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So as it turns out my little guy is not flipping, nor do they think he is going to flip due to a condition I have, so I am 95% sure I am going be having a C-Section. I am not thrilled, but it is what it is. I would love to hear from anyone who had C-Section. Pros/cons, what to look out for.  I am super worried about my belly not going down.  My cousin had a C-section and she looked 8 months pregnant for at least 3 months after, so that worries.

Also, do they allow more than just the hubby in the surgery room? I know that once the baby is out, they take the baby and the Dad goes with the baby. I am terrified of being left there alone, I have high anxiety and I fear if I'm left just laying there on the table while they stitch me up I am going to freak, so was wondering if my sister or mom could be in the room as well, so when my DH goes with the baby someone will still be there for me??

I also had an unplanned c-section after about 24 hours of labor, and I was completely unprepared for it. While I'm sure it doesn't seem like a good thing now, at least knowing it will happen ahead of time gives you time to prepare. Plus, you won't end up with hemroids from pushing :)

The number of people you'll be able to have with you in surgery will depend on your hospital's policy. Definitely ask now. After my baby was delivered, I got a minute to meet her. Then she was taken to a different area in the operating room. My husband left my side to stand by baby, but he was talking to me the whole time. Once they were done checking her out, my husband sat next to me and held her while they finished the surgery. I didn't feel alone at all, and I was super freaked out and anxious going into the surgery as well. It's been 2 weeks, and my stomach above my belly button looks completely normal. I've still got some pudge ation from my belly button down to the incision, but it gets a little smaller every day. (As a reference, I was in great shape prior to pregnancy, worked out almost every day during the 1st and 2nd trimesters, at least went for a walk every day during the 3rd, and gained the recommended amount of weight.) Fingers crossed that it keeps getting smaller.

Below are my tips:

- If you had your heart set on a vaginal birth, allow yourself to mourn the loss of that experience now. I'm sure that sounds strange (I would have thought so before my c-section as well), but with the post-birth hormone changes, I was actually pretty sad about not having the birth I wanted. Let yourself be sad about it now if you need to, and focus on how great it will be to have a birth with a healthy baby, healthy mama.

- Buy some high waisted underwear in a size or two larger than your normal size. You won't want anything right on top of your incision for awhile. Do this ahead of time so that you don't have to send your husband to the store to buy granny panties for you ;)

- I found that wearing a stretch band, like this:  http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000WFW7W2/ref=oh_o03_s00_i00_details
was really helpful. It will hurt to laugh, cough and sneeze for about a week or 2 after your surgery. I was told to gently press a pillow against my belly, but I found that the band was easier, more comfortable, and generally helped me feel like my guts were all in the right place.

-As awful as it sounds, I also found having a cane extremely helpful. My husband got me one with a wide base, like this: http://www.amazon.com/Duro-Med-Adjustable-Multi-Color-Small-Black/dp/B000CSWBYI/ref=sr_1_3?s=hpc&ie=UTF8&qid=1320081921&sr=1-3. It made it so that I could get in and out of bed, stand up and sit down, use the toilet, etc, without needing help. At the hospital, you'll feel like the toilet is totally easy, but when you get home, you'll realize that the seat is WAY lower and you no longer have bars to help.

- Get your pain medication prescription filled at the pharmacy in the hospital if at all possible, fill it at a drive through pharmacy on the way home, or get a friend/relative to fill it for you. As soon as we got home, my husband left me and baby to get my prescription filled, which I was not ideal.

Hope that helps! Sorry for the extremely long post!

Thank you ladies so much your postive stories and encourgement! And big congrats to you! Makes me feel better to see first hand experiences and try to prepare myself!

Thanks!

Oh I am so grateful to hear all the positive experiences with C sections.  ams12 - not sure when you are due, you probably already delivered, but I am in a similar situation.  Just found out this week (37 weeks) that baby is breech, they tried to do the version to flip him but that was unsuccessful.  I am doing all the poses I can, and lots of other things I've found on the internet, but I really don't have a good feeling that he will flip on his own.  I think we will also be having a scheduled section, which is really upsetting to me but I am trying to stay positive and go with the flow.  I really appreciate all the benefits you ladies have mentioned.

If it helps you (or anyone else looking at this) I am an anesthesiologist and have worked in hundreds of C sections.  At the hospitals I worked at, they allow one person in the room with you, usually SO.  We rarely let the fathers stand up, much less walk across the room, because we've had a few faintings and want to deal with just 2 patients at a time, ha ha.  After the baby came out, it would stay in the room, at first it would be cleaned and warmed by the nurses in the warmer and generally neither mom or dad would get to see him until this was all done, usually 15-20 minutes or so.  Then the nurse would bring it over, and dad would get to hold it, mom could try, depending on what their comfort levels were.  About the time they finish stitching up mom, dad is escorted to the post-op area, and we clean up mom and wheel her out to that area on a stretcher, accompanied by baby, to join dad about 10-15 minutes later.  At one hospital I worked at, we left epidural catheters in mom for post-op pain control for 2 days afterward unless they requested it come out sooner, and that seemed to help a lot with pain although I think it is unusual.  

