If you've had a caesarean birth or think you might, you’ll know just how much there is to think about, prepare for, and recover from. And let’s be honest, mama... it’s often not talked about in the same empowering way as other births. But knowledge is power, and this episode is here to give you just that.

In this personal solo episode, Dr. Renee White shares what she’d do differently if she had another caesarean birth. Renee reflects on her own experience with an elective c-section and offers insight into what can really help you feel informed, confident and cared for before, during and after surgery.

You’ll hear about:

• Why going in blind isn’t worth it, and what to ask your care team beforehand
• What kind of clothing (and undies!) are best for recovery comfort
• Why staying ahead of pain relief matters more than you think
• The surprising impact of food and hydration on your recovery
• How to prioritise true rest and embrace the slowness your body needs

Whether you’re planning an elective c-section, preparing for the unexpected, or supporting someone who is, this episode will leave you feeling more grounded, more prepared and reminded that you’re not alone mama.

Resources and Links:

📲 Want to chat more about this? Connect with Renee on Instagram: @fillyourcup_

🌐 Want to learn more about Dr Renee White and explore Fill Your Cup Doula services

🍪If you want to gobble up our famous Chocolate + Goji lactation cookies, look no further!

📋 Download the Gentle Caesarean Checklist

🍲 Get nourishing postpartum recipes in our Quickie Guide

🎧 Loved this episode? Subscribe so you never miss a new one, and share it with a mama who’s planning for birth or navigating recovery. These are the conversations that help us feel less alone and more empowered.

Because every birth matters, and every mum deserves to feel informed, nurtured, and supported through it all. 💛

Disclaimer: The information on this podcast presented by the Fill Your Cup is not a substitute for independent professional advice.

Nothing contained in this podcast is intended to be used as medical advice and it is not intended to be used to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease, nor should it be used for therapeutic purposes or as a substitute for your own health professional's advice.

I'm Dr. Renee White, and this is the Science of Motherhood. Hello and welcome to episode 169 of The Science of Motherhood. My name is Dr. Renee White. I am your host. Uh, thank you so much for tuning in. We have got a bit of a personal episode for me. I'm pretty vocal about, uh, my birth. Um, if you wanted to listen along, uh, jump back into episode three where I talk about, um, my birth experience and I thought in view [00:01:00] of International Cesarean Awareness Month.

I was gonna talk about the fact that I have had a C-section before. It was an elective C-section, and I wanted to talk about, here are all the things that I wouldn't do if I was having a C-section. So, before we jump into today's episode, I just wanted to reiterate that we have got an amazing resource on our website called the Gentle Cesarean Checklist.

As it was really funny, as we were doing the episode, we were like, oh man, we should really put this into like a neat, concise checklist. Um, and so this kind of, you know, very small ebook that we've got on our website, um, you can download and it's got things about, you know, how to prepare during pregnancy.

It's got, you know, birthing your baby and then preparing for postpartum. So if you wanted to download that, just head over to ifillyourcup.com, and then in the Freebies and Guides section, you can download it there, which is really, really cool. All the things that we kind of spoke about in a nutshell.

I wouldn't go in blind, I would really talk about what to expect, whichever way you're going, because I feel like knowledge is power, and so it's always good to have that information with you. I would talk to your midwife or obstetrician and I would talk to them about what is to be expected, and I would talk to them about my wants and wishes, you know there's this misconception, for example, that you can't have skin to skin when you have a cesarean. Not true. You can absolutely do that. So I would talk about those wants and wishes. Things that I missed out on that I didn't really have knowledge or a voice for was, I never got to see my placenta. I [00:04:00] really, really would've loved to have seen my placenta.

I never, never got to see it, so that's something that I would probably voice, um, up about if you are having an elective cesarean. I would highly encourage, and they typically do this, I think your anesthetist will give you a buzz, um, a couple days in advance, if not the, the night before. See how you're going.

Check in with how you're going. Mine was absolutely amazing. He walked me through, I think it was like twice as well 'cause obviously nerves exactly what to expect. Exactly what was going to happen, you know, to the point where it's like you're going to be wheeled into the room and you know you're gonna sit on the side of the bed.

I'm not sure if that's a standard thing or not but it was beautiful to have someone to ground you and he walked me through the whole thing. He was like, okay, so there's gonna be a first small needle. It's gonna be a, a slight sting, almost like a vaccination kind of needle kind of sting. Um, you know, that's to numb the area and then we are gonna do the bigger needle to like, you know, make the bottom half of you really numb.

The other thing that I didn't realise was that. You still feel things on the table, right? In the sense that like they kind of have to wiggle your baby out a little bit, and so you'll feel the jostling. It's just you don't feel the sensation of pain, obviously. So yes, that would be my first thing. Don't go in blind.

