Episiotomy
- Thread starter mmec
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ctrbabe1
Guest
I had an episiotomy w/ my first, but it was in the US, not here. I didn't have an epidural, so when he had to cut he gave me a local anesthetic. It just felt like a little pinch (I guess the same as getting a shot), and then he waited a few minutes for it to take effect. I didn't feel a thing when he cut, but I remember the sound!! lol. It sounded like cutting through really strong, thick fabric, like canvas or something. Weird, I know.
I'm not sure about the procedure here, if they do it every time or not. The recovery, I wouldn't say is painful, but is definitely uncomfortable. (Then again it was 4 years ago so I don't remember it too well...) I remember being afraid of my first bowel movement because I thought it would be really painful (honestly it probably was), and I was afraid of tearing the stitches, but that won't happen. They did give me pain medication to help with the recovery. But again, that was in the States. I think if you are really in pain, just ask for something and they should give it to you.
I'm not sure about the procedure here, if they do it every time or not. The recovery, I wouldn't say is painful, but is definitely uncomfortable. (Then again it was 4 years ago so I don't remember it too well...) I remember being afraid of my first bowel movement because I thought it would be really painful (honestly it probably was), and I was afraid of tearing the stitches, but that won't happen. They did give me pain medication to help with the recovery. But again, that was in the States. I think if you are really in pain, just ask for something and they should give it to you.
i don't think it's a routine. i think it depends on the doc & the patient. i did mention to my ob that i didn't want an episiotomy when we went thru my birthplan. but her suggestion was "asian ladies usually need one. and it's actually heals better than a tear, and most asian ladies tear without an episiotomy." ctrabel1 described it exactly as how it was for me. it wasn't painful afterwards, but i was taking panadol for 3 days cos i was afraid it'd hurt. then for the first 2 weeks, if i sat on a very soft sofa, it'd hurt a little.
Depends on the doctor, the woman, and the birth.
BB #1 - I got one because I was tearing in a dangerous way - doctor informed me & asked permission to do it & I agreed.
BB#2 - also tore a little , but very small & not in a dangerous way - so doctor & I ignored it and got sewed up afterwards (much smaller & less painful).
BB #1 - I got one because I was tearing in a dangerous way - doctor informed me & asked permission to do it & I agreed.
BB#2 - also tore a little , but very small & not in a dangerous way - so doctor & I ignored it and got sewed up afterwards (much smaller & less painful).
Had one with my first - recovery was bloody painful for a good week or so, and then very uncomfortable for a couple of weeks more. The second time I had a little tear and it was much better - healed v. quickly with not much discomfort. The actual procedure is nothing (you have far worse to be dealing with).
They can't give you an episiotomy without your permission if you have specified that you don't want one.
I delivered at QMH, no episiotomy, no tearing. Baby was 3.2kg.
During the last few weeks of pregnancy I did massage on my perenium daily, which softened it and made it supple.
I also think my midwife was excellent, she applied pressure as I pushed which i think made a difference.
I delivered at QMH, no episiotomy, no tearing. Baby was 3.2kg.
During the last few weeks of pregnancy I did massage on my perenium daily, which softened it and made it supple.
I also think my midwife was excellent, she applied pressure as I pushed which i think made a difference.
As far as pain goes, my episiotomywas really really sore for about 2 weeks. and tender for the third week. I didn't feel th cut as had an epidural. I ripped open on stitch, so that is why it took that extra week to heal. It has to heal from the bottom up as you cannot restitch it days later. I was very constipated, so avoid that at all costs!!
I had a third degree tear with my second child and that was even more painfull (after)than the epsiotomy. It was good three weeks, but I again was constipated and ripped one stitch open.I had a natural delivery (no meds) but when the baby is delivered you are in so much pain from contractions I didn't feel the rip at all. They gave me local freezing which was wonderfull!!! I was in so much pain! I had also broke my tailbone which was why I was in so much pain, although I din't realize that until after. The needle for the local itself was not fun.Think of the pain for a needle at the dentist, only now they are putting it somewhere much more sensitive!
