3Rd Degree Tear Recovery from Delivery

Repeating what another mom said - drink lots of water. Its so important! I had a similar problem and was taking lots of fiber, etc, but not drinking enough water and it was having the opposite effect. So make it a point to drink a full glass of water every time you take something. Good luck! I know how horribly painful that is.

Good luck and bless you! It is normal to not have bowel movements after delivery. I had to take laxatives/softeners after my first baby-they really help-keep taking them! Congrats!

Drink lots of cranberry juice. It can be cranapple, cran grape anything cran! With or without being pregnanat I have had a hard time with this kind of ordeal. So I thought I'd give you a bit of hope maybe!

Prayer, prayer, and more prayer! That is what I'm doing for you. I know after I had to force the first bowel movement with a enema, which was not fun it did get easier after that. The hemroids eased as well. Being positive is the best thing, I see you have a healthy sense of humor wich makes things alot easier, I promise! I know this is a time you are to be enjoying you precious gift from God, not suffering from the delivery. So I speak over you health, healing, joy and peace! Your words are truly powerful and I know you will be at the top of your game by tomorrow.

Blessing M.

Congrats on your new little addition. I am also so sorry about your 3rd degree tear. I feel your pain. I had a 4th degree tear with my son. It took a really long time to get over. I was taking Vicoden, doing sitz baths, and sitting on a doughnut pillow still in pain. I called my doctor and they prescribed proctosol. A cream that goes directly on the area to numb it. It was a god send believe me! Also that first bowel movement afterchild birth is terrible. I took stool softners and laxitives for about a week and nothing happened. I finally had to do an enema. It worked but was quite painful. I promise it all does get better it just takes awhile.

I was so afraid of my first bowel movement, I was close to tears. I strongly recommend you buy All-Bran cereal. I would have a bowl of cereal in the morning with apples and some sugar and one at night. It made a HUGE difference. It's not very tasty but honestly doesn't taste that bad either. I really hope this works for you as well. I've also been on vicotin in the past and that really stops you from having a bowel movement. Other fruits that are high in fiber are papaya, peaches, bananas. Oh, and drink lots of water. Best of luck and let use know how you are doing!

The recovery from my first pregnancy seemed to take forever too. I didn't tear as badly, but I did have to have stiches and had the hemorroids. Somewhere around 2 weeks or so is when it started getting better for me. I remember sitting at the dinner table for the first time (our chairs are hard and it hurt to bad to sit on them) around 2 weeks w/o too much pain. I do have to say though, if you decided to have more the recovery for the second was SOOOO much eaiser. I was up and going just a few days after so don't let this discorage you from doing it again. :)

Hi R.,
I also tore, from one end to the other, when my daughter was born. I think I had to sit on a "donut" for the first couple of weeks. But it will get better. And if it makes you feel any better, when I had my son,almost three years later, I did not tear much at all - and he was over 9 pounds. Oh, I remember the "sitz bath" helped so much!!
Good luck. God bless you and your new little angel!

I'm so sorry for your pain! Ohhh, I remember well! I had a horrible tear after I delivered our son. I used a squirt bottle (the Dr. gave it to me) with warm water to wash the area after I used the bathroom, blotted dry and then used numbing spray that the Dr. gave me. I could NOT have made it without that spray because I didn't like taking the pain meds. I think you can get it at Walmart but can't remember the name.

Congratulations on your new baby girl!
Stephanie

I had a 3rd degree tear with my son (who is now 10) and I remember like it was yesterday. One thing you didn't mention that helped me tremendously was a freeze spray the hospital gave me. My husband had to spray it on, but it worked wonders to deaden the pain for a bit. It took at least 2 weeks to be in less pain. I sat on a donut when I sat down for almost 3 weeks. It took over 2 years before some of the sensation came back (the nerve damage didn't let me feel too much down there after the initial pain from the tear healed). Good luck! Oh, also soaking by lower half in a lukewarm bath with epsom salt helped. I did that twice a day even though it hurt to get down there it helped the swelling and pain.

