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And despite the fact that I had excellent care from everyone in the hospital, it is not something which I or my partner would want to repeat.

After the op I could barely sit up and had to be hooked up with a morphine pump for 24 hours to control the pain. And it was agony having to have someone else hand my baby to me because I couldn’t pick him up myself.

I had no intention of lying around for days and as soon as I could bear it, I was standing up and moving around.

One woman across the ward from me couldn’t get out of bed for a couple of days. I was lucky in that I had no problems bonding with Finn. But some women find it more difficult to make the initial connection with their child when they’ve had a caesarean. And it can make breast-feeding harder to establish.

I was kept at Aberdeen Maternity Hospital for four days after Finn was born and then transferred to Banff Maternity Unit – nearer to my home – for a further three.

Oddly, most of the half-a-dozen women at my ante-natal class ended up having caesareans – and only one was pre-planned because the baby was breech.

After the op you are told not to lift anything heavier than your baby for at least a few weeks. And no driving for six weeks. What many people forget is that a caesarean operation is major stomach surgery and even nine months after Finn was born I have still not 100 per cent recovered.

If I ever do have another child, I still would not opt for a caesarean – but at least next time I’d know what to expect.

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