Massaging Your Caesarean Scar in Preparation for VBAC
If you’re planning a vaginal birth after caesarean (VBAC), you might be wondering how best to prepare your body.
One simple, nurturing practice that many women find helpful is caesarean scar massage.
But what does it really do?
Can it actually make a difference to your VBAC journey?
Let’s explore.
Why Massage a Caesarean Scar?
1. Reconnecting with Sensation
After a caesarean, it’s very common to experience numbness, tingling, or sensitivity around your scar.
This can sometimes leave you feeling disconnected from that part of your body.
Gentle massage helps reawaken the nerve pathways so you can become more familiar with how your scar feels. Over time, this builds confidence and awareness — so you feel more at home in your body as you prepare for labour.
2. Easing Tightness and Improving Mobility
Scar tissue doesn’t just affect the surface.
Underneath the skin, adhesions can form between the layers of tissue, making the area feel tight or restricted.
Massage helps improve circulation and soften these restrictions, making the abdominal wall more comfortable as your bump grows.
This can make it easier to move freely into upright and active birthing positions — something we know supports smoother labours.
3. Supporting Emotional Healing
Many women carry strong feelings about their caesarean birth, whether positive, negative, or mixed.
Taking time to gently touch and care for your scar can be a powerful way of honouring what you’ve been through.
This simple act of self-care can help transform the scar from something that “happened to you” into a part of your story that you embrace with kindness.
Can Scar Massage Prevent Uterine Rupture?
This is an important question — and the honest answer is no.
Massage works on the skin and fascia (the connective tissue layers you can reach with your fingers).
Uterine rupture or dehiscence (thinning of the scar tissue), on the other hand,
happens in the muscle layer of the uterus, which lies far deeper.
The strength of a uterine scar is influenced by things like:
The type of incision and closure used during surgery.
How well healing occurred in the first weeks after birth.
The gap between pregnancies.
How labour unfolds
(for example, whether there’s strong induction or repeated contractions close together).
Massage can’t change those factors…
but what it can do
is help your body feel freer, more comfortable, and more responsive as you head into labour.
And that’s worth a lot.
How to Massage Your Caesarean Scar
If your scar is well-healed
(usually from six weeks postpartum onward, and certainly in later pregnancy),
you can begin gentle massage.
Here are some ideas:
Light Strokes:
Use fingertips to gently sweep across the scar to reintroduce sensation.Small Circles:
With two fingers, make little circles along the scar line, clockwise and anti-clockwise.Skin Rolling:
Gently lift a small fold of skin and roll it between your fingers.
If it feels stuck, work slowly and gently over time.Breathing with Touch:
Rest your hand over your scar, take a deep belly breath, and imagine softening the whole lower abdomen.
Be gentle — this should never be painful.
When pregnant, avoid strong abdominal pressure and work only on the skin and surface layers.
The Bigger Picture
Scar massage isn’t a magic bullet.
It won’t stop rupture, and it isn’t essential for everyone.
But it can be a beautiful way to connect with your body, bring comfort, and prepare emotionally as well as physically for birth.
Think of it as one part of a bigger preparation for VBAC — alongside body balancing, relaxation, antenatal education, and support from your chosen birth team.
✨ Would you like more support for your VBAC journey?
I offer antenatal classes, pregnancy massage, and doula (birth companion) support to help you feel confident and cared for in your preparation.