Giving birth without laceration
The fear of tearing yourself apart during childbirth is one of the biggest fears women have, along with the fear of not being able to handle the pain of contractions .
What I constantly repeat to the women I find myself following during their labor is to welcome that pain and listen to your body , feel your baby and let go.because listening to yourself, giving yourself time, being patient and not fighting that pain, allows the body and tissues to adapt, relax and therefore not tear or tear apart only where needed. Obviously a woman who arrives at childbirth, already aware of having a perineum, being aware of how to feel it, how to know if it is relaxed or not, is something that works to our advantage. Imagine the perineum as if it were a hammock that supports, closes and collects the entire lower part of the pelvis, surrounding the vagina, urine and anus. It is a muscle, formed by three layers with bundles of voluntary and involuntary fibers.
During pregnancy, the perineum does a great job because it supports the fetus, the growing uterus, the changes that take place up to the moment of birth. In this phase it is tonic while during labor and delivery it softens, relaxes and helps the baby’s head to position itself correctly. Without knowing it, it is very important and absolutely do not think that that famous ” little cut ” is made to help you, to speed up the birth because it is absolutely not like that.
Making a preventive cut on a laceration creates much more damage than a spontaneous laceration . This is because a cut is made in a certain point while the laceration, if necessary, takes place where it is needed.
What can I do
If you massage the perineum, change position often in labor according to what the body prompts you and use your voice or breathing during the thrusts without pushing instead as if to go to the bowel, you will have a good chance that you do not have lacerations of first degree at childbirth. The risk of laceration increases instead in case of vertical position, use of oxytocin, rupture of the membranes. Here is an article that explains how to work on the perineum during the 9 months of pregnancy:
What can the midwife do
It can create an intimate environment, soft light, limit vaginal visits to the maximum. He can avoid massaging your perineum unless you specifically ask for it because the massage at that moment gives you relief.
What can the partner do
It can know what your labor and delivery wants and needs are. It can be a point of communication between you and the midwife. She can learn massages to give you to ease the pains of childbirth.
During your birth, try to imagine a flower that opens and the central part slowly surrounds and welcomes your baby’s little head that gently rests on it. You will feel a burning and open sensation and that is what will allow your baby to be born.
The day you go to the hospital to communicate that you have chosen that facility to give birth, remember to hand in your birth plan .
The birth plan
It is a document where you will go to express all your wishes for your labor and delivery and in the list you will write that you want:
- That the times of labor and delivery are respected.
- That you want to assume and change positions at your convenience.
- Being able to push or scream when and how you feel the need.
- That episiotomy is not performed unless required for obvious medical reasons.
You can ask that your perineum is not cleaned with oil but rather that a warm cloth or one moistened with hot water is used.
If all of this is respected, but a spontaneous laceration occurs, stitches may be necessary.
Natural postpartum stitches are quite annoying and it’s good to know what to do to keep them sanitized and promote quick healing. The positive thing is that points are used which are reabsorbed spontaneously.
In the hours following childbirth you can find relief by applying sanitary pads dipped in chamomile and placed in the refrigerator.
You can make poultices with ventilated clay. During the act of urination you can use a bottle of water with 40 drops of calendula mother tincture inside to pour on the perineum just as you urinate.
Blot with a paper towel or a clean towel and put on cotton underwear. Postpartum stitches can be annoying even during defecation so it’s very important not to be constipated. Drink lots, eat fruit, fresh vegetables and fibers. Here are more tips on how to intervene in the event of a laceration or episiotomy:
Kathryn Barlow is an OB/GYN doctor, which is the medical specialty that deals with the care of women's reproductive health, including pregnancy and childbirth.
Obstetricians provide care to women during pregnancy, labor, and delivery, while gynecologists focus on the health of the female reproductive system, including the ovaries, uterus, vagina, and breasts. OB/GYN doctors are trained to provide medical and surgical care for a wide range of conditions related to women's reproductive health.