People are just discovering 'amazing' truth about C-sections

Having a caesarean section is sometimes wrongly labelled as the "easy option" - but in reality, it is actually a major abdominal surgery to go through, as one obstetrical nurse proved after creating an insightful viral video about the process.

TikToker Tina (@mamma_nurse) used a helpful prop of various different coloured felts stacked on top of each other to demonstrate the different layers surgeons have to cut through to retrieve the baby from the mother's uterus.

(And there are a lot of layers, to the surprise of some people).

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To begin with, the skin above the pubic bone is cut, and after this the yellow fat layer, then white facia connective tissue.

This is followed by the abdominal muscles which are not cut horizontally but instead are separated vertically and move to the side to reveal the clear peritoneum layer (the lining of the abdominal cavity) which is opened vertically to reach the uterus wall and bladder.

In order to avoid any damage, the bladder is "pulled down and out of the way with a protective device," and the uterus is then cut (normally horizontally but can be done vertically in emergencies) to get to the final layer of the amniotic sac where the baby is protected.

Tina explains that some surgeons will use bandage scissors or pull with forceps to open the amniotic sac as it will come out of the body with the mother's placenta.

She concluded that a c-section "is not a simple operation" and congratulated those who have gone through and recovered from one.

"When you break it down like this, visually, I hope we can shut down some of the nay sayers when it comes to c-sections and birth," the TikTok caption read.

Since sharing this education video, Tina's TikTok has gone viral, with 7.4m views, 880,000 likes and over 13,000 comments from people who agreed it wasn't an easy operation and some shared their own c-section experience.

One person said: "Who thought this procedure was 'as simple as cutting a belly.'"

"I had a c-section surgery and was wide awake throughout the entire process, had no idea there were this many layers to get to my son!" another person wrote.

Someone else added: "Then you’re recovering from major surgery and have a newborn to care for. Definitely not the 'easy way out.' I’ve done it twice."

"Brb apologising to my mum," a fourth person commented.

Definitely an eye-opener into the birthing experience.

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