# healing after c-section



## BohoMama (Jun 26, 2003)

Does anyone have any tips for healing after a c-section? I just had my second. Or any tips on how to search for this information?

(Please, do not give me rants and raves about why c/s is an inferior and unhealthy kind of birth. I need to knit myself back together and anger with you, with myself or with doctors will not help this process.)

I'm taking Arnica (homeopathic). I know I need to rest and take it easy, but this is what I find hardest about recovery.

Thanks.

Melinda


----------



## kazmir (Nov 21, 2001)

I've had 2 c-sec also and I know its hard to do but the most important part of healing is to take it easy. Get help for your other child and the house and try to stay in bed as much as possible with your new little one for the first two weeks. Easier said than done I know...







I also got some good ointment that I used on my tummy and once the incision was healed up, on that too. Massaging it in gently will help the area not be so tender and decrease the scaring. I had some sensation issues with my incision area for a while but it is fine now, one yr later. My OB checked it out at 8 weeks and seemed to think it would be fine with time and it was.

Drink lotsa water and take care of yourself!

Congrats on your birth and new baby!


----------



## IansMommy (Jun 14, 2005)

I also had 2 c sections. Painful things, huh?







:
I second drinking lots of water. Also, rest up, and try not to climb stairs. I did find it helpful to walk a bit each day (around the outside of my house, up and down the driveway to get the mail...nothing earth shattering). The walking seemed to ease me back into more regular physical activity.
Also, my very wise doula told me NOT to carry the baby bucket/carseat around. It is very bad to carry it after a section, because it is just too awkward and heavy.
I personally found it easier to sleep in a partially sitting up postion on the couch until a few weeks after the surgery...at least until I felt as if I wouldn't rip in half when being stretched straight!








Good luck mama...in a few weeks, it will be so much better.


----------



## dlm194 (Mar 23, 2005)

Here are a couple of good sites.









http://www.csectionrecovery.com/

http://caesareanbirth.com/

I rubbed vitamin E on my incision site for several months following my c-s.


----------



## meggles (Mar 9, 2004)

Use calendula (better for healing quickly) and arnica (better for pain/soreness) gels/creams directly over your incision. Vitamin E is also wonderful (just poke a capsule of natural vitamin e with a needle and use the liquid topically). Eat really well, make sure you're taking a good vitamin, and drink tons of water. Good luck with your healing and congrats on your new baby.


----------



## guestmama9911 (May 24, 2005)

I rub aloe vera gel into my incision every day. When I remember it, I add few drops of lavender. At my two week check-up, the nurse said my incision looked fantastic, as though it had been healed for a long time.


----------



## Panserbjorne (Sep 17, 2003)

Actually the best thing for helping a wound to knit is tamanu oil. It works by regenerating skin and aiding it in knitting. It's amazing stuff. I know mamas that have used it on cesarean incisions and their docs were totally dumbfounded. Also take zinc and MSM-both for skin integrity and healing and keep up with the arnica orally. The MSM will also help with muscles. Magnesium would be a great idea too. It will help with pain and aid in healing. Good luck, mama. Oh-and everything I mentioned is actually beneficial for nursing.


----------



## BohoMama (Jun 26, 2003)

Hi-
What is MSM? And is tamanu oil to be used on a fresh wound (with scab) or a scar after the scab has fallen off and/or the stitches dissolved?

Thanks.


----------



## Yin Yang (Jul 9, 2003)

I'd recommend *Traumeel cream* that you can buy at any phramacy. It's a homeopathic cream for healing, injuries, bruises and such....it's amazing stuff! It's made by Heel company which is in Germany I think. Yuo can buy it in liquid to take orally as well.

Sorry to hear you had to have another s-cestion.


----------



## Panserbjorne (Sep 17, 2003)

Tamanu oil can be used directly on an open wound-dd frequently got anal fissures and we'd put it straight on the bleeding opening. I used it on my tear after her birth-it's amazing. MSM is a natural supplement, you can google it for more accurate info, but it aids in skin, hair and tissue (new cell) growth. It's amazing. Since discovering it over a year ago we all take it every day. Dd had a severely damaged gut, and we used it for her starting when she was 6 months old. I took it during pregnancy and upped my dosage after her birth-both to get it into her and to help me heal.


----------



## Panserbjorne (Sep 17, 2003)

Also wanted to add that tamanu oil virtually eliminates scarring. I've never seenanything quite like it. Even used on old scars it works wonders.


----------



## minkajane (Jun 5, 2005)

My physical therapist told me to do scar mobilization starting at 6 weeks postpartum. It helps treat or prevent adhesions (very painful things!) and can help the scar fade. Ask about it at your postpartum checkup and the doc should show you how to do it. If you've had a vaginal birth with episiotomy in the past, you can also use scar mobilization there and I've been told that it's really helpful. It sure helped my C/S scar!


----------



## Electra375 (Oct 2, 2002)

REST!!! Do nothing but rest. I was up and about after c/s 1 and I paid for it dearly -- I was in so much pain. I went to the laundry mat, I carried my 9.9lb baby in the carseat, I went to church... I learned my lesson. With c/s #2, I came home from the hospital, sat on the couch and nursed my baby. I got up to use the bathroom, to eat meals and to go to bed. My mother took care of ds1 and food. My df came over from 82 miles away and vacuumed and swept my home one day. I was back on 2 feet without pain in 10 days!!! I looked better and felt better at 8 days PP after c/s#2 than I did 3 months after c/s#1.

REST was equally important after my HBA2C. I was in bed for 2 1/2 weeks per midwifes orders. I don't know what she told my dh or my mother, but neither one of them would let me up out of bed, not even to sit and have dinner at the table -- sitting was uncomfortable anyway, swelling...

So REST, let the housework go. It will still be there when you are feeling better. Have a friend come in and help, they will come if you ask. It is hard to ask, but trust me you'll be glad you did. Have you dh or dp help out with cooking meals or bringing something home. Order in food. It's hard when there isn't someone to help out, however only time, rest and taking care of yourself will heal you and your dc needs you to be well to care for him or her.

My ds1 did not have a mommy for a long time, I was an emotional wreck on top of not healing well, I ripped my internal stitches and that damage was not fixed until 3 1/2 yrs later with the 2nd c/s.

Water, vitamins, Vit C internally helps skin, Vit E externally helps the scar. TED hose help with swelling in the legs.


----------