Wow you have a lot of responses! I can't touch on the tear part. But i got the Hemorroids after the birth of both of my sons. The 1st one i had to have surgery to get them removed. For the 2nd one i still have them and my doctor told me they could be there for a very long time. So i want to have the surgery again because it effects everything like my sleep and sex life! I have actually had them for over a year now. I haven't been able to inquire about surgery yet because i don't have insurance!

Hi R.,
congratulations on your baby!! I wanted to respond because i know what you're going thru with the tear. i had a 4th degree tear with my now 13 year old. it never felt the same down there. i thought that was just how it was going to be... and then 5 years later on my annual visit to the same OBGYN that delivered her told me i needed to repair with surgery. after that, I would only be able to have a Csection with future babies. i was upset and scared but i have to tell you-that was the best thing i ever did. he sent me to a rectal surgeon and had the surgery. honestly, it was not fun and it was a long recovery. but in the long run it was really the best thing to do. i feel like i've not had a vaginal delivery.
and i did have a c section with my next one who is now 3 1/2. the C section is a breeze compared to having a tear!!

you may not need to go this route since you had a 3 and i had a 4. but-i woudl definitely talk to your dr. i know this doesnt help you in the short term for the pain. i do hope it helps in the long run.

thanks
J.

I had a fourth degree tear with my first daughter. I was scared to go to the ob at my 6 week visit. Did not want anyone going near there! It took a while... about 5-6 months for me to feel completely together! It has been 21 months now and since then I already had another little girl who is 3 months old. So, obviously things are working correctly and feel fine. Hang in there! It is amazing how the body heals. Take lots of hot baths and wear loose fitting clothes. I did the laxatives for a while... I can't remember how long. Also, I used Tucks to wipe or wet wipes for the Hemorroids. That seemed to help as well.

Hi R.,
I had my son on Sept. 30th and also had a 3rd degree tear. The things that have helped me the most are...

1. Sitz baths...just fill the tub enough to cover your "area" with HOT water...I was told as hot as I could stand it. Also throw in some Epsom salts.

2. Sit on a heating pad. I though my midwife was crazy when she said this but it works...not comfortable but it works.

3. (This is TMI) When you are ready for a bowel movement...hold a clean maxi pad against your stitches to apply counter pressure while you push. This is the only way I got through the first BM (6days later).

Good luck...I feel your pain (literally) :)

I didn't read the other responses, but after my first child, my 8lb son...I tore some as well, I don't think it was as bad as you. I had hemmroids from hell. The dr. prescribred Proctofoam for me to help with those, and let me tell you what...it was a miracle cure. Within 24 hours I could sit on my butt without crying. I feel your pain, it will go away and all of this will be a distant memory. If you have another just to let you know I had none of these problems with my daughter. Little hemmrhoid but that was it.
Ask your dr. about proctofoam, it's expensive (with insurance it was $45.00) but it is definitely worth it.
Congrats on your little one..enjoy them while they are babies, because they grow SOOOO fast!

I thought I might be able to give you a light at the end of the tunnel as you said. I am a nurse and I know in most cases your tear should be pretty well healed by your two week check up it may take a little longer considering how severe your tear was. As far as the laxitives you can bulid a tolerance to them very easily you can also become dependent on them. I would like to recomend that you try Miralax it works different than other laxitives all of it is excreated in your BM nothing is absorbed into the body.(Its over the counter) You may also want to consider using a fleets enema. I know it doesn't sound like fun, but I had to use them after having my son via c-section because my incision hurt so bad I couldn't make myself go to the restroom. Hope you get reliefe soon!

That sounds exactly like my "wounds" from my first baby and yes, you will return to normal! It got better gradually. You will feel some itching as it heals, which is a good thing. I think after 2 weeks I felt pretty good. Are you using dermaplast and tucks? Those are good "topical". Lots and lots of warm baths. By my six week appt. the doc said I was healing well, but I definitely wasn't ready for sex until after 2 months, and that was still a little painful, but I returned to normal and with my second baby the recovery time was MUCH faster! And no hemorroids with him! So, I hope this gives you some hope! You'll be fine!

