Caesarean Section Birth
Guidance on preparing for your caesarean, recovery, wound care, and support throughout your birth journey.
Planned Caesarean Section Birth
If you are scheduled for a planned caesarean, this guide walks you and your birth partner through each step – from preparing in the weeks before, to your day in theatre, to recovery on the ward and at home. It explains anaesthetic choices, early skin‑to‑skin and feeding support, pain control, safe movement, wound care, and the signs that mean you should seek help.
Enhanced Recovery After Caesarean Section
Enhanced Recovery After Caesarean Birth (ERAC) helps you feel your best, with clear fasting and apple‑juice ‘carb loading’ guidance, careful warmth, nausea prevention and antibiotics during surgery, and early skin‑to‑skin and feeding support. After birth, we’ll help you eat, move, and remove your catheter sooner, and chewing gum can aid bowel recovery. If you have diabetes/complications, follow your personalised plan.
Caesarean Section Wound Care Advice
After your caesarean, caring for your wound will help you heal comfortably and safely. You’ll be guided on your dressing and stitches, but simple steps – keeping the area clean, dry, and well-supported – make a big difference. Notice any changes, give yourself time to rest, and don’t hesitate to seek advice if something doesn’t feel right.
Let’s Start Sipping!
If you’re having a planned caesarean, you can keep sipping water right up until you go to theatre. Staying hydrated can help you feel calmer and reduce discomfort like nausea or headaches. Aim for small, regular sips – plain water or diluted squash – so you arrive feeling as comfortable and prepared as possible.
Physiotherapy Advice After a Caesarean Section
After your caesarean, give yourself time to rest and heal – your recovery is unique. Gentle movement, good posture and simple breathing and pelvic floor exercises will support your body as it recovers. Start slowly, build up little by little, and accept help when you can so you can feel stronger each day.