Perineal Massage Directions

A perineal massage is a time of relaxation, attunement to your body and sweetness between you and your partner. Olive oil is a nice nourishing oil for your skin, so you can use a fresh bottle for this massage. Add drops of lavender or rosewood if you would like for a nice smell.

Your tissues will soften the closer you get to birth and especially during birth. Be sure you are in a comfortable spot for the perineal massage, preferably lying on the bed, make the room warm and be appreciative to each other. This is an intimate area of your body and should be treated as such.

These directions explain how to do the massage to yourself. If you are having your partner do it, then follow the perineal massage directions but eliminate the steps that are only necessary when doing a self-massage.

First, wash your hands and trim you nails. Use a mirror if you are doing this yourself so you can visualize what you are doing. Sit with your legs spread apart in a semi-sitting position. Put the oil on your fingers and lubricate your vaginal area. Be sure you use enough so there is no friction but not so much that there is too much.

Place your thumbs about 1 to 1 1/2 inches inside your vagina. You should be far enough in to feel the kegel (tightening your vagina muscle), about up to your first knuckle. Press down toward the rectum and toward the sides at the same time. Gently and firmly continue stretching until you feel a slight burn or tingling. Hold this stretch for 1-2 minutes or until the tingling starts to subside. You will feel your vagina relax, especially if your partner is helping you since you will be able to relax even more.

Now, slowly and gently massage the lower part of the vaginal canal back and forth in a “U” shape, pulling down on the tissues gently as you do. This is what the baby will do as it births through. As you feel the burning or tingling, focus your breath where you feel the burn and allow it to soften and stretch. This is physically helpful but it will also give you some understanding of the sensation and how to breathe through crowning the baby out.

Doing this massage yourself will also help you to be more familiar with touching your bottom and helping the tissues when the baby comes through.

Trusting your body and feeling confidence in expanding is a sweet reward to a beautiful baby.

If you want to make your own perineal massage oil, here is a good one.