Nishmat's Women’s Health and HalachaIn memory of Chaya Mirel bat R' Avraham

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Bedikot with prolapse

15 January, 2017
Question:

I have B’H 6 children. The problem is I don’t know how to do a bedika anymore. I feel that the shape/position of my cervix/vagina has changed .The cervix feels very low like sticking out in the vagina. I was once told that you mustn’t touch the cervix when doing a bedika. I am just not comfortable when I do a bedika, and then I feel that I’m not doing it properly. How far in must I go? Please can you clarify? Thank you.


Answer:

A bedikah should be performed as deeply as is comfortable, making sure to take care to rotate to touch the internal surfaces along the sides of the vaginal canal. Halacha certainly allows for touching the cervix when performing a bedikah.  But you should take care to be very gentle, as rough handling may lead to irritation or even bleeding.

Healthwise, it sounds as though you may have a prolapse, meaning that the cervix is hanging down lower than it should be. This is a fairly common situation after giving birth to six children.  Since prolapse can sometimes present complications, we recommend seeing your physician for an examination. A prolapse may be medically treated in a number of ways, depending on its severity.

Please write back with any further questions.

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