How To Sleep After A Caesarean Section?

Once you deliver, you start thinking “Oh now the belly is gone I can sleep peacefully” Then you wake up from that dream coz the baby starts crying and you realise "Oh God! This is just the beginning of another set of sleepless nights."

Until you were pregnant you just had to care about yourself but now you have the responsibility of a new small human being who is completely dependent on you. In the new chaos, you have to find ways to get peaceful sleep without pain even if it is for 4 hours.

To get that it is important for you to know the sleeping positions which are good for the healing of your caesarean scar, will make you comfortable without sleeping, and will not cause discomfort while you get out of the bed.

In contrast to the best sleeping position during the pregnancy, the best position post caesarean is lying on the back.

When you lie down on your back the weight of the uterus falls away from the healing stitches and hence reduces the pain and helps you have a comfortable sleep.

The next best position is left lateral or right lateral with curled up legs. This position helps in improving blood supply to all the organs which improve healing, also when the mother tries to get out of the bed it prevents the sudden stretch on the abdominal muscles, preventing pain and discomfort. This position can be made more comfortable by adding extra pillows beneath the legs or in between the legs or a small wedge-shaped side pillow below the abdomen. Sleeping like this also helps in reducing swelling of the legs as the pressure on the blood vessels is released by the sideward falling uterus.

Post caesarean some women might experience breathing difficulties due to swelling of the respiratory system due to which they might have breathing difficulty when they lie on their back.

In such scenarios, a mother can add extra pillows to her head end and sleep in this slightly inclined position.

What you cannot do is sleep on your abdomen, as it will increase the pressure on the caesarean site and can delay healing.

Since the postpartum period can be really difficult with increasing responsibility for the newborn, it is advisable to find a sleeping position in which you are comfortable. Nothing is ideal. Only a good night's sleep can heal you from within and will help you recover faster.

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