10 Things To Know About Your Healed And Healthy C Section Incision

You’ll rarely hear moms talk about their now healthy c section incision. That’s probably because it’s more interesting to talk about an oozing infected c section incision than a healthy one.

C-sections have become extremely popular with 86.2% of women with a history of a previous cesarean birth having a repeat c-section. I’ve had 3 c sections myself which means I’ve seen my incisions heal 3 different times!

And according to new research from the World Health Organization (WHO), cesarean section use continues to rise globally, now accounting for more than 1 in 5 (21%) of all childbirths. 

The point in adding these statistics is to spread awareness about c-section births, c section postpartum phase, and the journey to a healthy c section incision. You can find more c-section related topics here!

10 Things About Your Healed And Healthy C Section Incision

It’s not everyday a c-section mom talks about their experience with their healthy c section incision. But I’m going to share some things I’ve experienced even after my incision healed.

1. You won’t always get feeling back around your c section incision.

I knew it was unlikely that I’ll feel my skin completely right after surgery or months later. But even after a year and a half, I still could not feel much around my incision. Now 3 c-sections later I feel more sensation.

The third time I had my c-section, my OBGYN cut around my old incision and created a new one. I’m not sure if that helped with regaining sensation. I just know that after my first c-section, I could barely feel anything around my scar.

2. Your incision will continue to go through different color changes.

I remember obsessively looking at other women’s healed c section scars wondering when mine would look like that. Meaning, their incisions were light in color or matched their skin tone.

My c section incision scar was very dark, almost purple in color. And it continued to go through several different changes in color (and probably still continuing) until it got as light as it is in the picture below. This was 18 months after my c-section.

3. You’ll learn to start loving your c section scar if you already don’t.

If you’re a fitness freak like me or already self-conscious about your body, then a c-section was probably the last thing you had in mind.

And I hope I don’t get mom-shamed for saying this but I want to be honest. While I was recovering from my c-section delivery, it made me sick to my stomach looking at myself in the mirror naked. I couldn’t stand looking at my healing incision.

But 3 years later and 3 health c section incisions later, I am so proud of my scar and my body for birthing my babies. It may take some time but you’ll come around to appreciating your healthy c section incision and knowing you did what you had to do to bring your baby into this world safely.

4. Your incision will feel tingly even after it’s healed.

It’s not a good kind of tingly either. And the tingly sensation comes at the oddest times like when you’re laying in bed about to fall asleep for the night. But just know that the tingly feeling around your incision even after it’s healed is completely normal.

5. You’ll feel a tight pulling and tugging during your next pregnancy.

Feeling that tight pulling and tugging around your incision is also a normal sensation especially during your next pregnancies. I felt this for every pregnancy after my first c section. As my baby bump got bigger in size and the skin around it stretched, the pulling and tugging got a little worse but not to the point where I was in severe pain.

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6. Your healed c section incision will still be sensitive to touch.

Wearing pants or bottoms that rubbed it the wrong way made my incision feel raw and sensitive. That’s why high-wasted leggings were my favorite bottoms to wear during the time my incision was healing.

Even touching around my incision the first few months after birth gave me the chills. This applied especially after my first c-section because I didn’t feel like this after my second and third. That might be because I was used to it and so was my skin.

7. It’ll be bumpy before it smooths out.

You’ll notice little bumps rising around your incision during the healing phase and even after it’s healed. But it will go away and smooth out. I didn’t experience this the second and third time my incision healed.

8. Your incision will itch from time to time.

The itchiness was the worst during the first few weeks of the healing phase. And although I thought it would stop itching after several months, it lasted for a little over a year after.

9. You won’t want to wear anything that sits right on top of your c section incision even after it’s healed.

Like I mentioned earlier, high-waisted leggings and bottoms is the way to go. Wearing dresses is even better! I know some c section moms that wore jeans right after birth and I’m not sure how they weren’t in discomfort.

That brings me to say that our bodies are all different and just because my incision was extra sensitive doesn’t mean yours will. But if it is like mine, I also highly recommend high-waisted underwear. I lived in those for even months to a year after my c-section incision healed.

10. Massaging it will help reduce scar tissue.

I didn’t know you could massage your c-section incision until I googled something along the lines of how to reduce the thickness of your c section incision (something like that).

Because one day I ran my finger across my c section scar and I felt a thick band of tissue underneath it like it was raising my scar up. And then I came across c section scar massage and had no idea that was even a thing.

I used Bio-Oil after the shower and gently massage around and on the incision. I did this 3 times and feel like it’s the reason for my now health c section incision.

Final Thoughts

You may be one of those super lucky c section moms that have zero problems or discomfort after a c section, rocking an almost invisible healed and healthy c section incision. But that’s not the case for majority of us other moms that can find this post all too familiar and relatable!