Rectocele & Repairs continued....

[CAZ1958]

Rectocele & Repairs...continuation

Hiya Ladies...
Don't know if this will work, above is the Subject Title
Don't want to lose my friends.
Will come back with a link if poss !!!
Fingers crossed
ZZZ

Nannasylv delighted to hear that you are finally in the system & hopefully it wont be too long before you are able to say your post op :o
Happy great to read your post & something positive to give hope to others I agree with everglade that you are most likely to post when things are not going well. I thought I should share my positive outcome too :) I am now just over 11 weeks post op and I am returning to work on Thursday ( a phased return 2 days, 3 days etc will befull time start of April) and despite all the horror stuff I read about mesh I have no regrets about going ahead with my op for cystocele, enterocele, vault descent I had a prolift mesh total repair and all of my symptoms have been alleviated so far so good x

Maisie - It makes me feel hopeful, when I read news like yours, and I expect others are inspired as well. I can't wait to be told the outcome of the scan (although I still have the fear that (a) they will somehow fob me off again, or (b) they won't fix everything. Isn't it a pity that some are left with only part of the job done! The info I have got from MN should help me get thorough treatment, as I believe knowledge is power, and I now know what to ask.

Hope everyone is progressing (whatever stage you're at!)
Hugs to all.
X

Happy - I think of it as something to look forward to, and hope my DH does too. I think he will be more afraid than I, as he is a bit of a worrier, but we'll see (if I ever get there.

Nannasyl was not an easy journey but u have to be firm & willing to upset folk along the way !!! I attended my GP 3 times & told her I had a proplapse she insisted I didnt & referred me to gyn cons I attended one hospital & waited 8 months for a 2nd opinion & was relieved when I spoke to the cons post op & he admitted that everything had prolapsed and he had lifted it as I felt I was never going to get things sorted , everything I read about mesh was negative but so far so good. Going back to work 2 moro & will keep everything crossed for you x

Hello everyone. Its good to see you have a date to be seen NannaSylv . I got a phone call yesterday to offer my procedure for Friday! They seemed under the impression that I said I could go at short notice. This is not the case as I need to warn my boss off and plan a little! The consensus is I require a straightforward posterior and anterior repair, nothing else, although I guess they will assess at the time. I worry I will develop continence issues when the cystocele is repaired as I have read this can cause urge incontinence. I do hope not. I am suffering from a bad chest infection at the moment which is undoing a lot of hard pelvic floor work .

Has anyone else just has the 2 repairs and nothing else?

Hi Huggy - I went in for two repairs and they only did the posterior. Slightly annoyed (!) as it was the anterior that took me to the dr in the first place. If you are not feeling sure about this then do not go on Friday as you need to be feeling positive for the recovery afterwards as it is a long haul and you will need quite a few weeks off work! XXXXX

Any questions, please ask, and good luck! x

Just wondering how long it was from being referred to operation date for all of you? I'm now at 7 months.....

I'm due to have the two repairs Huggy on the 26th.

What I have noticed is that all of a sudden I have gone from having a bladder that can go without going to the toilet for a whole working day to suddenly having a "irritated" sensation that means that I need to go quickly - I don't actually have to go I can still hold on but it feels irritating (rather than desparate) if I don't go. Is this because the bladder has fallen on the urethra?

I'm still actually on long term sick for my other operations but my surgeron was saying that as my role as a business analyst for a bank is not physical I would be OK to return after 4 weeks. Is that realistic in your experience - it is a desk based role? I would go back on a phased return over 6 weeks when I do go back anyway as I have already been off since November 2010!

Fengirl I have private insurance so 3 weeks but he did say that on the NHS it would be 18 weeks from the date of first being referred by my GP and I was referred by my GP on the 7th February.

