3rd degree tear mamas.......

[ryan'smom]

how long did it take you to heal? 3 months pp here and still having consistent discomfort. I have a midwife appointment tomorrow just to ease my mind, but I was wondering if anyone else has any experiences to share.

Thanks!

[Super~Single~Mama]

I had a really sever 2nd degree tear - took 3 midwives to determine that ie was not a 3rd degree.

I had really bad pain until I was 12weeks pp. At that point I went back to my midwife and was really adamant that something was wrong - and I was right. I had horrible granular tissue that had to be gotten rid of with silver nitrate. If thats the case for you ask to be numbed!!! They numbed me b/c I had TONS of it, so I was numbed inside and out for the procedure, but I've heard its very painful if you aren't numbed.

I hope your midwife can help!

[WindyCityMom]

It took me about 6mos PP until I could have sex comfortably- and by comfortably, meaning, near painless with a lot of lubricant.

I also had to massage my scar, which was really up and inside and on the perenium... the intense pain and discomfort lasted 2 months, but I was uncomfy and in pain until probably around 5 months. It continued to taper.

[leavemealone]

The first time, I didn't really have any pain at all. Things were fine at six weeks post partum. The second time, it took much longer and there was more pain. That area would throb by the end of the day if I had done too much, even just normal activities of being on my feet too much caused pain. I don't remember how long it took, but it definitely took longer than my first tear. My stitches also didn't dissolve on that one, and I had to have them taken out at about nine weeks.

[LaffNowCryLater]

Mine was just a few weeks.

[minsca]

It took over a month before i was able to sit down on something that wasn't a rubber ring. It was tender for a good 3-4 months and DTD hurt until about 6-7 months post partum.

[lifeguard]

I was in severe pain until six weeks. Around four weeks I felt like something wasn't healing right & e-mailed by dr. but he felt that what I described was normal. Stupid me - I should have just made an appointment & went in 'cause at the six week appt it turned out I had granulated tissue. He removed it & within a half hour I felt SOOOO much better.

After that I was still a bit sore but nothing too terrible for a couple of months (but we could dtd gently without any real pain). At 3 months pp I went back to the dr. again 'cause I had a couple spots the didn't look/feel right & it turned out it was more granulated tissue. He removed it & I haven't had any problems since.

If it doesn't feel right go get someone to look at it. Fixing the problem could be so simple & easy. My biggest regret is that I spent so much time stressing over it & the solution took less than 10 minutes - both times.

[etsdtm99]

i had a 3rd deg. epi (so, not technically a tear.. but similar i guess) anyway, i was fine and near normal by about 5 weeks pp .. (fine enough for sex that didn't hurt)

[sunfish21]

Mine was bad for 3-4 weeks, and then it got infected. I ended up with a bladder infection and uterine one too. Once I took the two antibiotics for a few days I began to feel much better.

[ryan'smom]

thanks for all of the helpful responses! i had my mw appointment today and this is what i was told/found out:

#1: she said that when the hymen (sp?) wall was stitched up the ends didn't quite match up perfectly and there is a "skin tag" sticking up. when she inserted the speculum to do the exam it started bleeding (i ended up wearing a pad home)

#2: she was also doing some perineal massage and said that there was scar tissue (this was quite painful when she was stretching....kind of like the ring of fire during pushing.....well ok maybe not THAT bad)

#3: the pains that i get that radiate down my bottom and into the back of my thigh....she says it sounds like it could be nerve pain that usually takes "a while" to get better



so......she recommended i do perineal massage once daily with vit E and see her back in 4 weeks and if there are no changes or improvement she will refer me to someone else.....maybe an OB?

what do you all think?

is scar tissue the same as granular tissue??

thanks again!

[lifeguard]

Granulated tissue is a type of scar tissue is what my ob told me. But it keeps the wound from healing properly.

FWIW - the second time I had the granulated tissue removed it was two small spots, one right at the entrance to my vagina & one just inside. They looked a lot like skin tags, didn't hurt & bled if manipulated much. My dr. was rather surprised that they didn't actually hurt 'cause apparently that is uncommon.

Four weeks sounds like a long time to wait if you are in pain. I think I'd be looking for a second opinion or at least a shorter check back period.