To ask how long it took for pelvic floor exercises to make a difference?

[ocelot41]

Just that really - fed up with leaking when I sneeze/cough and would like some more sensation back during sex.

Am religiously doing 5 sets of Kegels a day (although remembering that often is tricky!) How long should it be before I notice a difference? Any success stories to keep me going?

How long has it been since you had your baby?

A long time! Nearly four years since the last one. I know, I know, I should have done this AGES ago... But it just felt like YET ANOTHER thing to do....

I have had two children, one being just five months ago and the other 4 years ago. My first a boy was 10lb and if im being honest I didn't really do my pelvic floor exercises that much at all but then I waited a year postpartum before I had sex again and it felt the same as before. Unfortunately I always leaked slightly but I think that's just something that comes with having a baby for some people.

Im still yet to have sex since having my daughter five months ago who was 8lb 5oz so I'm doing kegels also.

I really just think it goes on your age and how long ago you gave birth, women are designed to have babies and altho sex won't feel the same as it did before birth with time you will almost completely normal again.

Good 'ol GussieGrips says that function should return/be massively improved within three months in most cases. Her website says that most women's stress incontinence is cured by doing three sets three times a day for three months, then once a day forever... :)

Was your baby big?

You can always try doing kegels when you have sex.

Linky

Thank you people. Yes DC2 was biiiggg...and then got very stuck...so there were lots of unpleasant interventions (which I am very grateful for in the long run but God, it was horrid).

But yes I think it is fair to say my undercarriage got a bit of a thrashing with that one. First one not so bad at all.

I have just been so busy running around after two that I haven't done much self-care at all. (Anyone relate to that?) Thanks for the linky! Three months doesn't sound too bad.....esp if it gets my orgasms back...

The whole function of the pelvic floor and surrounding area depends on more than just strength of the pelvic floor muscles.

I like this website (not sure it will link on my phone though?)

www.katysays.com/

Can you ask to be referred to Physio who can check you're doing your pelvic floors correctly?

Have you spoken to your gp about this?? I live in Bristol and was referred to a gynae physio. She was AMAZING. Gave me different exercises to do as well as your kegels.

there is a lot of getting your pants off and funy faces while you concentrate!

good luck, k

KatyN, I think I should try again. I did get a referral once to an Obs and Gynae unit. But the lead practitioner was ill and I got a VERY young, male junior doc who checked me for a prolapse (which wasn't there), then told me I could buy some pads.

When I plucked up the courage to ask about the sex stuff, he told me that after a baby I should just accept that things would change and wasn't it just nice to have a kiss and a cuddle and please my husband? No it isn't, its phenomenally frustrating and leaves you wanting to avoid sex altogether. Burst into tears. Hence why I have left it do long - easier not to think about it in some ways....

Ocelot, that response from the doctor is horrifyingly unprofessional, patronising and misogynistic. He clearly doesn't think that a woman might like to be fully sexually functional for herself, not to mention continent! Is it too late to report the young fucker?

ocelot I never had any leaking issues or loss of sensation during sex but I have always done them so wonder if I just prevented it from happening? The easiest way to fit it in is to do some while you pee. Everytime I go a wee I stop mid wee, clench for 15 seconds (you know you are doing it correctly as you stop weeing so it's a good one) then let go. If you go a wee a few times a day it's a little step that can help. Also bathtime I find the best time to do some (or shower) you can buy pelvic floor toners if you are really unsure of if you are doing them right but i just do 3 sets of ten quick squeezes then 3 sets of clenching for ten seconds each time.

If things don't improve, might be worth seeing the GP.

Don't do it when you pee! Unless you want infections.

Look on the other thread in the exercise forum, Gussie seems to be an expert on all things pelvic floor, I have problems too so I'm following her advice, too soon to see results yet though

I did the Foo Foo Fun club 6 week course and felt a difference within 3 weeks. Can't recommend it highly enough.

www.foofoofunbox.com

I had physio and she discharged me as long as promised to go to Pilates. Also good for taking inches off your waist!

don't do the stopping pee thing it's going to give you a bladder infection. that's old advice.

op feiw my youngest is 14 and oldest is 24. I had 4 huge babies and lots of intervention.

my pelvic floor isn't the best though I do need to ewe before trampolining with dds but my orgasms are the best they have ever been.

it's not all about the pelvic floor to orgasm it's about not being tired, baby focused too etc.

the best time to tighten up is during sex.

obviously not ewe but pee!!

oh and if you can report that young doctor twat. we can't having arses like him becoming gynae consultants.

