Giving birth by Caesarean Section can be challenging for women and their families, as they cope with recovering after major surgery and caring for a new baby.
Janine and Leonie, two very experienced midwives, wrote ‘C-Section Recovery Manual: Your Body, Your Recovery’, for women as a unique resource.
In this session they will share how we, as midwives and maternity care workers, can support, educate and empower women and families, so that they can recover to full health and well-being and enjoy being new parents.
I describe myself as an author by accident, quite simply finding myself putting pen to paper all the clinical, trade learnt skills of a 42 year NHS career. Spanning general nursing, midwifery, and health visiting. In an attempt to leave a legacy of knowledge and skills to enhance the self management of mothers, so they can care for themselves, and in turn make that transition to motherhood, equipped and forearmed to navigate the hurdles of recovery and motherhood. The clinical path I have walked has exposed me to plan for the avoidable and innovate to make the difference you want to see. There is always a way through to share what is important, I look forward to sharing my maternity story with you.
Leonie is known for her C-section recovery advocacy and support. She is a nurse, midwife, author, educator, innovator and founding director of ‘Caesarcare’, an online service business helping support women after caesarean birth She has worked with thousands of C-section mothers during her forty years in clinical practice and has personal experience with her own six caesarean births. Leonie taught in the Bachelor of midwifery program for ten years at Australian Catholic University and Charles Sturt University. In 2010 Leonie was admitted as a Fellow to the Australian College of Nursing in recognition of her service to holistic healthcare in 2005 when she founded an Australian health promotion charity. Leonie’s recent achievements include creating a surgical wound splint, caesarean recovery journal pages, a scar tracker and six weeks of day planners. These innovations can be seen in the ‘C-section Recovery Manual-Your Body Your Recovery. which she co-authored with Janine Mcknight Cowan.
Listen to the Maternity & Midwifery Hour Podcast.