Tully Smyth's C-Section Complex

Influencer Tully Smyth has opened up about the underlying sense of shame she felt for having an elective cesarean.

Initially, when the former Big Brother housemate gave birth to her first child, Elke, at the end of June, she said she wouldn't be sharing her birth story.

However, a few weeks later, she generously opened up about her birth in a Substack article called The C-Section Complex.

Now, this topic feels really close to home for all three of us, because as we mentioned on the podcast, we all had elective cesareans.

Yeah, and I very much related a lot to what Tully wrote about, especially the bit about feeling like she needed to justify her decision to others.

So she wrote, "Whenever someone asked about my birth plan, I found myself immediately launching into an explanation.

'I'm having an elective C-section because...' Then I'd list my reasons, almost like I was pleading my case before anyone had even put me on trial." She went on to add that no one was asking her to justify it.

Well, not out loud, at least.

I literally felt the exact same way.

I really had to hype myself up, particularly when speaking to older women about it.

I felt like there was a lot of judgment- Mm ... from them.

Mm.

And sort of questions of why wouldn't you want to try the, in quotations, "natural way" first? Yeah.

I also felt like there was a lot of pressure going into appointments with midwives and doctors before giving birth, 'cause they'd always mention to me like, "Oh, but you know, he's not that big," or, "Would you like to try..." Even though I had specifically said, "I want a cesarean." Yeah, you felt like you were being talked out of it.

I mean, I can kind of understand that more from a medical perspective.

They're trying to make sure that you know the risks that are involved.

But when it comes to people in your life, I mean, I remember someone questioning whether I deserved a push present or not- Mm ... because I was having a cesarean.

Wow.

Just ridiculous.

I, I mean, I may not have pushed, but I did have major abdominal surgery.

There were seven layers of tissue cut.

And you also carried a baby for 10 months, and were awake during said surgery, and had six weeks of recovery.

Yeah, and when most people have major surgery, they rest for a week, and they are absolutely showered with love and care.

But when it's a cesarean, none of that happens.

You're literally handed a baby- Yeah ... and told to get on with it.