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I just had a csection 6 weeks ago by choice. It went very smoothly and I was up walking around less than 24 hours later. I went back to work after 3 weeks. My advice is take all the pain meds they give you when you are supposed too, because sometimes I felt so good I thought I would skip a dose, then I would get sore. Also, as with most surgeries they make sure you "go" before you go home. They failed to ask me and gave me a laxative. ( I din't know it was a laxitive, I have IB and have never needed one!) Well I got so sick and spent 24 hours in the ladies room just 20 hours after the c/s! That was the worst part of it all!!!!!!!!!!! Also, get out of bed and walk around as soon as you can. If you lay around. gas builds up and that is very painfull. But as for the actualy c/s itself I did not have alot of pain, my incision healed well and is very unnoticable. I would choose this option again. Oh, the catheter was yucky at first, and uncomfortable, but for the first few hours after you are glad it is there!! As for pain meds during the c/s. I was under gereral anestesia (by choice) so i don't know anything about epis or spinals, except no one was putting a needle anywhere near my spine!! In the end it was good I chose to have a c/s because not only was my baby breech, but the unbilical cord was wrapped around her neck 2x and had I tried to push her out v____aly, it would have tightened causing her to lose oxygen.

I also had a c-sectio 4 weeks ago. I wou. ld agree with everything DeeJay said. It wasn't bad at all. I think the nerves leading up to it were worse than the actual surgery. I had an epidural, and the one thing I would tell you is if they give you the option to leave it in after surgery, DO! They can put your pain meds in the epi. and make your first 24 hours almost painless. (Although no shower until it comes out, but I am not sure you could have one right away anyway!) Also, I am not sure how they will close your incision, but I have had both glue and staples. Both healed fine, my doc was great and took the staples out before I left the hospital and replaced them with steri strips (did not hurt at all) so I don't have "railroad tracks" for a scar...you almost cannot even see the incision, and I had 22 staples!! Last couple of suggestions, DO take all pain meds...you will think you are fine and skip a dose (esp. when you come off the epi) it will hurt! And, my dh got a shower stool and a step stool (for getting into bed) and it helped alot in the first week! PS...DeeJay is right on...do "go" before you leave the pain meds are constipating and if you don't go before you leave you will regret it! Good luck!!

Thank you for your responses...keep em coming!

I posted my 3 c-sections stories on here a few weeks ago- should be a few pages back from this page- t_tled (something like) Three Very Different C-sections, Parts I, II and III. You can look them up if you want...

With my first son, I was due to have him normal but didn't dial late all the way. So I had him c section. Didn't feel much then. My last 3 babies I had c sections and It felt weird during delivery time. I did have discomfort, some pain. But the best thing to do as soon as you feel you can get up from bed after c section and walk around the better it helps you get stronger. Just don't lift anything heavy, do any laundry or any thing you were use to doing. Remember to wash it and keep it dry. And always use neosprin on wound it help heal faster. Don't worry about it. Wish you lots of luck. God bless you. I'll be praying for you.

I just had a csection on the 11th of this month...yeah a few days ago...I was beyond terrified as my other children were born v____ally, but this baby boy was breach and so without choice i had a scheduled csection. the worst pain other than the obvious recovery pain was the spinal injection...which actually felt like a small pinch in the back..nothing more! I was numb from the chest down, the delivery took maybe 10 min. All my stiches were internal, i have none external or staples...perhaps they used liquid stiches...not really sure, but i know i dont have anything for them to take out. I also note that after delivery i opted for a tubal...everything went very well, i was in recovery within 45 min of start. I got to see my baby right away...his daddy held him close to my head...then the baby was taken to the nursary for the usual checks. they kept me on my iv, as well as cathitor...yucky...until the following morning...and by then i was ready to get up and move around! (going pee didn't seem too bad at that point!) I was able to take a shower and dress myself as well as walk to the nursary to see my baby the following day. Yes I was very sore, but they gave me medicine when i asked and i was not shy about it!!! I was released with baby on the 4th day, and not having any major problems or complaints...Okay some small but dealable ones...sometimes apon standing it kinda hurts like someone is pulling on my tubes...i have been told this is normal with a tubal, and the pain is not that bad, especially if you take ur meds...which i am!!! Okay and the only other complaint is gas...let it all out, cause if you dont your tummy will hurt meds or not...good news though if it was up to me, i would take a csection over v____al any day of the week. You have a scar yes, but pain vs. pain, i would opt for the csection. I remember how scared i was, but honestly in my experience at least so far, i am very happy with this unexpected adventure. Good luck to you!

