Hellobee

For those of you who have planned c sections or end up getting a last minute c section like I did, I thought I’d share what my experience was like.  In case you missed it, you can read about my labor saga here.

The Surgery

Once it was determined that I was going to get a c section, everything happened very quickly.  I was wheeled into the operating room, given another epidural, and various monitoring devices were attached to me.  The iv made me shiver with cold so they put a warming blanket on my upper body that filled with warm air.  When the epidural kicked in, a curtain was raised above my waist and Mr. Bee was allowed to come into the operating room.  Once the doctor started, it probably took only 10 minutes or so for him to get Charlie out.  Waiting to hear Charlie cry was the longest two seconds of my life!

Charlie was brought over so Mr. Bee could hold him while the doctor continued to stitch me up — that took another 20 minutes or so.  Mr. Bee wasn’t allowed to cut the umbilical cord like he would have if I’d had a vaginal delivery, but I don’t think he would have wanted to see the madness that was going on down there.  I wasn’t scared and didn’t feel any pain during the entire surgery though… I was just happy that Charlie was alive and healthy!

Labor Recovery Area

After the surgery, my bed was wheeled into the labor recovery area.  Curtains separate you from other moms who have just given birth, and you’re allowed to have visitors at that point.  We were separated for a short time post surgery, and a nurse brought over Charlie in his little wheeled cart.  My doula also joined us and helped me breastfeed.  We didn’t get to spend that much time with Charlie however, before he was taken to the nursery so a doctor could examine him.  Hospitals typically take babies away to the nursery shortly after you breastfeed, probably because it’s easier for them to examine a bunch of babies in one place.  I’ve heard giving birth at a birthing center is different  because you’re never separated from your baby.  Then again you usually can’t get an epidural at a birthing center…

I had planned on getting a private room, but they’re first come first serve and none were available because there had been so many births that day.  We had to wait a couple of hours in the labor recovery area for a shared room to become available.  Had there been any rooms available, our wait would definitely have been shorter.  Some hospitals only have private rooms — if so, lucky you!

Shared Room

In a shared room you have a shared bathroom, your own television, and a curtain divider that separates you and another mom.  Soon after we got settled into our room, a nurse brought Charlie in — it was a very long time to be separated from him!  Mr. Bee then went home, got some blankets and slept on the floor next to me.  That must have been a first because the nurses were surprised to see him there.  I guess moms usually stay alone in the shared rooms because my roommate was alone, whereas there are cots for the dads in the private rooms.  I didn’t want to be alone though because I was essentially chained to my bed and couldn’t get up at all to tend to Charlie.

That first night we had the option to sleep with Charlie, or leave him in the nursery and have a nurse bring him into our room every 3 hours or so to be breastfed.  Since I couldn’t get out of  bed, I opted to have Charlie sleep in the nursery that first night.  The mom that shared my room also kept her son in the nursery, and both our babies were brought in about the same times throughout the night.

C-Section Side Effects

My legs were still numb from the epidural, so I wasn’t allowed to get out of bed for the first 24 hours after the surgery.  I was hooked up to a catheter so I didn’t have to worry about getting up to go to the bathroom.  I’d never had a catheter before — you can’t even feel yourself pee!  Balloons that inflated and deflated at regular intervals were attached to my legs to prevent blood clots.  A cuff on my arm regularly took my blood pressure.  During this time I also started feeling crazy itchy!  Apparently this is a very common side effect of an epidural, and I’d had an extra large dose since I had a c section.  The nurse had to get approval from a doctor to give me something to alleviate the itchiness, so I waited hours while I scratched away and drove Mr. Bee crazy.  Finally she put something in my iv that helped… until it wore off and I started itching again.

The hospital provides moms with all their meals, but you’re only allowed to eat clear liquids the first two days after surgery.  You can start eating more solid foods once you pass gas, which I finally did three days after Charlie was born.  That means I didn’t eat anything other than juice or broth for 4 days because I didn’t eat anything for 24 hours before Charlie was born!  Luckily I didn’t have much of an appetite anyway.

