Food is good.
Do a couple loads of laundry (can't carry the laundry basket).
Sweep, mop, vacuum. (it hurts)
Offer to drive her somewhere (can't drive for 2 weeks depending on dr.)
A fun, comfy prop-up pillow for on the couch or in bed.
Teas to help lift the mood or help with lactation.
Yummy bath or shower stuff.
I can't say enough about fuzzy socks!!

ETA: I love my brother eternally for being the only one to bring me my favorite drink from our local coffee shop... is there something like that she loves? A particular deli sandwich or cookie or coffee shop delight??

 

I would have GREATLY appreciated food or help. (we received neither) in fact I was doing laundry, moving furniture and expected to entertain shortly after. (even with a bout of pancreatitis)

:

 

oh wait! someone who was just a mere aquaintence from our birth class (a coworker of a friend who actually had a c/s the same day I did!) DID bring me chocolate and flowers in the hospital feeling like i was going to die and it made me cry (not even those close to me did that) so I am forever grateful for that.

 

I absolutely loved all the flowers I received after my c-section. I'm a flower lover anyways and being not so mobile it was nice to sit on the couch and look around my living room filled with flowers. I can't think of anything to really help with recovery since I recovered pretty quickly. I do agree that food is always nice.

 

Sugar Scrub After the staples were out and the scar was healing and the hair was growing back, it felt so good to massage my scar with sugar scrub. It helped with the itchiness a lot.

Other than that, food and a sympathetic ear are good too

 

Flowers were most appreciated, as were the meals. I wish someone had gotten me this though: http://www.earthmamaangelbaby.com/section_kit.html

 

I got one of those massage pillows thats filled with the little tiny beads so they squish around alot. for some strange reason that helped my incision pain. i put an ice pack or a cold pack inside the zipper by the massager part and i was in heaven.

 

Sadly, a stroller. I never boguth one before, never wanted one for a little baby. But wearing my girlie and recovering just did not mix. I finally gave up and bought a Snap and Go frame stroller for $46 and was able to take walks with DD in her carseat in a position she could see me in. I just loaned it to a firend who is in the same situation.

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by MomtoXane Flowers were most appreciated, as were the meals. I wish someone had gotten me this though: http://www.earthmamaangelbaby.com/section_kit.html

Thats really cool!

 

The best gift? Munchkins from Dunkin Donuts, and a cheeseburger. Granted, these were the only gifts I got post c-section, but those were some good doughnuts!

 

Food, definitely! My mom cooked for us the first few days, but then she had to get home. One friend brought us a wonderful meal of beef stew and cornbread and c.c.cookies - YUM! But after that, we fended for ourselves. It would have been nice to have a meal every day for at least a week, and maybe a gift visa card or something for take-out (who has money to spare after an unplanned c-section?).

But some of these other ideas sound really good, too.

 

If she has a toddler or a preschooler at home, you could offer to take the older child to the park or somewhere fun so that she can spend some time with the baby or take a nap. It's so hard for me to have the energy for the older child when the baby needs so much attention.

 

If she's still in the hospital, bring her some real food! The food I had was beyond terrible and someone brought in some fresh, cut pineapple and it was like I'd died and gone to heaven.

 

Honestly, I bet your friendship and support, especially since you recently went through the same thing, is the best gift ever.

Personally, I would have loved a professional pampering (massage or pedicure) while someone else watched the baby.

 

At 4 weeks post c-section, we travelled nearly 3 hours to visit my sister-in-law and her family. I thought I was up to riding in the car, but my belly was really sore when we got there. She loaned me her post-partum abdominal support wrap. I don't know how I would have gotten home without it. I used it for some time afterwards, but I really wished I would have had it sooner.
Not a very exciting gift, but very useful and comfortable.

 

The best gift for me after my c-section was my sil helping with random chores. I'd sort the laundry and then she'd take it over to the laundromat (live in a condo) and do it for me just the way I told her to.

She also scrubbed my kitchen for me. She dribbled some sauce on our cabinet and she said the cleaner I had sitting out smelled so good, she wanted to keep going. She cleaned my whole kitchen - top to bottom!

:

 

I would have appreciated someone understanding my pain/sadness. When I told my mom I had to have a c-section, she said "You could have died if they didn't do it."

:

: (Not saying a present is bad, a present would be fantastic. If I had a friend who had a c-section, I would give them a gift. I was just saying I would have been happy with people treating me kindly.)

 

It would have been nice to have friends come over and just sit and chat. I don't know if they stayed away cuz of the awkward situation, I know it's hard to know what to say(um gee sorry your hba2c didn't work out.. ) and I wasn't ready to process but I felt a little abandoned after so much support for my hb and a wonderful blessingway & all that good stuff. Then after my c/s, nothin'. Ok enough vent. lol

But as far as gifts go, looking back I am incredibly grateful to have been given a pouch carrier and a wrap for my baby. I was deeply determined to recover well and carrying my baby gave me a good reason to get out and go for those walks, without having to focus on "I'm walking to heal from this c/s I didn't want" instead it was taking the baby out and was a lot more fun. Plus I loved it so much I wanted to get strong enough to continue as she got older.

 

Food is excellent, plus someone to take the older child for a few hours. Or go over to her home during dinner time for her LO and then afterward give the LO a bath.

 

Food and company. Understanding company.

 

Dinner and someone to load the dishwasher.

And a box of chocolate is always appropriate.

 

Things I wish I'd gotten:
Help w/ laundry, cooking
someone to watch the baby for awhile while I took a nap

What I got instead:
nothing.
(family is 5000 miles away, dp was working 12 hr shifts, road was too muddy for friends to drive down)

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by alaskaberry What I got instead: nothing. (family is 5000 miles away, dp was working 12 hr shifts, road was too muddy for friends to drive down)

Me too! Well, ok, so my mom came over the day I was coming home from the hospital, turned on the heater (it was Dec.) and brought us a frozen pizza.

:

On the contrary- she MOVED IN with my sister to help her out!

 

Well, my doula came over to help me with bf'ing. But the road was...well it was the road from hell. Seriously. So I don't really blame everyone for not coming out!

My mom *did* come to see me, about a month later though. So that was nice.

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by MomtoXane Flowers were most appreciated, as were the meals. I wish someone had gotten me this though: http://www.earthmamaangelbaby.com/section_kit.html

That sounds lovely.

Cooking and kind understanding would have helped us a lot. My MIL baked us a couple chix pot pies (which were great). Organize a food tree for your friend. We did this for a friend of ours. Create a calendar on the web and have different friends sign up for different days, so that dinners are brought to them for about a month or so.