Has anyone found that Perineal massage works?

[Jayneypops]

I am currently reading Marie Mongans Hypnobirthing book and she says to make it an integral part of my routine leading up to labour in order to 'prepare' my perenium, and avoid tearing, however, I dont like the sound of it really and have read from many people that say they did it religiously and still tore?

Im thinking now that it may be more important to remain relaxed, not push too hard, and aim for a gentle birth in order to prevents tears?

I am hoping for a water birth at home, will the warm water help my skin be more 'stretchy?'

Any experiences or advice?

 

[Sommerfugl]

I did it from about 36 weeks, but not religiously and I never really felt that I was doing it right.

I had a pretty easy water birth and didn't tear.

I'm not sure if it helped but I'll be doing it again this time around, and also hoping for a waterbirth again.

 

[shopgirl771]

like the previous poster i did it but wasnt sure i was doing it right. i did it quite late on and my son was born early at 37.5 so i hadnt been doing it for long but i didnt tear and under the circumstances im surprised i didnt. could have been down to many factors but i figure it cant hurt to give it a whirl.

 

[madasa]

I read somewhere that studies show it does decrease chances slightly for first time mums, but only slightly.... and if you had a baby before the effects are negligible. There's a lot more stuff yo ucan do to minimise your chance of tearing than the massage, IMO.

 

[ChrissiK]

Did it religiously with my first from 35 weeks on. Was rewarded with not even a tear for birthing a 9lbs baby (on dry land!).
Water definitely will help with softening though in your case - but can you be sure you will actually give birth in the pool?
I would do some just in case...

 

[madasa]

Being relaxed, staying off your back and pushing intuitively will help a lot! Also, maybe you can ask your partner or MW to support your perineum with wet flannels if on dry land?

 

[NaturalMomma]

Research is iffy on it. Some say it works others say it doesn't. I did it with ds2 from 37 weeks until 39 weeks (had him 3 days later) and I didn't tear. I also had him standing up at home, which contributed to my non tearing.