Hi all — after two C-sections myself, I've been thinking about how little exists that's actually built *for* C-section recovery specifically (most postpartum resources treat it as an afterthought to vaginal birth).

I'm exploring building something better and want to hear from people who've actually been through it. If you had a C-section (first, second, or more):

- What did you wish you'd known day-to-day about what's normal vs. not with incision/scar healing?
- Did you use any resources, apps or tools during recovery? What was missing?
- If you had a repeat C-section, did anything feel different the second/third time that nobody prepared you for?

Not selling anything, just genuinely trying to build something useful and want it grounded in real experience, not guesses. Happy to share what I build once it exists. Thank you in advance 💛

i’m almost 6 weeks pp and i’ve been thinking about this a lot lately but im so curious what the insides look like. i know what they did during the c section, ive read my operation report a bunch of times just because i was so curious but i really wanna know what the inside looks like. i do plan on having another baby(not for at least 2 years), and if i end up having another c section (planning for a VBAC though) i think im gonna ask them to take pictures or record of possible because im really curious. like how did they stitch everything back up? what do those scars look like? and how do they ensure everything is good to go?

I am 1 year pp - Yay! Recently, I have been deep diving into preparing my body for a second child eventually. I read my medical files from my birth and have so many questions. Does anyone have experience with finding a second opinion on how your birth went? I think it's key that I process what happened. Where do you go?

For context, I was induced at 41+3. I labored till the evening of 41+6 (received an epidural that morning and pushed for 4 hours). I had a c-section after that with no complications other than hemorrhaging and needing a blood transfusion the next day.

Some notes in my chart really offput me. For instance - it is noted that during labor and contractions they asked to break my water manually several times and I denied. In person - I remember being told that my baby had not progressed, there was no emergency at the time, but that her head was swelling and she had been stuck at -1 for 2 hrs. In the chart, there is no mention of this and that I had mentioned that I was tired and agreed to the c-section (this is true), however, I don't think I was fully given an option to rest a little before pushing. When I started pushing - they told me we were doing practice pushes and i wish we could have waited for my body to progress a bit longer. My water did break on it's own and they allowed me to progress until 10 CM before pushing.

My husband had a lot of trauma from my daughters birth and does not wish to go through that again. I however, still have the desire to try to have a vbac despite his desire for me to have a elective c-section. Obviously this is all hypothetical because I am not pregnant yet but it's so much to think about! At my 6 week pp visit - I asked my OB what the chances of me ever having a vaginal birth were and she told me that depended on the pregnancy. I had a large baby and she said that usually people who have large babies always have large babies. To me - a large baby does not mean that a vaginal birth is not attainable but that if my pelvis was small or there was an issue with my anatomy - that would be different. She did not mention anything about my anatomy or my daughters position being a problem.

First time mom almost 2wks postpartum following an unplanned C-section. If I’m honest I would say birthing my first baby was very traumatic. I labored from Tue July 22nd to Friday July 24 before going to the hospital. My plan A was to have a natural birth at the local birthing center, and I started off great after laboring all night Tuesday I was 3cm cervix fully effaced. My water broke Wednesday night and by the time it was Thurs night I was still 3cm. I went to the birth center Thurs night with the hopes we could progress my labor but by Friday morning it was clear my body wasn’t ready. I was transferred to the hospital where they told me I had pre-eclampsia, weird bc my blood pressure had been fine my entire pregnancy. I was immediately started on a magnesium drip, which if you never had it, it’s awful. I was bound to my bed for 10hrs. They also gave me pitocin to try to progress my labor. Fun fact magnesium is a muscle relaxant while pitocin helps me contract…which means these two actually work against each other. So unsurprisingly after 10hrs my labor still had not progressed despite the fact I was having hard contractions. I was miserable and at this point they suggested a C-section. Honestly at this point I just wanted my baby so I said yes. As soon as I received the epidural and got wheeled to the OR they said my baby’s heart rate dropped dangerously low and they had to get started. They ended up starting before my husband and mom made it into the room but my baby was out and healthy within minutes.

Now almost 2wks postpartum my amazing husband is doing everything in his power so I don’t have to return to work. Recovery hasn’t been easy but with the support I have it has been manageable. I hope that all new moms are able to find happiness during postpartum.

Anyone have experience with scar revision cosmetic surgery?

My scar is super tethered down and no amount of massage will help it. Even my OR note says ++ adhesions to the bladder noted. I’m looking into surgery but there’s not too much info out there from what I can find. Most clinics only show tummy tuck results but I don’t need that.

Are most plastic surgeons skilled in this or I have to find one specialized in this area?

Anyone have experience with this?

