My C-Section Birth Story
A Scheduled Birth
Sitting down to write my c-section birth story feels monumental.
At 9 months postpartum, the emotions of this day still feel as strong as they did in February. Maybe because the 9 months in, 9 months out trend feels like hitting a milestone in postpartum recovery (even though I didn't technically last the full 9 months 😉).
Or because it is a moment of proud reflection on how far I've come since giving birth both personally and physically.
And lastly, probably, because it was undoubtedly the best day of my life and capturing the moments in words will never fully do it justice 🤍
Please enjoy this intimate look inside my scheduled c-section, a birth story that I am extremely proud to share.
Birth Day
Having a scheduled c-section is a surreal process. One of my patients fondly told me before my birth that being scheduled for delivery feels like going to a dentist appointment—only it’s the most important one of your life.
Pregnancy had been a tough mental and emotional journey. Even though I felt nervous about the surgery and about delivering at 36 weeks, I was more than ready to be done.
The hospital scheduled my surgery for 8 a.m., and we had to report by 6 a.m. This meant a relaxing evening was in order before everything changed.
I was worried I wouldn't be able to sleep, it truly felt like Christmas Eve! The joyous anticipation is a hard feeling to capture.
In some ways I feel lucky being able to experience birth this way, as opposed to the anxious anticipation of waiting for labor to start.
Luckily the pregnancy fatigue took over, and I slept pretty well.
I was up bright and early the next morning to shower and wash my hair. Let's be honest, who knew when the next time I'd be able to wash it again was 🙊 I even ran my straighter through it a few times!
Then, I took my weekly 36 week photo (my last one 🥺), and we headed to the hospital, with more things than we would take for a week long vacation!
Arriving at the Hospital
Once we got to the hospital, it was a pretty smooth check in process. We listened to our baby’s heartbeat one last time, the nurse drew my blood, and then we waited. She told us that several women were already in labor, so my c-section might be delayed. But with the upcoming shift change for both the nurses and the OB, she couldn’t give us an answer.
So we kept waiting.
Around 7:30 am, my OB came on shift and told us that yes, there was too many women in labor and they couldn't spare any nurses. So my c-section would be pushed until they could get enough staff.
I won't lie, it was tough.
We had geared ourselves up for an 8 a.m. start, so not knowing the new timing stressed us out. We didn’t know whether the delay would be an hour or five, and the uncertainty started to make me nervous.
To keep my mind distracted, Matt started playing videos of our old trips and vacations. We debated putting on a show, but somehow this felt like bad juju.
Putting on something that would last 40 minutes automatically felt like we'd have to wait another 40 minutes 😅
We waited for about 2 hours, and then at 10:13, our OB came in and said, let's have a baby!
I swear my adrenaline shot through the roof. It’s such a hard feeling to describe—you know your life is about to change in the best way, but you have to be cut open first.
The nurses followed him in, and said "let's go". Since I wasn't in labour, I quickly learned this did not mean I was being wheeled anywhere (like the movies). It meant get up and walk.
That's right, I WALKED into the OR and it was go time. Did I feel like a badass walking into my birth, while simultaneously wanting to throw up? Yes, yes I did.
Ps. Your partner is not allowed to come in until you're ready to go, so I had to do this walk all by myself.
Our Lily Girl
The OR was so bright when I walked in, truthfully it was actually quite intimidating.
My palms were sweaty, knees weak, arms were heavy.. (you know the rest 😉), and everything from that moment on felt like a blur.
My anesthesiologist, Dr. Laura was a blessing, she started my drugs and walked me through the whole process, they strapped my legs down, started painting my belly with antiseptic and got the drape sheet up. And then once I was ready, Matt was allowed to come in.
I remember for the first 10 or so minutes, I was so uncomfortable. The sensation was way more than I anticipated with a spinal; but it wasn't painful. It truly felt like someone was washing the kitchen dishes in my stomach.
I kept my eyes closed to avoid any reflection from the OR lights (IYKYK), and just focused on my breathing. After about 10 minutes, which felt like 10 years, our sweet Lily girl came out 🤍
She didn't scream or cry right away. In fact she looked extra pissed to be taken out of her cozy home four weeks before she was ready.
After a tense moment, with a few back thumps, we heard the relief of her cry.
We didn't get skin to skin right away. The team had prepared us for this; because Lily was a preemie, the pediatrician needed to evaluate her first. After about five minutes, she passed all her tests, and the midwife brought her over for skin-to-skin.
It was the most special moment holding my daughter for the first time. 🥹
All the stress, pain and worry of pregnancy truly just melted away holding her in my arms. In that moment I realized I would do it all again if it meant this was the outcome.
Our Family of Three
After some time with skin to skin, my team worked on taking my placenta out. Matt got to take Lily across to the post-op room to spend some time with her on his own.
My OB worked to close me back up as efficiently as possible. This took about 25 minutes and then they were able to wheel me back into recovery.
I was anxious to see Lily again, in a more upright and less distracted position. Matt was doing skin to skin with her when I got back. I will never forget the feeling I had, watching him hold her for the first time. She was a tiny bean on his chest 🥹
After settling in, she was back in my arms and our golden hour started. It was an extremely intimate and special time just the three of us in our little bubble. We were lucky that despite being 36 weeks, Lily didn't seen any NICU intervention and was able to stay with us.
In order to establish our bubble, we shared the date of our c-section with immediate family only. We wanted to have the time after the birth to soak in our little one, like we would have had, with a spontaneous delivery.
We then let our (very anxious) parents & siblings know that our sweet girl was here. I enjoyed some snacks after not being able to have breakfast prior to birth, and we waited for a transfer up to the postpartum floor.
And finally, once we both felt slightly more human, we documented our joy and life as a family of three began 🫶🏼
Final Thoughts
Having a c-section was not my first choice, it was the necessary choice to ensure the safety of myself and my daughter. However, I still had a beautiful c-section birth experience!
My team; both my midwife and OB, were extremely supportive in the OR. My OB, true to his nature, kept the mood light and joking (in the most respectful way) throughout the birth. And the midwife, true to her nature, was laser focused on us, and great about involving Matt.
My anesthesiologist, Dr. Laura, was a true angel and kept me sane throughout the birth by explaining exactly what was happening. Despite the fact that I could feel WAY more than I bargained for, I had no complications with the spinal, no vomiting, no shakes and no nausea.
I was also extremely lucky to have an uncomplicated recovery, with no infection or irritation at my incision site.
Overall, I would say my c-section birth was extremely positive. It was a different birth story than I thought it would be when I saw those two pink lines. But I wouldn't change it for the world.
I look back at it with an extreme fondness and pride in both myself, and my body for all that it handled. C-section mother's are true warriors, that sh*t is hard.
Because truly, anyone who says a c-section is the easy way out, clearly hasn't had one.
Love Laura