My suggestion would be also to eat food high in fiber. Stay away from cheese and other foods that would "clog" you up. My daugher had to be on a laxative for over a year when she was young and it didn't have any adverse side effects. Just be patient with all of it and don't push trying to get back on your feet. You have plenty of time to do that. You've earned the break with what you went through!

First, congratulations!! I had a 3rd degree tear too, no hemorroids at the time - they came after the baby - but sitz baths are good for both - at least 2-3 a day - I know it's rough to do with the new baby, but it gives some relief. My baby was born in December and I was feeling good after about three weeks, but I did not feel completely better down there till around four months after - it may be different for you - good luck and hang in there.

I, too, suffered a very bad tear with my last baby. He weighed almost 10 lbs. I had an internal hemorroid with my first which, also, came to be extremely painful after the birth of my second son. With both my boys, I felt so much better after the second week, but was still tender for several more weeks. I used Aleve for the pain in the hospital and at home and sat on the blow up ring the hospital gave me. I, also, used a stool softener which worked for me. Try drinking lots of water and maybe try some foods to help make going to the bathroom easier like prunes. Until your hemorroids shrink back down, you are going to have pain when you go to the bathroom. Try Tucks pads for them. They are fantastic! You will never completely get rid of the hemorroids, but they won't bother you once they heal or at least mine don't. If they do, you should consider surgery to remove them. Give your body lots more time to heal. It has been through a lot! Congratulations on your daughter!!

I had to go back to the hospital for some complications after my baby's birth. The nurses were alarmed because I hadn't had a BM yet. She heated half a mug of prune juice in the microwave, then she filled up the remainder of the mug with room temperature Sprite. The liquid should still be quite warm when you drink it - the prune juice and the warm liquid work together to stimulate a BM. It actually worked within a few hours and wasn't painful at all.

I feel your pain. Although I had never had a tear so severe, I have recovered from stitches and a hemorroid that decided to "pop out" during delivery. It took nearly 3 weeks for the hemorroid to decrease in size. It was the most uncomfortable thing, not just going to the bathroom but sitting too. Just keep using the Preparation-H and drink plenty of fluids to help with the bowel movement. Unfortunately, hemorroids will never go away without surgery. It is now bearable because I no longer have the baby putting pressure on it to "swell". The stitches took just a little longer. I knew I was healing when the stitches area started to itch. Use the aniseptic spray and shower after bowel movements to keep the area clean. Just relax and when your body is ready to go you will know. Don't force it out, just wait.

R.,

Sorry to hear about your tear and hemmorhoids. At least you didn't get an episiotomy right. That would have been way worse. Anyway, I am a L&D nurse and I have seen how bad those tears can be. The tear will really be unconfortable for about two to three weeks. After that, you should start feeling better, able to sit without too much fear and walk right. But really you will feel almost 100 % at about 6 wks post delivery. Are you doing sitz baths? Those really helped me after I had my son. If they dind't give you a sitz bath kit at the hospital before you were discharged, you can get one at a pharmacy, or just use the bath tub. The hemmorhoids, I don't know how bad yours are, but they shouldn't bother you all that much for too much longer, maybe another week. YOu can use flax seed and that should help some. Take two to three tablespoons mixed in with yogurt or something everyday and that should help some. And yes, you can get "used" to laxatives to point where they stop working. However, if you have only been taking them for the past week, I doubt that this is what is happening.

Hope this helps.

A. H.

Congratulations on your new baby, and hang in there!

You've already gotten good advice, and like many others I had the same tear with my first. By 3 weeks, things were starting to improve, but I felt like a train wreck for almost 8 weeks. My 6 week pelvic exam brought tears to my eyes, and needless to say, sex was completely out of the question for many months! DH was very patient...he had watched the repair job.

Get off the vicodin ASAP, because the codeine in it is very constipating. You can take advil and tylenol at the same time (not spaced hours apart) to get relief that is just about as good. Talk to your doctor to double check the dose that makes sense for you. I took 3 advil and 2 extra strength tylenol a couple of times a day for about 2 or 3 weeks to make it through.

