What is nerve or structural damage? Is it happen in all Episiotomy? How to recognize and treat it?

Question

What is nerve or structural damage? Is it happened in all Episiotomy? How can I know if it has happened or not? If happened, is it completely curable? What should I do to heal this and how can I recover this loss?

Answer 1

Well, Im pretty sure nerve damage is a bad side effect of episiotomies. Structurally I guess it will never look the same again, but the bad thing with epis is that they actually cut through muscle tissue rather than skin. This can work like when you have a piece of material - if you try to rip it, its very hard (skin is like this) but if you get some scissors and cut a little incision the material is very easy to rip. For this reason there are more bad tears (3rd and 4th degree) with an episiotomy than with a natural tear. And hence they are generally harder to heal. As a pregnant woman I have looked into this and decided to aim very strongly for natural birth in upright positions (not on back!) and this can increase your chances of a tear free and episiotomy free birth by DOUBLE!! If you want more answers you should post this question in the pregnancy section.

Also, you can stretch the area daily from 34 weeks with something like vit E or olive oil to increase the areas suppleness. And it is also good to take a zinc supplement to make your skin healthy so that it doesn't tear easily. This can make you nauseated though if you are prone to nausea in pregnancy. Ask at the health food store for some skin enhacing vitamins (C,D,E,A, silica are some things that may help but check the doses for pregnancy safety)

X Gem

PS I knew a woman who had a botchy stitch job after an epi and she had to have an operation to fix it. If you are experiencing pain this is not right/ Personally I expect that if they cut through the muscle there could be some nerve damage and numbness. Devoed!

Answer 2

The absence of feeling, numbness when touching the area involved, or oversensitivity can reflect nerve damage. Lack of nourishment (nerves, blood supply) to the area can lead to structural problems.

This is something homeopathy can help. I've worked with moms whose doctors said they would not regain sensation, and they did - within 3-6 months. So, at least through homeopathy, you can go a long way towards healing. It's natural and safe for both baby and mom.