Pelvic Organ Prolapse, Support Thread - Page 35

[unlegal]

Originally Posted by unlegal

Hey guys! I've gotta question!

Did any of you experience lots of aching pain before you started your period?

I'm 18 months PP, and have yet to have my period come back. Over the last two days, I've had a lot of pain in my entire pelvic area. I discovered my cystocele and rectocele last spring, and I'm sure it's because of them. Just not sure if it's also related to starting my period again. It's almost like the feeling of an extremely full bladder, but all over.

Hmm...I forgot that I posted that. Seems to be about two weeks before I started my period, which would make it around the same time, cycle-wise. I'll have to keep track of this.

[DiannaK]

new momma!!

Hi all!! I found this thread a while ago, then 'lost' it, and now found it again!!

I'm a momma of 4 children, all vaginal births. My girls were both around 8 lbs, and my boys were both over 6lbs. I had a breech extraction with my second twin, which I'm sure didn't help my girly bits!!

I was dx'ed with bladder prolapse at my 6 week check up, and was really offered no advice except for Kegels, and 'call when you're ready for bladder repair'. Just went to the urologist today, and am scheduled for PT, with some sort of exercises, and muscle stimulation.

I'm going to go back and read the old posts, but for now, just wanted to stop in! Any advice, thoughts would be greatly appreciated!!

[MadameXCupcake]

Originally Posted by LionessMom

its nice that he is not upset though.

are you saying it is 8 mo pp. i reccomend a pessary. if i wasnt wearing one my cervix would be poking out my vagina. the pessary goes in like a diaphram. kinda acts like one too. i had to take it out in order to get preg last time. it holds you cervix up. look into it. DH and i couldnt DTD until i started wearing it.

You wear it while you dtd?? It doesn't get in the way? Where could I get one, I don't have a gyn and I'm afraid to go I want no one down there I haven't gotten over an event with my midwife at my DD's birth.

[LionessMom]

Originally Posted by MadameXCupcake

You wear it while you dtd?? It doesn't get in the way? Where could I get one, I don't have a gyn and I'm afraid to go I want no one down there I haven't gotten over an event with my midwife at my DD's birth.

i wear it all the time. cant even tell it is there and neither can DH. you do have to go to a gyn to get. at least i did anyway. my gyn was very nice. the pessary rests on your muscles at the top of the vagina (i believe) and uses it to hold up you uterus. the cervic rests on the pessary. so it stays up in there. i reccomend kegels even while wearing a pessary to keep the vaginal wall muscles toned. jmo.
i take mine out after every cycle and wash it wish soap and water then rinse it with hydrogen peroxide. i dry it then smear it with ph balanced lube, then reinsert it. it is no problem. if i wasnt wearing it, i would feel like i was having a bad period all the time and my tampon was falling out.

[wombatclay]

hi Dianna (and new to the thread mamas!)

I hope you all find the infor (and healing) you need!

[tireesix]

How are you suposed to take Sepia? I have it, I just don't know what to do with it?

ETA:

Thought I would just add more.

I am 27, 3 children in 5 years but after my second I was diagnosed with Ehler Danlos Hypermobility type. I am extremely bendy, don't heal well etc etc and prolapse is more likely to happen to someone with this condition. I managed to get away with it the first two times, not this time.

I am only 3 weeks PP but I have never felt like this before. I have felt uncomfortable since the birth, abdominal pain, weird lochia (I suddenly started bleeding again a couple of days ago, its just been plain odd), so anyway, today I thought I would see how things were going and I was shocked to discover my cervix, maybe not even an inch away from vaginal opening. I have been crying ever since lol.

Anyway, I am now totally freaked out, I am really worried, how likely is this to fix itself without surgery? I mean, my ligaments, connective tissues are crap anyway, I just can't see this being really fixable (I am damn well going to try though), I twisted my ankle a few years back and in the end that needed surgery to fix it so what are my chances really?

I have a Doctors appointment on Thurs so I expect I will be examined, told what I am preety sure I already know and then be referred on to physio etc.

Other than Kegels, what exercise can I do? I wanted to start running again and like to use my stepper (I have baby weight I need to shift, this is really important to me, I have food issues, I feel crap, I am now out of control again, jeez, why did this have to happen, someone please tell me I can use my stepper).

What treatments are there? (I am in the UK if that makes any difference).

How long does it take before you notice any difference with physio etc?

I am so glad I have my baby but I so wish I had been sterilised when I wanted to be.

Edited again:

Also, I can't feel jack down there, I did kegels during pregnancy, before pregnancy, I was fit as a fiddle, my pelvic floor had never been so damned good, now, I squeeze and nowt happens, so would any of those pelvic florr exercising aids be any help. I used to do biofeedback for pelvic floor issues (before I ever had children) so I expect that I will be doing that at physio anyway, just wondering whether it would help if something was there for me to squeeze ya know?

