Anybody have to have vaginal surgery after childbirth?

[Jacksmama]

Hi, I'll be having a wedge resection of my vagina in a few months to clean up a nasty scar from tearing really badly (forceps delivery - bloody f*ing forceps, they're medieval and ought to be banned), as well as a polyp that's formed in the scar tissue - you can imagine how much fun sex is in our house...
Anybody have this done? How long did it take to recover? I mean, right after, and how long before your bits felt good again?

hi jacksmamma

sorry I can't be any help at all I just want to say how awful for you. I have a small problem down below just 2 weeks post childbirth (its probbaly just normal opst birth bruising) but am quite worried about it. Its such a personal area and you want things to be normal. I feel for you so much. Hope you find some useful comments

I had surgery following traumatic delivery. Was a bit sore for a couple of days (not as bad as post birth) then gave it 4 weeks before trying. Was a bit sore/tight the first couple of times. Things fine now.

Nice warm, don't forget to mention it at your 6 week check! Don't think as I did it will all right itself. - It didn't!

I had some serious tidying up 11 weeks post birth under GA, having had an enormous babe at high speed in a midwife unit where they don't believe in stitching.

It wasn't comfy, but not as bad as post birth. More were the check ups where my (male) gynae was commenting, "oh yes that's lovely and neat now."

Oh thank you all, that makes me feel better. The specialist I saw was very encouraging, she said it would be a week's worth of sitz baths after (and I quite liked those, very comforting after seriously horrible birth), and then I'd have a nice clean seam rather than a nasty great horrid scar inside... I can't even contemplate what it looks like now, everyone who's looked in there has made a comment along the lines of "gah, who stitched you up?!?". nicewarmlippers, I think I read your post yesterday and wanted to reply but DS crawled over to the couch and stabbed the power button on the laptop. If you were the one posting about how swollen things are and how they don't look right, I can sympathize!!!! You just never think your bits could look like THAT... And the feeling of your innards falling out... isn't it lovely??? Do be obsessive about your Kegel exercises, they really help. I had a near prolapse after the above-mentioned bloody f*ing forceps delivery and like you, couldn't stop myself weeing for months until everything got stronger. I also got a device called an "Educator" to help me with my pelvic floor exercises. You can look at getting one at this link www.mobiliseducator.com. Thank you all and good luck nicewarm!!

Bump? Anyone else?

So, saw surgeon yesterday and resection is scheduled for Feb 9. Asked to be put on cancellation list because I'd like this over with soon... please cross fingers for me that it can be sooner, would really like to feel good down there again!!

I'd just like to say that although I have no experience of this at all, so nothing relevant to add really, that I really feel for any of you who have gone through this, or are due to go through it. You have already been through such a lot with difficult births and to go through this on top of it all seems to add insult to injury!

I hope you all manage to make good, swift recoveries and get back to feeling somewhere near normal as soon as possible.

When you read stories of hideous labours and third degree tears it really makes me wonder why cesareans get the bad press that they do. I had one and would have another tomorrow with no qualms whatsoever.

Good luck to all.

Hi Jacksmama - hope the resection goes ok. I didn't have vaginal surgery, but perineal/anal surgery about 8/9 months post birth. Have no idea how the procedures compare but the pain subsided after a few weeks and I did the deed after about 6 I think. All was well, apart from my nerves. Not sure if you used a valley cushion after the birth, but I found this reasonably helpful after my op, I know some NCT branches hire them as they're expensive to buy. Makes sitting up easier. Best of luck.

Thank you Gunnerbean, how kind you are. It does feel a bit like insult to injury... that I now need surgery to fix the damage my bloody f* MW and the lazy OB on call inflicted on me... grrrr... should possibly hop over to the birth trauma thread and vent there rather than here, sorry... but I agree with you about C/S, perhaps they are being overdone in some cases but I think in my case at least, and apparently in others, the pendulum has swung too far and women who clearly need them are not getting C-sections... sigh... anyway - wish me luck.
Ooops, you already did... thanks!!

Hi. I was hoping to hear from someone who has undergone vaginal tighening post-birth, possibly on the NHS. My vagina is loose to the point that I can barely feel anything during penetration, and has been this way since I had dd2 nearly 2 years ago. I have spoken to a few medical people about this - GP (a few times), gynae at the women's clinic, doctor at the GUM clinic - but it has been in a list of other related problems and none of them have taken it seriously. I understand this procedure is different from a Fenton's in that I don't have much internal scarring (all my scarring is mostly from the episiotomy I had the first time round which is, ahem, a bit dodgy to look at, but I can get over it).

This is a huge problem for me because obviously I cannot really enjoy sex, and I also worry sooo much about how it will be perceived by a potential partner (I am currently single, and sex has been rubbish for this reason with the few guys I have slept with in the last year). I know it is not psychological, I always used to enjoy sex, and the pelvic floor exercises worked enough to stop me leaking urine every 5 minutes, but not enough to make a significant difference to the tone of my vagina.

Also, I was researching a bit into vaginoplasty online, and there are some vague references to its having helped people with post-delivery bowel problems. No more info given than that. For the last 2 years I have been aware that there are problems in that area and again, have seen a number of professionals in regard to this, all of whom haven't really listened or examined me properly. But I wanted to ask if anyone could elaborate on the connection?

