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Joanna Shares Her C-Section Recovery Experience (VIDEO)

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Joanna Shares Her C-Section Recovery Experience (VIDEO)
Joanna Shares Her C-Section Recovery Experience (VIDEO)
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Joanna describes recovering from her cesearean section and returning home with a new baby.

Joanna:
Following my C-section, I was in the hospital for about four days. I think I took an extra day because it was one more day where I didn’t have to be dealing with C-section and dealing with a newborn. So I took the day, and I really did need it. I mean, you really are going through major surgery. Your body is going through a lot, so it was nice to have that. Of course, I was pretty stir crazy by the time the fourth day rolled around. I was ready to get out.

I did have a burning pain very soon after the procedure, and it did not go away. Even with the pain meds, it was just constantly there, and I was very surprised. And I was worried about that, and I asked my doctor about it, and she said, “Oh, well, that’s where the knot is.” And I am still not sure exactly what the knot refers to, but that’s what she said. And I have talked to other people, and they said they also had that type of pain. Mine was the most severe of anyone that I have talked to in the length of time that I had the pain.

I actually had the pain for, it would come and go, and I would literally have the pain, there would be weeks and weeks afterwards I just had the pain all the time. And I would say it took a few months before I didn’t have the pain all the time, but then I would do anything that was strenuous, and it would come back. And I really dealt with the pain coming back, I’d say off and on for about a year until it really didn’t go away, and that was frustrating for me because I really did not expect that it would take a year until that pain went away.

I was in the hospital for four days. Then I went home. I kept having to remind myself that I had had major surgery because you have a natural instinct when you have a newborn to just do everything. So I had to keep reminding myself. I was able to do all of the night feedings. I was able to do a lot. I was, I think part of it’s a blur, but I was actually able to do quite a bit that I was surprised about after my C-section. I probably made it a little harder myself in terms of recovery because I probably did too much, but I was still able to do a lot of things around the house.

I think the worst time that I had in terms of the pain was in the hospital. The worst thing is when you have to get up the next day after the C-section, and you have to walk. They make you walk, which is the last thing that you want to do, and it’s so hard to do, and it really, really hurts.

But after that, everything started getting better, and I did have problems walking for a little bit. I walked very slow going places. I didn’t do anything very quickly, but I was able to do it, you know, bending down, getting up, that I had to have certain people do a lot of things, but I was able to do more than I thought when it came to taking care of my daughter.

In terms of going back to work, I mean, I was on maternity leave so I was off for a while. I think I was off for six weeks, and then I did six weeks working from home. I would advise anyone to do as much time off as they can because you never get that time back. So if I could have done more, I would have, but it was, we were able to work it out. It was a little tough because my daughter was colicky. So that definitely makes it harder too, so the more time you can take off if possible is good.

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