Recovering from a C-section isn’t like recovering from a vaginal delivery.
There is a lot more caution to be had in your recovery and you’ll likely be in more discomfort for a little while longer than if you were to have delivered your baby vaginally.
Here are some areas that will help you know what to expect.
1. In The Hospital
After your C-section, your movements will be limited. Therefore your mobility factor won’t be there in the first few hours after you’ve been brought to the recovery room.
This is to ensure you don’t rupture your stitches and aggravate the wound.
Once your doctor gives you the okay, you’ll be able to slowly start standing and moving around again.
Expect soreness around the incision and also your diet will be limited within the first few hours. The last thing you’ll want to do is ingest an enormous amount of food and have gas, bloating, and constipation.
If you delivered your baby via C-section, you can expect a four day stay in the hospital. This is to rule out any infections concerning your incision and to be positive that your body is functioning properly enough so that you can go to the bathroom and digest food normally.
2. Once You Get Home
Upon arriving home after delivering your baby via C-section, you should heed the doctor’s orders to take it easy.
If this is your first baby, you may feel like you want to do a million things for your little one but you really need to take the time to rest. If you don’t heal properly, it will mean trips back to the hospital and a longer recovery time.
In fact, you should set it up so that you have someone with you around the clock for at least the first week. Your doctor will shun any type of heavy lifting and moderate activity -- meaning you should make peace with your couch or bed in the days immediately following your return home.
You can expect discomfort in your abdominal area, soreness around your incision, and an overall feeling of restlessness since you can’t move around as freely as you’d like.
Things will get better after the first week and you’ll start to notice that everything is slowly getting back to normal with your body.
Always call your doctor immediately if you feel that something isn’t right. Don’t think that any of your concerns are trivial, they’re not.
Informing your doctor about any postpartum problems you’re having with your recovery is the best thing you can do to prevent any worsening conditions.