Episiotomy pain - any tips for how to cope with it? Please?!

[missbumpy]

I gave birth 5 days ago and had a "small" episiotomy (although it didn't feel small to me!). They left me for 3 hours after labour before stitching me up. I'm finding the stitches/scar absolutely agonising. It hurts me too much to sit down at the moment. The community midwife checked it the other day and said it looked fine and it's not infected and they told me to expect it to be sore for 3 weeks or so. So I know this is all normal...I'm just need some tips for coping with the pain in the meantime. I can't not sit down for 3 weeks!

I've been taking salt baths with lavender oil every day and I've been taking paracetemol. Just wondering if anyone else had any tips that might help me cope with this.

I also found parcetemol did nothing for pain and coodomol made me constipated which was awful with epis. and tears!! I got gp to prescribe me diclofenic (same as voltarol) and this made big difference. I also found it soothing to use the biggest bulkiest pads (even 2 of them) you can find e.g tesco or kotex super nightime. this creates a bit of cushioning. Again, I used witch hazel on pads (lovely!) and tea tree in the bath. Baby wipes are good for wiping after the toilet and after washing use a clean, dry face cloth dab around scar dry. I found that a lot of discomfort eased after 2 weeks.

Also, I advise you make sure you get stitches properly checked by gp after 6-8 weeks. Although midvives had checked mine several times on my request, they failed to pick up a lot of problems with my stitches. It was only picked up few months after birth. I think they mainly do quick check for infection. But I know most people who have stitches go on to recover completely within 6-8 weeks so please don't worry. you'll be feeling a bit less sore every day!

Midwife had a check today and said there is a small 'gape' in the stitches ! I'm horrified. I'm too scared to look but I have images of myself literally coming apart at the seams. No wonder it hurts so much.

So if you soak your pad in witch hazel do you just sit there with a wet pad or do you just press it on for a few minutes after you've been to the toilet or something?

I asked midwife for stronger painkillers and she said to take nurofen.

Don't be too scared missbumpy, it's not uncommon to have a little 'gape'. Granted it doesn't sound very nice, but usually it will heal quite well providing there is no infection.

Just continue to keep your perineum as clean as possible, changing pads freqently, not just when going to the toilet.

Forgot to add, ask your GP for Diclofenic, the midwife isn't feeling your pain.

Oh yes, forgot about diclofenic, wonderful stuff - just don't do what I did and stop taking it within a couple of days because you feel better - you feel better because of the painkillers, stoopid (me, not you, obviously!)

don't worry about scar being a bit gappy - mine was (couple of stitches popped - I was v swollen so they couldn't do a continous stitch) and it does eventually heal, its what the mw called a 'granular' heal (I think) which takes a bit longer (btw am expecting no 2 19mo after no 1 so eveything healed ok)

I also had pain - ask mw to check it everytime she visits, I had to go to a&e on bank hol weekend and get antibiotics because of slight infection and when mw asked me on day 7 if I wanted them check I said no as was fed up of people looking at my bits

second all the good advice of arinca, gel pads, peeing in bath etc

see GP bout pain killers if you are struggling x

I've not had an Epis but have had 2 2nd degree tears which i declined to have stitched and the greatest comfort i found was a spray bottle of boiled water with calendula tincture in it - I'd also recommend always long pads or microfleece topped washables, so you're not applying pressure from a thick pad when you sit down -Also, when you've been to the loo, spray or rinse yourself but don't dry any more than the outside bits - fanjos aren't dry and wounds heal better in a clean, moist environment -but you do have to be scrupulous about wiping front to back when you BO and making sure there's nothing there that can travel down your pad IYKWIM
LisaX

Thank you. Glad to know that a 'gape' is relatively normal and not as horrendous as it sounds. I'm just having a bad weepy day and feeling v sorry for myself

I've moved onto the ibuprofen. SIL who's a GP brought some round. I'll ask her if I can prescribe some Diclofenic. Sounds like just what I need!

missbumpy - I completely understand (tmi now but it may help) for me the outside 'flap' never healed attached (can't think of a better way to describe it) doesn't cause me any probs expect I get a bit dry sometimes but for ages I felt really sorry for myself and very about it - I wanted it to be 'cosmetically' the same as before... I will prob get it reattached for me once I've had all my children at the mo it doesn't bother me....

lots of hugs and hope it feels better soon x

Someone might have suggested this already, but what helped me was to ive the wound plenty of fresh air. This meant sitting on a towel with no knickers and legs akimbo. Not terribly elegant, but it really seemed to soothe it. I hated the warm damp itchy feeling of a pad. Yeuch.