I had a third degree tear with my second child and that was even more painfull (after)than the epsiotomy. It was good three weeks, but I again was constipated and ripped one stitch open.I had a natural delivery (no meds) but when the baby is delivered you are in so much pain from contractions I didn't feel the rip at all. They gave me local freezing which was wonderfull!!! I was in so much pain! I had also broke my tailbone which was why I was in so much pain, although I din't realize that until after. The needle for the local itself was not fun.Think of the pain for a needle at the dentist, only now they are putting it somewhere much more sensitive!
rani
Administrator
At Tsan Yuk I remember the nurses saying an episiotomy is standard and you needed to tell the Dr if you didn't want one. I opted for one and I didn't feel it either. You are sore for a few weeks after and I remember my friends who had a c-sections within a couple of weeks made love to their husbands, but that was the last thing on my mind. Sorry :tmi
after reading what capital went through i dont think i would want any other babies! ouch!
i had an episotomy for both sons and the important part is the way the obs stiches it back which helps heals better and quicker. my second delivery was so much better than the first.
take painkillers and don't be afraid to take a stool softerner for the first week. you'll need to keep the stiches as clean and dry as possible. should take abt 5 days then sit in a salt water bath which really soothes the bottom and dissolves the stitches.
an episiotomy is definitely better than tearing.
i had an episotomy for both sons and the important part is the way the obs stiches it back which helps heals better and quicker. my second delivery was so much better than the first.
take painkillers and don't be afraid to take a stool softerner for the first week. you'll need to keep the stiches as clean and dry as possible. should take abt 5 days then sit in a salt water bath which really soothes the bottom and dissolves the stitches.
an episiotomy is definitely better than tearing.
I think it depends on how much you are tearing. I have heard that small tears heal better than an episiotomy. When the tissue from an incision comes together it is a flat surface trying to attach to another flat surface and therefore the two sides have nothing to hold onto, if you like; with a tear the more 'jagged' edges mesh together better. Obviously if it's going to be a massive tear then it would be better to opt for the scapel.
With our third, delivered in Hong Kong, he came out so fast there was no time to perform an episiotomy so I did tear. I had an episiotomy with the first two, as they were both ventouse, and I have to say the recovery after the third was much faster than either of the first two. I had the same doctor stitch the tear, as did the second episiotomy, so for my money I would say a slight tear is better than an episiotomy. As always just an opinion.
With our third, delivered in Hong Kong, he came out so fast there was no time to perform an episiotomy so I did tear. I had an episiotomy with the first two, as they were both ventouse, and I have to say the recovery after the third was much faster than either of the first two. I had the same doctor stitch the tear, as did the second episiotomy, so for my money I would say a slight tear is better than an episiotomy. As always just an opinion.
barbwong_130
Registered User
I had an episiotomy with my first child and was very uncomfortable afterwards. With the next child I tore. The tear was up the line of the old episiotomy and then more. But the healing was much easier than after my first child.
I discussed with my doctor what to do when pregnant with my next child. He told me that mothers usually find tearing heals more easily than a cut and asked me my experience. So we decided not to have an episiotomy unless medically required. But as it turned out I ended up with an emergency c-section. And both my episiotomy and my tear healed more quickly than that!
I discussed with my doctor what to do when pregnant with my next child. He told me that mothers usually find tearing heals more easily than a cut and asked me my experience. So we decided not to have an episiotomy unless medically required. But as it turned out I ended up with an emergency c-section. And both my episiotomy and my tear healed more quickly than that!
Hong Kong doctors IMHO are really behind modern research in relation to their love of episiotomies. In Western countries they rarely do episiotomies nowadays unless you need ventouse/forceps, and even then not always, because the research is overwhelmingly that women heal better from natural tears. Here they are still treated as standard unless you make a fuss about wanting to avoid one.
I've delivered twice at QMH and both times they wanted me to sign a form authorising episiotomy. I refused. The first time I ended up having an episiotomy because at the time they recommended it I was too tired to argue! It was not terribly painful but the recovery was slow. Stitches kept rubbing on my sanitary towels when walking, and I needed the towels for 6 weeks...
So by the second time I was even more determined to avoid an episiotomy. I asked my private Ob/Gyn whether he could recommend any method to make them especially unnecessary and he said one gadget that been proven to help avoid episiotomy is the Epi-no (do a web search), which is available in HK, although expensive. It basically means that for the last few weeks of your pregnancy doing intense stretching of the perineum, which you could do manually if you don't want to pay for the gadget, but you need to do it intensively. It did the trick for me: baby just slipped out before any medical staff could sharpen their scalpels!
