Prolapse after forcep delivery?

[Impala77]

May be tmi, so apologies in advance.
I had a horrible induced labour which ended in a barbaric forcep delivery.
I was left faecally incontinent and looked horrible down below, lumps and scar tissue.
Luckily the incontinence is getting better, but I have had another blow.
My first period after the baby, I used pads as I thought things may still be getting better, the second period I tried to go back to tampons, although I could get them in, it felt like they weren't high enough and I could feel it all the time. Again I thought it maybe too soon, on my third period I tried again and couldn't even get the length of the tampon inside!! I put my finger in and could feel what I think is my cervix about an inch inside!!!
I know the cervix drops during a period so I checked again after it had finished and although the cervix is higher I can still feel it just by putting a finger inside, Have I suffered a prolapse too? I have made a doctors appt but wondered if anyone could help me.
During my life I have never been able to reach my cervix and even doctors in the past have commented about how high it was, I am gutted as I was just feeling ready for sex to resume but now I daren't do it in case he hits it!! I really don't need anymore problems, I already have days when I wish I hadn't bothered having a baby at all and it feels like one problem after another!!

See the doctor. ASAP. Sound like a prolapse. Get on the prolapse thread and get some advice? They know everything. Poor you.

I feel so hard done by, it seems some women have baby after baby with no problems, I have one and it destroys my body!!!

I was also left faecally incontinent after a forceps delivery - but 6 months old I am nearly back to normal.

How old is your baby?

I also couldn't use tampons, they basically just used to fall out! However, I tried again this month and had some success.

Are you hoping for too much too soon?

Understandable OP it isn't fair. But it won't always be like this. How old is DS?

Hi, you sound like me. Forceps delivery, 4th degree tear, shoulder dystocia... the list goes on. I do know exactly how you feel, my body some days feels completely ruined from having my DS (18 months ago) and I often find myself asking why did this happen to me when so many women don't have any of these problems or long term health issues and can still use tampons.

I have a prolapse, recently confirmed by gynae consultant. I was told I'm too young (early 30's) for surgery to correct it, and as I want to have another baby it may happen again. So I've decided to wait until I've finished having babies (only want one more) before going ahead with any surgery or other options to try to fix things. I have a lot of scarring so its not straight forward.

Best thing is to see your GP, you will probably be referred to gynae consultant but at least you will know what options are available for you.

And come join the Ragged Bits thread or the Prolapse thread - we're all a friendly bunch who can offer a lot of hand holding and practical advice.

little one is 6 months, I understand its still recent but the prolapse thing has gotten worse whereas the incontinence is getting better. Cravingcake you are too young to have it corrected? What kind of decision is that? I am done having babies and they caused it so they will bloody fix it!!! Even if it means hysterectomy I just want my life back, I work with a woman who had a prolapse after baby number 3 and she won't seek help and hasn't had sex with her husband for 5 years!!!! I won't accept that I'm afraid. Got doctor appt on Monday so we will see what he says. Sorry if I seem angry but I am!!!

If you're sure you've finished your family they may well do something. I'm 37 and have been offered surgery for prolapse repair (although not uterine).

I had a brutal forceps delivery with DS1 12 years ago. After three more DCs I found I was unable to "retain" tampons and was always going to the toilet to wee which prompted a visit to my GP. I found out I had a uterine prolapse and a cystocele which is where your bladder herniates into your vagina. With hindsight I'd had the cystocele right after the first delivery. I actually saw it in a mirror when I was marvelling at the massive piles the delivery had left me with , I just didn't realise what it was until I was watching Channel 4's Embarrassing Bodies programme. Also the symptoms were masked for the next 7 years by my three further pregnancies. Mmm, the joys of being female.

After 4 DCs I'd definitely completed my family and when my youngest was 13 months old they operated and put me back together by using mesh to hold my uterus back in its correct position, suspending it from my back bone. They also sorted out my bladder.

I wasn't able to lift my daughter from her cot, well, in fact lift anything, hoover (shame), etc, for 12 weeks after. That was basically why I had to wait until my last child was a year old before they would agree to operate. My parents pretty much moved in with us and helped out as my DH works quite a commute away from home.

Do go and see your doctor. Nobody should have to put up with it. There are solutions, some non-surgical as well (ring pessaries which can hold everything up on a temporary basis) and physiotherapy, though unfortunately they didn't work for me. I actually had a female physio's fingers up my bits while I had to squeeze and do pelvic floor exercises Ultimately though surgery was the only option which helped me.

Good luck.

I cant understand why they keep using forceps knowing the damage they can cause!! my hubby said the guys arms were shaking with the force of pulling my little one out! We only ever planned one baby but after that I wouldnt have another even if I wanted one. Hubby bless him has already asked when we will "get back to normal" doesnt look like anytime soon.

I've got copies of all my delivery notes. They've actually written "forceps applied, with 5 gentle pulls male baby delivered". GENTLE???!! I was in theatre and every time the doctor had finished pulling "gently", the midwife and my husband had to haul me back up the theatre table by my armpits as I'd been dragged to the edge of the table, ready for the doctor to go at it again. My husband said she even had one of her feet pushed up against the foot of the theatre table to get more leverage. Gentle my arse!

