When To Expect to Feel Better After a C-section
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When should you feel better after a c-section surgery?
This post is all about when you can expect to start feeling better after a c-section
If you’re an expecting mom to be and already have a c-section scheduled, then I’m sure you have been researching all about it. Let’s face it – it’s a MAJOR surgery that can impact your life in so many ways. Feeling better after a c-section isn’t going to happen over night. For many, feeling better will come with patience and time. It’s okay to have your ups and downs. Recovery in any form isn’t going to be a perfectly straight line. You should start feeling better after a c-section within a few days, but keep reading for a timeline of recovery!
Post C-Section Recovery – When I felt better after my c-section surgery
My first child was born vaginally, while my second baby was a scheduled c-section. Recovery after a c-section is on a completely different level than a vaginal birth. Any form of delivering and giving birth will put some trauma on your body, but I have outlined my best tips and tricks to recover. If you’re interested, definitely check out my other post about recovery. My blog post about a c-section recovery and items that helped me will be linked here.
Don’t expect to feel better immediately after surgery. You might be tempted after your procedure into thinking that the worst is over. I hate to break it to you but I want to be as open and realistic as possible and say that once the spinal wears off is when you’ll see the biggest problems. The pain once the spinal wears off is a whole other level of pain. It’s something you don’t fully understand until you’re dealing with it.
Spinal Wearing Off
But even though this is the worst part of the recovery, you should start feeling MUCH better and pretty quickly too. The first 1-4 days after surgery is the worst. The fear of walking, tearing your insides, having your innards fall out, and using the bathroom are going to be at the highest level here.
Once that worst day or two wears off – you will know when you start feeling a little better – you will notice that it seriously continues to get better. Remember that I mentioned you probably won’t get better overnight. But after many nights, what once scared you just doesn’t. What used to hurt or nudge or pull you in uncomfortable ways will go away. You will soon forget that you even had this major surgery.
End of the First Week
At the end of the first week your pain level is going to be so much more manageable. Don’t feel bad if you still have to take pain medications. Honestly though you probably will only have to take ibuprofen and tylenol. This can continue for a couple of weeks, as long as your provider has given you the okay to use them.
By the end of the second week, you are feeling great! The pain meds are being spaced out more or you’re not using them as often. Maybe you’re still using a belly binder, but if you try to use it less and less you’ll notice more strength return to you.
Fast forward to your six week appointment with your provider. The pain that you once had is so far out of your mind. You’re able to walk straight up. You barely take pain meds anymore. The belly binder is put away. Your chores are getting back in order or maybe you’re returning to work. The c-section recovery keeps getting better and better.
Your mindset might still hinder you from doing certain things. I was terrified of taking off the incision glue. It was tearing all the little hairs around the area and it felt like I was being cut open. The nerves around that area are going to be different. It might be different forever and not be the way it once was. But you’ll get stronger and be able to handle more and more.
I remember that I would celebrate when I could walk up straight. When I could barely bend over, I was telling everyone! Any little progress of walking or not needing pain meds was an absolute win to me. Celebrate these. Be realistic about recovery. Don’t compare yourself to others.
My Experience of when I started feeling better
I’m 6 and a half weeks out of surgery and although the first few days were the most intense pains of my life, I am feeling much better. I’m in a better place mentally and physically. I can move around almost as fast as I was before surgery. Removal of my glue was terrible and I cried from how traumatic I felt mentally. But then I did it again later and gained more courage each time. You don’t have to go all or nothing. Little baby steps! I can bend over easier. My movements are still slow when I get out of bed or lift my leg really high. I still try to breathe and tighten my core when I lift my 16 month old up into her highchair or carseat.
I recently got a referral for pelvic floor therapy to help with my recovery. These are all little steps toward being back to normal. My belly is still completely numb from the belly button down. I have these lumps and bumps where the button of a low rise jean would land and boy does that hurt when it gets pressed on. I still can’t put too much pressure on that area because I’m scared that I’m not completely healed. With more time, core breathing, and exercise, I know that I will be in a much much better place.