Vaginal Pain (8 months) After Childbirth

[mommydesi]

I am really hoping someone can help as I don't know where else to turn right now.

I delivered my daughter 8 months ago.  It was a complication free vaginal birth.  No pain medication.  No episiotomy.  And I had what the midwife told me was a 2nd, almost 3rd degree tear with a couple of small urethral tears.  She stitched up the 2nd degree tear.  She decided not to stitch the urethral tears as she said they were pretty small and should heal on their own...other than burning for a few days when I urinated.

I do seem to remember everything appeared to heal ok.  Of course, I was sore for several days, but gradually the pain eased.  I started noticing about 2 1/2 months post delivery that I had seemed to have lost some sensation in the clitoral area, but I thought it was just going to take some time to heal.  Fast forward to about 3-4 months after delivery when my husband and I first tried to have intercourse.  Still very little clitoral sensation.  But the worst part...I have severe pain just inside the vaginal opening (feels like maybe 1/2-1" inside) on the front wall.  I don't feel the pain at all unless during intercourse or during a pelvic exam with speculum.  The pain I feel is pretty excruciating.  It almost feels like there is a stitch still in there that gets pulled or tugged or something.  That is the best way I can describe it.

I saw my midwife at 3 months postpartum and to the best of her checking she said everything looked and felt normal.  She said let's wait another couple of months.  I went back 7 months postpartum...same pain!!  She said she really is at a loss.  She consulted a doctor in the practice.  They just say "nerve pain" and said my options were some kind of painful local injection or to visit a physical therapist who specializes in "pelvic pain".  Is there a way to for sure tell if it is nerve pain?

I don't know what to do, as neither of those options sound right to me.  My instinct tells me it isn't nerve pain, but I don't know what else it could be...or who to see next. I really need to get this figured out as it is obviously causing issues for my husband and I.

Do you have any thoughts or suggestions?

Thank you very much!

[LadyJade]

I had a csection and had pain like that which made NO sense to me.  3 months after i was still not able to have sex and was becoming quite alarmed that something had prolapsed or something.  I skipped the midwife and went straight to OB.  His first question was "Are you still breastfeeding"  I was.  He examined me for anything unusual, and there was nothing wrong.  He said it was very likely lactation atrophic vaginitis http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/458970_2 meaning - vaginal dryness and hormonal thinning of the skin down there.  And that if it didn't clear up within a couple months of weaning to let him know.  It did.

No one ever warned me that lactating can effect sex and your lady parts so severely.  I have the great big LLL breastfeeding book and I think it gets maybe a sentence worth of mention in there.  But its real.  The OB knew immediately that that was it.

Don't know if that helps.