If you have had a general anaesthetic, you will stay in the recovery room until you wake up, usually in about 30 to 60 minutes. You will be able to see your baby when you wake up. Your baby may be allowed to stay with you unless the team is worried about your health or the baby's health.
“It's recommended that you get up and walk around,” says Dr. Higgins. “We don't want someone lying in bed for two weeks.”
After C-Section: The First 24-48 Hours
Again, you've just had major surgery, so fatigue and pain are to be expected. Many women also report experiencing nausea for the first few hours. Depending on the composition of your epidural, you may have some itching.
After the medication is administered, the needle is removed. The relief from pain is immediate and lasts from an hour and a half to three hours. You will be numb from your abdomen to your legs and feel no pain. General anesthesia is the only pain relief method used during labor that makes you lose consciousness.
If you are awake, you can usually see and hold your baby straight after your C-section birth. You can begin skin-to-skin contact and possibly breastfeeding. Skin to skin contact is important for you and your baby after birth to enhance bonding and establish breastfeeding.
Unnecessary general anesthesia for cesarean delivery is associated with maternal complications, including serious anesthesia-related complications, surgical site infection, and venous thromboembolic events.
When can I go home after a c-section? You will usually stay in hospital for 2-4 days after your c-section. If you and your baby are well, and you have someone to help you at home, you may be able to go home after 24 hours.
How Long Does a Cesarean Surgery Take? Though every woman's situation is unique, the delivery of a baby via cesarean may take as little as 15 to 20 minutes, with a further 45 minutes needed to stitch up the uterus and abdominal incision.
You should get as much rest as possible, especially in the first few weeks after a C-section. Adages that recommend sleeping when your baby sleeps or asking friends and family to step in so you can rest are great ways to ease the burden in the early days.
1 day later: You'll be encouraged to walk around within the first 12 hours after delivery to help relieve gas buildup in the abdomen, and to eat something light as soon as you feel able.
You may remove your wound dressing and take showers if stitches, staples, or glue were used to close your skin. Do not soak in a bathtub or hot tub, or go swimming, until your provider tells you it is OK. In most cases, this is not until 3 weeks after surgery.
Under most circumstances, undergoing a c-section via Spinal Anesthesia or Epidural Anesthesia (rather than General Anesthesia) is preferred since it involves less risk and has the advantage of allowing you to be awake during your baby's birth.
Most women are awake and simply numbed from the waist down using regional anesthesia (an epidural and/or a spinal block) during a C-section. That way, they are awake to see and hear their baby being born.
At the beginning of a caesarean section, six separate layers of the abdominal wall and uterus are opened individually. Once the baby is delivered the uterus is closed with a double layer of stitching.
A caesarean is a major operation that carries a number of risks, so it's usually only done if it's the safest option for you and your baby.
In the five-to-six week postpartum period after giving birth, it's common to experience bowel and digestion issues, and that's true whether you had a c-section or vaginal birth.
Caesarean (C-section) delivery has various complications.
To prevent inflammation, you should keep your legs elevated at most times. Mothers with C-section need six weeks to recover from surgery before they plan to travel.
C-section pain typically spikes 18 hours after delivery.
The average hospital stay after a C-section is 2 to 4 days, and keep in mind recovery often takes longer than it would from a vaginal birth. Walking after the C-section is important to speed recovery and pain medication may be supplied too as recovery takes place.
A woman given regional anesthesia for a cesarean section will typically feel some pressure and be aware of the hospital staff working on her but will experience no pain.
The mother is given an anesthetic throughout the whole operation. Women who have a Cesarean section usually have a choice of two or three options: A general anesthetic, where they are completely unconscious, and two types of regional anesthetic known as “epidural” and “spinal” anesthesia.
You'll want high-waist underwear (think granny panties) that reach above your incision site, and dresses or loose-fitting pants that won't rub against your incision or squeeze your abdominal area. In short, anything that chafes your scar (like elastic) will not feel good.