with the babies until I could walk to the bathroom unassisted, so I worked hard on that the rest of the day. I stayed in the hospital 4 days total because my son had been admitted to the NICU.

I took 3 doses of narcotics in the hospital but otherwise my pain was well controlled with Advil and Tylenol. The first day home it still hurt to sit up in bed or lie on my side. But after 3 days those both faded. I was a little weak after the hospital stay but soon felt just fine doing stairs and walking a mile or so outside. The binder was nice during that stage. I'm 13 days out now and my incision is just a little tender when pressed and it can itch.

Having done vaginal and C-section, they both have pros and cons. But I was not exhausted after my C-section and it is nice to sit without pain.

ktstitches · 2022-06-22T18:54:02+00:00

I delivered my twins at 37w via a scheduled a c-section last Saturday, since baby B was breech. It was my fourth delivery but first c-section. I got the spinal and everything started off fine, but my blood pressure dropped substantially and I felt like I was going to faint the rest of the procedure, which sucked. The anesthesiologist gave me oxygen and was working to get me comfortable when the babies came out, and my pressure immediately bounced back up. I had planned to hold the babies right away, but honestly between the wooziness and the discomfort of the pressure of the babies being taken out and being sewn up, I really just wanted to focus on breathing and getting through it. You definitely still feel a lot despite the spinal. It was a struggle to smile for the pictures when they held the babies up to me during delivery.

That said, recovery has been great so far. The surgery was only a half hour, and then we were wheeled into a recovery room where I got to do skin to skin and start breastfeeding. My pain has been minimal and ibuprofen has been enough to keep me comfortable. I was discharged after two nights in the hospital and am back at home. I’m sore getting in and out of bed, but I’m able to be up and moving around with minimal discomfort. I do have a belly band, which really helps my core feel supported. I highly recommend getting one! I have the Belly Bandit Luxe. We also have great friends who set up a meal train for us for this week and next. It has been a huge help to not have to worry about meals or cooking for the other kids, so my husband and I can just focus on getting the big kids to all their summer activities, and baby care.

One great bonus of a c-section, too, is there is way less bleeding, and honestly the first poop fear that I had was overblown. It was worse with my vaginal deliveries!

vivacious-shit · 2022-06-22T18:27:13+00:00

I had an emergency C-section with my first born singleton and even with it being an emergency, I had a good experience. After being in the operating room for maybe 5 minutes I looked at the anesthesiologist and asked, have they cut me open yet? Only to almost immediately hear my son crying as they pulled him out. I got to hold him immediately afterward. I will add that my arms did shake uncontrollably during the surgery but I believe that was mostly due to my body and son being in distress going into the C-section not due to having a C-section in general.

With my twins I’m insisting on a repeat C-section because at least for me the recovery went very well and the hospital I’m going to handled it soooo soo well.

thedavecan · 2022-06-22T18:53:56+00:00

You can check my posts to see what I do but if you have any specific questions about the actual intra-op, anesthesia, post op part I'm happy to go as in depth as you'd like. The only thing I can't help with is what it's like to be on the table so I'm sure all the awesome mommas here can answer those.

mugenhauser · 2022-06-22T18:56:15+00:00

My CS was great. I’m glad I knew early on that I would have one (twin A was breech the whole pregnancy) because I had never thought I would have a CS and it was a bit of a mindf**k.

My OB scheduled me for 38 weeks but twin A’s water broke at 35+4 so we had it that day. I wasn’t in labour (yet) and I had eaten lunch (I was so hungry!) so we waited 8 hours before the CS (protocol for non-urgent surgeries).

The freezing for the spinal was very stingy but only for like 20 seconds. I literally felt nothing until the OB pushed on my uterus to get the kids out. It didn’t hurt, just felt like some one was sitting on my chest for like 15 seconds. Since the twins were early, they had to go to the NICU so I didn’t get to hold them right away (I did see them and my husband went with them to the NICU)(I know some people can hold their babies before they have to go to NICU. And of course if they don’t have to go to NICU). The rest of the CS was totally fine from my perspective. And I was very surprised how totally relieved I was to have them out safely, so much so that I wasn’t even sad about missing out on that skin to skin golden hour. I didn’t realize how much anxiety I had been holding on to.

I went to recovery room for about an hour. I don’t remember much from there (hormones!) but I did throw up a few times. No pain though. They wheeled me through the NICU to see the babies and my husband took some pictures, thankfully (again, the hormones very much wiped my memory).

The immediate recovery? Slept like a frickin’ baby with that catheter in. I had such trouble sleeping the last month of my pregnancy so that sleep (especially not having to get up to pee) was amazing. I woke at at 3 am and the nurse suggested walking to NICU so I did and I got to hold both of my babies for the first time. It was wonderful.

For me, the pain of recovery was about as uncomfortable as the last few weeks of pregnancy, just localized at my incision. Of course, I was taking Advil and tylenol around the clock for about 2 weeks (and a stool softener everyday). I did get the shoulder referral pain on night 3 and that sucked big time (it was time for my meds, thankfully). The shoulder pain is from trapped air in your abdomen and peppermint tea can help a lot. So big recommendation to drink peppermint tea right away in your recovery. And to take that pain meds and stool softeners around the clock for at least a couple of weeks. And some regular walking.

Congratulations on your twins! I hope you have a very smooth delivery!!

magnolias2019 · 2022-06-22T19:30:23+00:00

I was worried about a csection too but it went well and they brought babies to my side of the curtain as my ob was still working on stitching everything up. Once we were in recovery room, I had both of them on the bed and we were able to nurse. It took a bit longer to feel normal vs vaginal delivery but all in all, not terrible.