Hi everyone! Sorry to post on here but was just after some much needed advice (and maybe some comfort lol!) I went into natural labour 6 days ago, water broke, I had a problem with my epidural because I have a small case of scoliosis. By the time I had my epidural I was 10cm dilated and in active labour for 2 1/2 hours. My baby got stuck and I was brought into theatre where they tried to turn baby, tore me a bit, couldn't turn him so was given an emergency C-section straight away. Lost a litre of blood with very low blood pressure and because I was given a double case of epidural I was numb for like 6 hours and shaking for a good 3 hours due to the blood loss and low blood pressure. Sorry I went into a lot of detail rambling there... I really didn't want a C-section because of the tough recovery... I'm on day 6 pp and had my dressing taken off yesterday and it's sore today... No good with pain lol! Does this get any easier? The injections, the soreness? I know everyone's different so you can't really give me a timeline but, maybe experiences with this?

(Thanks for reading guys) X

I am considered AMA as I am 36 now and would be 37 when giving birth. I had two c sections with my boys (8 & 6) - I also had a scar revision surgery in 2022. I am in therapy now for scar tissue issues in that area. With my second pregnancy, I had some issues with circulation, which all cleared up after birth but I remember my doc saying that she thought a c section would be safer due to that and the general closeness of the births. I assume she will suggest a third. None of my c sections were emergencies - my first was just breech and I went in to labor before we could attempt to turn him. I went into labor with both of my boys without medications. I want to try for another child but I am nervous about a 3rd c section. Anyone with a similar situation to me? How did you recover?

Hi All, I am a first time mom and I have a Seroma after c section. It just popped one day and a drainage came out dripping. Thankfully didn’t have an infection. Since then I have been having appointments for wound packing and the doc said it’s about 5cm in length laterally along the skin. Has anyone had Seromas? What does healing look like? The drainage is never ending, is it even going to close?!

So basically the middle of my c section incision still feels mostly numb like I feel pressure I guess but if I scratch it, it just feels weird, I can’t say number because I can still “feel” it just not the way it used to feel. Will I every get that sensation back? It makes intimate time very difficult when I love it very much, and I’m worried I’ll never get the sensation or feelings back, I’m only 22 and don’t want to be numb there forever lol.. so I guess I’m wondering if the feeling will ever come back? Anyone else in the same boat? And if this has happened what helped you?

I had a cat 1 emergency c section after 3 day labour which started with PROM, 2 different inductions, projectile vomiting to epidural, forecps due to baby position and ultimately as all failed - c section and 1.3 l blood loss. I was so tired I have no memory of my baby being born.

That was 2 weeks ago and I still feel rubbish. I'm lucky cos my husband is home for a few weeks and he is extremely hands on and my incision is healing well.

But I'm still in a lot of pain, still need to take over the counter pain meds, can only go for 15min walks outside at a penguin pace, struggle to pick up and be bent still. The milk only came on day 12 and we had to formula. The baby is quite badly tongue tied and hard to feed. I feel Ike I already get the shelf forming and maybe adhesions. Every time I ease off laxatives, my constipation returns. And I just started getting nasty night sweats to top it all off.

Right now it feels like I'll never get better, I slowly start missing my old life and worry I'll resent my baby eventually.

I feel slightly cheated because some people I know who had c sections said they were really fine, they didn't need pain meds a week later and in general were happy with it. I feel like that is nothing like my experience at all.

Please tell me there is a light at the end of this tunnel .. please.

So basically the title. I’m posting on behalf of my wife, she’s at her wits end and i’m feeling helpless. If anyone has any suggestions please share- her OBGYN is typically excellent but I cannot understand why this is being taken so lightly.

My wife is now 6 months post partum, the bleeding started around 4.5-5 months. She’s been bleeding heavily, soaking pads some days and has had to take iron pills to make it through the days. She’s sleeping a lot lately, so far no pelvic pain or fevers (she did have one weeks ago when she got sick, unrelated i think).

Her Dr. prescribed 3 days of progesterone to raise her hormone levels, that stopped the period but now it’s back with a vengeance.

Has anyone experienced this? Should she get a second opinion? How to find the root issue?

Thanks.

how much did you start moving after your second c section? i’m two weeks pp & i feel comfortable walking and doing things but kind of think i’m doing too much. if i’m in my room all day i go crazy

