what can be used to wash your private areas while recovering from giving birth?
2 February 2010 20 Responses
A Parent asks, i’m only 19weeks, but as this is my first baby i’m nervous about everything.
the idea of being stitched up down there and having to use the bathroom, scares me.
also i’ve heard that women have to hold themselves to do a bowel motion to avoid serious damage being done. Is this true?
do you have to shower after you use the bathroom because wiping can risk infection?
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no need to shower after using the toilet, yeah it stings abit but it wasnt too bad for me, giving birth is 100 times worse than going to the toilet!! i didnt need to hold anything down there when i went to the toilet but i didnt have much damage down there!!
They gave a squirt bottle that I filled with warm water each time I used the bathroom and then sprayed on myself instead of wiping. And no, you don’t have to hold yourself, but the first bowel movement will hurt, so invest in stool softner.
holding yourself for a bowel movement is true. it is easier to use a pad to hold against the stitch to prevent it from being ‘re-torn’ due to the pressure. you don’t really have to shower for every toilet visit. washing with clean water and soap or feminine wash is fine. dont worry too much, just think of your baby and all that lil hassles will be worth it
I had episiotomies, tears, and stitches with both births (with my 1st, I had two cuts and 4th degree tears which are the worse) and in the hospital the nurses showed me how to clean myself using a squirt bottle they give you. You then pat dry with some tissue. I was also given stool softeners so I didn’t tear my stitches. You don’t have to shower each time but a shower a day is a good idea. The squirt bottle works well for in-between showers. You also get dermaplast and witchhazel pads to help with the healing and itching. Cleaning with a squirt bottle is not that big of a deal and you get used to it real fast. It actually feels good if you are a little sore to have some coolness or warmth (since you fill up the squirt bottle with whatever temp of water you want). Don’t worry!
Someone is seriously scaring you… don’t worry so much… It’s a scary thing I admit your first poo after delivering.. but they will give you stool softners.. and you just have to make yourself relax and let it come… and you won’t have any problem.. no need holding yourself… As far as wiping when you use the bathroom… they will give you a little squirt bottle at the hospital… when you go to the bathroom… fill it with some warm water… once done using the bathroom use that to clean yourself… it also helps to make it feel better… The times I had to have stitches I would have my hubby clean and disinfect the tub and fill it with warm water and sit in there for a while… it helps to heal the incision… and relieves any pain you may have… Soap… you can use any kind of soap you want to use… it doesn’t make a difference… but it helps to mix it with water… Don’t worry so much… not every delivery requires an episiotomy… I only had one 2 out of my 4 deliveries… and it wasn’t that bad… Congratulations and best wishes on your pregnancy… ♥
ok. from personal experience i can tell you 2 things that I used to clean my private areas after my daughter was born. 1. spray bottle with warm water. that works soooo good and it feels nice too. 2. witch hazel wipes. they should give u some of these at the hospital but if u need more you can get them at your local drug store. i didn’t have to hold myself, but I was so scared that I ended up getting constipated and having to do a ton of stuff to get rid of it. Talk to your doctor about it and remember don’t listen to everything you hear. Good luck
Hi, when you wash down there just wash gently with some warm water. Holding where you’re stitches are when trying to do a bowel movement afterwards can help if you are constipated. This helped me after I had my son. It does sting going to the toilet if you have stitches, but drink lots of water so the urine is less acidic and/or drink ural twice a day.
They usually give you a spray bottle to wash down there with warm water if you have stitches. You are suppose to go potty whenever you feel the urge, becoming constipated will do major damage so they usually give you stool softners and are very happy if you poop before you even leave the hospital after giving birth. You can use toliet paper to wipe your butt after pooping but when it comes to urine you should just use the warm water wash and a washcloth to dab dry or good toliet paper that won’t rub off on your stitches but don’t actually wipe with the toliet paper around the stitches until they are healed. Also I would buy some tuck medicated pads right now to have handy as those help with the stitches as well and they may give you some stuff to spray down there to numb the pain and itching and sometimes they give huge ice packs to put in your underware for a couple of days to help the swelling.
You just use water. No soap, that may sting. I don’t know what you mean “women have to hold themselves.” I didn’t have to hold anything. You dont have to take a shower after going to the bathroom, you just use a squirt bottle that they will give you at the hospital. Don’t worry about the recovery. It will be hell, but it will be over before you know it. And some women don’t even have it that bad (I did though).
I was just like you.. terrified. Its not as bad as you are thinking right now. I was afraid to even look down there after giving birth. I had to have a few stitches on the sides. What happends is, at the hospital the nurses will give you lots of things to wash and to heal the area. They will give you big panties with big pads and a squirt bottle for cleansing. They also give you a spray bottle for the wounds, its like a cut healer or something and some tucks(like for hemmorieds). They give all of that to you to take home. I cant even remember my first bowl movement aftewards and my baby is about to turn 1 so it hasnt been that long, so it must not have been that bad- I remember people telling me how horrible it was too. Just dont let what people tell you scare you, everyone is different. And…when I finally got up the nerve to look down there, it looked the same and had healed up just fine. Good luck to you.
a soft cloth towel or a feminie wipe
There’s a powdered drink you can get to help take the sting off going to the toilet, if you need it. It waters down your urine. I can’t remember what it’s called, but if you go into your chemist and describe what you’re looking for, they’ll know.
As for washing, i had second degree tears, which involved 2 rows of stitches.
I used the powdered drink while i was in hospital, but didn’t need it. My tears didn’t really hurt in that way.
