Pt 8 (Oct13) Any old prolapse! Uterus/womb prolapse, rectocele, cystocele, enterocele, urethrocele, incontinence, pelvic floor, anterior and posterior repair, TVT etc (994 Posts)

[gottagetthroughthis]

Welcome to thread 8 (again - see below) of a long-running series of posts from ladies suffering from pelvic prolapses to support each other through the process of diagnosis, repair and recovery.

With apologies for confusion in thread numbers - an earlier thread was called part 7 but it was actually the 6th thread.

Here are the previous threads:

Thread 1
Thread 2
Thread 3
Thread 4
Thread 5
Thread 6
Thread 7
Thread 8

Info from BBC Health

What is a pelvic prolapse?

As the muscles, ligaments and supporting tissues in the pelvis become weaker, they are less able to hold in the organs of the pelvis such as the womb (uterus) or bladder.

Gravity pulls these organs down and, in the more severe cases, may appear through the entrance to the vagina.

A variety of problems can occur, depending on where the weakness lies and which organs are able to descend, but in every case there is some degree of prolapse of the vaginal wall, which begins to invert (rather like a sock turning inside out).
Prolapse of the womb or uterus is the most common prolapse, affecting as many as one in eight older women to some degree
Prolapse of the bladder, known as a cystocele, is less common.
Prolapse of the urethra (the tube that carries urine out of the bladder) is known as a urethrocele.
Prolapse of the intestines is quite rare, and known as an enterocele or rectocele.

Symptoms

Symptoms depend on which tissues descend, and how severe the prolapse is.

They may include:
A sense of heaviness or pressure in the pelvis.
The appearance of a bulge of tissue in the genital area, which can be quite alarming, and is often red and sore.
Urinary problems, such as having to urinate more frequently, feeling the need urgently, being incontinent (losing control of the bladder) or, conversely, being unable to pass urine when you need to.
Pain in the pelvis or lower back.
Sexual problems, including pain and decreased libido.
Constipation.
Vaginal discharge or bleeding.

Treatment and recovery

Once a prolapse has developed, surgery to fix the affected organs is usually the only way to cure it effectively.

However, another option is to use a device known as a vaginal ring pessary. This is rather like a contraceptive diaphragm or cervical cap. It's made of silicone or latex, and placed in the vagina to push back the prolapsed organs and hold them in place. Many women happily manage their prolapse this way.

That's good news yalla!

I've finally got my referral for physio through and I'm going tomorrow. My GP appt where i requested a referral was really rushed and i was actually hoping to be referred straight to gynae for an examination and then physio for treatment but that isn't the case.

Will the physiotherapist be able to tell what grade the prolapse is?

Sticking, they might, it all depends on their level of training. I've been to one physio who didn't even do an internal exam, one physio who did an internal and said things weren't too bad, and a third physio (who I've stuck with) who graded my prolapse and picked up my torn pelvic floor muscles. It really just depends on their level of training and knowledge. Fingers crossed you get someone good. How's that gorgeous baby of yours? How's the recovery from the c-section gone? If we ever have another baby I'm fairly certain I will have a section as I really don't want to risk further damage as it doesn't look like my issue is going to get much better

Been meaning to come back and post here for a while. Still keeping on with physio and trying to keep the faith but haven't really seen much improvement. Been using my Pericalm for 3 weeks now but not sure it's really working very well. I find it hard to keep the connection and I don't really feel a 'lift' when it's going. Worried everything is buggered. Have another 4 months to get through before seeing my urogynacologist. I am seeing Prof Dietz who is one of the world leaders in research into pelvic floor trauma during childbirth, so I'm hoping he won't have terrible news for me. I'm hoping I can live with this for the next 10 years until he comes up with a way to surgically replace my pelvic floor. Still haven't been fitted for a pessary but seeing my physio again next week so maybe then. Keen to get it as my DD is getting big and I'm finding it harder to carry her!

Hi smells the physio was lovely! She examined me and asked me to cough so I know she was doing the right things to correctly assess. I felt totally at ease and trust her medical opinion. She doesn't think I have a prolapse! No answers as to whats happened but basically it was always going to go one of two ways after pregnancy and luckily for me it improved. How it has gone from having my cervix next to my vaginal entrance and leak so much urine I couldn't leave the house, I don't know but im very grateful. I knew already that it had improved massively of course but im so hyper aware of how things feel down there now that I do feel changes and they worry me as I remember how bad it was when pregnant. Physio put this down to periods etc although ive not got them back yet.