i have had 2 sections and am scheduled for my 3rd here in a few weeks. The only thing i do NOT enjoy is the catheter. Woah, that hurts when they put it in but other than that, piece of cake!!!! Recovery is not too bad. the day I came home (the 4th day) I was already walking down the street to a friends house. No big deal. I am having a tubal after this one so we'll see how that goes though. Good luck!!!!

the hardest part for me was the epidural, after that the rest was easy (yes i said easy) i look back on my daughters birth with complete satisfaction my c was planned and i wouldn't have it any other way i suggest getting up and walking as soon as possible i did with in 12 hours of birth and that got me home after 2 days instead of 3-4, i cut myself oof my pain meds so that i would feel my pain and gauge my activites accordingly, i did take them at night until they were gone but did not refill.... my advice is try to relax and trust your medical team. my whole story is posted under my csection was perfect if you'd like to read it. good luck

My baby was breech and I had a section. The worst part or maybe the most unexpected was the really extreme constipation after the event. I would recommend that you hound your doc for some bowel meds to keep them moving. Otherwise, like me you could end up suffering. My section overall was a positive experience, just next time I would be looking after the constipation thing quite aggressively. Good Luck!!!

I had an emergency c-section 5.5wks ago. I went into labor naturally, but was dialating really slowly, they put me on pit. I ended up being in labor for 29+hours and pushing for about 1hr. My dd got stuck in my pelvis, and my uterus started to give out, so I had the emergency c-section, because of our distress. I must say, I really don't care either way I just wanted us to be safe. I am a rare case I was walking 12hours after surgery, the doctor who performed the surgery was pretty much in shock when he saw me walking with my hubby and dd. I already had an epi because of my long labor, it wasn't bad, I did get some wierd sensations for about 2wks after, I am glad i was awake I got to see my baby girl immediately, and see how beautiful she is. I also had some kind of morphine and that kept my pain at bay for about 20 hrs. I probably could have gone home earlier than 3days, but was fine staying in the hospital. I had vicodin for pain and ibuprofen 800 for the inflammation. I can say all in all it was okay, I got to hold my little girl about an hour after and she was fine, the kept her in an incubator for the hour. My hospital gave my hubby the choice of either staying w/ me or going with the baby, we let our awesome nurse take care of our little girl and my husband stayed with me, when recovery was over he got the baby and brought her to me. I cannot have a VBAC ever because my dd was so far down my incision on the inside is across then down, so it's more fragile than most, I cannot go into hard labor, so I would have to have another c-section if we have another baby and that's okay. Oh having a good att_tude about everything helps too at least I believe so, it has helped me heal. Good luck.

My baby was premature & breeched so I had an emergency c-section, everything happened so fast, I did'nt have time to think about the pain from the catheter or the epidural (although some people find those 2 procedures painful),all I could think about was the labor pain. I did'nt really feel any pain from th c-section itself until the meds wore off. It took me a while to feel comfortable to walk without being hunched over (2weeks).I believe its different for other people, so I wish you the best

i had a planned section because i had toxemia and fear of my baby going into distress(lucky for me after section was over doc said my pelvis was too narrow anyways). i had no pain not even from the spinal. i was out of recovery at 11 am at 6 am the next morning i was walking around the hospital. the nurse said to call her into the room when i had to use the restroom so i did but she didn't get there fast enough so i just helped myself on into there. she was surprised i was up the way i was. i only had a spinal block and when that wore off i only took 500mg of ib profen for the 3 days i was in the hospital. after that no meds. i was bent over laughing at my husband the day after my section. i didnt have any pain but my stomach felt heavy like. my fear was that if i set still to long that i would get stiff so i was moving constantly. and i also had a fear that if i laid on my side my stomach would come open.(lol) i had dissolving st_tches. the catheter didn't really hurt as much as it burns for a second kinda like a urinary infection does.