Dermaplast (spray anasthetic) sold near sunscreens or other first aid products saved my poor rear end. I used 2 whole cans in the first month post-partum. The first can was gone in the first week!

I took stool softeners and laxatives in quantities that would have moved a horse (3 a day for a week), but it took that much to make any difference. You have to poop; you can't strain; load up the softeners for now until you feel better. 2 tablespoons of ground flax seed meal in oatmeal with a big cup of coffee works really well for me too.

Squirt warm water on your bum while you are on the toilet, both during and after bm. It helps those sore muscles relax.

If you still have a lot of pain after about 3 months, or if sex is really painful (not just uncomfortable), talk to your doctor. I had adhesions of scar tissue which were quite painful. I didn't find out until my baby was a year old, but then got estrogen cream to put on those adhesions. It softened the scar tissue and made a big improvement.

For years afterwards, my perineum ached if I was on my feet all day or too exhausted.

It does get better. I have 3 kids now, and each delivery and recovery was easier than the one before. I tore only 2nd degree each time although baby #2 was same size but face up, and baby #3 was half a pound bigger.

Hang in there.

S.
SAHM of 3

The sitz bath is absolutely the way to go. The other thing to do, if you aren't now, is to spray yourself down with a little bottle of water (as warm as you can stand it) every time you go to the bathroom (#1 or #2). It just keeps the wound clean and I guess it promotes healing. It feels great.

Hi, R.. I am so sorry to hear about your tear. It is such a painful healing process. I had a 2nd degree tear with my first and it was awful. The first 6 weeks were hard, and it was difficult for me to get around and sit. Thank goodness for family help! That being said, everyone heals differently. I, like you, kept taking the Vicadin because of the pain, and I also had extremely painful bowel movements that made me bleed, especially the first (and despite the fact that I was also taking stool softeners). I thought I had ripped my stitches out! Come to find out, the nurse that I called asked if I was still taking Vicadin. I said yes and she told me to stop taking it because it really backs up your system, hence the painful bowel movements. I switched to my Rx motrin instead and starting loading up on metamucil, stool softeners and lots of water. That helped. I was still not completely healed at 6 weeks and i had to go back twice for silver nitrate treatments to cauterize the skin inside that had not healed. Not fun...hope you don't have to do that. That being said, everyone heals differently. With my second, I had a partial 2nd degree tear, but I felt great afterwards. The whole painful postpartum I had with the first was non-existent. Hope this helps!

Hemorroids were a big issue for me after four pregnancies. After my youngest daughter was born, I had nurses coming from all over the hospital asking me if I was the one with 'the hemorroids'. I found that putting witch hazel in a squeeze bottle (similar to one they may have given you to cleanse your stitches) helped a great deal with the pain. That is the main ingredient in the medicated pads the hospital distributes. As for the swelling, a well-seasoned nurse gave me a rubber glove full of chipped ice. My youngest is about to turn fourteen and I still have occasional flare-ups, but not anything like they were. Hope this helps you.
L. S.
A little about me:
I am married to the love of my life, celebrating our 25th at the end of this month and we have three beautiful and vastly different daughters, ages 19, 15 and 13.

The strangest (but best) advice I got for after delivery was to get some condoms, fill them 3/4 full with a mixture of water and rubbing alcohol then tie a knot in them so they are sealed. Then freeze them flat - the alcohol keeps them from freezing too hard.
They make great little icebags to lay in your underwear for some pain relief right where you need it. I recommend putting them in a thin sock though - way too cold otherwise! Good luck!

Hang in there, I had my first little one back in July. I had a 2nd degree "cut" so lucky I did not have to exerence what you are as badly. I will tell you that it took me three weeks to recover to a point I didn't feel anything "down under" no pain, felt normal. So give yourself a month and you should be feeling relief! Good luck!

A friend of mine has a huge problem with hemorroids. She uses BurnStuff on them, and swears by the stuff. I won't go into details, but she'll go out of her way to go to Walgreens when she's out of BurnStuff. Hope it helps you.