My pelvic floor in general is weak and I need to take all this as a massive warning to get it all sorted.

Wrt my section, the recovery was great. Certain movements were quite painful but the pain wasn't constant and I was very lucky to be able to get out on walks about 1-2 weeks after. I would definitely recommend it if you decided to have another as I think the psychological effect of regret is as bad as any physical consequences from a vaginal birth that worsens the prolapse. My physio said I made the right decision because the scar tissue from episiotomy wouldn't stretch so could tear, and could tear into muscle. As the muscles in your pelvic floor were torn so badly, it will be such a weak point for you going into Labour again.

You are doing fantastic though smells. Its hard finding time to use a fanjo zapper with a small one that needs your attention every waking minute

Is anyone still around on this thread? Baby is 12 weeks and I think I have a prolapse and need some advice :(

Not, I'm here. What's making you think you have a prolapse?

I seem to have all the typical symptoms of feeling like everything is falling out, feeling like my bladder is still full after going to the toilet, my bowel habits are all over the place and most tellingly, my vagina is full of... I don't know what. I'm assuming it's the wall of my bowel? And it's lying across my vagina. I can also feel the wall of my bladder and further up my cervix seems to be blocked.
I honestly don't know what's going but I k ow it's all wrong :(
I'm wondering if I should see a physio or should I go and see a gyne? It feels really bad, but is it really?
I did pelvic floor exercises all through pregnancy but I feel really stupid. Dh and I can't have sex because it's all so wrong and painful (we've not tried to have sex, but it's painful already)
I tried to talk to the gp about it who was useless and just said 'these things happen, sometimes we just have to deal with it' he was a male gp, I came out and cried thinking, you don't have to deal with any of it. It's my body that's been ruined. I feel so stupid for having another baby. The Dr probably thought it serves you right for having a 4th.
I just feel so crap about it all.

That's absolutely awful from your GP. Are you still under midwife care? Mine could directly refer me to a women's health Physio. If not you definitely need an appointment with another GP. I do think as your only 3 months post partum women's health Physio should be the first step but you might want to see a gynaecologist as well if you can't have sex. Or think about going privately?
In the meantime you can start trying to do pelvic floor exercises, Hab-it online has some pelvic floor and core stability exercise videos that you can stream and that should help start you off but you really need proper guidance to make sure you are exercising correctly, and doing the right exercises for you to give you the best recovery possible. It is still early days so don't panic about what everything feels like and I think it is still possible to have a good recovery. But no way should way just have to accept things how they are- there's certainly lots that can be done. I feel quite angry at your GP.

I just lost my post
It's good to know that there are things that can be done :) I didn't realise in time to talk to my midwife about it, to be fair I was discharged really quickly after birth and they weren't interested in how I was doing at all. They only wanted to know about the baby. It's my 4th baby and I was really shocked they didn't care about my post natal recovery at all.
Were in the middle of a difficult relocation that seems to be taking forever. I was going to go and see our new gp when we'd settled, but am thinking about going private now. So I think I'll start with a physio and then a gyne depending on what they think.

I was diagnosed yesterday with uterine prolapse and then told that it's an 11 week wait to see the gynaecologist at the hospital. What do I do? I can barely walk!

You should be given a list of places you can choose to be refereed to, plus waiting times.

Is anyone around who has had anterior and posterior repair surgery. I'm 2 weeks post op and have questions. Might need a new prolapse thread this is nearly full I think.

New thread

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/general_health/3029810-Pt-9-Oct13-Any-old-prolapse-Uterus-womb-prolapse-rectocele-cystocele-enterocele-urethrocele-incontinence-pelvic-floor-anterior-and-posterior-repair-TVT-etc?watched=1

Hi,
Newbie here, just turned 50, no kids, but just had a partial bladder prolapse :'(

The dear NHS are suggesting a telephone consultation to deal with it.... so I was wondering if anyone knew of a good private women's health gynaecological physio in the Surrey/ Hants area?