Its still given advice. I used to work in a gynae clinic and the doctor would still give that tip and this was less than four years ago! I've done it for years never had a uti. Holding in for ten seconds is really not long enough to cause utis but you do what you think OP. Them pelvic floor toners are quite cheap on Amazon :)

You are right, I really should have reported him. I was so upset at the time it didn't even occur to me. I did, however, burst into angry tears and ask if he would say the same to a man of my age (mid thirties at the time).

He said he wouldn't because 'if a man has erectile dysfunction then the party can't even get started'. So I told him that this situation was leading to remarkably few party invitations in my house...He promptly turned bright red, said he would refer me to a counsellor because he thought the problem was 'obviously psychological' and then didn't even do that! You know when you cry because you are just SO angry? That.

For years I struggled with clenching pelvic floor exercises: urodynamics, clinics. I was referred to a specialist in Melbourne, where her diagnosis was to relax, not hold. The clenching exercises were exacerbating my condition. Cured in fortnight. Really. By that I mean it was good for a year and then came back under stress, but the letting go exercises soon worked again, within a week. That is two sets of 10 each day, so no biggy.

To be fair I had no tears or damage of any kind, but worth bearing in mind that not all incontinence is the same.

I'm currently seeing a physio for this issue 5 months post partum and only just starting to see an improvement.

Do not practice clenching in the middle of a wee. When you tighten your pelvic floor it relaxes your bladder muscle (the one which contract to make you wee) and when retraining your bladder this can be unhelpful and increase risk of UTI.

Please go and see your GP and ask for a referral to a physio.

In the meantime do your pelvic floor exercises three times a day starting by tightening the muscles around your bottom and continue to tighten the muscle working towards the front. Make sure you breathe normally. You should be able to feel the tightening all the way round to the front and even a pull in your lower tummy Start by holding for a count of two or three for five reps. Once you can hold for the full count and feel the release of your pelvic floor muscle at the end of the each each count then you can increase the count.

The issue one poster mentioned with relaxing your muscles to see an improvement is that if you're over working your muscle they can become tight and sore, which means they become ineffective. Try tightening your muscles to only 50% rather than a full clench when performing the exercise and as soon as you can no longer feel the release at the end of the count stop exercising and rest.

In the meantime you can help control leaks by tightening your pelvic floor before coughing or sneezing. The pelvic floor should automatically contract before your sneeze/cough but sometimes that auto trigger stops working after childbirth and needs to be retrained by consciously clenching. Placing your hand between your legs and applying pressure before you sneeze or cough (or running to the loo) will also help. A rolled up tea towel between your legs when sitting can help. The pressure has the same effect as clenching the muscles in helping your bladder muscle to relax and relieving the urge to wee.

Yes, it's true that after childbirth it is likely that your Pelvic floor will not be the same, but you should still seek professional help to get you to a point where your control is as good as it can be. It's totally possible that with a physio examination and guided exercises you could see some improvement. I don't know about surgical options but I have heard of Botox injections in the bladder wall to relieve an over active bladder muscle.

Please report the wanker Dr to the hospital so that he receives some training and a verbal kick in the bollocks

I hope that's been some help and that you see some improvement very soon

I'm aghast at what that doctor said. Please report him! How dare he?

'I should just accept that things would change and wasn't it just nice to have a kiss and a cuddle and please my husband?'

You are all so kind - thank you. Sorry for the radio silence- had sick kid.

It actually got worse. I burst into tears and asking him if he would EVER say that to a man of my age (mid 30's at the time). He said no he wouldn't, because if a man if experiencing problems then 'the party isn't even going to get started'. I pointed out that the current situation meant that remarkably few party invitations were being issued in our house.

Whereupon he told me that the problem was 'clearly psychological' so he was going to refer me to a psycho-sexual counsellor - but he didn't even bother to fill out the paperwork properly to do that! Instead I got lost in NHS ether where anyone looking at my file could see that I had been 'referred to a specialist' already, so they said there was no point doing the same again.

The whole thing was then rendered even more complicated by the fact tat I seem to have sustained some nerve damage owing to stuck baby which gives me very brief, but very intense 'lightening storms' of pain which mean I am not safe to drive yet - 4 years later! I asked him about being referred to some kind of neurological specialist to see if there is help I can get to that, to which he said that there were no such specialists and that 'we really don't understand what happens to some women's bodies when they have babies especially when they are [pause] OLDER.....

You know when you cry because you are just SO ANGRY? That.Alas, this was all a long time ago and I have no idea what his name was so I can't report him now - but I really should have done, shouldn't I? Idiot. I really should try again with the GP, shouldn't I..... Thanks for all your support, I really appreciate it.