How to Save Your Perineum and Not Tear During Childbirth Using Essential Oils
If you are pregnant or planning to be learning how to prevent tearing during labor and delivery is essential. Using essential oil to prevent tearing during delivery is one of the best methods to save your perineum . This post details the most powerful perineal massage oil when learning how to support the perineum during delivery.
Save Your Perineum With Essential Oils and Perineal Massage
Essential oils are powerful natural extracts derived from plants with healing properties. They can be used to aid in ailments, wounds, insomnia, childbirth and more! I personally have used essential oils successfully for dozens of things and have grown to LOVE the phenomenal natural power of plants that we have access to readily in essential oils!
I’m a mother of two, 7 and 2. Seven years ago I never even used the internet, and had no idea anything about babies or childbirth.
I mean NO IDEA, I’d never even babysat.
I read dozens of books related to pregnancy and childbirth once I got pregnant (first being “Pregnancy for Dummies” of course because that’s exactly where I felt my knowledge of children was at.) Despite reading handfuls of books I didn’t get the knowledge that I am now armed with for handling childbirth and how to not tear during childbirth.
I did nothing to prepare my perineum for what it was about to undergo the first time. I didn’t want to mess with “down there.” The thought of perineal massage made me squeamish. And I tore so badly it took years to fully heal. I decided I would NEVER go that route again!
This post contains affiliate links to items that I own and adore and am confident you will too. Please read full disclosure here.
Prenatal nutrition and fitness feels like a mystery to many of us. I mean your doctor hardly even touches on that area at all.
And yet, we now know that what you eat and how active you are while pregnant directly affects your baby’s genetic outcome, turning on and off certain genes based on your nutrition and fitness!
How’s a mom to know what to eat, what not to eat, and how to safely exercise to have a fit bump-only pregnancy AND grow the most healthy baby possible through her diet and exercise?
There is this new ah-mazingly extensive, detailed, and easy to apply 2-part prenatal nutrition and fitness course called The Perfect Pregnancy Plan.
It’s created by a Personal Fitness Trainer who’s also certified in Nutrition and Lifestyle During Pregnancy and it breaks down EVERYTHING about prenatal nutrition, has tons of amazing recipes, and even has a full 40 week workout plan that addresses all your prenatal needs from pelvic floor, to diastasis recti, to prenatal backache.
If you have ever wondered about anything related to prenatal diet and exercise, the Perfect Pregnancy Plan is exactly what you need.
Perineal tearing is awful.
The healing is slow and if you can do anything to prevent that lengthy agonizing pain (which you can and I will help you) you want to do it!
Five years later with my second pregnancy I was well aware of essential oils and their powers. I surfed the internet for hours learning new ways to naturally protect the perineum from tearing.
I’d been using essential oils already for about 3 years and was anxious to use them to save my perineum this time!
Plus use oils to speed up labor, turn baby if necessary, and soothe and heal quickly after birth.
RELATED: DIY Post Partum Padsicles with Essential Oils
All my research sure paid off. My labor with baby #2 was fast and natural. No painkillers, I did not tear during childbirth, and I literally breathed her out. Letting my body do the work. I know the difference was my preparation using essential oils and Prenatal Yoga stretches. If I didn’t live across the street from the hospital I would have ended up having her in the car!
I want to share with you the exact oils I used; along with when and how I used them to learn how to save your perineum too!
Let me first rave about my absolute favorite choice for essential oils! Their all natural 100% pure essential oils are collected from farms around the world where each plant thrives. The essential oils are extracted through either cold-pressing or steam-distillation and tested to ensure 100% purity. Their oils smell amazing, have incomparable pricing for high quality oils, plus they donate 13% of all proceeds to end human trafficking. (As if they needed to be more awesome.)
PLUS they have this really cool subscription box that I absolutely love that you might want to try out in addition to picking up your essential oil birthstash . For only $40 a month you will get 4 full sized oils, some fun ingredients and recipes to make with them, and more!
It’s seriously a steal and if you’re looking to begin a journey into a more natural lifestyle or looking to switch to a much more affordable but equally as high quality of oils you should try them out.
If you’re interested in checking out Simply Earth’s monthly (or quarterly) subscription box to really get on an amazing essential oil journey, through my link you will get a monthly box, a free Big Box loaded with all kinds of bottles, diffusers, rollers, and more to use with your oils (perfect for making all of your oil blends to prevent tearing during labor and childbirth) AND $20 coupon sent to your email the next day.
Perfect for picking up your oils to protect your perineum with a huge discount! You only have to enter my code ALLIELAVIGUEURFREE at checkout.
