Birth after 2 x 3rd degree tears

[Sae178]

Both of my births have resulted in a 3a tear 😬 and when I had my consultant appointment after the second time they advised if I had any future pregnancies to have a c section because of thinning to the muscles.

I'm not pregnant but I was just curious to know if any other mummas have had two third degree tears before? Did you ever find out the reason why it happened? Also, has anyone gone on to have another baby and what did they decide for the birth? C- section or vaginal?

Oh you poor love, that sounds really tough. I had a 3a tear with my first. It is more common than most midwives would like you to believe, and affects about 1/16 births. It is higher for first time mothers and some people are just more prone to them unfortunately. Other risk factors include instrumental delivery (ventouse or forceps), baby over 4kg or Asian ethnicity. Many women are totally fine afterwards but I wasn’t one of them.

I was encouraged by my midwife and my obstetrician to have a vaginal birth with my second but I insisted on a c section because I still had occasional symptoms and discomfort from my previous tear, despite good physio. I also had a prolonged back to back labour and wasn’t treated very well by the midwives for much of the time.

Having a planned C section the second time round was the best decision for me, and I had a lovely experience. Unlike last time, I felt so safe and cared for the whole time. My milk came in extremely quickly because I wasn’t stressed, and I had no symptoms of baby blues or PPD following c section either. I was in a lot of pain for the first 48-72 hours and found it much more difficult looking after a newborn in the first week, but I took all painkillers available and organised extra help at home for the first two weeks with baby while my husband wrangled our toddler. I will be having a C section for our third child too. It’s really important to take it easy while you’re healing, to prevent any longer term issues.

It is such a personal decision and there is so much to weigh up. I was previously a really fit and active person, and I didn’t want to risk another 3a year or worse. I was also utterly traumatised by my first labour and still cry when healthcare professionals ask me about it, which is just so embarrassing as I am not an emotional person like that, but my first experience really filled me with some difficult emotions that I won’t go into here.

More people will hopefully be along soon to share their experiences but the royal college of obstetricians produced this patient info which I have found really helpful:
https://www.rcog.org.uk/for-the-public/browse-our-patient-information/care-of-a-third-or-fourth-degree-tear-that-occurred-during-childbirth-also-known-as-obstetric-anal-sphincter-injury-oasi/

I experienced a 3c tear with my first and that was enough to put me off delivering vaginally again. The pain and discomfort was prolonged and the emotional toll too.
I had a c-section four months ago and the recovery has been amazing in comparison. Tough first few weeks with not being able to pick up my toddler, but I know recovering from a similar tear would have been much more difficult!