Perineal massage

As the baby is being born, various parts of the pregnant person’s body need to stretch a great deal just for this purpose. One of the main areas that needs to stretch is the perineum, the area between the opening of the vagina and the anus.

How your perineum behaves during the birthing process depends on:

  • The general condition of your body

  • How stretchy your tissues are – good nutrition helps

  • The position you are in

  • The size of your baby

  • How fast the baby is born

  • How strong the contractions are

  • How the baby’s head is positioned

  • If you have had a baby vaginally before

If the perineum is stretched too far or too fast it may tear, or your midwife may do an episiotomy (where a small cut is made in the perineum) to allow the opening of the vagina to be greater. Your midwife will only do an episiotomy if she feels it is important for your and your baby’s safety.

To help avoid tears or the need for an episiotomy, you can massage the perineum during the later weeks of pregnancy from around 34 weeks which will increase its stretchiness.

How to do perineal massage:

  • Wash hands well

  • Relax in a comfortable semi-sitting position like sitting in a bath tub or leaning back on some pillows

  • For external massage you may like to use a little natural based oil like almond or apricot oil. (Avoid perfumed oils or massage creams)

  • Do not use any oil for massage inside the vagina. Your natural lubrication is enough

  • Have a massage session twice a day, 3-4 times per week

  • Do each massage movement 20 to 30 times each

  • Experiment to find a comfortable pressure for yourself

  • Increase pressure as you practice your massage

  • Practice breathing into the stretching sensation so that when baby’s head is coming you can breathe through that feeling