Also, I seem to remember that the 5 day mark was the worst pain-wise. I think the stitches are beginning to dissolve or something. I remember it feeling horribly tight, as if the sticthes were contracting

Hope you feel better soon.

give

Diclofenac!!!!!!!!!

A ring cushion for sitting on when feeding

Diclofenac!!!!

Witch hazel on pads, and keeping epi clean and dry! My mw cut a few stitches out for me but I did end up with an infection and haematoma so maybe I shouldn't have let her near me..........

Diclofenac!

ANNNND
Diclofenac!!!!!
bugger paracetamol - Diclofenac is the dogs for postnatal pains - I insist on a weeks worth for the afterpains!
Lisa X

Sorry, haven't read all the posts, but, had a "large" episiotmoy to avoid a c section.... I found that pouring water over my bits when weeing, (small water bottle ) and sitting on a cushion with no middle (I got mine from Blooming Marvellous, can't remember the name, sorry, but a rubber ring mat help as much,,,,,,

If you are still bleeding so finding it hard to get some air then buy a cheap black / navy towel aand either lie on the bed for a bit after your bath or put it on the sofa and sit on it. If you are find ing it hard to get a chnace to lie on the bed and do nothing then maybe combine it with baby feeding time.

definitely anything cold - cold gel pack and salt baths - 3 weeks to heal ahhh hahhh ha I hope it is that short for you

you should drink lots of water too to help the healing

Nothing much to add....just moral support. I had a foceps delivery and then needed an epidural afterwards (wished I could have had it when they were inserting the fecking forceps...!) to be repaired in theatre because of a mixture of tear and epi.

Arnica, Badedas and tea tree in separate baths, and lots of cushions helped. Plus lots of dried fruit and nuts to munch on whilst breastfeeding....knocked back with lots of water. Good to keep up strength, but also stops you getting constipated. I had dd on the Sunday and was still in hospital on the Wednesday when I had a poo...I can remember being so pleased with myself and was v keen to tell dh when he arrived on the ward that morning. What a lucky man.

The good news is that the pain did pass. I didn't have diplofenac, but altenated paracetomal and ibuprofen.

BTH....my husband is diplofenac (amongst other things) for an arthritis condition and swears blind that it is great for hangovers. Worth considering for those who still have some in the back of their cupboards....

dh HAS diplofenac...not 'is'. Doh.

I had an episiotomy too which was very painful but the midwife took the stitches out after 7 days rather than waiting for them to dissolve. I didn't ask her, she suggested it and it made a big difference. I think they can get a bit tight.

Lavender oil baths twice a day were recommended but I barely had time for one but maybe twice a day would have helped.

I hope it feels better soon though - it isn't pleasant considering all you want to do in the first few days after giving birth is sit. You have my sympathy.

DO NOT. I REPEAT DO NOT sit on a rubber ring. I did and was still in loads of unbearable pain, midwife took one look at my nether regions and looked very shocked indeed. Seemingly if you sit on one for a long time (which I did ) all of the blood rushes to the painful bit, this makes it swell even more, because the bits below are suspending in space (backside sits on ring, foofy is hanging in space !!) midwife banned the rubber ring. So I then had to sit on sofa without it and within a day or so pain became much more bearable. drink lots, put your feet up and let everyone run around after you and your baby. best wishes x

More salt baths! I was having two or three a day - and crawling upstairs seemed easier than walking for some reason, but no good with a baby in your arms, obviously.

Interesting to see ring type cushions being suggested.

I thought these had fallen out of favour.

Although giving initial relief from applied pressure, they actually increase the internal pressure causing more pain.

I found that showering my bits with cold water several times a day to reduce any swelling really helped the healing process and to manage the pain of stiches. Dry with a hairdryer if you like but on the cool air setting not the hot one as you don't want to encourage a rush of blood... Lie down as much as possible with your legs up and get lots of fresh air down there (very elegant I know but it works). Drink lots of plain water.

That's why they stopped using them in hospital wasn't it noname - I remember when i started training all the post op pile victims sat on them - then it stopped and people were very much more comfortable (plus i've seen some horrific sacral pressure sores back in the day when OP's homes used them a lot)
Lisa X