My EMCS was the only 'enjoyable' part of my entire labour. The rest - before and after - was was pretty bloody useless.
Picking up on one point in the consultation document...
Women who have had a CS are offered a discussion with a health professional about her CS and birth options for future pregnancies - I wasn't, and haven't been, offered any discussion about this. I am quite certain on my choices for a future pregancy, but this certainly wasn't part of my aftercare, and it would be useful if I was unsure what to do for another pregnancy.
However, as poppy puts it, "I never wanted a vbac, and I'd like that to be recognised as a valid choice". This, definitely. It's only finding out recently from friends that cs's are allowed for the next baby that has reassured me, I didn't realise quite how scared I was by the thought I might be pushed in to a vbac. Though I am worried about all the hoops I will have to jump through, and that they might schedule it so close to my due date in the hope I will go in to labour on my own. I am terrified of natural labour now. I appreciate that women should see a professional to discuss their choices, but I think the tendency to try and override the mother's natural feelings on an elcs v vbac is terrible; if a mum is already scared of natural labour, why make her pregnancy even more stressful by continally pushing her towards something she doesn't want to do?
A few other things that cross my mind:
My baby was poorly, hence the emcs, and was rushed off to NICU. I didn't even get to see her, let alone hold her, which still plays on my mind even a year later (and is part of the reason why I don't want a vbac). Now of course I know that if my baby needed medical care immediately that is far more important than seeing or holding her. But I suspect everyone in that room knew she would be that poorly when she was born, and I just wish someone had told me that. I wish someone had explained it to me, so I wasn't sitting there a day or two later, once the drugs and shock had worn off, thinking - hang on, what happened there?
Also, I had no explanation or instruction of how to get out of bed, how to look after my wound, that sort of basic care. Like several other posters have said, the postnatal care was absolutely shocking. I don't think one-on-one midwife care is anywhere near achievable, but just the sight of a midwife or nurse would be help. The women in my hospital were just left in bed on the ward with the baby, and no nurse or midwife even popped in to see if everyone is alright. I can't even begin to imagine how the new mum's three hours out of a cs coped with a newborn baby.
The NHS currently seems very happy to stress that it is major surgery if you are trying to get an ELCS - but then very happy to ignore that you've just had major surgery when you are on the postnatal ward.
Lastly, if a mum has had a cs because the baby is ill and the baby is then taken to NICU/SCBU, please try not to put her on a main ward with other mums and babies wherever humanly possible. I know beds in private rooms or small wards might not be available, but is it so hard to just have a piece of paper that says 'move Ms X to a more private bed when one is free'? The first night on a shared ward with newborn babies crying and mums chatting was living hell for me. I ended up at the nurses station at midnight in hysterics because I hadn't slept for three days and my baby was poorly, and I was treated as if I was overreacting and a completely pain in the arse to them. Yet they finally admitted there was a bed free in a side ward for mums with babies in SCBU! I even saw they'd written in my notes for that night that I was 'over-emotional'. A little bloody compassion, please. I honestly don't think that any of the medical staff on our postnatal ward for 30-odd women had any interest whatsoever in babies or in acknowledging what the women had been through.