My experience was that the section was pretty miserable for mom.  They are usually super thirsty and hungry, since they either come in without eating/drinking (if scheduled) or haven't been allowed to eat or drink much (if they've been laboring).  There is some uncomfortable pressure which bothered some women more than others.  After the baby comes out, mom's hands will often shake A LOT which happens after vaginal deliveries too but in my opinion is more pronounced in c section.  They often have nausea and vomit.  This is not everyone, but I can't honestly say I have participated in very many c sections that seemed to be a very positive experience.  That being said, labor is also pretty miserable, and lasts much longer.  

I don't want to be a downer but just want to help anyone know what they might expect, and know that these things are normal.  I'm really glad that it sounds like many women have had (or at least remember) a more positive experience than what I've witnessed.  

I had an unplanned c-section after pushing for 3 hours-- mine was because there was meconium in the amniotic fluid (and they like to get the baby out fast in those cases-- 3 hrs is a long time to be allowed to push in that situation), plus the baby's heart rate went down to 80 while I was pushing and that's where they came in and said "c-section or vacuum?". 

Anyway-- so 1st off, your concerns:

1. I stopped looking pregnant around 2 wks post-partum. (I think it's from breastfeeding. PP said they were unable to. My milk came in just fine after my c-section.)

2. Only my husband was allowed in the OR. After the baby came out of me, the 3 of us were never separated during our hospital stay. If your hospital is a baby-friendly one (if it is, they'll probably say so in their literature or online), the family is never separated except by the patient's insistance. Exception would be if the baby needs to go to the NICU. 

An unplanned c-section wasn't my worst case scenario birth, but it was up there. That said, overall it's been a surprisingly good experience. My tips:

1. Buy an "abdominal support girdle" or band. Compression in the belly area really helps for the first month or so. I was told by another doctor that they stretch the skin and clamp it, and they cut each layer of tissue different ways (one layer they cut clear up to the belly button), so remember your incision isn't the only area healing, it's your entire abdomen. 

2. Insist that the OB or physician doing the surgery stitch back together the muscle tissue too-- not just the uterus and skin. According to a family practice physician I talked to, she said that sometimes, they don't stitch back together the abdominal muscles because they don't need to be sewn back together except for cosmetic reasons, which means those women will never get their bellies back completely. (I didn't know this before my c-section. Damnit.)

3.  Like a PP said, the most pain I had post c-section was when I went from laying down to sitting up, so make sure your husband or support person is able to bring the baby to you for middle of the night feedings for the first couple of weeks. Consider sleeping sitting up, and make sure you get help with learning how to do the football hold and laying down BFing positions (with the hospital bed flat, like your bed at home) before you leave the hospital. 

4. Take a stool softener AND milk of magnesia regularly (maximum dosage) until your first BM. It sounds ridiculous but really, the first couple of BM are frightening no matter how you gave birth. So take the stool softener and milk of magnesia regularly!! I thought it was only scary and bad for those who give birth vaginally. Wrong, wrong, wrong!

5. Size up the OR room to see where any reflective materials might be before they start cutting. Nothing like accidently seeing your insides reflected in the OR lights...

6.  Ask if there's anyone in the room who can take pictures of the new family while they sew you up. My anesthesiologist took our first family pictures with me on the operating table.

Pros: not much post-partum bleeding, recovery is quicker than a vaginal delivery with significant tearing, if planned you never experience contractions, without pain I was more aware of what was going on around me and felt like I participated in the experience more than I had up to that point, (rather than just being taken for a ride by my body), DH had a larger role in bonding with baby during the 1st hour. And uh... post-partum love-making isn't as scary as it might've been if I had given birth vaginally.

Cons: I did have to mourn the birth I wanted-- I felt like I had failed and if only I had been a better pusher then DS's life wouldn't have been in danger and I wouldn't have needed the c-section. And, while I had no issues, c-sections are major surgery and come with significant risks-- infection, hemorrhage, etc. For some people, the c-section recovery can be really hard... but for me, it's been pretty good.

goodness that was long. oopsy.

OH! 1 more con-- a c-section limits the number of kids you can have after. I've been told that gnerally, doctors only recommend women have a total of 3 c-sections, so if you don't do a VBAC in future pregnancies, the number of biological kids you have is locked in. (I want 4 kids total, so this one has been tough for me to swallow.)