Please reassure me that I'll be able to walk again!

[nothingsoextraordinary]

I suffered severe Pelvic Girdle Pain throughout the last trimester of my pregnancy and gave birth to a beautiful daughter last week (by C section, due to the PGP). Rather than the PGP being improved following the birth, it is now so bad that I am trapped upstairs, unable to care for the baby. My husband is doing everything, but returns to work soon.

Even getting out the front door in a wheelchair is out of the question. I am on high doses of pain killers and am experiencing panic attacks at the thought of this new situation being permanent. The visiting midwife has never heard of this condition being so severe and no one else seems to have experience of it either.

I can cope with the thought that recovery could take months. Just please tell me it will happen.

Am setting up appointments with an osteopath, physiotherapist, OT and Social Services, so the bases are being covered on a practical level.

Thank you to anyone who can help.

Sorry you're feeling so awful!

Might be worth contacting the Pelvic Instability Network?
www.pelvicinstability.org.uk

Based in Scotland but I think will help/advise UK-wide.

Oh I feel for you. Having suffered severe PGP myself (I was induced due to pain and I couldn't walk) Consultants are very split on this - most I have met avoid CS for PGP as this cuts the stomach muscles and makes the back even weaker.

The very best of luck.

nothingsoextraordinary - I'm glad to hear you got your CS but so sorry to hear the PGD is still so awful . There is a support thread over in pregnancy (you may have seen it already) for us ladies with SPD / PGD which is not just limited to pregnant ladies, please do come and avail of the support in the meantime!

Unfortunately, there is damn all research into PGD recovery times. Some people are 'cured' by delivery, some people take a few weeks or months to get back to normal, some people have recurrances during periods and some people have long term problems. At this point, no one could tell you which group you'll fall into , other than the delivery hasn't 'cured' it. This sort of uncertainty is f*cking awful. It's one of the things I find v difficult having PGD during pregnancy as there is no way of telling what will happen when I'm no longer pregnant!

The pelvic partnership (.org) is another good support group - PINS is Scottish and PP is based is SE England, if I recall you're in NI so avail of both!

HCPs do not know much about PGD, so not surprised your midwife is at a loss. Most of them do seem to think it's either not a big deal / part of pregnancy or it's a pain but it'll go away when baby comes. You're best continuing to manage it as per when you were pregnant - rest, support, pain killers, using what mobility adaptations you need, doing your pelvic floors etc. You're already on the way to this with all the appointments you've set up, impressive!

You have all my sympathy that this is making being at home with new baby an ordeal. But your hormones are still all up in the air, so I'll keep my fingers crossed for you, that the PGD will settle as your body starts to come to terms with birth and bf. Congratulations on your beautiful daughter!

I had PGP with both my pregnancies, first time it went straight away and this time I'm three weeks post birth and it is getting better slowly. I know a lady who had severe PGP and it took her several months to get better but she is better. I think the key is gentle exercise and maintaining as much normal movement as possible. Also relaxation will help. You need to build up slowly doing a tiny bit more each day!!! Don't panic though, you will perceive the pain is more strongly if you are anxious! Relax and breathe right into your tummy before you move and clench everything stomach, buttocks to enable you to move. Visualise yourself moving easily and without pain. Hope you get better soon XXXX

for you. I had SPD right at the end of my pregnancy and found the pain severely debilitating so I cannot begin to imagine what you have been and still are going through. It sounds like you are doing all the right things in terms of getting referrals - just make sure the physio you see is a specialist women's health/gynae physio and not a bog standard one. I was told that it can take 6 months for the relaxin to leave your body after giving birth. And that if you breastfeed it will take 6 months after the end of breastfeeding. SPD/PGP won't be able to completely resolve, although it may improve, until all the relaxin's gone. Only other thing I'd say is that if you don;t feel things are getting better at the rate you feel they should be, do press for a referral to an orthopaedic surgeon - they can do an MRI and a weight bearing x-ray and you'll be able to see exactly what the hell is going on with your pelvis. Physios are fab, and I've been fortunate enough to be treated by a particularly good one, but sometimes you need actual images to know what's really going on. Congratulations on your daughter. Take care and really hope you get better soon XX

Just wanted to thank everyone for the advice and encouragement. I live in Northern Ireland and contacted the Pelvic Partnership charity for advice on specialists here. We've ended up making an appointment to see a specialist in Dublin (four hours away) tomorrow. We're travelling by private ambulance as I couldn't manage in an ordinary car and it's costing an arm and a leg. The whole ordeal is very nerve wracking.

I have learned that there is a huge difference between moderate PGP (which can be very, very painful, just not as debilitating from a mobility point of view) and severe PGP (in which stairs are impossible and crutches/wheelchair is a given). It seems that with severe PGP, specialist intervention at an early stage is terribly important because there is a mechanical dysfunction that requires sorting out. I don't think enough people know this because the condition is rather rare, affecting only one pregnant woman in thirty-two.

I will let you all know what happens tomorrow. My baby daughter will be safely with her grannie for the day!

Here's hoping.