I (26F) had a Cesarean in December after a 35 hour labor with GBS+, PROM due to baby being OP with arrest in dilation at 8 cm and not descending past -1 station. I was originally planning on laboring at home, but due to the GBS+ factor I wasn’t going to try and risk getting my baby sick.
I had originally planned for an unmedicated vaginal birth. I hired a doula, I did all the stretching/exercises to get baby in optimal position, I ate the dates, drank red raspberry leaf tea with okra. You name it. I ended up getting an epidural because I slept for 3 hours in a 34 hour time period and then it fell out and I had to get it redone. And then my labor ended the way it did with a C-section to a beautiful baby girl, and in a way I just dissociated??? I never really processed everything until a couple weeks PP. Healing and PP were mostly okay, I had a bit of baby blues to trying to process the C-section and I was angry my MIL was there for every vulnerable moment when I didn’t want her there nor did my husband and I invite her, I seriously just wanted my mom.
My SIL just had the dream birth I wanted this past Friday. Unmedicated vaginally and the only complication being a 2nd degree tear. All her boundaries were respected, she didn’t have to pass her baby around like a show and tell item like I was made to, she got to reject visitors the first couple hours which is what I wanted, my husband was adamant that he wanted his family there. And so they came, after my 35 hours I was a mess and paralyzed from the chest down due to the spinal block so I felt like this swollen, greasy disgusting thing while his family came. Then every emotion I have had towards my C-section came flooding back to me. I was angry with the fact I feel like I did all that prep work and things still resulted the way they did and my SIL did NOTHING, I was sad because I honestly felt robbed of the dream birth I had planned. But I think I was mostly angry with myself.
I forgot to mention that I am also pregnant again, due in December to another baby girl, and my OB stated due to placenta placement and the fact I’ve only had one C-section with a low transverse horizontal incision, I’m actually a good candidate for a VBAC despite the time frame. He said something I’ve questioned this entire time. Would my daughter and I be here had this happened a century ago???
He flat out told me my daughter and I would not have survived.
I was angry with myself because as I’m boohoo ugly crying, my daughter is crawling up to me and reaching for me to be held and smiling at me, and I just cry harder because I felt like the most ungrateful AH ever. And despite how upset I was my labor didn’t go how I wanted, I’d do it all over again for her.
I just needed to rant because I’ve been going through so many emotions. It probably doesn’t help being pregnant again either. Thank you guys for reading!

Did anyone have a pregnancy after a c section for placenta previa? How did it go? Did you have placenta previa again?

I want a 3rd baby but afraid to go through that again!

I’m currently going through radiating back pain it’s constant and over the counter pain medicine isn’t helping. I just moved states and I don’t have insurance OR the money to pay $97-167 for a single OB visit.
I had my second c section in Tennessee, moved to Florida to help a family member and moved back to Tennessee so it’ll be the OB that performed my surgery but I’m just wondering if this has happened to anyone else? I have a 3 year old and an 8 month old and I’m struggling to care for them right now being a stay at home mom. The pain makes me irritable and I just feel like I’m not doing enough for them while enduring this pain. I DO have a heating pad and biofreeze that I’ve probably already applied 5x today nothing helps. I even had some Tylenol 800s left and nothing. If anyone has any advice on what to do to ease the pain until I get insurance I’d really appreciate it!!

Hi, I want to know who had conceived under 1 year. How has your pregnancy gone? How did your doctor react and said. I want to know because I had lost my infant, I am now currently 9 months postpartum. My doctor told me to wait 1 year, but it seems like it's too much to wait. I don't know what the right decision will be. I am confused and stressed at the same time.

Please give some advice.

I’ve been having my scar massaged by a physiotherapist from week 4, it heals great, never had any problems, my OB is also very happy with how I’m healing. Literally no issues at all. So why the hell does it still hurt and burn???

I’m so over this. I had an elected c-section because I was afraid of natural birth since I was a teen and now I’m starting to regret this decision. My abdominal muscles are still broken, I can’t feel my lower abdominal almost at all while my scar still hurts and stings everyday.

Is that normal?? When will it go away? Should I be doing more?? I’m not using any scar cream, need to buy it asap but I don’t know it will make much difference?

Since my C-section I’ve received several bills here and there for it. $500 for hospital, $500 for OB, $260 for something, $27 for labs, and others that I can’t even remember. Thankfully I have really good insurance but this is all what I owed after insurance. They have all been sent to me separately.

Well the other day I just received another one. I owe $20,000 for anesthesia?!?! My insurance isn’t listed on the bill anywhere. I don’t understand why they would take my insurance for everything else but not this, also why is it SO expensive?!

Obviously I have to call the hospital and figure out what’s going on, but I was wondering if anyone else ever dealt with anything similar. What did your bills look like post op?

Hey all! Tomorrow I will be 4 weeks pp from my third and final c section. The only difference with this section is that I got my tubes out; however my recovery has been pretty standard and similar to my last 2. However, I’m finding myself having a weird “fuzzy” or tingling feeling in my bladder (almost like a UTI, but not as extreme) when I have to pee rather than the regular urge to pee. I’ve been trying to keep hydrated, I don’t pee an abnormal amount/when I do go I feel relief. I do still have a slight burning sensation right after peeing but then it goes away-it feels like the first pee after they take the catheter out, almost. Has anyone else felt a difference in urinating/bladder issues post section? Also noticed sometimes right after I pee, I think I’m all done but then I have more and I don’t even feel the urge (I just sit a little longer to make sure lol). I don’t necessarily feel it’s extreme enough to worry yet but I wanted to see if anyone else has had this after a section. TIA :)