SPD not gone after 18mths - thinking of a second

[Winstonsma]

Hello!

My question is: If you had SPD that didnt 100% disappear then had another baby, was it loads worse?

background to my problem below!

I had bad SPD with my first pregnancy. Thankfully shelled out for private insurance for a few years so got weekly physio to pull my pelvic bones back into place. I had to use a walking stick etc and it was very unpleasant.

Physio was an spd specialist so was amazing, and she gave me exercises to pull it back in by myself. I saw her twice after the birth then just pulled back into place myself for the next year. I stopped breastfeeding at 7.5 months and noticed a big improvement at 9 months. Again an improvement when I came off my pill (cervazette) as continued release of relaxin/dodgy hormones may be prolonging it.

WHen I was pregnant the physio said not to get pregnant again til the baby was 18months. My wee man is now 18months. and while it is nearly gone (I do tap dancing, zumba etc etc) - it still lingers. I dont have to pull it back in any more, it's very mild but a bout of heavy lifting or the day after exercise I can feel it. It is totally liveable with as it is.

What I'm worried about is having another baby. I know some people have spd so bad they cant walk and have to have surgery to correct it. Given that my spd hasnt fully gone away (and I suspect it never will) I suspect that it will be a lot worse, a lot earlier if we do have another. In addition i'd have a toddler to lug around which isnt going to help. I wish someone could tell me what it's going to be like. If it was the same as last time (eg very bad but a year later mild) then i'd be happy to go for it. Dont want to end up with a walking stick for life if I can avoid it, I would be happy with one child instead.

P.S: every time I get my period it is worse for that week... = ? I could prob get some contraception/hormone control in the future that might stop this but not an option at the mo until I know whether we'll have another little one.

annoying!
I will make an apptmt to see the physio lady soon and ask her advice but we'll have to cough up money for it grr.x

thank you for any help, been searching the internet for hours and cant find anyone who had spd but it didnt go away - i cant be the only one!

Jen.x

Sorry, not an spd sufferer, but it sounds like you have had good treatment from your physio, and it's probably worth the money to have another consultation with her.

All the best

thanks leafmould - i've booked in with her (£20 for 15mins) but worth it as she really knows her stuff. Will post back what she says just incase there are any other ladies out there who find this thread and looking for some spd (hopefully) reassurance!x

eeek - this is what im worried about :(

www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2011/feb/19/spd-pelvic-pain-wheelchair

also - this website helpful for general info - www.pelvicinstability.org.uk/pregnancy.asp

and just incase you're reading this with spd for the first time -

"Recovery time after the birth varies considerably. Some women notice an immediate improvement after giving birth, for others it is more gradual over days or weeks.Research studies have shown that the majority of women (approximately 93%) recover within the first three months after giving birth".

so please dont be frightened by me still having it after 18mths, im in the rare 7%!

Unfortunately, not only is SPD a very underresearched condition but also severity of symptoms varies wildly and not in a way which is easy to predict. No one is going to be able to tell you for sure what will happen in your second pregnancy. I would therefore concentrate less on the "very worst case" scenario of wheelchair etc and more on the more likely scenario of a recurrence of symptoms you had last time. Think carefully how you would cope if, for example, you could not push a buggy, wipe pee off the floor, lift your DS into the bath etc. Could you afford a nanny? Would your mum come to help? I also spent more than £1000 on osteopathy, would your private health insurance shell out again or have you saved up for physiotherapy?
Rather than looking for guarantees, plan your coping strategies for a second pregnancy and hope for the best. Having SPD and a toddler would be hellish but equally, it depends how old you are and how desperate you and your DP are for another child.

