Perineum shortened

[Marry123]

I had a baby 6 weeks ago. It was a very quick labour with only 8 mins of pushing and he was over 9lbs. I was told I had only a minor first degree tear and I don't need stitching. My perineum was a bit swallen at the beginning but got better quite quickly. At my 6pp appointment I was told that my perineum shortened and it it only little. My vagina is wide open and there is no support to the vaginal back wall which makes me more prone to prolapse. The air gets inside and then comes out with a little noise. I'm devastated. I'm not sure if my tearing was missed inside and then it just opened on the outside forming this massive gaping hole or perineum stretched and never returned to normal. I'm so worried and angry that I got damaged so badly :( I read about it and it says that I may not be able to feel sex or keep tampon in :( and the prolapse is more common as there is no support to the pelvic floor from the bottom :(:( I read about surgery but as every surgery it has its downsides and they are not willing to do it unless there is a real issue. I am so down I cry all the time and can't stop thinking about this monster down there as that is what's left after my second birth :( did anyone experienced something similar and can give any good advice? Thank you

Anyone? :(

I know it's difficult but don't panic! It's only 6 weeks since you gave birth.
Having said that, I waited 18 months to go to my GP about a birth related prolapse. I wish I'd gone much earlier. I've been refereed to a woman's health physio who has helped me with exercises etc.
So do go see your GP, there's plenty of help out there. I wish I'd gone sooner.

Thank you. I'm not really worried about prolapse now as I had it after my first birth and through exercises I reversed it back. It's more that my perineum is so short now and I'm wide open :( to fix it I will need an operation. I don't even know how this can be fixed... It's a massive gape!! :(

Marry123, I think I have very similar situation with you. I had second degree tear, and I was told I lost around 2cm perimeum at the 6 was check up. Gp told me I was all clear for exercise, and I went to gym, then I got massive infection around my vigina and my bum. Because my perimeum became so short nowadays, any discharge from my vagina just come out and goes to my back passage, and I couldn't keep it dry down there and my bum. Went back to gp again, she said hospital wouldn't do anything about it and sent me to a physio. The physio I saw she's amazing and understood how I feel, she said it looked really bad and might need surgery. But she is getting me do kegals first anyway.

I went to a gynaecologist yesterday for a Pap smear, she said if I don't get it repaired, I might have third degree tear next time, if I do I'll have painful sex, but overall she doesn't think it's necessary to fix it ( or the hospital won't do it for me). She's kind enough to refer me to a general gynaecologist for further examine.

I'm going back to the physio next week and don't know how long do I need to wait for the general gynaecologist appointment. But I'm determined to get it repaired even it will cost me a fortune cuz I know I can't live like this.

Would love to hear more from you how it's going for you.

Hi

I'm sorry you are going through this again. Was your tear not repaired or repaired incorrectly? I now know mine was not stitched. I'm now 3 months pp and feel better about all this (still upset at times). I have a low cervix (cervix 4-5cm in) so I'm trying really hard to improve it (oh joys of quick labour...).
As for fixing a tear my physio told me that shorten perineum may cause a problem much later in life. As there is no support to the back I im in a bigger risk of having rectocele. She suggested fixing it at some stage when I stop breastfeeding to lower the risk. I will see the doctor perhaps around April to hear their opinion etc. I can hold the tampon in which is great and sex is not too bad. I feel a bit loser at the entrance but because of Kegels and other pelvic floor exercises I feel tight inside. The only thing I could tell you is please don't do the gym! Go to hab-it website and do exercises to strenghten all your core muscles. And never strain when on the toilet and no heavy lifting. As your pelvic floor are compromised now due to this damage you don't want to cause rectocele now.

Please keep me updated what your doctors said. There is nobody really who could understand my situation so it will be great to chat to someone. Good luck!!

I got stiched up, but i think the stiches fell out before it healed. The gas problems seems getting better from doing kegals, but it's still getting wet constantly down there because the short perineum, I was so depressed before I made the decision of fixing it up no matter how much I need to pay, now I sort of come to term with it that I'm just not very lucky.

I'll keep you updated, hope you will recover soon as well.

Can you explain the gas problem? Is it the air that gets trapped in your vagina?

I didn't understand correctly - did your gynae said that if you fix it you will get a painful sex or you might if something goes wrong?

Please keep me updated after you have some more info. I'm also thinking to get it repaired but I'm afraid of possible side effects like painful sex, lost of feeling etc... I need to understand what can go wrong and what is the chance of it.. I won't see the urologist until April though...

By the way how long postpartum are you now?

Hi Just some updates.

I went to see a specialist yesterday. He told me I have developed rectocele. And I started to feel increasing lower back and belly pain. And he suggested to fix it at the same time with fixing my perineum. My baby is now five months old. How are you going

Hi

I wouldn't fix it if I were you. Read about complications after operation like that. In addition you are only 5 months postpartum!!! You will keep getting better for up to two years after giving birth so this is still too early to see how bad your rectocele is going to be.

I had a cystocele after first birth. I did hab-it (check website - there is sooooo many great info there plus exercises) two years after there was no sign of it. After this birth I had a low cervix (4cm above opening of the vagina). I'm currently 5 months pp and cervix already lifted to 6cm. I do exercises regularly but they have to be pelvic floor safe.

You should go and see a woman physio. She will point you in the right direction.

I have an appointment with urologist in July to talk about fixing my perineum. My physio thinks that if I keep doing exercises I should not need it as I will get stronger and stronger. I will see what the urologist recommends.

How bad is your rectocele? Do you feel the bulge when you stand and put the finger in? What stage is it? I'm quite shocked that your doctor said to fix it if you are only 5 months pp.....

You can also read whole woman website. They have lots of good info there about prolapse but I totally disagree with their posture. It made my back hurt a lot.

To avoid surgery and help support your rectocele you could also have pessary fitted. That would be done by woman's physio too. I'm in Australia and you can check places like the pelvic expert for more info. She believes that pessary pp will help to recover completely from prolapse. Also you can check a blog of my friend who has a rectocele and cystocele after birth. She is a trainer for women like us. Her rectocele is now gone and cystocele went from stage 2 to 1 after intensive training. Her website is Mums going strong fitness. You can find her on FB as well.

Let me know if you need more info. I'm happy to help as I have been there and kind of still am.... Let me know if you would prefer to go off forum and speak through pm.

Hi

How did you go? Did you end up doing the op? If you did I hope that everything went well and you are recovering well :)

Hi there

Just wondering if you did go through the surgery and how did it go? I would appreciate if you shared your experience.

Hi! Checking if this thread is active at all? Very curious about this surgery