Perineal massage

[SugaryIris]

Hi all, just wondered if anyone has tried perineal massage to prevent tearing and if so, has it been useful? In all honesty I’m not even sure how it is possible to do on yourself when you are full term!

 

[Rainbow1234]

Hi all, just wondered if anyone has tried perineal massage to prevent tearing and if so, has it been useful? In all honesty I’m not even sure how it is possible to do on yourself when you are full term!

I’ve never tried it, I have read about it though and a suggestion is to get your partner to do it (no thanks lol) x

 

[night owl]

I did try it, it was quite difficult to do with a huge bump and felt a little bit uncomfortable with the stretching that the method tells you to do, can’t say how well it worked as I ended up having an episiotomy anyway but my episiotomy cut healed brilliantly and quickly so maybe it helped in that respect!

 

[MoominGirl]

I gave it a go but my experience was pretty similar to night owl. I also had an episiotomy which got infected but the GP did comment on how well it had healed at my postnatal check and I certainly had a good postnatal recovery in the physical sense compared to a lot of people despite a difficult labour. I always wrote it off and was never sure I was doing it right but after reading night owls post maybe it did.

 

[Alexis2017]

I bought the expert midwife oil to do it and I tried it once and found it pretty painful and then didnt try it again... Probably should have!

Also i tried it at 33 weeks.. Doubt id be able to navigate the bump now

 

[SugaryIris]

Ok so mixed reviews. Yeh I definitely wouldn’t be getting dh to do it, maybe I’ll give it a go, maybe I won’t. I guess if you’re going to need an episiotomy you’re going to need one.

 

[Niknaknoo]

My mate swears by it! I’d like to try this time, didn’t last time and had quite a bad tear. Not sure I want oh to do it though and I can barely reach as it is!

 

[Kitana]

Never did it and tore a bit on the inside with DD2 and didn't tear with DD2, I 'm not sure how a massage will help with the internal tissues, as it's a bit due to the lubrication of the baby when they come out.x

 

[WinterWolf]

It think it nothing for me - I had to have an episiotomy plus I had a lot of internal tears, it all healed pretty poorly too.

 

[Layney]

I did it and never tore at all. Nearly 9lb baby too

 

[CatherineAnn]

I mentioned this to my husband recently and he got WAY TOO excited about it haha. Mixed reviews on whether or not it works, but it seems like it could just be nice for a little foreplay. Either way, if you try it, I'd recommend using lubricant or an oil specifically for this rather than cooking oil. Many women say to use coconut oil or something, but you really should never put food inside your vagina.