For those who maybe want to know if there is anything you can do to prevent it......

[Ems]

Is there anything I can do to prevent tearing?
Some women swear that massaging the perineum before the birth with vitamin-E-rich oil makes it less likely to tear. ‘There is no proof,’ says Gail, ‘but it is a positive way to prepare you for the birth. What matters most is listening to your midwife at the pushing stage. She’ll advise you on when to push, and when to stop and pant and allow yourself to open up gradually. You are less likely to tear if you take the pushing stage slowly.’

 

[Sarah13]

I was planning to start this as I tore with my daughter, been a bit lazy though and not tried it yet!

 

[TiffanyJaynexo]

Well the midwife thing I hear works, I'll definitely be abiding by her rules! xxx

 

[cherelle]

I did the massage thing and i spent ages pushing as i was trying to do it gradually but in the end the midwives were telling me to hurry up and push because the baby was getting tired! I ended up with 2 2nd degree tears I think everyones birth experience is difference and if it happens it happens, i couldnt have done more to stop it. I was fine a few weeks later though, it wasnt as bad as it sounds x

 

[littlemiss83]

I might give that a try.

Best thing is to listen to the MW's & not what your body is telling you. And its very very difficult to stop yourself from pushing & u can feel baby coming & MW tells you to stop.

I think alot of women are tempted just to push & not listen to MW's just to get it over with quicker, but it doesn't work like that, they are looking down there & can see if your gonna rip or not.

 

[Froslass]

I'm wondering if it's genetic..

None of the women on my mums side tore in childbirth, but on my dads side they did, and m wondering if it's just to do with how stretchy you are, and how big baby is x

 

[Jayceesmumma]

I might give that a try.

Best thing is to listen to the MW's & not what your body is telling you. And its very very difficult to stop yourself from pushing & u can feel baby coming & MW tells you to stop.

I think alot of women are tempted just to push & not listen to MW's just to get it over with quicker, but it doesn't work like that, they are looking down there & can see if your gonna rip or not.

I was gonna say that.. That's why they get you to pant to pause the pushing so u don't tear.. It's v hard not to push when they say stop but somehow u can.. The cord was round Jaycees neck so I had to stop midpush and it was so hard but v important..

 

[littlemiss83]

I'm wondering if it's genetic..

None of the women on my mums side tore in childbirth, but on my dads side they did, and m wondering if it's just to do with how stretchy you are, and how big baby is x

oooooh i dont know about this, I dont think anyone in my family has ever told me if they tore or not! loooool

I know things like prem births/late births can be genetic & baby weights too. My mum had me a week late & I was 6lbs 2 & my sister & brother were at least 2lbs bigger (but had diff dad to me so maybe thats why) Just found out when my mum had my brother she went 3 weeks early!!

 

[Jayceesmumma]

My mum went two week over with both me and my sis and we were 5 and 6lb.. My sister has gone two weeks over with both her kids but 7.2 and 8.7!
I was 5 and 3 days early and 7.6 and 7.5...
Think it may depend on the fathers genes too for size.. They say ur pelvis is the same size as ur feet.. My sis and mum are size 2 and sis needed forceps.. I'm a size 4-5 and I didn't need any assistance..

 

[littlemiss83]

I'm a 5/6 shoe size looool - I suppose I didn't need any assistance right enough, apart from the drugs ect.

I've heard about ppl with small frames having a more difficult time. I'm only 5ft 1 so not really very tall.