Episiotomy/Delivery Pain - When does it go away?

[Anonymous]

I delivered last Wednesday and had a rough vaginal delivery (forceps, episiotomy, hemorrhoids, etc) and am still in a lot of pain. I'm taking ibuprofen and was taking small doses of percoset, both of which barely made the pain manageable. A week later and I am still very slow and hurting. If I turn / sit the wrong way, etc., the pain is even worse. If you had a similar experience, when did the pain subside? I'm trying to figure out if this is normal. TIA.

[Anonymous]

Oh - I feel for you. Please know the pain will go away. I know it seems so long, but I promise at 2 weeks, you will start to feel so much better and at 6 weeks you will feel mostly back to normal. Though an FYI - sex - not so much for a while - give it a few months before that feels normal. Keep taking the ibuprofen

[Anonymous]

I feel for you too! I had third degree tearing, so I know how awful you feel. I think I started feeling better around 6 weeks, although to be honest I wasn't really feeling "normal" again (or maybe like the new normal) for a number of months. But it does happen, eventually! Now the hemorrhoids, those don't always go away on their own (sorry!). There's a thread somewhere either in this forum or the expectant moms one where people talk about whether and when to seek treatment for them.

[Anonymous]

I had a similar experience (minus the forceps). I think the worst part of it was that I didn't expect it - I figured if you have a vaginal birth, the recovery is quick. Mine was not. I had the worst hemorrhoids - for two weeks I had to sit on one of those balloon semi-circle things (I've blocked out what they are called), take sitz baths, etc. I had second degree tears, and the stitches got infected. I went on antibiotics and then got a yeast infection. I pulled a muscle in my back during pushing, which caused immense lower back pain for about 8 weeks (and x-rays/MRIs to confirm I didn't break something). And, for some odd reason I had horrible swelling in my hands after the birth - for about two months - I was convinced I was getting arthritis!

In the end, I healed, and 11 months letter, I am totally fine. But yes, I think it is normal. In retrospect, I don't think I appreciated what a toll having a baby takes on your body. So give yourself a couple months. And I would think within a week, your pain will be much more bearable. Good luck, and congratulations!

[Anonymous]

It's been a couple of year for me and I remember the pain well! I took 2 or 3 Advil (I swear by the gel tabs) every four hours.

[Anonymous]

I had an episiotomy but no forceps. I found that not moving a lot REALLY helped the pain and the healing. I also used those ice packs they give you in the hospital (I got a whole bunch before I left; I assume you can buy them somewhere if you don't have any). I'm not sure of your situation, but I spent several days not going up and down stairs and basically laying in my bed or feeding/ cuddling with DC in the nursery. DH was home at the time and brought whatever we needed upstairs. I feel for you, though - I had an unmedicated childbirth and the pain of the episiotomy and recovery was way worse than the actual labor and birth!

[Anonymous]

Like the previous poster, I had an unmedicated childbirth and found the pain/recovery from the episiotomy to be worse than labor and delivery itself. However, I took the opposite approach and kept moving... lots of walks (slow and not necessarily that far, but a few blocks at a time). I have no idea whether that helped or hurt, but it just felt right to me at the time. I think I was no longer in pain by around 3 weeks, and I was lucky enough to feel pretty much normal again by around the 6 week mark, and my doctor confirmed that everything had healed perfectly. I also seem to remember the stitches feeling itchy at some point... but I don't remember exactly when. It wasn't awful, and it was only a couple of days, but unfortunately you may have that to look forward to as well. I also remember slightly dampening pads and then freezing them and using those... they felt really good in the first few days! I hope you feel better soon.

[Anonymous]

Episiotomy and vacuum delivery. I didn't feel right again until 10 weeks later with no infection. I remember the first 2 or 3 weeks were horrible.

[Anonymous]

I had an episiotomy and it hurt like mad, too. I think I felt better around 2 weeks post partum. Agree with PPs that the worst part was not expecting the pain all - I figured that with vaginal birth, I'd be recovered in a few days.

OP, are you doing sitz baths? That was the only thing that helped me but it made it feel so much better. I also tried my hardest not to sit upright - learning to nurse lying down was a lifesaver. I laid down as much as I could to keep the weight off the stitches and it helped a lot. But in my experience, things really started to improve at 2 weeks.

Hang in there!

[Anonymous]

3rd degree tear here. I 2nd the sitz baths and also used the spray topical analgesic they originally gave me in the hospital a lot.

I started to feel better about 3 weeks out. Sex felt weird
until 9 months out. Much longer than I expected.

[Anonymous]

just a warning - like a PP, my sutures got infected. I had a lesion that looked like a canker sore, and I cannot begin to describe the pain. I called the doc and they said it 'sounded normal,' so I didn't go in for a few days, and was in agony. Ultimately antibiotics cleared it up.

It will take several weeks to feel a lot better, but if your stitches feel worse, take a good look with a mirror, and see the doc if you see anything that might be infected.

[Anonymous]

4-5 weeks til I felt normal again. Make time for the Sitz baths - they really help. Also get an inflatable donut to sit on (if you don't already have one,) and use it even on soft surfaces like the couch - its so protective of all your tender tissues. I carried that sucker around the house for and didn't sit without it until 4 weeks.

[Anonymous]

Another vote for sitz baths. They are the best thing for healing. Also, if it hurts don't do it, which means don't sit on your bottom (nurse lying down), keep your legs closed (don't cross your legs) and lift yourself by your arms when you get off the bed (don't drag your bottom).

[Anonymous]

OP, I used lots of ibuprophen and always sat on my Boppy pillow. Used Sitz bath when my husband reminded me to. Avoided stairs.

Congratulations on your little one!

[Anonymous]

PP here, to answer your question, for me it was 6 weeks.