You had a baby..and surgery.
By catherinebrooks | Category: Meet the mom inventor | Posted Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Last month we talked about c-section scaring and the month before that I introduced myself and explained that I was going to be writing a 5 part series (one post a month) on the topic of cesarean recovery. Below is part 2 of 5, enjoy!
You had a baby..and surgery.
Most c-section moms do not see themselves as having had surgery, they had a baby. They have sleepless nights with baby, they nurse or warm milk in the wee hours, they often chase around other kids, do laundry, entertain the mother-in –law, just like any mom. They do it holding their pants off their belly or hiding granny panties, they may be itchy from healing, a little stiff getting out of bed in the morning and swollen at days end. Feeling pretty good, but just dealing with it. That is what makes them “Mom”.
If you had your appendix out or a knee surgery, you wouldn’t wonder why a month or two or even three later you still felt sore sometimes. But c-moms do forget they had surgery and often do feel like they should be “back to normal” probably because they didn’t “have surgery,” they “had a baby”.
There are plenty of times you will not even remember you had a c-section, but for those moments where you do remember you had surgery, give yourself a break and note the stages of recovery, which may go on longer than you knew.
Week 1: Inflammatory Stage: Cellular “workers” rush into the area to begin recovery. You know you had surgery this week!
Up to week 12: (Yes, week 12, that’s 3 months!) Proliferative Stage: The cellular “rebuilders” are extremely busy. New collagen and capillaries form. Low grade swelling is often present. You really feel your recovery progressing and can do a lot but have times/days you may need to take it easy. You may feel sore anywhere from your incision up to your mid abdomen where tissues were handled during surgery (you did know they usually take your whole uterus out, didn’t you?!), your underwear or pants might irritate your midsection and you still may feel sensitive around the incision area. These are all normal symptoms, but remember to see your doctor if any of them worsen.
Mild abdominal and incisional support, rest and scar management can continue to help during this period.
Up to 1 year: Remodeling Stage: Finish carpenters are tidying up. Collagen has reformed and scars are maturing. Common complaints are periodic itching , occasional soreness at the incision or a feeling of weakness at the incision after active days. These days you feel better and better and many moms report recovery leaps at 3 and 6 months. Heavy scars may continue to be symptomatic during this stage, but most are lessening rapidly in appearance.
We don’t want to encourage complaining about your c-section (who’d listen anyway?!), but we do want to encourage patience with and respect for your recovery if you do have symptoms. And for you repeat c-moms, don’t compare your recoveries baby to baby. Each can be very different. (My first I practically ran out of the hospital 3 days later, the second I crawled out on day 5). Rest, use incisional and abdominal support and don’t wonder why you feel a little beat up. Knowledge is power and even for a do-it-all mom, a sore night just means give yourself a little break, you had a baby…and surgery.
Catherine Brooks OTR, MPH
M. Meunier MD,
C-Panty CEO and Consultant: 18 years of experience in post-surgical rehabilitation in New York City and San Diego and five even more challenging and exciting years of experience as a mom of a three. (All by cesarean, of course!)
“Recover in Comfort” series will address all those things you ever ( or never!) ever wanted to know about c-section delivery.
C-section Scarring…Do I Care?
By catherinebrooks | Category: From the Experts, Healthy Living, Meet the mom inventor | Posted Monday, August 9, 2010
Last month I introduced myself and explained that I was going to be writing a 5 part series (one post a month) on the topic of cesarean recovery. Below is part 1 of 5, enjoy!
Ok the baby is out but you have an incision, what now? A scar is the unavoidable result of surgery. For C-sections, the scar is low, which is good but the “tissue handling” during surgery isn’t the most gentle (how many other surgeries remove an 8 pound object?)! That extra handling plus stretched skin can cause scars that are a little more dense, noticeable and/or sensitive during recovery. Do you care how your scar looks? Some people do and some people don’t. What is important to remember is that a smaller scar is usually less symptomatic and/or sensitive, so addressing the scar if it is starting to look thick may be a good idea.