I had the same issue. although i was able to go shopping and everything the day i left the hospital lol. But i was still in quite a bit of pain, its been 3 weeks & i have NO pain at all except for where i popped a stitch... i too was having problems with a bowel movement and it took about 12 days to have my first one even with using laxatives and stool softners. It gets easier & soon you'll be feeling like yourself again. I didnt have any hemrroids during my pregnancy so i cant help you with that one.

Hi R., my daughter had the same exact problem with her first. I think it took about 3 weeks or so to heel. On the laxative side, when I need to, I take 2 level teaspoons of epsom salts in a glass of orange juice. I take it in oj because it does not taste so bad. Can't help with the hemorroids, Sorry. Hope this helps.

Ask your doctor if you can have any Epifoam, Proctofoam, or Dermoplast. Those are all for episiotomies/hemorrhoids. The foams worked wonders for me. They all numb the area for a while. The hemorrhoids will slowly get better, where as the stitches/scar tissue may bother your husband when you start having sex again. I was just recently told that by my husband. It will get better!

As soon as your stitches are out/or healed good, you have to add fiber and raw foods to your diet. the more fiber, the easier the BM and the hemmoroids go away completely. It is soft stools that cause the bleeding and outward signs of them.
Also Kegal exercises help tighten you up at all points for the future. So much of the time, the oposite advise is given for hem. and it is more fiber and raw foods, not the other way around!
Good luck and enjoy that baby!
V. B.

Congrats first off. You have some of the best times of your life ahead of you. Enjoy those baby years. They grow so fast. It seems like yesterday my little one who is now almost 7 was born. Oh, my where has the time gone?

Anyhow...I know exactly what you are going through. I had the same thing happen. I had to take sith(sp) baths daily 2 to 3 times if I remember correctly. Also, used some hemroid wipes/pads...can't remember the name. Those were the only times I truely did not feel any pain. Take those laxitives as that helps tremendously. It might be a pain in the neck for a while. Everyone heals differently. I recall it taking me a while to get over the pain. Unfortunately, I still have the hemroid problems. They come and go and that is normal from what I've been told. I don't think they ever really go away unless it is serious enough to have surgery, which I hear is not common anymore. This is why you want to make sure you keep a high fiber diet and drink a lot of water. It will get barable again. Just do what the doctor recommends.
I wish I could tell you that it went away but honestly I still have problems every once in a while.

I had a 2nd degree tear and hemroids and it all lasted about 2 weeks. Get some wipes for your hemroids... they are soothing at least. It is hard, but it will end... Good luck!!

I haven't dealt with that, I had three c-sections, lol.

Just take the meds. My daughter had a problem when she was 9 days old so they tested her system and the meds DO NOT go through the breast milk if you are breastfeeding. I would imagine that it is the same as a c-section to some degree, you just need to mix up and around with rest. The more you can move around, usually the quicker you will recover.

I know they don't want you in a bath but you should ask your doctor if a hot/warm compress would be acceptable? Sometimes doing a little something just to make yourself feel better, even if the better doesn't last too long, can help a great deal.

I also suspect if you don't get a response here that google is your friend. I'm sure there is plenty of first-hand information available.

Hi R.,

I want to expand on what Amber wrote. She mentioned books that work on the pelvic floor. I want to stress just how important this is. I am a yoga teacher (and mom to 2 big babies, one breech!) and could not have recovered from the deliveries without my pelvic floor exercises.

There is a yoga teacher in Fort Worth who sees private clients and specializes in becoming aware of and strengthening the pelvic floor. She is amazing!! I cannot recommend a session with her highly enough. If you are interested, please email me privately and I will pass along her contact information. A private session is not much money and is a great investment to your health.

On a side note, I had a friend who suffered this same tear and it wasn't until she found a yoga instructor who could explain the pelvic floor to her that she got relief - she was not having anymore pain, but embarrassing lack of control of bladder and gas.

