things/advice to help with or after C-sec

That is a nice thread Vix!

Okay for me what helped was:

1. Walk as soon as you can and walk straight
2. With regards to catheter as Vix says, you can request for it to be inserted after Spinal.
3. Take meds before pain hits
4. Shower with back facing the water.
5. At 6 weeks, get one of those slimming pants (bought mine at edgars) and that helped flatten tummy.

Okay cant remember much now.

My question to those that have had c-sec is how do I make sure that next time I have enough milk?

I had major problems with breastfeeding and my milk supply was really not great. What can I do differently next time?

Tivaniag- rather print this out after a few days, i am sure these ladies have tons more advice.

RM- oh so true about the reading, i actually took in your baby but i was actually so drugged up i could barely focus on the words. actually only read that magazine when my boy was about 9m old LOL

Bless you Vix! I am printing out all of this and will refer closer to the time!

Thanks a mil.

Any other advice is welcome. I know someone did a list also that is needed for me and baby for the 3 days in terms of clothes etc, if someone can remind me of that, I would be sooo grateful

Carewell surgical knickers and bra - does the trick for those first few days.

Snacky Food - Food that you enjoy to snack on - often the c-section means you have not eaten all day, you are all finished, and they bring you food, and you do not really want to eat it, and at some point in the middle of the night/morning you realise you are actually quite hungry - I found the Woolies muffins brilliant for snack attacks.

Shower gel - rather than a bar of soap. I bought one that was a treat, and they used that to wash me and also when I went to shower. It was easier to deal with than a wet bar of soap.

Phone charger - your phone sort of goes for a bit of a ball of chalk while you are in hospital.

Know your meds - know when you are meant to get them - ask your meds if the time has arrived and no one has given them to you. Managing the pain is much easier than trying to deal with it when it has already arrived.

Don't take a book - just more stuff for you to drag home with you - you never get a chance to read, take some magazines that you can page through as your brain turns to porridge.

Send stuff home the night before if you can, so that when you leave it is just easier, you end up with so much to take home, that it just gets too over whelming.

If you can arrange for meals to be organised for the first week that is a total winner!!!

if you need to cough or laugh put some pressure on your scar area with your hands or a pillow anything will help. Keep the comedians at bay for at least a week! LOL

Bendy straws or even better some kind of drinking cup you can use laying down, actually a sports bottle would be great. for the first few hours after C-sec i could not even sit up to drink and they very kindly left me a water jug and glass to drink from.......mmm yeah right! i was so super thirsty but i luckily got DH to buy me a carton of drink with a straw so in some way i managed to drink water from the glass. Thinking about it now a sports bottle would be the best thing! must put that on my list!

breastfeeding pillowget yourself a decent BF pillow or at least a really thick regular pillow and take it with you into hospital, it's hard to BF haunched over after a C-sec as all controll of your stomach muscles takes a flying leap out the theatre door before they've even stitched you up. I used the pillow on my lap for BF but then also to prop me up comfortably so i could eat and drink.

Honestly the first 12hrs after are the worst because they don't let you get up but i would say the first 3 weeks are important especially to make life as easy as possible.

o.k every hospital is different so some things may vary.

If you are in a private hospital ask them to only insert the Catheter AFTER they have done your spinal. firstly because it can be uncomfortable going in but also incase you don't go straight to theatre.

the day my C-sec was scheduled i arrived at 1pm, but suddenly there were emergencies after emergencies and i only got wheeled to theatre at 7.30pm. Now when i was 39w2d i was terribly uncomfortable and needed to stand and walk and generally move all the time. with a catheter i would've basically been banished to my room but because i refused it at check in i was able to spend the 6.5hr wait walking around the hospital killing time.