Very interested in what your physio says. I had severe SPD in my first pregnancy, signed off work and on crutches by 16weeks. I thought it was just 'pregnancy pains' and kept pushing myself. Big mistake. Was pretty much immobile and in a wheelchair by the end. Post birth it was loads better but still very sore. I am now 8 months post birth and still very limited in my daily life but have learnt how to manage it so it now seems more like the norm. I have had physio (nhs) for a year now and they don't know what to do with me now Also seen an osteopath and had acupuncture with little joy. They think the distance between my pubic bone has become over stretched and may need wiring in place. Figured my pelvis will always be a bit (lot) off until I've finished having children - so we decided to crack on with it and I am now 5 weeks pregnant. Feel very nervous but have always wanted at least 2 kids. I have also been recently diagnosed with hypermobility which they think is a large factor in my SPD bring so bad

thought I'd better update this.
YOu're right horsebiscuit there isnt much info out there.
And from what others have said it is often misdiagnosed as 'normal' pregnancy pain - which it definitely isnt :(
I was lucky that the GP I saw said what it was straight away and then having private insurance means I saw the physiotherapist two days later. It was worth shelling out £100 a month for the last 4 years! Calmisthemantra I hope things get better for you/dont get worse with this pregnancy. let me know how it goes, it sounds like you have it really bad. feels so unfair doesnt it :(

If you're reading this as you're worried about 2nd preg like me, or you have spd for the first time, I hope something amongst this can help!

I went to see the specialist physiotherapist. She obvsiously doesnt know how bad it will be but she said she's never seen anyone end up in a wheelchair post preg if it's treated properly. She thought that as I knew I was going to have it (in all likelihood it will return, and earlier) that preparing for it could make it not so severe this time. she gave me the following to do list!

1. do pilates, pre pregnancy, during pregnancy and post pregnancy - though tell them about spd so they can tailor some moves. I've been doing pilates now and it's hard but hopefully help. THe core muscles that pilates targets are attached to the pelvic bones and so if they are very strong then they should help to minimise movement.

1. do my exercises twice a week even if its not sore. My pelvic bone (sorry prob using the wrong words here but this is how I understand it!) comes out of place by coming down, usually on my left side, by a few cms to start with. o pull it back into place I have an exercise band tied round our dining table leg. THen I slip my foot into the circle made by the band (the footof the leg that seems to hurt most - I always know which one is out) then very slowly and controlled I do a football kicking motion. The tension is tightish to start with and with my leg at the full extent of the 'kick' my leg shakes with the effort. I do 6x and rest, then antoher 6. this pulls it back in for me no matter what i've been up to. another way of doing it is to pu an ankleweight onto the hurting leg, lie to the edge of a bed (eg with left leg right on the edge) then drop the leg over the side, so it goes as near to the floor as you can then slowly pull up, straight, as high as you can then in so it's in line again then back down onto the bed. It's hard but this works. HOWEVER - if your pelvis pulls back and forth as well as/instead of up and down like mine then this may not help/may make it worse. So dont copy this. No two people with pelvic girdle pain are the same. Each person will have their own unique combination of symptoms and clinical signs. Treatment should be tailored to each person individually.

1. avoid heavy lifting. toddler doesnt help but he's already 20 months (nearly) so he's getting more independent. We've to practise no-lifting now and he can get up and down all our many stairs with my hand, and he can get out of his carseat, and into the car though not into the car seat yet. Ideally I'd wait til he was at school but although I'm young (about to be 30) my OH is 41 and doesnt want to wait too long. Also he has some prostrate issues so needs an op at somepoint, but he has to finish having kids before the op!

1. get physio before it gets severe - so when it returns I'll be off like a shot to the hysio as soon as it gets alittle worse than it currently is. I;m determined to keep up my tap dancing (even if its from a chair!) too so will prob need her to pull it back in once a week or fortnight. MY insurance will only pay for about 20 sessions then it will be 80 a time, so will prob put down on nhs waiting list before the sessions run out. However, the private woman is amazing she knew so much that we'd probably pay for her. We currently pay £500 extra into our mortgage every month so we can stop doing that to pay for it if needs be. I'd recommend that anyone suffering find a specialist and try it once. I couldnt believe the instant difference - I went in in tears and with crutches and came out carrying the crutch (though carefully!!).

1. Get a pelvic support belt and wear from the minute I am pregnant, regardless of symptoms. I didnt find much help from it last time, but i'll do what i'm told! I found this one - www.lafeenoire.com/hug-a-bump-maternity-support-band-for-spd--pregnancy-back-pain-1290-p.asp but i think i'll buy direct from physio catalogue...