I dont know if everyone is just being nice, or not trying to scare you... but I wouldnt call my c-sections "pleasent: What about the pain of trying to get out of bed? That lasted for 2 weeks with me. I found that trying to find different nursing positions was difficult, since it was kinda hard to move around. My baby was 3 mos old, I got the stomach flu, when I was throwing up, I felt it in my incision area. I mean yeah, giving birth is a glorious experience, I just hated that whole recovery process. She is almost 4 mos old... and its worth every ounce of misery... I just wonder why I didnt "Enjoy" my C section as much as others. This was my 2nd. My son was born 8 yrs ago by csection.... I wanted a VBAC this time... but it didnt happen. Toximia came again....

I just had an emergency c-section on October 30, because my baby was breech. I hadn't really thought about having one either, because my doctor was sure that the head was down - when it was actually the hip! Honestly, I didn't find the experience that bad. The epidural didn't hurt (although it also didn't stop the pain initially, so they had to keep topping up the meds before they could start the surgery), and the surgery itself was uneventful. I could feel tugging sensations, but it wasn't painful or even uncomfortable. I didn't feel the incision or the st_tches or the catheter or anything. Afterwards, I was a little achy, but not too bad. I didn't even need any pain meds. About four or five days afterwards, I felt really stiff, and it was hard to get up from a sitting or lying position. The worst part was probably the nausea - I was sick a couple of times for a few days afterwards, and trying to throw up when your stomach has been sliced open HURTS. It's now been nine days since I had the c-section, and although I don't feel 100%, I don't really have any complaints. The one thing that really surprised me is that all around the incision is totally numb, and apparently it always will be. Feels like it's just frozen! Anyway, best of luck and try not to worry.

i too thought that my incision would always be numb. but little by little feeling has come back into my lower stomach and incision area. at first the felling was a sore but not painful feeling but now it just feels like it did pre section. my great aunt had a tubal and got feeling back in all but one spot on her stomach. so yes you may end up with numbness forever but not always.(as always this is my personal experience and may not result the same as others.

My advice would be to avoid one if necessary. I would NEVER have a c section by choice. If you do end up needing one I strongly recommend that you remain awake for the procedure (I don't know if you may be given that choice). Be prepared to feel the roughest you have ever felt in your life. I woke up from mine and didn't think I'd ever walk again -but then take heart in the fact that if the procedure is straight forward then this pain lasts for a very short time. I felt like I would never walk again the next morning (I'd had the c section at 4.25pm the day before) but by the evening I was walking about. The pain is very odd, and is mixed with a bit of fear that if you stand upright then you'll split open, but it does not last for long. You may feel breathless for a while after but that pa__ses quickly. My reasons for what I've said are as follows. 1) you do not retain any dignity! The catheter is not pleasant, being bathed afterwards is a bit embarrasing too! I also found I was bleeding heavily and couldn't change my own sanitary pads for the first 12 hrs afterwards. 2) I was unable to change my baby's first nappy - I couldn't physically do it. 3) I had to call a midwfie to lift my baby out of his cot and help me b___st feed, again because I couldn't do it physically. 2 and 3 are the main two things that really got to me. 4) be awake! I had to be put under because my epidural wasn't working (it was an emergency c section and I have already laboured for over 12 hours and so was knackered which is why they couldn't get it in - it is extremely unlikely to happen to you as yours will be set up before you go into labour). This meant I had not physcial sensation of my baby leavfing my body. Soem people may think I am mad for saying this but it is true. For all intents and purposes they could've just wheeled me any old baby out. I woke up and there was a baby. If it wasn't forthe fact that he is the spitting image of me...! I didn't struggle at all to bond, but I can totally understand wh some people do. This is also hard to come to terms with, ad I do get upset and have a little cry over this because it is not what I had planned. I think you are lucky that you can brace yourself for this before you go in, and some people may think I've been too harsh in what Ive said. My intention hasn't been to scare you but to warn you of how you may feel. If I had realised that I wouldn't be able to do this stuff before I had my c section i think I'd've dealt with it differently.