Private Room

After one night in the shared room, we were able to move to a private room.  If you have a vaginal delivery, you’re typically allowed to go home within 48 hours of giving birth.  But if you have a c section, you may stay in the hospital 4 days post birth like I did.  I stayed one night in the labor and delivery room, 1 night in the shared room, and 3 nights in a private room.  I think a shared room is covered by insurance, but a private room at NY Presbyterian Cornell is $700 a night.  A private room was worth it for me because I was at the hospital so long.  The room was very large with a bathroom, tv with cable, refrigerator, rocking chair, and an extra bed.  I don’t know how I could have gotten up fast enough to to burp, change, and soothe Charlie because it hurt so much to get out of bed.  Mr. Bee did all that pretty much the entire time we were in the hospital.  The private room was a must so he could stay with me, we could have visitors, and we could be alone with Charlie.

I still had an iv in my arm when we switched rooms, but the catheter was removed so I was able to walk.  Freeeedom!!!!  The nurse told me to wait until the following day to take a shower, but I could.not.wait.  I sweat like a monster while in labor, bled post labor, and I was filthy.  That shower felt SO good.

The Pain & Elephant Feet

Initially I thought the recovery wasn’t that bad, but you don’t really feel pain for the first 24 hours because you’re still under the effects of the epidural and probably on an adrenaline high from giving birth.  When the epidural started wearing off, it hurt when I laughed or coughed, but I generally felt fine when I was laying in bed.  Getting out of bed was another story though; it was a whole 5 minute production.  And I had to get out of bed often because the iv makes you pee like crazy.  The nurses gave me percocet pills every 6 hours to help manage the pain.  I didn’t realize just how much the percocet helped until I was released from the hospital and ran out of them.

My iv was finally removed 48 hours after the surgery.  I was so happy to get it off because it made walking to the bathroom and picking Charlie up easier.  I was also encouraged to walk around the hospital to speed up the recovery process.  A side effect of having an iv in your arm for three days is that you end up with humongous swollen elephant feet.  I wish I had taken a picture because they were comically big!  It took a full two weeks for the swelling to completely go away.

The Loot

The hospital provides everything your baby needs – diapers, wipes, swaddle blankets, caps, onesies, formula, disposable nipples, etc.  Moms are given disposable underwear, nursing pads, slipper socks, anything you need related to breastfeeding, and I even got a Chanel gift bag that had a night cream, 4 eyeshadows, and a bottle of perfume!

I’m Naked!

There was a day nurse, a night nurse, residents who do rounds, lactation consultants, and your regular ob coming in and out of your room all day long.  A doctor came in to check my stitches daily. A nurse came in to give me percocet every 6 hours.  Meals were delivered three times a day.  A nurse came in throughout the entire day to monitor Charlie’s eating, pooping, and peeing.  Charlie was taken away to be weighed regularly, for a hearing test, a hepatitis B vaccine, and to get his bilirubin levels tested.  Because so many people were coming in and out of our room, I got used to anyone and everyone walking in on me nursing.  Probably 30 different people saw me partially naked during my hospital stay.

Checking Out

The morning of the day I left, my staples were removed — it was quick and painless and my incision area didn’t require any special care.  Before you get discharged, a class on newborn care is mandatory, as well is watching a video on Shaken Baby Syndrome.  A nurse asked me what I needed and filled a bag with diapers, formula, wipes, and more for us to take home.  We filled out Charlie’s birth certificate, turned it in, and 4 days after Charlie was born, we were finally ready to go home.

The Aftermath

I was sent home with 5 days worth of percocet (or oxyxodone, its generic form).  My pain was pretty well managed when I was under the effects of the percocet, but I was in a lot of pain whenever it wore off.  When I ran out, I begged my doctor for a refill, and got another 3-4 days worth which I used sparingly with Motrin to stretch it out.  I don’t know if I felt so much better because of the absence of pain when I was on the percocet, or if I was just high.  When I took two pills, I’d be cleaning, taking care of Charlie, and have all this energy.  When the effects wore off, I’d be exhausted and in pain.  I can see why people get addicted to prescription pain killers.

I bled for 6 weeks, my carpal tunnel that started during my third trimester was worse than ever, and my stomach hurt for a good four weeks before I started to feel back to my regular self.

Current Day

I have an ugly 6 inch scar that turned into a keloid below my bikini line, and it still feels a little odd and itchy to this day.  The keloid is just something genetic, but my ob tells me that she can remove the scar with a second c-section, and I can be a lot more proactive in preventing another scar this time around.  I’m going to meet with a dermatologist, but my OB tells me that Kelo-Cote, an over the counter anti-scar medicine works wonders — I wish I’d known that the first time around.   I just hope I can get rid of that hideous scar for good this time!

Was your c-section experience similar to mine?  How was it different?