Scribd
Upload
3 views8 pages

M-After-Your-C-Section-c-section_infoleaflet2014-1

This document provides guidance for recovery after a Caesarean section, emphasizing the importance of allowing time for healing before engaging in vigorous activities. It includes practical advice on posture, mobility, and exercises to regain strength and support pelvic floor health. Additionally, it outlines what to avoid in the first 6-8 weeks and offers tips for managing daily activities like feeding the baby and getting out of bed.

Uploaded by

shahzadujala1
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
3 views8 pages

M-After-Your-C-Section-c-section_infoleaflet2014-1

This document provides guidance for recovery after a Caesarean section, emphasizing the importance of allowing time for healing before engaging in vigorous activities. It includes practical advice on posture, mobility, and exercises to regain strength and support pelvic floor health. Additionally, it outlines what to avoid in the first 6-8 weeks and offers tips for managing daily activities like feeding the baby and getting out of bed.

Uploaded by

shahzadujala1
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 8

After your

Caesarean Section

Physiotherapy Department
Women’s Health Physiotherapists

Elizabeth Gibbs and Shweta Pradhan


QE II Hospital: 01707 22 4187
Lister Hospital: 01438 284 075

Created January 2014


Review January 2016
www.hertschs.nhs.uk

1
After your C-Section
In order to move about comfortably and to give your spine and
pelvis support you tummy muscles need to be working well.
For this reason it is important to allow you scar time to heal
after a c-section before you begin any vigorous exercise or
heavy work.

This advice and the exercises described are designed to help


you re-gain your mobility and strength after a c-section birth.
Try to do the exercises little and often but also make sure you
rest when you can.

What to avoid: First 6-8 weeks

 Abdominal exercises which involve your Oblique's


(twisting movement)
 Full sit ups
 Twisting with pulling and lifting action
 Lifting anything heavier than your baby
 Driving

After your 6-8 week check, and if all is well you


can gradually begin doing more as long as your
tummy is comfortable

2
Practical Advice to help your
Recovery

Sitting comfortably

Make sure your back is well


supported with pillows, especially
the lower back.
Try to avoid slumping forwards
with your shoulders, you may find
bending your knees up helps take
the strain off you back and tummy

Supported Coughing
After a c-section it is important that you still take deep breaths
and cough when you need to in order to get the phlegm off your
chest. As you get more mobile, walking on the ward, this will
become easier but to begin with you can try taking:

2-3 deep breaths every hour followed by a HUFF, as if you


are steaming up a window, and then a cough.

You stitches/staples are very secure


but you may find supporting you tum-
my and wound gently with a pillow
as you huff and cough more
comfortable.

Initially coughing may be


uncomfortable but this will ease in
the days following your C-section.

3
Practical Advice to help your
Recovery

Feeding Baby

Always sit well back on a supportive chair, your feet should be


able to touch the floor in order to support your posture. Use
pillows to support your back and to rest your baby on your lap
to bring them into a comfortable feeding position.

You can then use pillows to support your own arms.

A feeding pillow can be helpful when on the move when you


are not always able to use such a supportive or comfortable
chair.

Getting out of bed


Avoid pulling yourself up into sitting from laying flat on your
back. Instead first roll onto your side with your knees bent up
and together.

Then allow your feet and lower legs to slid off the side on the
bed while you use your hands/arms to push yourself into sitting
on the edge on the bed.

As you do this try to gently pull up your pelvic floor muscles.

4
Practical Advice to help your Recovery

Posture
During pregnancy your posture
goes through many changes. In
some ladies this can lead to aches
and pains where previously they
had none.
After a c-section it is important for
your healing to begin standing and
walking upright as soon as
possible, try to avoid walking in a
hunched over position

To begin with stand in a relaxed position, think about pulling in


your lower tummy muscles and spreading your weight evenly
through the heels and balls of your feet.

Next imagine there is a helium balloon attached to the top of


your head which floats you upwards gently towards the ceiling.
Your chest should lift upwards naturally
at the same time.

Now roll your shoulders back until your


shoulder blades rest naturally on the
back of your ribs , do not hold them
rigidity, but allow them to ‘hang’ down
your back.

Try to avoid postures such as the one on


the right (imagine the bucket is your ba-
by’s car seat!) as this can lead to a pain-
ful pelvis and spine. Instead carry the
object with 2 hands, in the middle and at
the front.

5
Exercises to do after a C-Section
Circulation

Either when you are in


bed or sitting up in a chair,
pump your ankles up and
down 10 times. Repeat
this ever hour for the first
few days after you have had your baby.

Pelvic Tilts

Lay on your bed with your head supported on a


pillow and your knees bent up. Your feet should
rest flat on the floor and you should breath
steadily throughout the exercise.
Draw in your lower tummy muscles around your
bikini line as if doing up tight jeans. As you do
so tilt your pelvis backwards and flatten your
lower back against the bed. Hold for 2-3 secs
and repeat 10 times. Try to do this 3 times a
day.

This should not be painful but may feel a


little strange to begin with.
Do not push through pain, only do as many

6
Your Pelvic Floor
Your Pelvic floor is a group of muscles which span from your
pubic bone to your coccyx, their function is to prevent leaking of
urine and faeces and allow you to control when you go to the
toilet. They are also responsible for supporting your pelvic
organs, keeping them
inside you. They also work along side you tummy and spinal
muscles to maintain your CORE STABILITY.

Affect Of Pregnancy

During pregnancy your pelvic floor muscles stretch and drop


down a little under the weight of your growing baby, this can
weaken the muscles leading to problems with continence
during pregnancy or after birth and is the reason why it is just
as important to do your pelvic floor muscles even though you
have had a c-section.
The pelvic floor works in 2 ways, it has fibres which are always
working to support you internal organs, and it has fibres which
switch on when you cough/sneeze etc to prevent you leaking.
For this reason we should exercise the pelvic floor with a
mixture of fast contractions and longer holds.

Aim for the following…


10 fast, on/off contractions
One 10 second hold
5 times a day
Each contraction should be as good as the
last, stop when they start feeling weaker, and
only hold for as long as you can feel it.
For Example you may begin with 6 fast and
one 4 second hold which you can build on as
you get stronger
7
When You Go Home

Getting home: As a passenger in a car you


may find it comfortable to place a pillow
between your tummy and the seatbelt.

Tiredness: Following abdominal surgery it is


usual to be tired. For the first few weeks try to
concentrate on looking after your baby and
accept help when offered especially if you have
a toddler at home too!

Walking: Short distances to begin with and


build up gradually

Driving: You are advised not to drive for 6


weeks. When you do, make sure you feel
strong enough and try short journeys first.

Returning to exercise and sport: This should


not be rushed, your body will take time to
recover both from your c-section and from your
pregnancy. After you 6-8 week check, if all is
well you can begin doing
more exercise as long as it is
comfortable. Contact sports
should be the last thing you
return to and should be done
gradually, it is normal to find
you are physically less fit to
begin with so take your time.

You might also like