Elective C-Section Helped Heal From Previous Traumatic Birth - Positive Birth Story
After experiencing a traumatic vaginal birth and recovery with her first baby, Laura decided early on during her second pregnancy to have an elected C-Section birth. She had such a great experience and feels it helped her heal from the trauma of her first birth.
My first daughter was born via ventouse (suction cup) delivery after a difficult 20 hour labour. It resulted in a 3rd degree tear and a lot of mental trauma, not only for myself but for my husband too. The physical recovery was also painful and difficult. When we found out I was pregnant with our second child, I decided very early on to equip myself with all the facts, risks, benefits and also opinions from C-Section mums, midwives, consultants, and from support networks like c-sectionUK. I took a few weeks deciding whether to try to have a vaginal delivery again or to opt for a C-Section. Despite most people saying I should wait until nearer to the end of my pregnancy to decide, I had decided by the end of the first trimester that a C-Section was definitely the right option for me.
I had been very lucky to have no complications through either of my pregnancies and the C-Section date was booked for 37+4 days. I remember spending the last couple of days doing everything possible to not go into labour (mainly just sleeping and watching films!) I had this fear of going into labour early and it turning into an emergency C-Section, or hospital staff trying to talk me into a vaginal delivery again. I constantly reassured myself even if I went into labour, it would be just the same as elective, just sped up a little! I made sure I had all the info on what would happen either way and made sure my bags were packed early just to avoid any stress!
She stayed put and we went to the hospital for 7.30am on the day of my planned C-Section. I was honestly so excited. There was a tiny bit of anxiety but because I had learnt everything I could about what was going to happen that day, I felt so calm and just ecstatic because of how soon we were going to meet our baby. I was incredibly lucky to have stayed in touch with my midwife from my first pregnancy and labour and she made arrangements to be with me all the way through the day, which was lovely.
There was myself and one other lady having a planned C-Section that day. An emergency one went in first followed by the other lady and then myself, because I was the lowest risk. The waiting was horrible but I stayed distracted playing music, games and literally just chatting to my husband. The worst part was the hunger! At 12pm they told us to get ready (scrubs and socks on) as we'd be next. I found out I didn't actually have to wear the hair net given as a necessity and I was glad about that, as I wanted to feel as "me" as possible with my hair down how I like it. At 12.15pm we were taken into theatre. We'd already had chance to see the theatre and meet the team working that day when we first got there, so it wasn't too daunting (I'd recommend asking to do this if you can!)
The spinal was given, I knew what to expect as I'd had a spinal anesthetic to numb me before being stitched up from my first baby. I thought I was lucky in this sense as I wasn't worried about it. After the numbing spray is given the actual injection just feels like a firm back massage! Not pleasant but not particularly painful, just uncomfortable. Then baby Eloise quickly arrived at 12.45pm - healthy, happy and hungry!
Unfortunately my womb didn't contract back down as it was supposed to and I had to be given extra drugs at this point and the team were physically "massaging" it, which was the weirdest feeling ever. I started to feel very sick very quickly, due to the extra meds given and the strange feeling, but thankfully because of c-sectionUK, I knew I could ask for anti-sickness. They gave some immediately which helped. The team were honestly amazing, even though it can potentially be a very dangerous complication due to blood loss, they stayed so calm and kept everything under control and blood loss to the ideal minimum. And if I hadn't have asked why it was taking so long to get out of theatre, I wouldn't have known anything worrying was actually happening! I came out of theatre at 2pm. I did continue feeling sick on and off, especially when they moved my bed around the hospital to the main ward, when I vomited, but I felt so much better after that and actually not as bad as I'd thought I would. I managed small amounts of toast and a ham sandwich, and visitors came around this time (4-5pm).
Getting out of bed for the first time was very hard and I did actually wait until the next morning to do this. The midwives kept encouraging me to drink loads so I would be able to get urine passing after the catheter was removed, so I made sure I got up and about before I needed to do that first wee! It was very sore getting up as I expected and I had a sudden gush of blood down below which I didn't expect (even though the midwives warned me) so I went a little faint. Walking around was slow and painful. I had been anxious about my husband having to leave and how I'd cope in the ward on my own but the midwives were fab. They kept telling me to press the bell whenever I needed help, and I did. I asked for all the help I needed and didn't let myself struggle.
I was discharged at about 3pm, so just over 24 hours after giving birth. Getting in the car was tricky and I remember being so emotional due to the limitations of my mobility. For the next couple of weeks, I stayed on top of painkillers and it was all very manageable. We had installed a bed support frame and grab handles in the bathroom in advance to help me - even though my husband was off for 3 weeks and was an absolute superstar looking after me, I wanted a little independence. By about night 5, I was able to use the bed support to get myself up on my own and help with night feeds. Then day by day, I started to feel better and less pain. I tried to go out for walks for fresh air, but soon learnt my limits - the next day I'd feel horrendous. Walking around the house was enough for the first couple of weeks.
I had done the c-sectionUK Scar Care Mini Course so felt confident looking after the wound. With my husband's help, I regularly washed and dried it. I also asked every midwife and health professional we saw to check it for me. When the weather got milder and I became more active again, I did get a small infection which made it sore and a bit smelly. I think it was from sweat and not getting enough air to it. I sent photos over to my GP who prescribed a cream, which healed it up really quickly.
I'm so glad I chose to have my C-Section birth, it was honestly such a nice experience. We were able to play our music through the whole operation and the team respected our wishes for being calm and quiet, and made sure to look after my husband as well, as he gets a bit squeamish!
The aftermath was tough but I think knowledge was definitely power and I was able to manage recovery as well as possible. I feel like I've been able to heal the trauma from my first labour with this positive experience.