I was told NOT to was with anything. You’ve got good bacteria, and all sorts of other stuff trying to heal your wounds, and washing with anything other than warm water and a really soft cloth could damage that and cause an infection. I was even told not to use a cloth. Just use my hands when washing, because that way i’d be able to feel if anything was wrong.
You don’t have to wash after going to the toilet. Your urine is sterile. Unless you don’t clean properly every day, your risk of infection is minimal.
At first, i had 2 showers every day, one in morning, and one at night. At my 6 week check up, everything was nearly healed, and i started having just one shower a day again.
The only way you could cause damage to yourself by pooing is if your constipated, and pushing really hard. And realistically, that’ll do you harm whether you’re pregnant, just given birth, or not. I’ve never heard of having to hold myself just to do a poo.
The stitches were uncomfortable to be put in, but once they’re in, with the right care, you probably won’t notice them.
And don’t stress too much, many women don’t even get grazes, let alone need stitches.
Congrats, and try not to stress too much. I’m sure you’ve also heard that stress can harm the baby too….
I’ve never heard about ‘holding anything’ and I’ve had two episiotomies and a c-section. It really makes things worse to worry which I know is useless to say because you can’t really help worrying.
Firstly you can ask for glycerine suppositories or a self administered enema but even if you don’t, in all the pregnancy books it says you don’t have to worry about splitting stitches when going to the toilet. Secondly you may nto have to have stitches at all.
The best thing to wash with is water especially if you have stitches. You can do this with a squirt bottle or you can invest in a hand shower that you attach to the water pipe that goes to your toilet tank (like a bidet).
Good Luck and try not to worry.
Lol, I am up to baby #3 and have had stitches twice before, I agree labour hurts, but the afters….well it isn’t too bad considering you pass a baby through your privates.
The maternity ward where I live is brilliant and if you have any concerns then ask a midwife, they are always there to help mothers before babies and after babies.
The bathroom bit after having a baby can be a bit daunting, but once you finally go (and realise it isn’t that bad) you will feel a lot better. Yes you can support your perineum while having a BM, but mostly it is a psychological thing (you think bad things will happen). Nothing will fall out when having a BM, and your stitches wont tear either (trust me I know, lol).
The midwives recommend you have a salt bath once a day while at the hospital (1 cup of salt to a bath tub of water) and it can help healing and stitches. Remember that the vagina is a moist area anyway and unless you get a bad odour, or yucky discharge it should heal without too much interference (plus you may never have stitches anyway).
Remember that no matter what when a woman wipes herself after a toilet trip you wipe front to back anyway, so it will help stop infection just doing that.
I got a squirt bottle, and a laxitive. Those two things right there were like the greatest gift anyone could have given me after I had my son. I def didn’t have to hold myself and I tore really bad, so I would talk to your doc about that.
I was so scared to wipe so the plastic bottle was wonderful for a Peri wash (what we called it in the health profession). I did not have to touch anything and to be honest did not want to see the stitches so it was all good. Stool softeners take the stress out of the bowel movements (literally lol).
While you are at the hospital take advantage of the sitz bath! Those are awesome let me tell you! http://www.howtodothings.com/health-and-fitness/a4540-how-to-take-a-sitz-bath.html
Then even at home it was wonderful to just go sit in a warm tub (hint: lay a folded towel down in the tub so it’s more cushy). Then get a Boppy http://www.boppy.com/
A special versatile pillow that is kinda like a big fluffy horse shoe. You can sit on it when you need to (out of the water) and then use it later to help support your hands or baby while nursing (has covers you can wash
All in all it’s not that bad. If you have to have stitches or you tear a little stay up on your meds. They are safe and you will be so glad if you follow the directions. I did not think that I needed them but then once out of the hospital and at home (send my hubby in to get them filled) .
Really though just enjoy your baby and do not be afraid to lean on your family and hubby. Take time to soak and ice so that you can be refreshed for your baby!
Congrats and blessings
After birth, they will give you stool softners to make it easier on you. If you had to hold it that would be worse, making it hard and painful when it did come out.
They give you a squeeze bottle after birth. You use it everytime you go to the bathroom. Spray the area with the squeeze bottle and pat dry (DONT WIPE). I found this bottle was great in the shower too to clean down there.
You will be fine. It will hurt down there if you get stitched up. They will give you ice packs and reccommend using them only for the first days, but I used them for the first 4. Its not like you cant use them longer than 2 days and it felt much better. I ripped almost to my butt, but it really didn’t hurt as much as it sounded like it would, only the first couple days.
Im not sure where you live, maybe its different with different countrys, but in the hospital i was in they want you to do a bowel motion, and if you dont within a day or two they give you a drink that brings it on, especially if you have been taking iron pills. Its a natural process and shouldnt be avoided.
I didnt shower everytime i went to the toilet, just wipe carefully so you dont hurt yourself, i also found (depending on your stiches if any) that a bath with a little bit of salt was good, not alot just a little bit. I had stitches that disolved when they were ready, and they told me that a salt bath is fine, but not necessary. You dont need to do anything really accept bath or shower each day and keep that area clean.
I had a third degree tear (bad!) and they had me clean with a water bottle after birth. The BM do hurt! They give you stool softeners, but it still hurts when you rip bad. I had to bo shifting of my body and slowly take a BM. However, I would still rip a lot and bleed. Just know it can be very painful if you rip bad down there, like I did.
At my hospital they had a bidet, but you could also use a detachable shower head with little pressure. Also, the hospital recommended premoistened cotton wipes with witchhazel or just purified water (no alcohol. Ouch!)
Oh yes, and the hospital also gave me an enema while I was in the earlier stages of labor so that I wouldn’t have to poo for several days.
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