Caesarean Section: What Happens, Recovery and Scar Care

It was booked for a Tuesday morning, or it was decided in the middle of the night, after hours of labour. Either way, a caesarean section is a surgical operation in its own right, followed by a longer recovery than after a vaginal birth. In France, it accounted for 22% of deliveries in 2024, according to the DREES; in Quebec, about one in four.

Knowing what happens in theatre, how to look after your scar and how quickly to resume your activities helps you get through these weeks more calmly. Here are the landmarks, without forgetting a very Moroccan question: why are there so many?

Why is a caesarean done?

To deliver the baby when a vaginal birth would be risky, for the baby or the mother. It is called planned when the decision is made before labour, for example in the case of:

• a placenta covering the cervix (placenta praevia);
• certain breech presentations, or a baby's position that does not allow a vaginal birth;
• certain maternal health problems, or a high-risk pregnancy;
• a previous caesarean, when a vaginal birth is not advised.

It is called an emergency caesarean when it is decided before or during labour: the baby's heart rate shows signs of distress, labour is no longer progressing despite stimulation, or a vaginal birth becomes too difficult. In France, more than two thirds of caesareans are decided as emergencies in this way.

In Morocco, many caesareans: what do the figures say?

Caesarean use is rising everywhere. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), it accounted for 21% of births worldwide in 2018, against about 7% in 1990. For North Africa, the WHO put it at 32%, an estimate based on only five countries and therefore very uncertain, with a projection of 48% in 2030.

In Morocco, public figures are scarce. In an opinion piece published by TelQuel in August 2026, an obstetrician-gynaecologist cites CNOPS data: in the private-practice sector, the caesarean rate would have risen from 35% in 2006 to 61% in 2017. He specifies that these figures do not hold for the whole private sector. Among the explanations he puts forward: later pregnancies, more overweight, gestational diabetes and high blood pressure, fear of legal liability, funding that pays poorly for the long monitoring of a labour, and fear of vaginal birth.

The WHO sets no ideal rate. It asks that each decision meet the woman's needs, after clear information on benefits and risks, and recommends a second opinion where possible. In practice, ask your gynaecologist why a caesarean is being proposed, what the alternative would be, and what the maternity unit's caesarean rate is. Our article on choosing where to give birth in Morocco helps you prepare these questions.

What happens in theatre?

If it is planned, you will have fasted for a few hours. A drip is placed in your arm, and a catheter empties your bladder during the operation.

• Anaesthesia: most often a spinal or epidural, which numbs the lower body. You stay awake. General anaesthesia is reserved for cases where the others are not possible. Our article on the epidural explains how it is placed.
• Your companion: they can usually sit near your head, except under general anaesthesia. In Morocco, the rule depends on the establishment: ask in advance.
• The operation: a screen hides your belly. The incision, 10 to 20 cm, is almost always horizontal, just above the pubic bone. The baby is born within 5 to 10 minutes, and the operation lasts 40 to 50 minutes in all.
• The end: an oxytocin injection helps the uterus contract and limits bleeding. The uterus is closed with dissolvable stitches, the skin with stitches or staples.

Skin-to-skin and the first feed: it is possible

Yes, and it is recommended, as after a vaginal birth. If your condition and the baby's allow it, the baby is placed against you in theatre, or a little later in recovery or on the ward. If you cannot, dad can take over. This contact matters: babies born by caesarean sometimes have a lower temperature in the first hours, and skin-to-skin warms them. They also more often have slight breathing difficulty, especially before 39 weeks, which usually improves within a few days.

Breastfeeding can be harder at first, because of pain and limited movement. Positions that do not press on the scar, such as the football hold or lying on your side, are detailed in our article on breastfeeding positions. A nursing pillow, to put on your birth list, keeps the baby at the right height without effort.

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The first days: getting up, pain, keeping watch

You are encouraged to get up and walk early, as soon as the anaesthetic has worn off. It is uncomfortable, but important: walking a little every day lowers the risk of a clot in a vein (phlebitis). Depending on the case, compression stockings or injections are added. The urinary catheter is usually removed 12 to 18 hours after the operation, and you can drink and eat as soon as you feel like it.

Scar pain lasts a few days, sometimes several weeks. Painkillers are prescribed: ask your doctor or pharmacist which suit you if you are breastfeeding. Bowel movements often take 3 to 5 days to resume, which is normal. Bleeding is the same as after a vaginal birth: our article on the postpartum period explains how it evolves.

Caring for your caesarean scar

Care is simple:

1. Wash it every day in the shower, with a mild unperfumed soap, without rubbing, then pat dry with a clean towel.
2. Wear loose clothes and cotton underwear that does not rub on the wound. For bleeding, the washable postpartum underwear in our mum's hygiene section replaces disposable pants.
3. Adhesive strips come off by themselves around day 7, or can be removed. Staples or non-dissolvable stitches are usually taken out between day 3 and day 7.
4. From 6 weeks, Naître et grandir advises massaging the scar every day for 5 minutes, in small circles on either side, without pulling it apart.

Slight redness and a little clear, odourless fluid are normal. The skin around it often stays numb, and feeling returns slowly, over several months. The scar is red at first, then fades. On brown or black skin, it may leave a darker or lighter mark, notes the NHS.

Back home: carrying the baby, driving, getting back to sport

You can pick up and carry your baby as soon as you are home. For the rest, the sources give similar landmarks:

The rule is the same for everything: resume when the movement no longer hurts, gradually. For babywearing, wait until walking is comfortable, check that the carrier's belt does not rest on the scar, and follow the safety rules in our guide to baby carriers and slings. Resuming sex is covered in our article on sex after birth.

Emotions count too. A caesarean, especially an unplanned one, can leave mixed feelings, which change over time. Talking to your midwife, your doctor or a psychologist helps you turn the page.

And for a future pregnancy?

Most women who have had a caesarean have no problems in later pregnancies. A vaginal birth often remains possible: according to the Quebec guide Mieux vivre, it succeeds three times out of four. Rupture of the uterus at the scar is very unlikely; if it happens, it calls for an emergency caesarean. A caesarean also slightly raises the risk of placental abnormalities in later pregnancies, which are therefore monitored closely.

It is the team that assesses, with each pregnancy, whether a vaginal birth can be considered. To space your births, our article on contraception after the baby details the options.