I hope your DH is being understanding about it?

Hubby has good days and bad, I think the atom bomb that is a baby has hit us both hard, after 14 years of just the two of us. And with each new hurdle we both become more depressed!! He wants to be out and about but with my problems I'm scared to be too far from the toilet and he does sometimes get ratty and say I need to get back to normal, dont think he realises what this has done to my self esteem as well as my body!!

Just off to do the school run, I'll post when I get back.

Impala, I really sympathise with you but the horrible reality is you may not return to normal as you remember it, you will just adjust to your new normal. That sounds really horrible but its not meant like that. I found taking my DH with me to the first of many gynae appointment really helped as then he understood a lot more of just how much of a mess my body is now in. Hearing it from a gynae consultant, and randomly also the consultant who delivered my DS hit home for him and he's been a lot more supportive of when I'm having a bad day. Maybe this is an option for you.

You have every right to be angry, I have some days when I'm like this. Have you considered counselling to help you come to terms with what actually happened during the birth, I was diagnosed with PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder) around 4 months after the birth and have done some counselling which really did help my mind cope with the physical changes.

Regarding the I'm too young to have it fixed.... well the consultant said normally they would wait until mid forties for a full operation but he said that there were other things like pessaries which could be considered. I have a lot of scar tissue from my original tear which, for me an operation would just create more scar tissue and make sex, and life, even more uncomfortable. I'm also hypermobile so healing is a bit harder for me so I need to be sure before having an operation.

I am now of the opinion that forceps should be banned unless its life or death emergency, and that in a lot of cases a C-section could be a better option.

totally agree, my baby's head was facing side on so I couldn't push her out, she also had the chord round her neck. if forceps didn't work they were going to go for c-section, I wish I had pushed for that but i wasn't really in a fit state, hubby is angry that at no point did anyone tell us that forceps could damage my body. As regards normal, I just want to be able to have sex with my husband and be able to go out without worrying about being near a toilet! I really feel they should have let me go to term and have a "normal" birth, things may still have gone wrong but at least I would have been given a chance, I am awaiting some counselling because my hv (who is brilliant) thinks I may have ptsd.

I think your hubby needs to try and understand your old "normal" life as a couple will never come back in relation to now being a family of three instead of two. I found that very hard to accept in the beginning but you do get used to your new normal, but it takes time. I now can't remember what it was like (or how the hell I filled my days when not at work) before having children.

Physcially, it's hard I think for men to accept that sometimes we just can't bounce back to our old selves body-wise. The body I now inhabit is completely different from the one I was born with. I don't even have the same shape navel for goodness sake, let alone my battered vagina! It may have been re-built and stitched back together, but it's not the one I was born with.

I completely understand you not wanting to be too far from a toilet. If we went shopping in the town nearest our village, about a 20 minute drive away, I'd go to the loo before we left, find the public toilets and use them once we'd parked up, go shopping, go to the public toilets again before we drove home and go again as soon as we'd got home. The operation did improve that significantly.

The only other thing I can think of at the moment is to be gentle to yourself and give yourself time, and a lot more than you think its going to take. Like I said I'm 18 months down the line and it has only been the last few months or so that I've really felt comfortable. Push your gp for the counselling, it will really help just to talk it through, and keep talking to your hv.

My DS had 3 neck vertebrae out of line, but as he had shoulder dystocia as well I will never know if it was caused by the forceps or the SD. He now goes to a chiropractor and will have to for life.

I find one thing that helps me cope is to remind myself that we (my DH and I) made the best choice we could at the time, given the information we had immediately available and that there was no way of knowing what could have happened did (SD cant be predicted, my hypermobility wasn't diagnosed until months later etc).

think I'm struggling emotionally as well as physically, sick of doctors and hospitals, plus lo is hard work, she has some health issues. can't wait for things to improve. Why don't people know about the realities of having babies? my own mother kept telling me childbirth is "like shelling peas" don't get me wrong I don't want people to be scared to death, but I didn't realise the things that happen until it was too late.

I sympathise too, although my story isn't as bad, I too have suffererd prolapses following a forceps delivery. Mine didn't cause too many problems for a few years but got dramatically worse last year (my DCs are 9 and 7 now), and I have had surgery and physio, which have been a big success. Come on over to the Any Old Prolapse thread, don't be put off by how long it is, people come and go all the time but it is a very supportive, knowledgeable thread where everyone has been through similar problems.

Thanks will visit the thread, still new to the site and struggle finding related posts/threads.

