Vaginal delivery puts enormous pressure on your body. It mostly affects the perineum. It is the skin and the muscle between the vagina and the anus. However, there are various ways by which you can get relief from this pain. Apply icepacks at the swollen area to reduce the pain. You also need to take pain relief medications like ibuprofen or acetaminophen. Anesthetic sprays also give you some relief. You should always keep the area clean and dry in order to avoid any bacterial infestation. (Thompson & Roberts, 2002)
You also can pour warm water on your vagina whilst urinating. This dilutes the urine and puts lets pressure on your vagina. Applying diluted coconut oil is also a very well-known cure for this kind of pain. Soak dry cotton balls in diluted coconut oil and apply it on the swollen area. With the help of these precautionary measures you can heal the damage a bit quicker than if you keep it unattended.
11 Effective Ways to Heal Postpartum Perineal Pain
Apply Ice Packs
Ice packs can cure both the swelling and also the tear. You can apply it on your vagina for ten to twenty minutes at a given time. Ice packs tend to stop the bleeding as well.
The ice packs will reduce the amount of pain in that area. It will numb the area for a while which will reduce the inflammation and also will provide you some relief from the pain. This kind of ice pack treatments can be repeated every two to three hours depending on the severity of your bruise.
Keep it Clean and Dry
Minor pressure or damage often makes way for serious infections due to the ignorance of the new mothers. Always keep your affected area clean and dry. If you have got a stitch, make sure that you bathe in warm water, to keep the area clean. Then dry it completely so that no trace of water stays back. (Thompson & Roberts, 2002)
If you do not want a bath then you can always quick wash your private part with a spray bottle. Then dry it gently without hurting yourself. However, you should opt out from cleaning the stitched area.
You should make a habit of spray washing and cleaning the part, every time you go to the loo. This will eliminate the chances of infection.
Pelvic Floor Exercises
The process of giving birth to a child stretches the pelvic floor of a new mother. A new mother should start doing pelvic floor exercises as early as possible. It will ensure the flow of blood in the pelvic area. It will help in healing the wound much quicker. (Neels & Watcher, 2017)
Pelvic floor exercises do not damage the stitches. However, the mother must continue doing this exercise in order to gain complete relief from the pain.
Have Stool Softeners
Regularizing the bowel movement will help you by a great deal. Hard stools often create additional pressure on the perineum and that might worsen the pain. That is why you should ask your medical practitioner for a good stool softener so that your bowel movement becomes smooth.
The sooner it will become smooth and the flow will be normal, the sooner your pain will heal.
Proper Diet
Having a proper diet often speeds up the healing process. Foods which are rich in proteins zinc and Vitamin C often helps you to recover from the perineum damage. Also at the same time the quality of food you eat often decides your bowel movement. That in turn impacts the healing process of the wound.
There are many foods like white bread, eggs, fish, rice, ripe fruits and vegetables are good diet to have post pregnancy. These foods will not cause constipation and will allow you to heal better.
Adequate Sleep
It is always a tough ask for a new mother but get as much rest as possible, whenever you get an opportunity. Taking enough rest ensures that your wound heals faster. Excess movement and stress can delay the wound by a great extent. It will delay the process of blood clotting. The more rest and sleep you get, more are the chances that your wound will heal.
Change Maternity Pads Regularly
The first period, after giving birth, will be quite heavy. It will normalize gradually. But during that initial phase you need to change your maternity pads on a regular basis. It is the part of the basic hygiene you should maintain in order to make sure that your perineum is free from any sort of infections.
Core Breathing
Core breathing is another good exercise that you can adopt in order to make your perineum pain heal quickly. This breathing exercise will help your blood circulation to normalize and your tissues to regenerate.
This breathing process will ensure that your body maintains its normal activities and your pelvic muscle regains the strength. It is very important to equip the muscles of your body to become stronger as it would generate strength in your pelvic area and help your wound to recover.
Do Not Douche
Many women around the United States have the habit of douching in order to clean your vagina. However, this is not a good habit to have if you have unbearable perineum pain. The process might create excess pressure on your vagina and it might worsen the damage. However, you should clean your vagina on a regular basis by using water spray bottles and then drying it gently.
Apply Diluted Coconut Oil
Diluted coconut oil often quickens the process of healing. However, it should not be applied directly on the wounded area. But rather it should be soaked in a towel and gently compressed. This will help the wound to heal much faster. It will also provide you relief from the constant pain.
Wear Loose Clothing
The choice of clothing is very critical in the overall healing process. Tight clothing can make the area sweat, triggering the chances of infection. Loose clothing will keep the area clean and dry and will allow the healing process to quicken.
Precautions and Other Healing methods:
Perineum pain is a serious matter. If neglected then it might turn into something fatal. That is why it is important that you also take proper medication and care. If the pain is beyond your control then you can take pain relief medications like buprofen or acetaminophen. These over-the-counter drugs are without any major side-effects.
However, if you are breastfeeding then you should avoid taking regular drugs like aspirin. It will have adverse effect on your hormones. If the pain and the tear are in critical state then you might have to take prescription medication.
You can also opt for anesthetic sprays. But in those cases you also need to be careful that you do not keep the area totally wet for hours as it might open up chances for bacterial infections. You need to pat yourself dry every time you apply water or any kind of liquid in that area.
You can also make use of a squirt bottle and spray warm water on your vagina whilst you are urinating. This will help you cope with the pain of passing the urine.
Do remember that healing of perineum pain depends on the choices you make. Prolonging the process is not a wise decision as you have to deal with many other complications after becoming a mother.
Reference:
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1046/j.1523-536X.2002.00167.x
http://www.momjunction.com/articles/ways-to-deal-with-postpartum-perineal-pain_0091389/#gref