GOOD LUCK! XX

You are doing the best thing in resting at the moment. Get the physio in place asap and make sure they are a good one who specialises in women's health. Take all and any help you can get. I am six months down the line and it does get better, but I spent the first several weeks in bed unable to move too. Do not panic, take it easy and snuggle your little one in bed when you can. x

I wish you the very best of luck for tomorrow.

Please let us know how you get on.

xx

Good luck today. You are right, people just don't realise how bad it can get. Take care.

good luck today! sounds like your pelvis may be misaligned as well as wobbly! with the right treatment osteoplath etc it does get better slowly and from experience you may not get it with any other pregnancy you have. I was in a very poor way with my first pregnancy (like you stuck in one room etc) and post birth but nothing significant with pregnancy 2 and 3!

One in 32 doesn't sound very rare to me! For me it has increased with each pregnancy, and started earlier each time, but resolved itself quickly after delivery. I'm 37+3 with DC3 now and in a lot of pain, but not needing crutches etc. I hope you get the help you need quickly. MRI/scan sounds sensible to see what's where. I think I have made things worse trying to compensate for the pain with bad posture. There's muscular pain on top of the horrible disconnected feeling. Getting a bit sick of telling DS1&2 that I can't get on the floor to play lego, carry DS2, etc, etc. Back to Pilates as soon as baby allows for me!
Best of luck!

Quick update:
I had my appointment with the osteopath specialising in PGP yesterday and his diagnosis was encouraging, although there is no noticable difference in the pain or mobility yet. As I do not have a piercing pain in the centre of my pubic bone, he believes I have escaped the most severe form of PGP and instead described the situation as 'moderate, heading towards severe', with the actual pelvic ring itself remaining sound. He carried out some (painful!) intervention (relaxing contorted muscles around the right hip) and manipulation (lots of clicking, during which my hips became noticably better aligned).

I have to return next Thursday (another eight hour round trip). In the meantime, I am to rest lots and do very little. At this stage, he didn't feel exercises were going to be helpful.

With my heart in my mouth, I asked him if he felt a full recovery was possible, and if future pregnancies were out of the question. He replied that as far as he could see from his diagnostic tests, my condition was fixable, but I would have to be patient. I'm relieved, but won't be able to relax until I can see some improvement for myself. It is so frightening to be suddenly disabled and confined to an upstairs room with a tiny baby. If I do recover, I will be so much more thankful for my life than I've been in the past!

LilRedWG and Mummy2day - thank you for telling me about your experiences. I really sppreciate hearing you are both better now!

Stase - I feel for you! It's bad enough looking at a week old baby wondering how to pick her up - can't think how it would feel with toddlers!

Everyone else - Thanks for the advice - I will look into relaxation and getting an MRI scan but it seems unlikely to happen because my GP thinks I am imagining the pain (he also prescribed tramadol, which doesn't seem to make sense...).

I would be so grateful for more stories proving that this awful thing does go away, even when it is so severe. Thank you so much.

Well done. Glad things are encouraging. As for your GP, if you'd like us all to kick him in the nuts and then tell him he's imagining the pain, just say the word. Never been to your part of the world before, so it would be a good excuse to pop over for a short holiday .

cardamom - lol, be my guest!

Good luck. I had PGP in all 3 pregnancies and was on crutches every time. The first time was 'only' for 8-10 weeks because I fell over my parents dog and went out the back door!!! 2nd time I felt twinges from about 12 weeks but as it was twins I got bigger abd faster and certainly knew it!!! This last time I was bedridden with it!! Not helpful with a 3 year old and twins who were 2!! But we got through it and it was another set of twins but this time I held on to 36 weeks so was a tad large and the pressure was terrible from one being engaged from 29 weeks.

I had them abd was still struggling so paid to see a mctimoney chiro, my pelvis was totally out, she did something to underneath where sod effected me, my left side was worse than my right and the front of my pubic bone was seperated still. 4 months on it's getting better :-) I can walk which is fab. Crouching down still hurts a little and I know if I've overdone it - like pushing both lots of twins on the buggy if the big twins are tired. But I've cone out the otherwise :-) will be a long time to 100% but I feel well on tye road to getting there now.

harrygracejessica - four months and you can see an improvement - that's wonderful to hear! I really understand how much patience and courage this requires - although I can't imagine what it's like with more than one child! I'm so glad you're having good treatment and able to enjoy your babies.:)

Just to cheer you up a bit nothingsoextraordinary, had PGP with DC1 - pretty sore but manageable. Got it again with DC2 - utterly dreadful, wheelchair and totally bed-bound at times - hurt too much to even sob, just had to let the tears creep out! It took six months of physio but I got back to pretty much normal again, even managing to ride and compete.

Now pregnant with DC3 and although it is sore & I ought to have crutches, it isn't nearly as bad as the last time!

Take your time, don't rush things and you will get back to being you again and enjoying your beautiful baby before you know it!

I don't know if this thread has been archived, but just wanted to give an update. I have started a different thread, so it may not be necessary.

There was some improvement with the pain and mobility but it was short-lived. Almost eight months after my daughter's birth, the pelvic pain is much worse and I can do virtually nothing. Pelvic partnership have recommended a physiotherapist since I've drawn a blank with two osteopaths. My daughter is cared for by her grannie but it's still a pretty desperate situation.