The main point I want to make is that if you don't want an episiotomy, make sure you and your partner make your wishes strongly felt. If you are going privately, choose an Ob/Gyn who believes most episotomies in HK are unnecessary such as Dawkins. If the staff do suggest an episiotomy is necessary, ask them what would happen if they waited a little longer.
Also, don't be too horrified by all the horror stories mothers have told you about their birth experiences! If you stay relaxed and not in fear of pain, you are likely to have an easier experience, and many women do have easier experiences than you have heard described here.
I've delivered twice at QMH and both times they wanted me to sign a form authorising episiotomy. I refused. The first time I ended up having an episiotomy because at the time they recommended it I was too tired to argue! It was not terribly painful but the recovery was slow. Stitches kept rubbing on my sanitary towels when walking, and I needed the towels for 6 weeks...
So by the second time I was even more determined to avoid an episiotomy. I asked my private Ob/Gyn whether he could recommend any method to make them especially unnecessary and he said one gadget that been proven to help avoid episiotomy is the Epi-no (do a web search), which is available in HK, although expensive. It basically means that for the last few weeks of your pregnancy doing intense stretching of the perineum, which you could do manually if you don't want to pay for the gadget, but you need to do it intensively. It did the trick for me: baby just slipped out before any medical staff could sharpen their scalpels!
The main point I want to make is that if you don't want an episiotomy, make sure you and your partner make your wishes strongly felt. If you are going privately, choose an Ob/Gyn who believes most episotomies in HK are unnecessary such as Dawkins. If the staff do suggest an episiotomy is necessary, ask them what would happen if they waited a little longer.
Also, don't be too horrified by all the horror stories mothers have told you about their birth experiences! If you stay relaxed and not in fear of pain, you are likely to have an easier experience, and many women do have easier experiences than you have heard described here.
It's comforting to know that not every woman has horrible experiences with having/not having episitiomy. I'm very much looking forward to giving birth i.e. to welcome baby for whatever pain it takes, but the episiotomy issue does worry me. I heard that most women don't even feel the scalpell during birth as they're too much concerned with other things. On the other hand, I heard one story in which a woman's stitches were so bad that the doc removed them and had to stitch again - ouch 
Really dunno what to expect (I'm gonna give birth in POW).
Really dunno what to expect (I'm gonna give birth in POW).(written from my husband's account!)
had natural delivery with ds, no episiotomy.
like a previous poster, i did massage the weeks before, and i think that might have had something to do with the fact that although ds' head was in the 110 per centile (if you saw my husband's head you would not be surprised with this news) i had no tearing or stitches.
hope this helps.
had natural delivery with ds, no episiotomy.
like a previous poster, i did massage the weeks before, and i think that might have had something to do with the fact that although ds' head was in the 110 per centile (if you saw my husband's head you would not be surprised with this news) i had no tearing or stitches.
hope this helps.
I'm sure you're right Matty that Epi-no is not essential, but it certainly is useful if you can afford it! Apart from stretching the perineum and giving feedback on how much you are stretching it, it gave me an enormous amount of confidence to know that I had already stretched my perineum to 10cm diameter (approx the size of baby's head) with comfort at home. I knew that the last stage of giving birth was going to be easy, so I could laugh off episiotomy invitations.
Also, I tried manual massage in my first pregnancy, and I obviously had no idea how firmly I ought to be massaging/stretching the perineum. Only using the Epi-no has taught me that you need to stretch the perineum until it STINGS for the skin to stretch properly.
The first time I used it, I inflated the ball to 5cm diameter and ouch! No wonder people who have done no stretching at all often tear or their doctors think they need episiotomies.
Also, I tried manual massage in my first pregnancy, and I obviously had no idea how firmly I ought to be massaging/stretching the perineum. Only using the Epi-no has taught me that you need to stretch the perineum until it STINGS for the skin to stretch properly.
The first time I used it, I inflated the ball to 5cm diameter and ouch! No wonder people who have done no stretching at all often tear or their doctors think they need episiotomies.
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