Peace,
M.

www.yogapotential.com

I found witch hazel to be the most helpful (I had a 4th degree tear!). I was back on my bicycle at 5 weeks post birth, so you should heal fairly quickly. Based on my first birth, I was pro-active with the laxatives, so did not have that problem, but it was awful with my first child. I would recommend you stay on fiber/metamucil until you are well healed. Also, vitamin C is really important for healing AND it will help the hemorrhoids, which are often due to stressed adrenals. In addition, you may be low on B-vitamins. B5 is especially important for your adrenals.

If you're eating lots of fresh foods - veggies (I would have salad everyday for lunch) and fruit and avoiding processed carbs, your stools should return to normal. However, if you were borderline low thyroid prior to pregancy, you could have been pushed over by the pregnancy/childbirth. Constipation is a hallmark symptom of low thyroid function.

I also tore in 3 directions and needed stitches. It was a train wreck down there and I knew I'd never be the same again. But any how I wanted to encourage you to drink water. I know you probably already are. But it'll help you have bowel movements. Water is soo soo soooo vital to getting better. I've been there. Also another peice of advice is make sure you're getting enough omega 3s because your baby was depleting you of omega 3s in the womb, but you need to replenish it with eggs and fish, stuff like that. It'll help you fight post partum depression. I'd give that advice to any new mother.

First congratulations on your new little blessing!!!!! I have 6 children and though I have never torn during delivery I have dealt with hemorroids. I can't really give any advice on the tearing hopefully others will be able to help you in this area. Do you have a prescription for Epi Form or anything? Ice packs also help. I will tell you that "pain medication such as Vicatin" does make the constipation worse". One of the side effects of pain medication is constipation!!! So you kind of have a double hit. As soon as you can try to wean from the narcotics and try to use an over the counter pain reliever. To regulate your bowels again my advice would be to either take Metemucil or Ground Flax Seed (put it in yogurt or milk) daily. Drink lots of water. Coffee is also has natural laxative effects. After my 6th I dealt with severe constipation for about 8 weeks. Don't strain when trying to go. I thought that I would never be the same. My little on is now 4 months and my bowels are normal again. My baby was stuck in my pelvis for over an hour because she was sunny side up and I do believe that major trauma during birth, of any kind, just makes everything in recovery worse. Hang in there.

Hi R. -
I also had a 3rd degree tear with my daughter and remember well wondering when I was going to be able to stop taking the Vicodin (my daughter is 6 now so it's been a while). I finally just stopped taking the Vicodin and started taking Advil right around the 1 week mark (maybe 8 or 9 days) and that seemed to be fine. I think you will start feeling less pain soon.

As for the hemorrhoids I also developed a large hemorrhoid during labor, but it really didn't bother me too much after birth. Don't remember any other issuss with stool softeners so can't help you with that one.

I do remember that first week feeling really long and like I was never going to feel better, but by 2 weeks I had improved remarkably. I think you'll see a lot of improvement in the next week so hang in there!

Of course I only have one so I'm an amateur compared to some of the Moms out here. I'm sure you'll get lots of good advice. Good luck and congratulations on your sweet baby girl!

Be aware that the Vicatin will cause constipation. Sorry. I've been there and feel for you!

My episiotomy (sp?) pain lasted 2 weeks; it was very painful. I woke up one day, and the pain was notabley less from that point on. As far as the hemroids, my mom had problems until she had hemroid surgery awhile back, and mine almost never bother me. I would be more inclined to stock up on the ibuprophen and Tylenol, and leave the Vicatin behind. I hope you are feeling better very soon!

I get horrible hemorrhoids with my pregnancies and I had a fissure (which is a small tear on your bum hole) with my latest and that hurt worse than I ever imagined it would. I do always tear, but never have had a third degree, so you have my sympathy. It took two weeks before I could walk without major pain with the fissure, so you're going to be laid out at least that long. You basically had a c-section on your bum, so think of it in terms of the recovery for that, no heavy lifting rest as much as possible and take your pain meds for about six weeks before you can start getting back to normal.

For the hemorrhoids, did the dr give you a prescription cream? There are several that work waaaay better than the over the counter stuff. My favorite is proctosol, but there's one called rectagel that has lidocane in it which is a painkiller. The proctosol usually clears mine up in a matter of days. Sometimes the main ingredient in the hemorrhoid medications will sting when put on a cut, so you can use the neosporin plus pain relief on it instead and that works pretty well.

