Forceps recovery six months on?

[Breathslow]

Hi everyone,

I’m new to mumsnet so apologies if I’m posting this in the wrong place! My baby girl is six months old and thriving. I, however, am still recovering from episiotomy and forceps delivery. I spoke to the office a couple of months ago at the hospital where I gave birth and they couldn’t give me a good reason why I needed to have the forceps and episiotomy as the baby wasn’t in distress etc. This isn’t helping with my mental recovery and I don’t think about it most nights before going to sleep. Physically, I still feel very heavy down below and my vagina still looks quite wide and as if a small part of it is hanging out. I also have trouble going for a poop 💩 sometimes. I went to see a private physiotherapist and she told me to keep doing pelvic floor exercises, Pilates etc as I appear to have a rectocele and weakness down there. I’m just wondering what others experiences are and how long it really takes to physically recover from this type of experience? Is six months too long? Should I be back to normal now? How did you cope and recover? I’m so nervous about even thinking of having another baby :( Thanks in advance for any advice xx

I had a 'normal' delivery (small tearing - few stitches) but I'm still not back to normal 18 months on. Same as you, heaviness, something feeling like it protrudes out etc. I've been to physio at the local hospital but not sure it's ever going to change. I can't use a moon cup anymore (it just falls out) and tampons turn 180degrees inside me now. Very depressing! Sorry to not be more hopeful- I feel quite down about it.

I had a forceps + episiotomy delivery 17 months ago and I'm still not quite right down there. I also have that awful heavy/dragging feeling combined with stress incontinence (can't jump, run or cough without leaking). It took me a year post delivery to finally get around to seeing a urogynaecologist, who diagnosed me with a moderate cystocele and minor rectocele. He advised that proper pelvic floor exercises was really the best thing I could do and referred me to a specialist physio to help me with that. The physio discovered that my pelvic floor muscles were really weak, which explained why I had always found the exercises so difficult and got easily discouraged when I tried doing them soon after giving birth. The other thing the gynaecologist said is that stopping breastfeeding helps with the recovery process because the hormone relaxin, which your body continues to produce while you breastfeed, can make your muscles looser than they'd otherwise be.

Anyway, I don't know how long it might take for things to improve by doing the pelvic floor exercises. I've been at it pretty diligently for a couple of months and haven't noticed much improvement tbh. My gynae explained that there are some surgical options, depending on one's particular condition, but that there's no point even considering those until after you're done having babies.

Good luck in your recovery.

Have you been to see your gp? I would probably go along to them and see if they can refer you to gynae as you need a proper assessment and official diagnosis. I am 6 months on from vacuum delivery and had symptoms like what you've described for a few months but it has settled now. But I wouldn't hesitate to go and speak to your gp as although it may be common to have some of these issues, it's not something you should just put up with.

Wow 6 months seems a really long time to be feeling like that, maybe you need to another opinion would you visit a gynecologist? I am 6 weeks pp in agony had unsuccessful vacuum delivery and then forceps with episiotmy, stiches opened, then got infection have had 3 courses of antibiotics. My doctor is shocked I'm still in pain and is very proactive, gave me plenty of pain relief and cream to put on scar has referred me on to a top gynecologist. I feel women are too quiet especially with 1st borns as we don't know what is "normal" my fear is that the pain will be ongoing. Best of luck hope you get sorted.

Definitely worth speaking to your GP to see if they can help, I had forceps and several sets of stitches (plus PPH) and feel back to normal for the most part 5 weeks on. I still lack a bit of control in my bowels (my mind knows when I need to go but the feeling isn’t the same as it was, and I cannot push), but it’s not uncomfortable and painful, and as long as it doesn’t get worse I could live with it like this. I have always had a sensitive bladder so not sure if my pelvic floor has taken a battering or whether I’m back to how I was (if that makes sense). But don’t suffer in silence if there’s even a chance they can help.

I’d also vote for a trip to the GP - I had a pretty traumatic birth first time round (failed ventouse, emergency foreceps and 2x second degree tears plus massive PPH) and experienced the heaviness etc that you describe. However i was basically back to normal “down below” a couple of months later. 6 months doesn’t sound right at all. You might need to be referred for physio or something? A couple of my friends did...

Failed vontuse, forceps and episiotomy... only really felt like myself 18m on!!!

10y later and I have one labia longer than the other but by now It's just the norm!!

I’m also new to mumsnet but could have written your post 6 months ago so wanted to answer as my first baby turns 1 very soon and I’m finally on the mend.. I had a forceps delivery, 2 second degree tears and an episiotomy, a pph and sepsis all keeping me in hospital for a week after delivery. I couldn’t walk more than a few steps for over 6 weeks. The heavy dragging feeling with the pain from the stitches was really unbearable and I spent the first two months in near constant tears.
It was very difficult to find any information about prolonged recoveries as most people ‘finally’ seem to feel better at about 6 weeks- at this stage I could still barely walk and needed to still sit on a perineal cushion!
I saw a private physio and was disgnosed with spasm, weakness and prolapse. I did the pelvic floor exercises but I think the main things that helped were seeing the birth team for a reflections appointment to discuss the delivery and the subsequent referral to an nhs urogynaecologist in the birth injury clinic. I was given oestrogen cream to try ( breast feeding can cause a lack in the tissues that can slow healing) and much more thorough exercises. I also mentally felt better, which I think helped a little with recovery, after these appointments. I had follow up appointments until I was 9 months post natal. By this point I was no longer in pain and dragging every day ( more reduced to every 2-3 days if I’d walked more) and at almost 12 months I’d say I’m about 80% better. I’m still breast feeding and I’ve been told to expect more improvement when I stop so hopefully I’ll get another improvement ‘ boost’ in the next few months.
I’d definitely suggest seeing your Gp for a urogynaecology referral to at least discuss your options. I also found it useful to discuss options around having another baby... no plans!

I hate the way women get fobbed off with these problems. Prolapse is so so much more common than people think and nobody tells you about the risk of it before you have your first baby (or ever). People just expect you to deal with it as though you shouldn't mind that your body is messed up - that's wrong. 6 months is early in terms of there's still plenty of time for things to get better but not early in terms of someone taking you seriously and making sure you get the right help. If you can afford a private women's physio I would suggest that tbh as my experience and that of my friends is that the NHS ones tend to be poor and take too long. However, I do think you should go back to your GP and get in the system in addition to seeking private help. Good luck x

Oh sorry just seen you saw one already - but has she shown you exactly what you should be doing? She doesn't sound very reassuring for you... can you get a second opinion?

Thank you so much for all your responses! I can’t tell you how useful and reassuring they are. I went through a bit of a difficult patch recently where I was struggling to go to sleep and waking up at night running through the birth and delivery, what I could have done differently, how I should have asked them to give me more time, what the procedure felt like etc. I did a birth reflection workshop and they couldn’t give me an answer as to why they used the forceps as my baby wasn’t in distress at all. But it is what it is and I have to try and get my head out of the sand, go to the doctor and get some treatment. I really hope your comments also help other mums who go through similar things in future and that you are all well. Thanks again xxx