Most scars heal well over time but there are a few things you can do to minimize symptoms during healing and to encourage a flatter, less sensitive scar. Silicone, compression and scar massage all help scar maturation. Silicone by hydrating, compression by controlling cellular reactions and scar massage by organizing fibers and desensitizing the area. These techniques are best done together since they have slightly different effects and can work in different stages of recovery. One alone usually won’t do the trick. The scar massage step is one thing you can do at home without any product.
Scar massage is easy and effective when performed regularly (at least once a day). Get your MD’s approval and don’t start until the wound is closed (aka no scab remaining). It is ok to not start right away since you may be too tender. If you are too tender to start, controlling swelling during that time is a good idea since less swelling means more comfortable. It isn’t too late to start scar management even a month, or longer, out of delivery. Progress as tolerated.
*Using your index and long finger gently provide pressure on the scar. Use just enough pressure to push in a millimeter or two.
*Make small circles in both directions as well as crosswise and lengthwise strokes along the length of the incision area.
* Spend more time on thick or ropey areas, placing gentle tension where you feel resistance.
*It should not be painful or cause any discomfort or swelling after you stop.
*Believe it or not, scars mature for a year! Most scars are pretty stable at 3-4 months, but if you have keloids or heavy scarring, using scar massage and the other techniques mentioned can help for quite some time.
* Always see your MD with any redness, drainage or opening of your wound, with any worsening symptoms or if you are concerned with how your scar is progressing.
lotions, oils and potions: Hydration changes scarring at a cellular level. Topical moisturizers hydrate. Whatever lotion or potion you like is pretty much the same. There is no magic one and in my 15 years in healthcare, I saw cocoa-butter, aloe and vitamin E all have their hey-days. Externally applied, “hydration” benefits the area for a time until the skin absorbs it. Once absorbed, the effect is over. Silicone works by the same principle it just keeps the moisture in, is not absorbed and so affects the area longer.
The only big thing to remember with scar management is never put oils, lotion, potions or silicone on an open wound (i.e. any scab remaining). You need to wait until the skin is closed to avoid introducing a foreign substance into the wound. Don’t worry about waiting; the scar is maturing for up to a year, so you have plenty of time to massage away! The caveat with this is, since the wound is maturing for quite some time, you do need to use whatever you choose for awhile if you want the effects to last. A good 3-6 months for symptomatic scarring and a longer period for keloid type scarring, is a good idea. Really bad scars? There are medical treatments you can ask your MD about. Happy healing. Knowledge is power!
Catherine Brooks OTR, MPH
M. Meunier MD,
C-Panty CEO and Consultant: 18 years of experience in post-surgical rehabilitation in New York City and San Diego and five even more challenging and exciting years of experience as a mom of a three. (All by cesarean, of course!)
“Recover in Comfort” series will address all those things you ever ( or never!) ever wanted to know about c-section delivery.
Cesarean Recovery
By catherinebrooks | Category: From the Experts, Healthy Living, Meet the mom inventor, Mom 4 Life Product Feedback | Posted Wednesday, July 7, 2010
Thank you to Catherine Brooks for this guest post (she will be writing a 5 part series – one blog post per month) on a topic that has or will affect many moms: cesarean recovery.
Ok, the baby is out. You are in love…and you had surgery. Any other time, a 7cm opening and abdominal surgery to remove a 7lb object would be its own event. But we don’t consider ourselves as having surgery, we had a baby. Maybe you expected a c-section and maybe you didn’t. Either way, arm yourself with some information to recover in an empowered and educated way.
Healing is a biologic process that happens no matter what we do, but we can help it along. We put bandages on our kid’s cuts and ice on their bumps. Dad’s ankle sprain gets a wrap and our BFF gets a compression garment after her tummy-tuck. Scarring, swelling, tenderness and surgical recovery, however, are a reality for 1.3 million C-section moms annually. All while, taking care of a newborn. C-Panty’s
You’re taking great care of your baby…don’t forget to take care of yourself.
Catherine Brooks, OTR, MPH. C-Panty CEO: 18 years of experience in post-surgical rehabilitation in New York City and San Diego and five even more challenging and exciting years of experience as a mom of a three. (All by cesarean, of course!)
“Recover in Comfort” series will address all those things you ever ( or never!) ever wanted to know about c-section delivery.