After the immediate recovery, you need to strengthen your pelvic floor muscles, the ones that tore are the ones that hold your insides in and control holding in your pee and poo (sorry, a little graphic, but we have to think about these things if we don't want to wear diapers later). There's two books by Julie Tupler, one called Maternal Fitness and one called Lose Your Mummy Tummy that have exercises that specifically target that area.

If you are planning on more kids, the exercises are important during your pregnancy and will significantly help during delivery and since you seem to be prone to the hemorrhoids, consider delivering on your hands and knees to ease the pressure on your backside. I'm planning on it next time I have a baby, I never want to have even the fissure again.

Oh, as far as stool softeners and laxatives, I've never had much luck. What does work for me is eating a massive amount of grapes.

Good luck and if you have any more questions, let me know.

R.,

I had a 4th degree with my first daughter. My Dr. was stitching me up for an hour, so I can relate. It took 2 weeks for the stitches to go away and everything to sort of get back to normal. I would suggest taking some fiber to help you out if the stool softeners aren't working. I know how scared I was to go to the bathroom!!!! I feel for you! I fortunatley did not have hemroids so I can't help you there. Good luck!

God bless you! I feel your pain - I had the same situation (praise God - the 2nd child was nothing like it and so easy!). I sat on a Boppy for about 2 months with my first. Yes - it took that long to fully heal. I don't think I tried sex for 9 weeks. It will get better - but take it easy and know that you have to take it easy - don't be overambitious about exercise, etc. You'll know when you've done too much after a full day. And - I urge you to Kegal, kegal, kegal!! It will help tremendously with the healing, future pain, bladder control, etc.

I feel your pain. I had a 3rd degree tear also. I didn't have a real bad case of hemorroids, but did have a slight one. The pain from the tear will probably last about another week-week and a half. If the hospital didn't give you Dermaplast, get some! It's in a white can with a blue lid in the first aid section. I swear by it and it will help now with the pain and later with the itching as you heal. Also, put Tuck's wipes/pads on a pad after you go to the restroom. The coldness of the Tuck's will help with both the hemmoroids and the tear/stitches.

Use the stool softner if possible. That first bowel movement is scary, but necessary. I felt like a little kid just being potty trained and scared to poop, but it happened eventually and was not that bad. Sorry I'm not much help regarding the hemmoroids since mine were pretty much gone before I left the hospital. If the hospital "gave" you cream, use it, it will help get rid of the hemmoroids.

Now after you get released from your doctor to resume regualar "activities", trust me, use LOTS of lube. Sorry for the graphicness of the statement, but trust me, after the tear, you will need it at first. The first couple of encounters are a little sensitive and uncomfortable. Take it slow and easy and if it hurts, quit.

If you have any questions about anything, PM me and I'll see what I can do. I had the same birthing issues that you did and I am a first time mom too! Funny how you don't think about all the things that you had to go through to get your little angel isn't it?

~J.

I see you got a lot of advice so I haven't read through them, sorry if this is a repeat. The witch hazel pads were very helpful to me. The nurses in the hospital tooks gloves and put ice in them and I sat on those, that helped a lot so I got some gloves at home and did that myself. Hemorroid probably will never go away is what I have been told, without surgery, just decrease in size. Not the nicest reminder of birth but oh well. Congrats!

Hello!
Congrats new Mom! Being a Mom is my favorite job!!!!
Fish Oil helps tremendously! You can take several per day!
I have heard that Valerian herb pills every 2 hours helps.
You can google healing foods, like books by Chef MD, You( at Walmart ) by MD on healthy foods.
Ester C Vitamins , several daily , and other healing vitamins and herbs!
Tuna fish, pineapple are good for inflammation.
Herbs, ginger, tumeric help with inflammation.

You will make it! WE all do! I have several horror stories, but my children more than make up for anything !
It will pass!
BLessings!
Sincerely,
C. N.