To cut or to tear? Which is best during childbirth and why?

Question

Just curious as to which may be best/ hurt less.

Answer

My OB explained it like this:
Hold the edges of peice of paper and pull - not so easy to tear that way.
Now cut a slit in the middle and do the same thing. You'll have a nice easy rip right down the middle.
An episiotomy is essentially cutting that tiny slit in the paper. You can rip all the way down.
Don't do it.

Answer

Your body will heal itself faster and better if you tear naturally because the muscle is ripping in a way that is more natural.  Cutting through muscle in a straight line is not natural and will cause a longer healing period.  Think about body builders- they literally tear their muscle while lifting so the muscle becomes more dense and heals stronger than it was before.

Answer

I had a teeny tiny little 1st degree tear with my first and ended up with a stitch or 2.  If I had gotten an episiotomy, I think they consider that a 2nd degree lac because it cuts into muscle... sooooo if I had the choice I would tear naturally. However, I know an episiotomy is the better option for some women and it's up to the discretion of your dr to decide, unfortunately.

Answer

Cutting can be better because it's an easier line to stitch and heal. Then again, you may only have a small, natural tear that will heal just as quickly. 
Ask your doctor what they generally do under various circumstance. 
Don't stress about it too much, with everything going on down there you may not be aware. Labor pain overshadows it.  Inquire if doctor can numb area first or something if that will help you?

Answer

If they cut you then the stitching can be done easily because it is a straight line and not jagged edges that would be harder to put back together.

Answer

I've heard if you just let it tear naturally that you have a faster recovery than cutting. Plus you may not even tear at all so why cut? Lol go with the flow :)

Answer

I had both with my daughter. Dr performed an episiotomy and than I ripped past it to a nearly complete (4th degree) tear. It was terrible and extremely painful. Both the cut and rip. Praying that with this baby I don't need an episiotomy or rip as it took me 16 weeks to recover (tore bowel muscle too) after my daughters birth. 
To answer the question, in my opinion, neither is better than the other. We would all love to have a normal vaginal birth with no tears or cuts.

Answer

With my daughter my tear was the size if my pinkie nail so they did not stitch it. With my son I tore more. I had to have 5 stitches. Your doctor can massage your perineum while you are pushing. That way it lessens the tearing. That is what my doctor did for me. Talk to your doctor about it. Episiotomies are declining in #. Doctors have found it sometimes is worse than if the woman tore naturally. But every pregnancy and every woman is different.

Answer

Ehh, I don't really know the difference personally. However, tearing naturally is not pleaseant. In my opinion, not tearing or having to be cut is the better option lol. But that's not how it works all the time. Either way, you will need stitches, which are not a great feeling either. My doctor didn't even bother numbing the area a bit, before doing the stitches. Only got two, but it sucked....

Answer

My vajay gave me no option lol I didn't feel anything either way until the stitches went in...

To cut or to tear? Which is best during childbirth and why?

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