1. rest as much as possible. I'l have to cut back on all the toddler things we go to and play more games in the house. We live in a flat so in and out up and down stairs isnt ideal. Plus its a two storey flat - more stairs inside! we live in the middle of nowhere so I also have to drive to go anywhere and I found drivign hurt last time, so def taking it easy this time.

I wish I could go back in time and give myself a slap - last pregnancy I was doing body combat and zuma til 6 months and at 7 months I walked for 2 hours each way for 2 weeks to go over the fields in the snow to get to work. had no idea what damage i could do. I felt fine, just with a bump, until the spd hit :( - though i was also really sick and had the tummy rash thing (unbearably itchy, kept me awake horrific that one! pregnancy is a joy!!

1. ask for help. I'll be asking my mum friends to come round for coffee and a play - and most importantly my mum will probably be taking my little one quite a bit. Maybe to a few things I shouldnt risk - like the baby gym. alternatively i might go along and watch from the sidelines. I'm lucky to have a mum who's just moved 400+ miles to be near me!! also - evenings and weekends, daddy will be on all nappies (though we may be out of them soon) and bedtime duties - which is actually what we do now.

1. breastfeeding/hormones. bit controversial but I wont be breastfeeding this time as it def made the symptoms so much worse. I was suffering quite badly until I stopped, couldnt believe the difference. My LO wouldnt take a bottle so had to keep feeding him til 7 1/2 months. I'll do a week at most with this one, but bottle from the beginning. when you BF you continue to release the relaxin hormone. Also I wont be going on any hormone pills - I was on cervazette from week 6 post pregnancy and I didnt realise it was also having an effect, I didnt try stopping it til lo was 14 months :( wish GPs new more if they'd warned me it was a possibility I would never have taken it!!

My lO is very independent. He loves hugging and kissing me but runs off to play on his own at playgroup - and is playing in his playroom at the moment by himself. It was something I really had to encourage (we went through a few weeks of upset at 9months lol) but he's content now so it was worth it. And it means he doesnt expect me to help him do everything hurrah!x

phew what a long post

Thank you so much fur your response winston and for taking the time to write it in so much detail.

I have just started with a new physio (on the nhs) but at a private hospital - had to beg the doctor to refer me as I'd heard the woman was bit of a specialist. Also just started acupuncture as that's supposed to help - 1 needle right on my pubic bone (embarrassing!) and some ultrasound in the same place.

I'm wearing my belt already and fear I'll shortly be needing crutches again Nearest family is my mil who lives 15mikes away so will try to make as much use of her as possible.

Biggest worry is work, I'm a secondary DT teacher which is very active and full on - teaching in different rooms/buildings for every lesson and karting my stuff around all day long, plus being physically active in. Workshop environment! I got signed off early on in my last pregnancy and still currently on maternity leave. Due back full time in a month(part time refused) but doesn't seem likely as my doctor isn't keen and I need to be realistic about what I can actually do! I walked 1/2mile today really slooowly and was agony. Sigh.

Thanks again for your message and good luck to everyone

hey calmisthemantra - sorry to hear its so bad. DOnt feel guilty about work, just have to do whats best for you especially when it comes to your health. WOuld your line manager be able to get you some work where you dont have to get and go, at a desk or something, if you are missing it? probably worth going to see them if you havent, then you can see how bad it is!

I just got a very faint pregnancy test positive line eeek! happy but also really worried about the spd... I will keep this up-to-date on how it goes, hoping it'll be mild for as long as possible!
x

Congratulations winston

Not much else to report here - I've got very good at staying within my limits, so as I've not been pushing it I haven't been in too much pain. When's your due date? You should come and join us in the July 2013 antenatal thread!

The doctor has signed me off for 3 months and said he would for the duration of the pregnancy, so that's a big relief. my school were really unsupportive last time and refused to do a risk assessment or anything else when I was clear struggling.

Good luck and maybe see you in the July thread