[DiannaK]

Originally Posted by krankedyann

T-tapp is at www.t-tapp.com

Look at the exercise called "Organs in Place/Half Frogs" Do it 5 times a day- it will take you about 15 minutes total for the whole day. It made all the difference for me.

I also prolapsed during my pregnancy. I literally felt it happen- we were at a funeral and I felt it drop and incredibly pain all at once. I was about half-way though my pregnancy when it happened.

Where is this on the website??

[wombatclay]

unlegal- I have a lot of sensations linked to my cycle. I don't know if that will change, but for now my pop symptoms track with my hormonal shifts.

tireesix- big hugs. I don't know how your medical condition will affect the POP. It certainly can't hurt to try the exercises/holistic treatments/pessary or sea sponge options first. The drawback to surgical correction is that it doesn't always last. A sling may hold everything in place for many years, but may eventually fall again. Leading to more surgery. Removing the uterus is an option, but there are hormonal consequences to that option, and removing one organ may lead to other things moving out of place. Given that you have a condition that impacts your healing... is there a specialist you can see?

I'd probably start with a well fitting pessary and the Whole Woman exercise routine and see how it goes. The "nice" thing about prolapse is that it's not usually a critical medical condition. It's a quality of life issue obviously, but it's not something that you have to spring into emergency action mode for. You can take time to research options, get second opinions, see if low intervention options work well enough.

MadameX- there are positions that are no longer comfortable for me. Have you experimented with a bunch of differet positions? Also, I found pp intimacy after dd1's birth (c/s) almost impossible for around 7-8 months. I eventually used something called Replense (at the grocery store) that acts as a vaginal tissue moisturizer (not a lube) and that helped a lot.

[LionessMom]

Originally Posted by DiannaK

Where is this on the website??

i found this

http://www.t-tapp.com/articles/flatstomach/

[Spencersmom]

Hi mamas. I just got through reading this thread. I'm so grateful to have found you all. Thank you for sharing your stories.

I'm 7 months pp and have a mild rectocele that has not resolved as I had hoped. Normally it's slightly annoying and more than slightly embarrasing but I mostly forget about it. However, we are going to Mexico in a month. I just got my period today so I'm assuming I will have it when we are there. I have my Keeper in now and it feels like it's staying in better than last month when I tried it and it just about fell out more than once. Still though it slides down and I have to push it back up every 1/2 to 2 hours depending on my activity. It's doable for the trip but I was wondering about sea sponges. Do they stay in place better than a menstrual cup? Do they have to be rinsed/reinserted every two hours or it is possible to go longer if you do not have a heavy flow? How hard are they to get out? Someone said they routinely have sex while wearing it. I can't imagine how that would not be messy. So, what can you tell me from experience about sponges? Would you guess it would be more comfortable than my keeper which has to be adjusted rather frequently?

Thank you so much!

[wombatclay]

Well... just for me... I can't use my Diva at all. It just wont stay where it needs to stay. And after another mama here talked about how she thought removing the Diva/Keeper contributed to her prolapse (the gentle "tugging" on/near the cervix) I've been a bit hesitant to keep trying!

I've used the sea sponges and other than the fact that they irritated the heck out of my scar tissue (probably not a concern for others) they stayed in place much better. They're more textured than a tampon and so "hold" better.

I bought mine through glad rags (lurve their pads! ) and they have an online info sheet for the sponges here.

Have fun on the trip!

[kltroy]

i tried sea sponges for my cystocele but havent got my period back yet so dont know how removal will be in that context. i can tell you that while they were effective at alleviating prolapse symptoms i couldnt figure out a good way o remove them without MAJOR pulling. maybe blood would help it slide out better?

[fishface]

Subbing....unable to read whole thread b/c I'm exhausted, so that's tomorrow's work! Anyway, I have no children & suspect a cystocele. Something chickpea-sized bulging from my vagina (clearly the anterior wall of my vagina), I had a bit of dribbling today at Target while standing up and needing to pee badly, and issues emptying bladder fully.

I am FREAKING OUT. My dr. was closed yesterday and I'm just waiting for Monday to call an make an appt and wait for that. I am freaking out because I haven't even had children yet! I'm not only worried about my ability to have future children but I'm worried about what will happen to my body after having said children if possible if this is happening after experiencing NO births.

[jasper28]

I am so glad I found this thread. I will have to read more of it when I am not completely exhausted.

I have a fallen bladder and a partial prolapse from having my 10lb'er and a set of twins who were 7lbs each.

I went to see the ob/gyn last week since my midwife doesn't handle the surgery cases. What a horrible experience. She recommended a hysterectomy and maybe a sling if I could prove incontinence ---- the question is -- how would she like me to prove I am incontinent?? I could think of a couple of ideas, but I am not sure she would be happy!

