Your C-Section Recovery: What You Need to Know to Feel Better, Sooner
Over thirty percent of women in the United States have cesarean birth yet moms get very little education or support on how to recover.
If you’re scheduled for one or not, here’s are some self-care tips to help speed up healing and recovery:
RECOVERY AFTER C-SECTION:
You can start your road to healing and recovery right from your hospital by doing belly breathing. Belly breathing, also known as diaphragmatic breathing (inhale –> belly rise, exhale –> belly falls). Drawing in your abdominal walls to your spine are safe movements which send oxygenated blood flow to your incision to help speed up healing.
Try to make it out of bed on the first day after (day 2) for a very slow walk. Walking stimulates your organs, prevents blood clot and reduces fluid retention.
Your incision will be sore, swollen and you might feel a burning sensation. You can soothe all three with CODDLE’s perineal balm also known as witch hazel balm. Witch Hazel is your bff during postpartum, along with witch hazel, the balm is made with peppermint which provides even more cooling relief.
At home use a pillow(s) to help with any discomfort you feel while lying in bed. To move from sitting to standing and vice versa, use the pillow to hold against your abdomen and support your incision. This also works for riding in the car in the first few days after your c-section. Pillows make excellent splints when you need to cough, laugh, or sneeze. Just hold it firmly over your belly.
Four words: take the stool softener!! Your first poop will hurt, ease the pain ahead of time by taking stool softeners.
The first few times will hurt because your incision is still raw and new. Don’t overdo it, do a few deep breaths the first-time round. Then once you get the clearance soak in a CODDLE sitz bath — to relieve more soreness. Soaking in a sitz herbal bath 2 times a day, soothes c-section soreness and swelling. A sitz bath also helps to relieve hemorrhoids. A full submersion tub bath is not recommended until about 4 weeks after a cesarean birth or when your doctor gives the go-ahead.
With a c-section, there is scar tissue. Some moms say they experience tenderness, pain or loss of sensation. Once your scar feels okay to touch, you can use a heating pads along with the CODDLE postpartum massage oil, to do gentle scar massage. Scar massage desensitizes and frees up the skin around your scar.
More scar care! Keep it DRY AND CLEAN. Don’t scrub it in the shower; simply let soap wash over it. That’s it.
Rest, heal and plan for help. An extra pair of hands help you stay put for a few hours in one location. If your house has more than one floor, I advise moms to go down or up the stairs once per day. You’ll need to have more than one changing/feeding station. You don’t want to be schlepping supplies all over your house.
Here’s a c section recovery hack; apply perineal balm on a cotton or postpartum pad and gently dabbed over your stitches.Moving around is important, even if it’s from one end of your room to the next. Moving is a must! It helps prevent blood clots, lung congestion and minimizes gas and constipation.
Try and stand as straight as possible. When you do, make sure to support your belly with your hand.
When you have a c-section you might find it difficult to raise your arms above your head without pain. Don’t plan on reaching for anything high up for the first few weeks. You’ll want easy access to the things you need by keeping them at waist height.
If your house has more than one floor in the first week – I advise keeping the amount of times you go up and down to one per day.. You can come down and hang out with guests/family & friends then head up later. No constant up and down because even though you may feel awesome, remember they had to cut through more than 7 layers to get to your baby.
WHAT ISN’T NORMAL AFTER A C-SECTION
Do NOT ignore or wait until your scheduled postpartum checkup to report any of the following:
Multiple blood clots, or a blood clot the size of a golf ball
Heavy bleeding that fills a pad in 1 to 2 hours
Lower-belly tenderness
Fever above 100.4° F
Foul-smelling or green/yellow vaginal discharge or from the incision
A severe headache
Blurry or spotty vision
Feeling faint or dizzy
Nausea and vomiting, pain or burning during urination
Pain, swelling or tenderness in your legs usually accompanied by warmth, redness and hardness
Severe pain in your lower abdomen
The ‘how to’ list after a C-Section⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Exercise: general rule: at 4 weeks and if your recovery is uncomplicated you may be ready. Everything you read will tell you to talk to your doctor and you should but I want to add here to talk with a physical therapist (PT) as well. Most people skip this step and just talk with their OBGYNs who are not typically focused on or trained in abdominal separation and recovery the way a PT is.
Take a Bath: The general rule is wait, wait until 4 weeks postpartum or until you get the all clear from your health provider.
Have sex: sex is one of those things you have to feel ready for mentally/physically. The same 6 – 8 weeks is general guidance, but I remember at 8 weeks I wasn’t ready. This is a question for your midwife or doctor at your postpartum visit.
Heavy lifting: “You should not lift anything heavier than 10 pounds or your baby for the first 6 weeks postpartum.”
There’s so much more you need to know such as, what questions to ask at your pre-op visit, how to breastfeed after your c-section and how to prevent scar numbness – which many C-section moms report having after. I’ve written an eBook telling you everything you need, so you feel prepared and empowered. Grab a copy here