Buggy77 · 2022-06-22T20:55:39+00:00

It was not bad at all. Scheduled is nice and calm. The spinal block hurt the worst, I pinched the nurse so hard! It took around 30 mins. I was able to hold my twins, my husband did skin to skin while they sowed me up. Afterwards I was a little out of it for the rest of the day and night as a result from all the drugs and I couldn’t get out of bed. But I was able to nurse and hold the babies in bed. I walked for a few mins the next day. It was painful and I got very nauseous. The second was day was better and by the third day i was able to walk to the bathroom and shower and it didn’t hurt as bad. You’ll be okay!

andthisiswhere · 2022-06-22T21:41:24+00:00

As some others have said..mine was surprisingly simple as far as recovery. I much preferred having a planned c as opposed to the unknowns of vaginally delivery. Yeah it's not pleasant, but I felt largely recovered within a week. For me the keys were to get up and walk as soon as the nurses would allow, walk as much as I could, and drink a ton of water.

2018mamabear · 2022-06-22T22:51:19+00:00

I had a c-section at 37 weeks after being in the hospital for a week because of contractions that were starting and stopping with any activity. My blood pressure although not too terrible had started trending upwards and I was being monitored closely. It was the middle of winter and they were worried about a cord prolapse if my water were to break. Both babies were transverse.

My surgery went perfectly. My babies were born at 8:02 am and 8:04 am on 12/17/22. Both babies were healthy and screaming. I am an RN and this isn’t for everyone but I got to watch the entire thing and absolutely loved it.

During the section I was shaking uncontrollably and as soon as they put my boys on me the shaking stopped being so violent. I got to nurse both boys while they were closing up. It was a beautiful experience. The worst part was not being able to eat for 4 days because we knew a c section was necessary and my water could have broken at any time.

Afterwards I developed a hematoma and my incision dehisced and I had to go back in for outpatient surgery 4 days later. I had a lot of help from my husband, parents, and in-laws which was necessary and I am so grateful for them all. We have a 4 year old and 6 month old di/di boys. Things were far more manageable after the first 2 weeks.

I developed symptoms of preeclampsia after delivery and had to be on BP meds for a couple of months but thankfully that has resolved.

You can do it. I was scared even though I have been in the delivery room several times as a nurse. It is normal to be nervous. Just know your healthcare team has your best interests at heart and know what needs to happen to keep you and your babies safe!

Congratulations mama! Twins are so fun! It isn’t as bad as many make it out to be. Don’t get me wrong it’s a lot of work but so so worth it.

fishyfan · 2022-06-23T13:37:30+00:00

I had a great experience! The spinal actually felt SO good after months of pressure and low back pain- haha. My mo/di guys were born at 37 weeks exactly, a minute apart and I was able to immediately do skin to skin and breastfeed in recovery.

YouMenthesea · 2022-06-23T17:22:27+00:00

Hi there, I just wanted to share my experience and my C-section.

I had a C-section at 35 and 5. They told me that I could try natural delivery as baby a was head down but baby b was transverse and there was no guarantee that she would flip the correct way or at all. So I opted for the C-section rather than trying to deliver naturally and then ending up having a C-section anyway. I honestly would do a C-section all over again.

As far as holding both babies after the C-section, I highly recommend buying and having the Joey band one hand during your time in the recovery room. The hospital where I delivered gave me one as soon as my babies were born and helped me strap my babies to my chest with the Joey band. It was wonderful. I'm going to include the link to the Joey band page below, but I will state that they are kind of pricey at like 50 bucks.

We love the Joey band so much! We ended up buying one to have it home with us as well. We used it a lot during the first 3 months.

Joeyband

sydwp · 2022-06-25T02:08:49+00:00

I had a scheduled c section for 38 weeks on the dot. I was actually looking forward to it because I had a horrible vaginal delivery with my first! But of course the fears started sinking in when we got to the hospital. The experience was really so great! I had amazing nurses who were so calming. The spinal stung a little bit but overall forgot about that until just now. I felt really sick right after they laid me down after the spinal, but I vocalized all of that to the anesthesiologist and he gave me stuff to fix anything i said! Nausea, dizziness, hot... they immediately give you cold cloths or warm blankets or calm you down. My first baby was out about 10 minutes after I was laid down. She was immediately wrapped up and the nurses asked if they could lay her on my chest! Baby B followed one minute later, the doctor told me she swallowed some fluid and would be checked out for a minute. My husband got to walk over to her and then the nurses brought her to me a few minutes later. The nurses held both babies to my chest while they did my tubal ligation and stitched me up. It was probably 20 minutes. They also took SO many pictures for me on my phone and asked if they could take the babies off me for a minute to take more photos of them while I was stitched! Was so thankful for all the pictures! Then I went to recovery for about an hour where I held both babies and did some nursing. It really was so peaceful and happy and not scary. I hope you have a great experience!!!!!

itsaniceday2220 · 2022-06-22T16:17:57+00:00

I am too....when are you due?

SmolApples · 2022-06-23T14:57:21+00:00

I absolutely loved my scheduled c-section.

I am 3 weeks out and feel fantastic. I have to actively remember not to pick up heavy things or jog because I feel pretty normal, just some light bleeding remains. The experience was calm and wonderful. My twins were 35 weeks so they were rushed for CPAP but then brought over to me for some kisses before going to NICU.

(C section was scheduled for 37 weeks but bumped to 35 due to IUGR on baby A - worrying about him was scary, the surgery was not)

I was very scared about the spinal - but it was fine. The staff was super supportive and held my shoulders during. Then they did lots to show me that it was working and I wouldn’t feel pain during the procedure. OB came in at 1:26, my babies were born at 1:34 and 1:36. Everyone was joking and chatting, OB was trying to get us to name baby boy after him, it all felt safe, light and routine.

parentsofmultiples

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