Anyway, I am just rather sad and overwhelmed. I will read the natural remedy sites, I would be happy to find an alternative to surgery to fix my constant backache, water baloon'ish feeling and incontinence because kegels rae doing nothing!

[amicamom]

Joining In...

I'm so thankful to have found this thread!! I'm a 32-year-old with grade III pelvic organ prolapse including a severe cystocele (diagnosed by a urogynecologist) and cervical prolapse. I am currently 15 weeks pregnant with baby #5.

My first birth started out as a home birth and had to be transported due to failure to progress. It included 12 hours of painful back labor and the baby was born posterior in her bag of waters. I had an un-called-for episiotomy. I began having troubles with prolapse after baby #3. I have always had a retroverted uterus.

Here is a prolapse related pregnancy journal from baby #4:
http://prolapse.hyperboards.com/inde...=3489&start=16

Much about this pregnancy is different from #4. The uterus seems much higher and bigger. The cervix is staying in unless I strain, suck in my stomach, or spend a long time on my feet. I have no idea why unless my weaker stomach muscles are allowing it to tip forward or climb up easier? The bladder bulges out all the time. I go to the bathroom so much it is ridiculous and the way my prolapse is it puts cuts off the flow so I'm not dealing with incontinence yet. :

[MelissaAHM]

Is there any hope for me????
I'm clearly worried! I had cystocele that resolved itself after my first two pregnancies. But my last pregnancy (16 months) ago, it still hasn't gone away. To make matters worse DH and I are wanting to TTC soon. I don't want this issue to get in the way of that. This really has me scared!!!

My concern is when DS turned 1 (12 months postpartum) I 'think' I had my first kidney infection. I'm not sure as it wasn't diagnosed. I had a high fever, unable to pee, nausea, chills, and kidney pain. In a matter of 4 months, I've had 3 of these infections. Then again, they could've been brought on by DTD or by drinking a carbonated drink. Immediately after drinking 3 rootbeers I got this current infection, I'm still battling. I'm thinking my bladder my isn't emptying properly. Again- I'm just guessing.

I'm the only female in my family that has this, I feel like something is wrong with me. Can this interfere with future pregnancies??? Will future pregnancies make this worse?

----Just thinking, I read somewhere that estrogen is a natural vaginal toner. And nursing suppresses estrogen. Could this be why my cystocele disappeared after my first two pregnancies? I didn't nurse them long. But my DS is still nursing today. Uggg! Just thinking!

[tireesix]

Had my first physio appointment today and the prolapse was confirmed. Apparently my pelvic floor is in a sorry state and I have been given a pelvic floor toner to use until I can feel my pelvic floor enough to do the exercises (I have had pelvic floor issues since pre children).

My Doctor appointment before the physio was useless though. The doctor examined me and said 'it all seems fine' and I am thinking 'if that seems to fine to you, maybe you should see someone about your prolapse'. She had no idea, I was sent to physio for the pelvic floor issue, the physio can't believe the doc missed the prolapse either. Gah.

Anyway, heres the start of a healing journey. People keep telling me I will need a hysterectomy though, its not an awful prolapse, its about an inch or so above my vaginal opening when standing. It should improve right? I don't want a hysterectomy.

[crazy_eights]

Originally Posted by tireesix

Had my first physio appointment today and the prolapse was confirmed. Apparently my pelvic floor is in a sorry state and I have been given a pelvic floor toner to use until I can feel my pelvic floor enough to do the exercises (I have had pelvic floor issues since pre children).

What is a pelvic floor toner?

[tireesix]

Its an electrical device that stimulates the muscles in your chosen area to improve muscle strength......

Hang on....

http://www.bodykind.com/productdetai...r-toner-1x.htm (Sorry, its a uk site I think).

[mommyfied]

I've followed this thread off and on for quite a while now and I know I have seen info on pushing techniques but it's hard to find them at the moment! I will be having #2 soon and I'm trying to sort out the pushing stage in my head. I believe the way I pushed with #1 contributed to my pelvic floor issues. Last time I think I 1) pushed too hard 2) I pushed in a reclining position w/ pain in my back and I tilted my tailbone up in order to relieve the pressure. I'll be birthing at home this time so I won't have to deal with all the commotion or being asked to push in uncomfortable positions. I used Hypnobabies with #1 but I progressed quickly and everyone freaked when I was 10 cm and the hypno stuff went out the window during pushing. I'll be able to try breathing out the baby this time, but I'm still having trouble envisioning it. Does anyone have any tips on how best to protect the pelvic floor during pushing, esp. when there are already issues?? This is the only thing I'm anxious about and I'm afraid if I don't get it sorted out that the fear of pushing could make it worse.