I would have super high wasted undies. I would be making sure that you have like a nighty versus, you know, pajama pants and things like that. Anything that kind of sits on that line. Um, your bikini line type of thing. Also, speaking of like clothing and, and, and you know, I think preparing for that one thing that my obstetrician said is wax don't shave because when the hair grows through [00:07:00] again around that area, you want it, it, it's, it's a much, what did she say? It was kind of like, it's a much kind of better experience with the hair kind of regrowing. So wax don't shave that would be the other thing. But yes, with clothing, just make sure it's really soft material.

Nothing's kind of like pulling on that area because. You know, you are kind of in a bit of pain and you're feeling a bit vulnerable and and things like that. So high wasted undies and nighties are totally the go. Number three, don't chase the pain. Okay, do not chase pain. You are not a superhero. You're not gonna get a medal or extra like, I don't know, financial bonus at the end of it.

Just ensure that you're on top of the pain and one of the things that I did was I had like a little whiteboard in the hospital and my gorgeous midwives, they wrote down every single time point that I was going to have my medication. So it was like kind of in the beginning I was tossing around between Endone and Tramadol and Endone and Tramadol, and there was probably, you know, some paracetamol and Neurofen in there and all the rest of it.

So do not chase the pain. Okay. No heroes. We are not superheroes. Just don't do it. Number four, the offset of not chasing the pain is that you obviously have opioids in your system and so you are prone to becoming constipated, and so food choices and hydration are just key. So the other thing that I will suggest is, you know, opt for the really hydrating, soupy, brothy type of foods, because sometimes things take a while to move at the station, if you know what I mean.

Uh, and it was like day three and I was thinking, oh my God, this is gonna be awful. What am I gonna do? And so I was, I was kind of. I was eating like steak and bread and biscuits and things like that and so as soon as I switched over to more brothy things like ramen soup and dahls and, and uh, you know, lentil type things, easily digestible things, that's when things got moving as well. So in hindsight, I would probably like bring my own food, at least, um, a couple of meals to the hospital, because I don't know, like hospital food, is it, it, it's give and take, right? Like sometimes it's great, sometimes it's not great. [00:11:00] So yeah, I wouldn't be opting for, you know.

Harder digestible things. Head over to the broths and soups and stuff like that and keep hydrated. Drink lots and lots and lots of water as much as you can. If water's not your jam, then maybe think about like a hydrolite or the Mini+Me Hydramama's, they are delicious. They are so, so delicious. I drink those and I'm not even pregnant or postpartum, you know, early newborn days.

So keep hydrated is another another huge key. And I think that leads into number five, your recovery, so that's like a multi-pronged approach, right? So you wanna be thinking about the mental recovery, the physical recovery, the emotional recovery of it all. You are going to feel like a little bit dazed and confused.

I did not do that. I was kind of sitting up the entire time. Lie down, just get lying down as much as you possibly can. I would be prioritising certain types of food, so things that are high in collagen, which are gonna help with elasticity and wound repair. I would be focusing on things that are high in iron and vitamin C, 'cause iron needs vitamin C to get your biggest bang for your buck and that high absorption.

And just be gentle with yourself. It was an absolute emotional rollercoaster for me. In the sense that like you feel so vulnerable having this wound and you think, oh my goodness. Like, you know, they've pieced you back together essentially. So just take it easy, like honestly, take it easy. If you had a knee reconstruction, you would be in physio, you would have people helping you out. You would be taking it easy. You'd be sitting on the couch watching Netflix the whole time. Just take it easy. All right? There's, as I said in the beginning, there's no extra financial bonuses, there's no gold medal, there's no [00:14:00] superhero status, nothing like that.

Just be gentle with yourself. Okay, so these are my top five tips. The first one, I would not go in blind. The second one, I wouldn't be wearing tight fit clothing or anything that sits on my C-section wound. Number three, I would not be chasing the pain. Do not do that. You're gonna suffer poorly from it.

Number four, I wouldn't be eating, hard, digestible food. I would be opting for more brothy, soupy, and hydrating food. And number five, I would not be a superhero. I would be prioritising my rest and recovery because you invest now and the dividends are gonna be paying exponentially in the absolute future.

We've got a whole bunch of recipes in our quickie guide as well that you can download. Alright, everyone, until next week, keep filling your cup. Bye. If you loved this episode, please hit the subscribe button and leave a review. If you know someone out there who would also love to listen to this episode, please hit the share button so they can benefit from it as well.

Ensuring you feel nurtured, informed, and empowered so you can fully embrace the joy of motherhood with confidence. Until next time, bye.