Hi Impala77
You sound so similar to me at that stage. I had a hideous birth - following an induction and with little progress I suddenly went from 1-8 cm in space of an hour an a half in the middle of the night, while my midwife was on her break and husband had been sent home. The person covering the desk told me I would not be checked again for some time and to go back to my bed. Anyway to cut a very long story short I had an epidural - my son got stuck, they managed to turn him but I then couldn't feel to push so just attempted to try as midwife was getting cross. I basically probably did a lot of damage to pelvic floor not pushing at the correct time. Eventually my son was born after failed vontouse and forceps delivery on the 3rd attempt. I don't know if i tore or they cut me (I was too traumatised to ask and never looked at that part of my notes) but I did have stitches. I lost so much blood I fainted in the bathroom not long after I had him, followed by a blood transfusion. Was in hospital 6 days. I was so tearful and angry afterwards - why didn't people warn me about inductions, help me to focus, help me to try to push properly and listen to me. And probably the most important - why didn't people warn me of the dangers of not doing pelvic floors religiously!! If they told me my insides could fall out I might have tried a bit harder! Anyway a month later I was trying to keep up with all the other new mums and trying to get out and about and that's when my prolapse happened (front wall and posterior). The birth and recovery was bad enough in itself (I was so bruised even the midwives winced when they had to check me) and then for this to happen was just soul destroying. Even now I can't hear of any stories of quick labour and women coughing their babies out! I tried to put up with the prolapse but I was so miserable I was only 32 and just walking round the block was uncomfortable - the heavy feeling was awful. Luckily I have a very understanding husband who help as much as he could and didn't put pressure on me. Sex was ok (well for him at least!) but rare and it just didn't feel right. I was thoroughly depressed - I would cry just seeing women strutting down the high street with just their handbags or out jogging and I'd be thinking "they are all intact - they have no idea what I am going through". All this combined with a grumpy baby from day one that never settled and woke constantly in the night (he is 4.5 year old now and still will wake once in the night!). Anyway at 5 mths I finally could take no more and saw a gynae - it was a male and we just weren't on the same wavelength so after that I saw a female who was brilliant - she understood things I was saying as she had the same anatomy! I said I know you are supposed to wait until you have finished having your family before considering surgery...and she just summed it up and said "it comes down to quality of life" and I just said well it has to be now then". I was even prepared not to have another child if need be. So I had the surgery - it was great and life changing for a couple of years and then the prolapse started again but not half as bad. My advice is really do your research on the consultants get one that specialise in your area of issue - eg anterior/posterior repair. Don't settle for less - make sure they listen - it's quite an op to have and you really want to get it right first time (though sometimes you need a 2nd repair and there is nothing that could have been done to stop it). I am now pregnant with 2nd child and have a prolapsed cervix - not as bad as the first but I will need more surgery in about 18 mths.

Also if you are really feeling down - get some help - it can get overwhelming without it.
I really wish you the best of luck in sorting it - take care of yourself
(oops this has turned out to be a really long post - sorry all!)
x

Just a quick update, am now suffering awful urinary problems, constant urgency, but only a few drops when i go. Anyway saw gp, got prolapsed bowel, bladder and dropped uterus. Seeing gynae in 2 weeks, feels a lifetime away!! Have also been referred for some therapy for possible pnd / ptsd.

Craving cake - too young for prolapse surgery?! I had a rectocele (minor) repair during a perineal refashion aged 21! Yes I'll need an elcs to not undo all the good work but I was never told my age was a factor in opting for surgery and I'm so delighted its all sorted down there. I'm 25 now. I could use tampons almost immediately after surgery - even the tiniest ones didn't fall out. I did go privately for the surgery so I wonder if that made a difference to the consultants decision but I'm shocked you were turned away from a repair.

coffee that is exactly what I need to have done - moderate/mild rectocele repair and re build perineum. Do you mind me asking how it went? How mobile we're you after? How long off work? How long off exercise?
Sorry about all the questions I am in the process of deciding whether to go ahead now or wait until DCs are a bit older.
Sorry for hijack OP.

Impala That's great news about your referrals. With weeing try leaning as far forward as you possibly can, it tilts the pelvis slightly and helps empty the bladder.

Coffee that's what they said, but as my prolapse isn't considered major yet it was said in a 'lets try other options first' sort of way. Plus I don't want any operations I don't absolutely have to have. I've just found out I'm now expecting my 2nd child so have a feeling the added pressure of a baby in there too will definitely make it worse.

Hi, I'm new to posting but my experiences really sound similar to all of yours. My little girl is 8.5 months and I had forceps resulting in a deep second? Degree tear, an episiotomy and a surgical pad put in for 12 hours for a cervical tear. The cervical tear was due to involuntary pushing as my labour progressed rapidly. I received an epidural very late in the day, constant contracting and three puncture wounds with consultant anaesthetician saying "I don't know what's going on, it never takes me this long".

I am mostly aware of the cystocele prolapse I have and the scarring around almost all of the lower vaginal wall. I have to do deep breathing to get the wee to start and then i often times go back to loo within five mins with another urge. I was surprised with how extensive the scarring is, as the cut and tear are close on the lower left but all the feeling of hard ridges and tension is everywhere. I also have bumpy sort of grape like things inside (there were stitches in my cervix and vagina, wall) and as many of you mums also said, I feel like a bit of a mess.

I read all that was mentioned about getting help for these sorts of things and the question of if or when u decide to have more children.

I am 33. The birth experience has caused some trauma I feel and I'm a little stando off ish about my hopes for a next baby.

I really feel for everyone who is moving forward and having more children with these issues. And to everyone coping with the changes and the affects on relationships, trying to find a new normal. I am hoping the doctors get into gear and support us!