HuggyPomBear - that would be great news, if it were me, but I can see that you needed preparation time, and they just don't listen!
maisied1959 - isn't it terrible that you have to fight for the right diagnosis/treatment, and that it takes so long!
surewoman - why didn't they do it all? I have read that , if they don't, the one just detrimentally affects the rest, and why put even more scar tissue anywhere, when it causes so many people more problems? I would have thought doing everything, in one fell swoop, would be cheaper, too.
Ben10HasFinallyLeftTheBuilding - won't you need time to recover, and to get strength back up? I would have thought they would need your brain working fully, in your job?
fengirl1 - have you not got your appointment yet? After the years I've been fighting for diagnosis, I dread it taking loads more time before a repair (if they offer it)!

I saw my consultant in feb and was told he was not free until June. I thouxght that was along time but 7 months is awful.

I've still not got a date yet piplysmelie! It's driving me mad!

I'm lurking, but nothing to post atm - next appt is beginning of May and I'm 'in the system' and still hoping for op in June. Fengirl, I was referred from GP to hospital in September 2010, saw first consultant in Dec 2010, he referred me to physio (ignored me saying I though I had rectocele), that referral got lost. Eventually saw physio in Mar 2010, I think, she referred me on to urogynae quite quickly. Have been backwards and forwards since then, finally got diagnosis January this year. Phew.

Here in Scotland, once surgery has been decided upon it should be no more than 9 weeks from decision, but due to work and DP's work, I have a window of 3 weeks in June when I could have op done. The hold up has been the huge gaps between appointments - unless the consultant's secretary chases them up, which they have been brilliant at doing for me when I've asked, the appts dept seems to schedule them 12 weeks after they've been requested, which is the max waiting time for an appt here!

Nannasylv, glad to hear you are finally getting somewhere.

Nannysylv I'm thinking that 4 weeks is too short but my experience of operations to date has been dreadful involving complications, HDU and ICU. Therefore I have no idea what is normal anymore.

It's dreadful that some of you have had such terrible waits to get a dx and then surgery. I must count myself lucky that my GP referred me without question and I got seen by the right guy.

Ben10 and Huggy - if my experience is anything to go by, I wasn't able to sit properly at 4 weeks, more on one hip for a long time, so I would not have been able to do even a sedentary job (sitting was the most uncomfortable thing over all).

Nannasylv - I was put in to have both repairs done as day surgery and I think that as it was discovered I had a massive enterocele during the posterior repair they simply ran out of time (as the posterior itself took an hour) and I personally think that is the reason why the anterior was never done. Still don't like thinking about the whole op scenario as I found it very traumatic and would NEVER recommend anyone having any of these ops as day surgery. I was made to go home 4 hours after (whilst fainting and vomiting) and had absolutely no follow up at all. Never even got to see the surgeon to find out what they had done and had to fight my own battle to get post op information (which turned out to be a load of rubbish anyway) and am still suffering the consequences now. Having since seen a consultant who knows what he is doing, he keeps people in hospital for at least three days (until they've had a poo!) and demands a follow up consultancy 2 weeks afterwards just to check the patient doesn't have any questions/problems, I could kick myself that I wasn't better informed beforehand, but having never had any surgery just trusted the men in white coats!!!
(makes me feel sick thinking about all of that again - worst experience of my life; felt like some human experiment on a conveyor belt and it has taken a long time to come to terms with what happened , plus the fact that It wasn't done properly and still not 'fixed'!)

From my original visit to the GP (end of July), Referral (end of August) and Operation (beginning of November) that was 3 months in total (12 weeks).

Fengirl - Today I have just had the letter for my pre-op assessment for the TVT for 25th April, operation date to be confirmed (perhaps cancellation??) and I was only put on the list two weeks ago, so I suppose it depends on the area? xxx

Maisied - How was your first day back at work??? xxx

Thanks for all of the answers, although in a way I wish I hadn't asked now..... I was first seen in hospital in September, when I was told i would probably need surgery (cystocele, rectocele and uterine prolapse - probably?!!!) and due to NICE guidelines would have to try physio first. This sells definitely not to be the case for you other ladies. I finally went on the waiting list jan 23rd, but after my GP sent a letter trying to expedite my op they've now decided I need to go to colposcopy first as I had a couple of incidents of spotting (very common in peri-menopausal women). Is it me it or am I being completely messed around? I haven't had a day pain-free for over two months now, my life is completely on hold because I feel abnormal and have no confidence and all I want (and don't think it's much to ask) is to get sorted out.

