What are your ongoing health issues due to a vaginal birth?

[Cinderella25]

My sister and I were talking about how a section is more painful but you seem to get less life long health issues.

So what are your going issues due to having a vaginal birth?

I had a precipitous labour. Ongoing Urinary and faecal incontinence and awaiting a possible refashioning as the midwife stitched me up weirdly. Will be having a c-section for any future babies.
There needs to be more education about the long-term effects childbirth has!

Oh, I should also add I had a pelvic floor repair too!

None for me. Had DD when I was young and super fit

My section didn't hurt much at all I was a bit achey and uncomfortable, but not in any actual pain. I don't have an overhang, and my scar is teeny and faint. Maybe because it was planned?

After reading these, I'd rather saw off my own leg than ever attempt VBAC...

Nearly 3 years down the line from failed ventouse followed by forceps. I have been left with several issues. Large episiotomy scar-causes problems during sex, irritated by clothing and aches.
Prolapses, urinary and fecal incontinence. No sensation of needing to go to the toilet. Back pain and hip pain.

Elective c section second time around and recovery was a doddle and a lot less painful in comparison. Though still have some numbness around the scar and a pouch.

Had VB a year and a half ago. I pee a little when I sneeze/cough sometimes and last time I hopped onto a trampoline it felt like my insides are about to escape through my vagina... PGP still ongoing, but I suppose that could be the same after c section to.

Sections carry risks too, and pregnancy, no matter how you deliver, carries a lot of risk. I'm all for choice but people make it sound like the easy or risk free option, when it's major surgery.

I was fine after both my section and my vaginal births, with some expected changes to the look in all areas affected! However my close family member ended up with an infected scar after her planned section and was in hospital for weeks, unable to feed and then even to physically hold her baby, and still has issues now with her core muscles and was not able to carry a second baby.

Not wanting to freak people out - most sections, just like most vaginal births, are fine for both baby and mother - but think there's often only the vaginal birth horror stories shared on here.

Aching joints, constantly painful knees. Can only attribute to the birth /birth position because it came on immediately after I had my baby.

3 vaginal deliveries, last one 21 years ago age 30. Absolutely no problems for 20 years.

I now have a prolapse.

3 vaginal births and 2 c-sections. No problems with the vaginal births but lots with the c-sections.

My stomach is numb from my section. My pouch is ridiculous, I'm a dress size bigger because of it. Ingrown hairs in my scar. I did have a huge baby second time around so expected the pouch to be bigger but not sag as much as it does.

2 vaginal deliveries (one episiotomy, one bad tear) - stress incontinence, aching scar during period, loss of strength which I think causes constipation / piles if I'm not careful, different sensations during sex than before.

1 c section - aching scar 7 yrs on after exercise, the pouch. Took over a year to feel properly healed.

All in all, kind of wish I'd had 3 c sections.

Vaccum and episiotomy first baby. I was induced and laboured for 22 hours, two of which were pushing before intervention. Had a 1st degree tear that took about 6 weeks to heal - two weeks post birth on anti biotic as tear couldn’t heal based on where it was located as essentially anything that touched it reopened the skin. I used to have to have my pants hanging down (to avoid contact with vaginal area); salty baths every morning; very loose clothing and advised to go pants free...not really possible in the two weeks post birth bleed. Walking any distance was absolute agony and had to endure the many ‘you should get out for a walk’ comments from people who didn’t appreciate the utter pain I was in; lay in couch as much as possible in very strange positions to elevate the pain. 19 months later, I’m not sure if it’s true or if it’s a phantom ache, but I can still feel the discomfort of the tear which made me walk gingerly for approx. 6 months. Episiotomy wise, any discomfort was masked by the pain of the tear, thankfully. Baby no. 2 due in 4 months and I’m worried about delivery.

Op why is a section more painful?

^

I asked this too. I had 2 sections and with each I only took codeine for 3 days, yes my scar was bruised but other that that I can't say I experienced any terrible pain or anything. You'd think otherwise, with the incision being what it is, but I think that's partly why there's not much pain - it's surgical rather than an injury?

Not to be that person but I was driving after two weeks and strolling with the pram after one week. The lochia etc, body getting back to normal etc were the same really.

Not wanting to freak people out - most sections, just like most vaginal births, are fine for both baby and mother - but think there's often only the vaginal birth horror stories shared on here

No one has said a section is “easy” or “risk free” on this thread that I can see? and several posters have said they had VB and are fine.

And these aren’t vaginal birth horror stories, they’re women sharing their experiences. You make it sound as though it’s unusual to have an incomplete recovery from a VB. It isn’t, and better imagining means we now know rates of birth injury are greater than previously thought. Ongoing distressing issues are very common after VB, that’s the point of the thread.

Horrific reading all these - and bear in mind you had a newborn to look after too not exactly a walk in the park

I heard on Woman's Hour some years ago that standard midwifery practice in France (?) involves regular blood tests during labour, and that as soon as lactic acid is present, a woman is put in for an emergency section as it is thought that the womb is exhausted (think runners) and pushing will no longer be effective, whereas the risk of birth injuries will rise sharply. No protracted labours or ridiculously long pushing stages resulting in instrumental deliveries on account of an exhausted mother. I cried when I heard it as my first labour had been a 40 hour car crash with a lot of pain, and abject terror as exhaustion set in towards the end. Has anyone come across this practice?

I guess I'm a no issues person. The 4 births were 12-20 yes age. Am now in my early 50s.
I thought prolapse was possible if you have CS, too. Not true?

Oh, and yes to a previous poster's suggestion that trainee midwives spend part of training in gynae, studying birth injuries. Among my friendship group, most of the above is present in one form or other.

Non. Oh actually I do seem to wee a bit more but nothing sinister

None for me, and I'm seven and a half years on...

lljkk the issues with anal sphincter hit at about 57. Physio has sorted it for now - evidently not unusual in middle age after a posterior labour or other difficult labours.

One could say it's all natural but wait a minute, humans weren't designed to get old .

Two vaginal births. Mild bladder prolapse from first. Lumps of skin outside anus from hemorrhoids during first pregnancy. Minor stress incontinence - that's after pelvic floor physio. No high impact sport now which has basically made me fat because I used to love jumping. I don't get much feeling from low impact so it's not fun. Also have vaginal numbness in about 1/4 of vagina from forceps. One stitch needed after forceps.

That's the bad.

The good is that sex has become incredible. Many different types of orgasm instead of basically one type before.

To PP who mentioned France 🇫🇷 I don't know about the lactic acidosis, but they do (or did) have a limit on the time for pushing. I can't remember what it was when I gave birth there, but it's definitely less than the UK.

And every woman automatically gets pelvic floor physio (15 sessions minimum) followed by abdominal physio (same minimum) after every birth. Stress incontinence is far less than in the UK.

None whatsoever. Two kids

allfurcoatnoknickers Nope I would say the same. I think the overhang can be avoided by not being bloated and also keeping very fit.