Now my biases are really going to show... did this doctor ever consider that
a poorly healing epsiotomy might be his (or whoever performed its) fault?
How about that epsiotomies have been recognized as over used and unnecessary
in most cases? How about teaching women and their partners during prenatal
visits how to do perineal massage? How about performing perineal support and
gentle massage during the delivery of the head and shoulders? How about
using more perineal friendly delivery positions rather than the supine and
lithotomy doctor friendly positions?

I know whereof I speak, my first son was 10 lbs with a 15.5 inch head and
was shoulder dystotic requiring the midwife to slide her hand inside and
release his shoulder from behind my pubic bone, my second was 9lbs2oz with a
14 inch head... we did perineal massage from five weeks before my due date
(calculated from conception not LMP so it was very accurate) and I neither
needed an episiotomy nor had ANY tears of any kind. Some of this is genetics
and skin type, I know, but both midwives report a big difference in clients
who do the p.massage and those who don't.  I made it perfectly clear to both
midwives that I sew and there was NO way they were going to cut me or stitch
me... they both were careful. The second gets an award bc I was standing and
so in order to support my perineum she was on the floor... doing what she
does best -- for love and money!
        All I had to do to convince my husband to do the massage for me was
show him a few pictures in a medical text of episiotomy and repairs...

And when are doctors going to start realizing that even episiotomies have an
impact on initial success of breastfeeding? I had a mom this past summer
with an episiotomy that became a 4th degree tear that brought tears to her
eyes every time she moved, laughed, sneezed, picked up her baby, got
"comfortable" nursing... then there's the pain medications they gave her for
it and the resulting sleepy baby...

once again wanting to carve the words "first, do no harm" on a big wooden
plank for whacking physicians such as this in the noggin'

Anne E. Robb, MAT, LLL
mailto:[log in to unmask]
Off on a Tangent in Oregon