C Sect preparation

Hello! I'm a c-section first time mom myself and just gave birth 2 months ago at Alvernia. 1. Mentally - create a birth plan and discuss with your gynae (cord blood banking, delayed cord clamping, cord cutting by birth partner, intention to breastfeed and pain management, showering baby or not etc) - find out more about the process from your gynae / others (feel free to ask if you have any specific questions)! The surgery to deliver baby itself takes about 5 minutes, another 15-20 minutes to stitch up, some time with your newborn, and you'll be back in your room within the hour. 2. Hospital bag - My recommended essentials would be: baby's going home clothes, your going home clothes, high waisted maternity panties (I found one size larger to be more comfortable as it didn't press on my incision), perineal bottle, dry shampoo, abdominal binder (crucial for pain management), compression stockings (I got from hospital), a couple of maternity bras and breast pads, and your daily essentials (toothbrush, wet wipes, charger etc) - that's about it! The rest mostly provided in the hospital. 3. Supplementing with formula - your mature milk supply will be delayed due to c-section, so you'll likely only be producing colostrum and transitional milk in your 4 days stay. Hospital will supplement with formula if necessary. You will be asked what brand of formula you'll like to feed baby. It will also be helpful if you can get one can of this formula prior to your delivery to leave at home so you don't have to rush to purchase once you deliver! - you can always decide whether to continue breastfeeding / formula / mix thereafter when your mature milk supply comes in. - my husband actually had to go get one can from 24/7 supermarket one day before we left the hospital, because we found that I had a shorter nipple and baby couldn't latch, lactation consultant recommended nipple shield. So after I left the hospital, even though I had an oversupply, I found myself needing formula at times as breastfeeding and bottle feeding can require quite a bit of troubleshooting. Having some formula at hand helped to ease the anxiety that my baby isn't being fed enough, and provided me with an additional option. 4. Other general tips - will need to fast about 6 hours before surgery, and you'll only be given your first drink / meal the next day, which means you will be on the drip and won't eat for about 20 hours ! Have a really heavy meal before fasting for the surgery. - shave before going into hospital otherwise they will do it for you. Try to poop and pee before too, otherwise an edema might be administered (tbh more painful than the c section for me LOL) - increase credit card limit if necessary - try your best to walk as soon as possible once the urine catheter is removed! I walked to the toilet on my own within the first 24 hours post-surgery, it helped significantly with recovery and pain management!! By the end of my 4 day stay I was able to do most things normally on my own already. 5. Things that might surprise you about c-section - all the doctors and nurses will be chatting normally during the surgery - will need to remove all your jewellery and piercings - intense shakes, nausea and dizziness are normal side effects if you opt for epidural. Don't hold it in! Ask the anaesthesiologist as they are able to prescribe medication. - you won't feel pain but there will be a lot of pressure (like extracting a wisdom tooth!) - baby will take some time to cry as compared to vaginal birth - don't panic! - you still bleed vaginally after a c section because delivering the placenta essentially leaves a wound in your uterus. It's not too heavy though, and I went through 2-3 maternity panties in a day. - you will sweat A LOT after the surgery. This is normal! But noting that you won't be able to shower, you might want to get adult body wipes, dry shampoo, perineal bottle, small towel and any other items to help you wipe down! Super long as I wished this information was available when I went for my delivery 🥹 feel free to ask anything else!