Creating a Positive Scheduled C-Section Experience

My favorite tips for your C-Section birth plan | Richmond Virginia Birth Photographer

I know some moms can feel a sense of disappointment when they’re told they need to plan for a C-Section. Let’s talk about what you can add to your birth plan to help you feel more in control and make your scheduled C-Section a positive experience.

I’ve been honored to be a part of quite a few C-Section births, and I’ve even had one myself! There might be more things you can do to help make your C-Section feel special than you expected. I hope this list helps you find something you can feel good about adding to your birth plan.

Prepare a special playlist.

This can be such a fun way to set the vibe of the entire room and your entire birth! Your partner can absolutely bring a phone in with them so you can listen to any songs you want. I’ve seen parents have playlists with sweet, calm, gentle music, as well as parents with a 90s bangers playlist. You can truly have anything you want! You can even try and time it out so your little one is born to a specific song!

A mom lays on the operating table holding her new baby following a positive scheduled c-section.

Ask for a clear drape.

During most of your C-Section, there will be a blue drape between your torso and your belly as the doctor and nurses are doing their thing. As they are bringing baby earthside, they can lower the blue drape and leave a clear one up so you can witness your baby’s first moments. It is one of my favorite moments of the day. You get to see your sweet new baby being born. Be sure to talk to your doctor ahead of time at one of your appointments and see if this is something your hospital offers. Good news is, I think it’s becoming more common!

A mom experiences the birth of her baby via c-section.

Parents see their newborn baby through a clear drape during their positive c-section birth.

Ask for Skin-to-Skin in the operating room.

As long as baby and you are healthy and stable, you should absolutely be able to do skin to skin in the operating room! There are so many benefits! Including a possibly unexpected one. I have noticed babies calm down almost immediately when placed on mama. It’s so sweet to witness.

New moms have skin-to-skin with their babies in the operating room following positive c-sections.

Hire a Birth Photographer.

I didn’t mean to have this list include a shameless plug, but I just had to go there. Imagine being able to relive your birth whenever you wanted. Seeing proof of your strength, bravery, and love. Seeing the little moments you couldn’t exactly see. Being fully immersed with your partner in the experience of meeting your new little one, and letting someone else be responsible for capturing all the little moments. This is a day you won’t be able to do over, but you can feel all of those emotions again through your photos.

A new mom looks through a clear drape at her newborn baby as the doctor touches baby's nose after a c-section.

A mom lays on the operating table looking lovingly at her husband holding their newborn baby after a positive scheduled c-section.

Here are a few additional things to know before your scheduled C-Section, especially if you had an unplanned or emergency one previously.

As long as there are no complications, the room will feel calm. The doctors and nurses may even be carrying on with everyday conversations with one another. Before my very first c-section experience, they told us that as a way of comfort. It meant that everything was going smoothly and they were very comfortable with what they were doing.
A small perk you may not have considered, you won’t have hours of labor to add to your recovery and exhaustion.
You’ll likely get to walk back to the operating room with your nurse instead of being wheeled back in the hospital bed.
Let your partner know that they’ll be waiting in the Labor and Delivery Room for a while before they join you in the Operating Room. Time seems to go by so slowly during this time. The nerves and anticipation might be really high for your partner. Letting them know ahead of time that waiting a while is totally normal, might help them feel less worried when the time comes.
In my experience, it is up to the anesthesiologist if an additional person (other than your partner) can go into the OR with you. In my area, I’ve found them to be kind and welcoming, and I have been grateful to have been allowed to join families with no issue.

I hope this helped you feel better about your upcoming C-Section birth. You are an amazing mama! Don’t forget that. I hope you have an amazing birth experience.

A dad sits beside an empty hospital bed waiting to be taken back into the operating room for mom's c-section.

Two parents hold hands while awaiting the birth of their baby.

Creating a Positive Scheduled C-Section Experience

Hey! I’m Stephanie! Thank you so much for stopping by! I’m a Richmond, Virginia light and bright photographer specializing in Family Newborn Sessions and Birth Photography. I hope you found my C-Section tips helpful. If you’re ready to talk with me more about having your birth photographed, reach out here! Not quite ready, but want to keep me on your short list? Feel free to check out more of my birth work here, and connect with me on Instagram! Either way, I can’t wait to connect with you!