Was not sells...

Or even seems - v upset and trying not to cry as dd2 is in room.

Fengirl- 3wks from GP to Gyn consultant and 9 wks to date for op so 12wks total, also in scotland. I must point out that I had previously done the physiotherapy route for Pelvic floor (8yrs ) so they said I could skip that stage x I didnt go for the op right away as I took cold feet so lurked on here for a while then made the decision to go for it at 7mth mark, by this point I had noticed a big deterioration in my symptoms xx

Ben10- 4wks Absolutely not !! as Sure says you cant sit directly on your derrier for any length of time and If you read back thru the posts a lot of people seem to take a dip in there recovery around the 5-7wk mark (increase in pain ect) It is around this time a lot of the internal stitches are begining to disolve. This definately is not an easy op, not to put people off. I am glad I had it but I remember when I was told at least 6 wks for sedentary job and 12 wks off for heavy job ( i do a heavy one) and I actually scoffed at the nurse who told me.....well how wrong was I. It is only in the last few weeks that I have been able to feel my cervix, before it was all so swollen in there that you could not differentiate the rim of the cervix at all.
Sure I am with you I remember reading your post and thinking wtf (sorry) but I was so taken aback that anyone should have this op done as a day surgery proceedure!!! I was in for 5 days, 1 day pre-op and 4 days post (until I poo'd and could pee good volumes without any residual urine left in there). xx sorry for the rant but I do feel quite strongly that we need to give ourselves time to recover xxx

Hello ladies,

Id like to thank you for your advice a week or so ago. I went to GP and she confirmed i have a rectocele and a very saggy back wall of my vagina! Nice! She said i could get a pessary if i liked and that it wouldnt interfere with a pregnancy as my womb is in the right place.

She said that in around 10/15 years i will need a repair and that they dont operate til family is complete.

After what feels like forever ttc we are early days into a pregnancy so i hope things dont get too much worse down there! wish me luck!

Fengirl - massive big hugs from me to you!!! I know the feeling when you need a bloody good cry with arms wrapped around you and all you have is three children demanding food, homework assistance, cuddles, etc.etc. You WILL get through all this (you know you will, as you have everything else) and even if you don't have any emotional support first hand, you will find it here, incognito!!! XXXX
I also think cut backs in NHS spending mean they are trying to fob more women off via PF exercises (my new consultant said they didn't make a lot of difference if the vaginal walls were stretched and the ligaments torn). I think the best course of action for you is to massively exaggerate your symptoms and plant yourself in a consultant's office and asked to be 'fixed' right now!!! If you do lose the plot and cry, they might realise just how much this is affecting you!

I know what you mean about having your life on hold - I think I have mentally given up of ever moving on from all this but..... I did recently join a dating website just in case I finally do get 'sorted' one day!!! X xxxxxx

Happy - just to clarify, most people seem to lose their stitches around the 5-7 week mark (lucky them!). Mine had to be surgically removed at the 13-14 week mark !!!!! So, maybe my 'sitting' problems had something to do with my barbed wire fence!!!! xxx

Thanks for the advice. I won't rush back to work but my ESA contributions based ends 31st May thanks government so was hoping to start my return then which would be 9 weeks. There is no point me rushing back. I've been off long enough - since 17 Nov 2010!

Does anyone have any recommendations for a cushion?

That sounds good Izzy

(((hugs))) Fengirl

My consultant said that PFE wouldn't make mine any better. Just stop it getting worse...