My Essential Oil Birth Stash:
- Lavender
- Geranium
- Helicrysum
- Frankincense
- Clary Sage
<(this link will take you elsewhere to buy the oil I used. Unfortunately Simply Earth only offers Sage oil, not Clary Sage at this time… which is different and not known for being as effective in speeding contractions. So I picked up my second favorite oil Aura Cacia… which is great quality too, but the price point is often more. However if it’s going to speed my labor naturally, it’s well worth the $12 is totally worth it.) - Peppermint
<(this link will take you elsewhere to buy the oil I used. Unfortunately Simply Earth only offers Sage oil, not Clary Sage at this time… which is different and not known for being as effective in speeding contractions. So I picked up my second favorite oil Aura Cacia… which is great quality too, but the price point is often more. However if it’s going to speed my labor naturally, it’s well worth the $12 is totally worth it.)OPTIONAL: (Tea Tree and Myrrh.)
You will also need a carrier oil to dilute the oils and create your own perineum saving oil blends! Avocado Oil and Sweet Almond Oil are my personal favorites. They are the most emollient and your skin pretty readily absorbs them.
I am so excited that I found this stellar resource for my pregnancy that I HAVE to share it! I found an amazing prenatal class you can take AT HOME in your pjs on your timetable!
Because taking a quality prenatal course is so important. It lets you know what to expect, it takes away your fears and builds your confidence for the big day ahead! By far my favorite prenatal course that helped me feel the most prepared was The Online Prenatal Class for Couples.
I’ve taken a few at different prenatal classes at hospitals but this is the first I was able to take at home! Game changer. Because you can take it whenever you actually have energy, with your husband, and fully pay attention because you picked when to take it!
AND if you aren’t ready to commit to buying a course, start with a FREE online prenatal class that will help qualm your birth fears and get you started on the right track mama!
BONUS! Even if your labor goes smoothly and you don’t tear, you’ll still definitely want every single item in this postpartum aftercare kit on hand to make the healing fast and easy, as well as these priceless Essential Oil Aftercare Recipes .
Exactly How To Save Your Perineum and Not Tear During Childbirth Using Essential Oils:
6 Weeks Before Your Due Date:
- Mix 1 oz of Almond Oil
- 8 Drops of Frankincense
- 8 Drops of Helichrysum
- 4 Drops of Geranium
- 4 Drops of Lavender
- (If you happen to have Tea Tree and Myrrh this is the mixture that you will want to be adding 4 drops each into. I would have definitely liked to try that full blend but my budget was tight, and I got the most versatile and essential oils to softening and stretching skin, as well as healing and aftercare.)
Rub this mixture on your perineum daily. It’s really easy to just apply before bed. You will want to use two fingers to do a perineal massage and rub it around the vaginal opening as well as the entire perineum. Though it may sound weird to do, for the best application to save the perineum, use both hands (2 fingers on each). Begin at the bottom of the vaginal opening, and rub the oil with mild stretching up along the sides of the opening. Then don’t forget the entire perineum as well.
4 Weeks Before Your Due Date:
- Mix 1 oz. of Almond Oil
- 8 Drops of Geranium
- 5 Drops of Lavender
Massage this oil around vaginal opening and perineum 3 times daily. It is simplest to keep it on the back of the toilet seat. Massage into that area every night; the same way as the previous blend.
After a few weeks of using these two oil blends I could actually feel my skin noticeably changing and softening. They’re amazing!
During Labor to Speed Contractions:
- Apply Clary Sage directly onto ankles every 15 minutes. Some people like to take it internally in warm milk or capsules, personally I don’t take essential oils orally. My labor progressed extremely fast using clary sage throughout it last time. I’m not sure if that’s why my labor progressed to quickly, but it is well known for speeding contractions.
To Turn A Breech Baby:
- Apply Peppermint Essential oil on the tummy in a rainbow motion over the belly. Baby is actually supposed to turn away from the oil and may right themselves. I haven’t had this happen personally but, I did keep it on hand just in case.
To Pee After Childbirth:
- Drip some peppermint oil in the toilet. Works wonders.
Question: Did you continue using the 6 weeks before due date perineum blend all the way to your due date along with the 4 week blend? Or at 4 weeks did you stop using the 6 week blend and switch over to only using the 4 weeks blend? Thanks!
That is a great question Staci! I completely changed blends at 4 weeks. But I will say that I just had my third baby a few weeks ago and this time used the first blend all the way through, adding additional drops of geranium at 4 weeks until my due date. (Bust WAHM of 2, so that’s how it went as an experiment) It was the major change between the two essential oil blends, more geranium. I’m happy to announce my perineum is still fully intact again! I also had a water birth this time, which further prevent perineal tears. Something to consider if you can.
Any other oils you can use? Coconut, etc.?
Great question Cathryn. Yes coconut oil would work just fine actually. Blending your carrier oil of choice (coconut, sweet almond, avocado, etc) with the powerful essential oils mentioned to use for your perineal massage is what’s really going to be the most effective for preparing that skin for birth. Any carrier oil will work.
Wonderful post
Thank you so much!
When you say apply clary sage directly, do you mean without a carrier oil? Will it cause problems like that?
Great question Lisa. I should edit that for safety. It is always safer to mix with a carrier oil as some people are more sensitive to one oil or another. I personally DO apply it directly on the skin of my ankles during labor… however it is safest to mix with either some almond oil, fractioned coconut oil, or avocado oil too.