(Anne Fritz, Patia Braithwaite/ SELF) — If you’re getting ready for parenthood, you may have a ton of questions about C-section recovery. Well, you’ve come to the right place. There’s a lot to discuss, and because C-sections are major surgery, preparation is helpful even if your plan is to have a vaginal birth. You may have heard from a friend that recovery was tough, possibly even tougher than they anticipated.
But there are a few common experiences you can prepare for (and chat about with your doctor) so that you’re a little more prepared if you wind up having a C-section. Below, ob-gyns share the details of what C-sections and C-section recovery really entail.
C-sections, or cesarean births, are surgical procedures that involve making incisions in the uterus and abdomen to deliver a baby, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) explains. (This next part is a pretty intense explanation of what exactly that involves, just so you know.) (…)