# How long to heal from tears?



## CookAMH (Jun 2, 2008)

I gave birth 12 days ago and still have a fair amount of discomfort from some 2nd degree tears. The sutures are still there in two of the areas, and pee still burns the tears (I use a peri bottle but sometime it still hits the area). My midwife, at 1 week, said they are healing well but to continue to keep my legs togther which I have been doing for the most part. I have read about using comfrey...what kind should I buy?  It sound like making tea and putting that in the peri bottle could help? I can send my DH down the street to an herbalist to get comfrey...they carry a lot. I read that the root is best for applying to healing - should I put that in the peri bottle, or make a paste and apply to skin?

Ice helps, though there isn't too much swelling at this point. One area, it's like a triangle, has the stitches dissolved already but is pretty pink and firm. Then I also have a tear at my perineum and up my labia and the sutures are still there (mw used a longer lasting variety on those).

Could part of the pain be from the presence of the sutures, and once they dissolve, things may feel better?

What else can I do? This is my second baby but first vaginal birth (VBAC  ). I have help till Tuesday while my mom is here.


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## lifeguard (May 12, 2008)

I had a 3rd degree tear & I must admit the healing process was slow. I took several sitz baths a day as I found that the most soothing thing. I know by 4 weeks I was feeling about 90%. I'm pretty sure at 2 weeks out I was most definitely wishing I had more of the prescription pain killers.

Sorry I can't be more cheery about it but if it helps in the long run I found things healed up wonderfully & I'm pleasantly surprised at how normal things look/feel now.


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## Marissamom (Dec 17, 2009)

with my first I had an episotomy, and I think it had completely healed by 6 weeks, then I was just dealing with the scar.


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## Bird Girl (Mar 12, 2007)

Yes, at two weeks out from my first vaginal birth I was still pretty sore--I mostly sat on the boppy, rather than straight on the couch. I tried to take a bath every day, which helped. I had a third degree tear with my first child and a second degree with my second child, and everything healed up both times. It was sore for a while, though, and it takes maybe 4-6 weeks to really feel at all back to normal. Hang in there.


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## averlee (Apr 10, 2009)

I had a big 2nd degree tear, too. Frequent sitz baths helped. Different teas in the peri bottle helped a lot, too- chamomile, even regular lipton tea. Alcohol free witch hazel was also good to rinse. Taking ibuprofen and tylenol helped some too.

I would say it took about 4 weeks for the majority of the pain and discomfort to heal. And I think about 6 months until full recovery.


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## wombatclay (Sep 4, 2005)

Congrats on the VBAC! 

I had a 4th degree tear with my first vbac and a 2nd degree tear (along the scar) with my second vbac. I put together a HUGE "how to heal from tears" list that I started handing out all over the place after my 4th degree tear... here's the short form.  I wrote it for 4th degree tears, but it can be applied to any tear and hopefully since you're starting with a smaller tear you'll feel better even faster!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Quote:


> Right off the bat:
> ---Alternate warm with cold. Although the cold packs will reduce swelling you also want to encourage circulation, which is what a warm pack does. Start out with cold packs, but after the first hour or two (12 hours max) start alternating a warm chem pack, heated rice sock, or warm cloth with the cold pack.
> 
> --for the cold/warm therapy, make an herbal tea (see sitz bath ideas below). Soak clean wash cloths or fabric menstrual pads in the herbal blend then freeze or place in a crock pot (depending on whether you want cold or hot). Use these instead of the "glove full of crushed ice" the hospital offers.
> ...


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## CookAMH (Jun 2, 2008)

Thanks! Looks like I've done a good bit of that over the last 2 1/2 weeks and at this point, what I mainly feel is discomfort from the lasting sutures, and downward pressure from a weak pelvic floor (I just posted separately asking about that topic). Most of the pain is gone, and it doesn't really burn to pee without using the peri bottle. I haven't done a sitz bath since my mw said that could cause stitches to dissolve prematurely. In two areas I have sutures that last 2-3 weeks, so I'm guessing there will be less discomfort once they are gone?

I've actually started to itch some in the vaginal area, which tells me healing is progressing.

Working on kegels as I really want that saggy feeling when standing to go away, no idea how long that will be. But, I do not have pain when doing a kegel anymore which is another good sign. I do feel pulling but not pain.

I had always heard cold on sutures, but just saw last week about doing heat and made a little rice sock and it's felt quite soothing!


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## Marissamom (Dec 17, 2009)

I remember having a lot of itching when the sutures were coming out after my first, and it did feel better after they were gone. hope you start to feel better soon.


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## cinderella08 (Feb 27, 2009)

Sorry you are uncomfy mama!

I had 3rd degree bilateral sulcus tearing with my 2nd baby (also, a VBAC!). Meaning - I tore from my cervix, all the way down the vaginal canal (on both sides actually), and out the vaginal opening. It took 85 stitches and nearly 3hrs of suturing. It was *not* fun. 2 weeks postpartum I was still in horrendous pain. My MW checked things out and many of the sutures had come open and had to be chemically cauterized with silver nitrate.

I did this

1 G water - bring to a boil

2c sea salt

6oz comfrey

6oz chamomile

6oz calendula

let steep overnight.

I put that in my peribottle and it was amazing.


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## sunwise (Sep 16, 2010)

Hi there! I had a 4th degree tear with my first (and only) delivery. I wish I had some of the advice in this thread to help me then! I think I was feeling pretty well healed in 6 weeks, and quite a bit better in 4 weeks.

Definitely follow the advice to keep your legs together and not put strain on the area. I started doing too much when I was feeling better at 4 weeks, and I developed a hematoma. The hematoma felt better in about a week, but when it first developed, the pain was horrible, just like it had been in the first few days after the delivery.


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