Eight Things I Wish I’d Known About Having A C-Section

It’s been over three months since I had my planned C-Section which means baby girl is no longer a newborn. Time has flown and the thought of having a C-Section feels like a million years ago.

I hadn’t planned to have a C-Section and the thought was only planted about eight weeks before baby girl arrived. It wasn’t just the idea of her being a ‘big baby’ which caused the hospital to suggest it, although she was actually a big baby. At 38 weeks she was 9 pounds 3, and estimated almost 12 pounds if she went to 40 weeks. But I developed eclampsia during late pregnancy which sealed the deal.

The hospital suggested induction to begin with but I knew this wasn’t a route I wanted to go down. So I pushed for an elective C-Section. And having a C-Section was one of the best decisions I made. But there are some things I wish I’d known before. These may be things that my hospital/ consultant didn’t tell me. Or my hospital didn’t have documentation on. Or maybe I didn’t do enough of my own research. Hopefully if you’re having one you may know some of these things.

Here are eight things I wish I’d known.

Having a C-Section means a lot of people

This may feel like a silly one, and something I should have expected but during surgery there are a lot of people around. And you’re totally on display from boobs down to everyone.

I had expected about six or so people from what I’d read online, but my room had about 14 people present. My hospital is a teaching hospital, but there were like three anaesthetists, multiple clinical staff, a midwife etc.

When you go in expect that a lot of people will be there. And a lot of people will see you totally exposed!

You may not get skin to skin contact straight away

I assumed that this would be an option, but I didn’t get skin-to-skin with my baby until after we came out of surgery. This may be due to our particular hospital but I wish I’d been able to feel her straight away.

I’d hoped to have baby brought straight to me for a little time but this wasn’t an option given to me.

I found having a C-Section quite isolating just after baby arrived

As soon as baby came out the nurses did a quick fly-by showing me baby but then nothing for about 10 minutes. And I felt quite alone and isolated during this period. Baby girl was taken to a corner of the room I couldn’t see to have the cord properly cut, cleaned, weighed etc, and my husband went with them. While I’m 100% happy he went to be with her, I felt quite isolated for what short period of time. My baby had just been born and I was in surgery but felt quite alone and emotional straight after.

This is something I wish I’d asked about beforehand as I hadn’t expected it.

How ill you can feel during surgery

This is going to be very unique to individual people but while I was being stitched back up I felt very lightheaded and sick (and was even sick).

The anaesthetists were great and I can’t fault them. As soon as I said I wasn’t feeling great they adjusted dosages of drugs to help me feel better, but I hadn’t expected to feel like that at the end. I assumed if I was going to feel ill it would be at the start, not during the stitch up.

How reliant you are on others when having a C-Section

Again I think I hadn’t fully prepared for this, but especially in that first 12-24 hours while you’re regaining feeling in your lower half you’re totally reliant on others.

Luke was originally going to go home to sleep for the first night but I’m so glad our plans changed as I wouldn’t have coped. I first laid in the bed around 9.45am Friday morning and didn’t get up for the first time until 2.30am Saturday morning. So for almost 18 hours I couldn’t move to pick baby girl up. Having him there to give me food and drink, and pass me her for feeding/ cuddles was everything.

The different dressings available

I didn’t know there were different dressing options for the scar. I had a PICO dressing which was a dressing attached to a small box with tubes to keep moisture out. For the first few hours I had this little box next to me in bed and had no idea what it was for. It wasn’t until I went to the toilet for the first time and realised it was attached to me.

They used the word PICO but no one explained to me what it was, how to be careful with it etc. I do think this dressing helped my healing go so well but it’s another thing I didn’t know about in advance or while it was happening.

The best way to recover when having a C-Section

Considering I’d just had major surgery, the only advice I was given was ‘take it easy’. And what does that mean?! Take it easy means different things to different people.

No one told me any advice about the best way of getting in and out of bed, best positions to sleep in, what I should/ shouldn’t lift, when I could drive, or anything. I feel like I muddled along those first few weeks thanks to Luke. But not thanks to any advice I had been given.

The blood thinning injections

These were the bane of my life and something no one prepared me for. The injections are either for 10 days or six weeks depending on your risk factor. I assume due to my BMI I had the injections for six weeks and I hated it. Every single evening for 42 nights Luke had to inject me in my belly. Even a week or so in my belly was black and bruised and so tender. The day I stopped having to do these was perhaps the best day of the first six weeks!

If you had a C-Section what are some things you wish you’d known?