Tearing during childbirth

[humawOo]

First time poster here🙋🏽‍♀️ I'm due in three weeks with my second baby and during my first labour had a very bad third degree tear!! The recovery was awful and has traumatised me a lot this pregnancy. Did anyone else suffer a bad tear during their first labour and was this also the case during your second labour? My consultant recommends a c section so I don't tear worse and cause any more damage but I really want a natural birth. Did anyone tear worse with their second? Or is there anything i can do to prevent tearing 😓 absolutely petrified xx

If your consultant is recommending ELCS I would really consider it - and explore the pros and cons

I had EMCS first time around then VBAC, and wish I had gone for ELCS second time around tbh

NHS consultants don’t tend to recommend an ELCS without a very good reason. If this is being recommended then you should really consider it. Surely a CS recovery is preferable to the risks that come with another bad tear? Good luck with whatever you decide though.

I tore in my first and not at all in my second. A friend of mine had to have reconstructive surgery after a particularly bad birth with her first, then gave birth (unplanned!) at home with no midwives with her second, and no tearing at all.
However for every story like those I’m sure there will be plenty of people who haven’t been so lucky. It’s a tough call.

3rd degree year 1st pregnancy but just slight tear 2nd time.

Google perineal massage. Water birth is apparently meant to mean less tearing and alternatively a hot compress as baby is crowning is meant to help x

I had a third degree tear with my DS and I'm now pregnant again and i think I want the c-section. The risk of incontinence is quite high after a third degree and then second birth and I really don't want that. I admit that I never really wanted a C-section but I would listen to the advice of your consultant. Maybe ask a bit more about what he or she perceives the risks to be to make sure you are fully informed and can decide.

My saying about birth is "better the devil you DON'T know" I think that's why I am erring towards C-sec.

I had a 3rd degree tear with my first. Not instrumental or rushed, but that's just what happened. Gutted.

I was offered the choice of c section or natural for 2nd. I decided c section at 41 weeks as she was big.

She arrived at 40+5 and this time I had a small 2nd degree tear. Recovery was really quick, nothing at all like the horror of the first.

If they are recommending a c section I'd take it. There will be good reason.

You may not tear badly second time, but if you do you might be left with permanent damage, if they are suggestion c section please take it

I would say they have suggested it because they might not be able to repair what you have now. I have had three vaginal births and suffer from the last labour where I bled out. Because there was lots of scar tissue from the previous two births they couldn’t stitch it up. It’s not too bad but I have to be very careful and if they are suggesting it they must have a reason, just ask them outright.

I tested really bad with my first and the stitches came undone and midwifes refused to re do them. Awful experience and still have sensitive scar tissue. My second was 9.10 and natural birth I never had a tear/bruise or anything. Felt normal down there the next day!! It completely depends on the birth but like you I was very nervous

I had 3rd degree tear with first, had to go to surgery to be stitched up and took months to heal and feel normal. I was also terrified when I got pregnant with second and looked into a c-section but they were very against it.
Tore again with second but only small tear and it healed very quickly. A completely different experience, I felt so much better more quickly afterwards and all fine in the end.

Yes I had a third degree with my first who was in a rush to exit, with Hans in his cheek. Sewn back up under epidural, no ill effects.

Second baby I wasn’t offered a caesarean so had natural and a small tear that time around.

I had a 4th degree tear and after a bit of physio recovered reasonably well. I'm having a csection this time on the recommendation of the consultant. He said the risk of a second bad tear is 7-10% but repair could be very difficult. He's known women have to be fitted with colostomy bags afterwards. For me, it's just not worth that risk.

He did also say that size of the baby doesn't have much bearing on likelihood of tearing and often the worst tears can be with smaller babies.

4th degree year with first dd. 2 c secs after. Best thing ever. Was up the next day and coped so much better than after" natural delivery"
I was told if I tore again it could cause incontinence. Not something I would wish on anyone.

I had 3rd degree with my first and consultant convinced me not to have c section with 2nd. I had a 3rd degree tear again and it really brought my mood and enjoyment of the baby down. It was categorised as a lesser tear as it wasn't as deep but due to scar tissue it took a longer route! With third child the consultant, again, said he felt vaginal was best so I changed consultant and he immediately agreed to c section, so my pregnancy felt far less stressful. Recovery from section was by far the easiest of the three, despite a wound infection and having 3 under 4!