Posting for traffic. Hoping to find others who might be limited by pelvic floor repair, in how much heavy lifting they can do? How do you find this in reality years down the line?
I had huge sympathy and support when I had my surgery (vaginal hysterectomy for prolapsed uterus with anterior repair) for which I'm eternally grateful for. I'm now 3-4 years down the road of having to be careful in everything I do. I've managed my life carefully and work hard to find different ways of doing things so that I can still enjoy physical pursuits that are good for me (such as keeping my horse - riding is excellent for core strength and I manage DHorse in ways that ensure I don't over do it).
I push myself carefully to lift and carry as much as I can, but often feel pressure to do more. When I do strain myself I end up in pain and discomfort, with difficulty going to the loo, both urine and faeces, for around a month, and I basically have to do even less during this time, so that things down below have time to sort themselves out. This just screams to me that I've overdone it, and if I do more than I am, I will likely end up incontinent in my 40s and in need of more surgery.
My problem is I'm finding people have less sympathy or understanding than they did when I had my surgery, plus it's difficult explaining to anyone new (at work or at the yard) as I guess I appear and look totally healthy and fit on the outside. People see me one day lifting and carrying and think that means I'm fine to always do it, but I'm not.
Just feeling sorry for myself and probs need a kick up the backside, but wondered if anyone else could relate or have any tips on how to handle people's expectations.