Perineal Gel?!

[emmanumber3]

Upon browsing my new Mothercare catalogue, I spotted something called Perineal Gel. Apparently you apply it to your nether regions during pregnancy & it makes the area more stretchy & less likely to tear

Has anyone ever used this and, more importantly, does it work? Am expecting DC3 this August & not looking forward to the prospect of tearing

Did you tear with the others? I think the risk of tearing decreases with each birth.

Perineal massage is recommended to help prepare for birth, but you can do it just as well with olive oil, don't need to buy something special. Ask your midwife for some pointers in how to do the massage (though often getting a partner to help is one of the best ways - not a euphemism for sex BTW!)

I used special perineal oil with DD1, but olive oil works just as well, I believe.

I had to have an episiotomy anyway as she came out with her hands up by her head, so a waste of time!

If you have had problems in the past, maybe you could consider an episiotomy? It was something I really didn't want but had no choice and honestly didn't feel anything in spite of the mws chatting between themselves about how blunt the scissors were.

I've seen people on here talking about the epi-no, but have no experience of using it.

I did perineal massage for 10 mins every day for about 3 or 4 weeks before I gave birth and I hated doing it but thought it would pay off, I ended up having an episiotomy anyway! The episiotomy wasn't as bad as I thought it would be - just annoyed how long I spent leading up to the birth doing something I hated every day!