Many thanks and good luck to all

Hi noumenon, sadly I have no advice at all on vaginal tightening. But I wanted to say about bowel problems, and this may be TMI (sorry - this can all be a bit gross, can't it) I had some bowel incontinence after DS was born, especially when I had diarrhea a few times. That has gotten better with obsessive pelvic floor exercises. I used a device called an "educator" (Google "pelvic floor educator" on U.K. Google, it's made by a company in Lancashire), which helps you focus on where the muscles are. The other possibilty is that bowel probs are due to nerve damage, which takes its sweet time to heal.
I hope you can find a medical doctor who really listens to you. BEST OF LUCK!!!
xxx

Hi Jacksmama, thanks for replying to me so quickly, and sorry for not responding sooner; it must seem really ignorant of me. I just felt so depressed about this I couldn't bear to even think about it for the last couple of weeks. I am reassured to hear that the pelvic floor exercises helped you; I'll keep doing them.

As for my bowel problems, this is definitely going to be tmi, but I kind of have the opposite thing, whereby it's almost as if there's no response where there should be. I'm not constipated, apparently, because I don't have really hard poo or anything, but the involuntary response to touch has completely gone, and I can feel poo right inside my bum that wants to come out, but it doesn't seem like my body is sending the message to expel it :S I usually stick my finger up there in the shower and just kinda pull it out (:S), and I have no problem doing this at all; there's no resistance to my finger. And when I feel up there, it feels anatomicallyy different than before, like my internal organs are kinda where they shouldn't be. One gynae woman basically said to me that I should expect to be changed somewhat after having kids, and as long as it's functional, to get over it. It's also really hard finding the time to continually visit the GP and head off (usually some distance) to various appointments with specialists that take all bloody day when I have a baby to look after. Well, you know this. So I often just put it out of my mind and press on.

What I wondered about was whether it was a weak pelvic floor that's not holding everything up properly, and whether a vaginoplasty might not only make sex worth having but also kinda support everything else so I have a normal bum again .

I also was unaware that nerve damage could ever heal. It has been 2 years since I last gave birth...might it also be nerve damage that's reduced sensation in my vagina? I don't have an educator, but I have that pelvic toner thing - you know, the spring-loaded thing you squeeze together. I can't even squeeze it on its loosest setting :S

Hope all is ok for you - did you get your appointment yet? xxx

Hi again - nope, still on cancellation list, but still hoping to get in before Feb 9, 09.

When I read your post I started wondering if you have a kind of pelvic floor prolapse called a rectocele. Where the rectum kind of telescopes inside itself a bit and drops down into what's anatomically considered the anus. That could be worth checking. I do know the sensation you mean, it's called "incompletely enmptying", where you either have, or feel like you still have some poo left in the rectum down low. It's common with a rectocele.
I think too often medical doctors ignore it when women say that "things don't feel right" and I think that's a big mistake. Most of us are pretty in touch with our bodies and know when something's wrong. Of course they also have to deal with clueless idjits who're turning blue and deny they can't breathe, which I suppose colours their practice a little...
Anyway, it sounds like you may need a whole pelvic floor lift to pull things back up. I know how hard it is to go chasing around from appointment to appointment towing a baby or trying to find sitters... sigh... but do pursue it. The advice to just get over it if things are functioning normally is inconsiderate enough, but the point is, it isn't functioning normally, is it?? You're having to manually evacuate your bowels, that's not right!!
Good luck!! I'll watch this thread, keep me posted!!

hi all. Got my op on 24 November and am petrified.
Will I be able to walk/drive? They are doing a Fenton procedure plus rsection of the scar tissue 'inside' - I tore up as well as perineally.
Will I be ok enought o lift dd (she's 4) and deal with her serious op a week later or should I cancel mine?

Hi - I need more coffee too today!!! DS was very sucky all last night - it seems like he wanted to nurse every hour.... ahhhh!!!
Hang on a mo while I replenish my supply of fully leaded caffeine...

Okay, here's what my gynae surgeon told me for after my surgery, and it sounds a lot like yours: a week of taking it easy, meaning, as much rest as is possible with a baby/toddler, and sitz baths several times a day. She told me I had to take two weeks off work because I have a physically demanding job and she wants as little straining of the pelvic floor as possible. No driving for several days after the OP because of the effects of the general anaesthetic.
I guess in terms of lifting your DD, it depends how heavy she is?
I don't know what things are like for you, dealing with the NHS, if you cancelled your OP, would you be able to reschedule it within a reasonable time frame? Do you have help for after your OP and your DD's?
Keep us updated, ok? You'll be the first to have yor bits fixed, we want to know how it goes!! Wishing yo tons of luck and speedy healing!!!

I've cancelled the op. Went to the pre-op appointment and the surgeon wasn't there so with dd's ops looming I though 'fuckit', I'll put it off till I got dd sorted out.

Hi - what is a pelvic floor lift?

It does feel exactly as you described, like when I put my finger up there (God what a horrible thing to talk about!) there is always some poo - not much - but as far as I can reach with my finger, and it's pretty easy to 'manually expel' :S But I can also feel kind of THROUGH the tissue that there is more poo there...

I have had my GP with his finger up there but I didn't explain this to him, only that I was having trouble pooing and that I seem to have lost all anal tone/sensation. He said it seemed fine and referred me to a consultant colorectal guy at the hospital, who stuck his finger in there for about 2 seconds and sent me packing, seemingly under the impression that I had conned my way into an appointment with him so as to get my anal skin tags removed (this appt. was supposed to be with a female consultant and I was soooo distressed about the whole thing I probably wasn't being very clear, but the guy was a dick anyhow).

Since then I've seen the gynae woman at the women's clinic supposedly about both the bum probs (which the GP said they would know more about if it was childbirth related) and my loose vag. She was nice enough but didn't examine me properly imo. I also saw a doctor at a private clinic to ask if they could remove my skin tags, which, as you can imagine, are unsightly and HIGHLY embarrassing - you can imagine what sex is like for me: lights off, pelvic floor clenched like mad hoping one or both of us might feel something.... It's gotten to the point that I don't even want to sleep with anyone due to sheer embarrassment.

So after reading your message I think I might go back to the GP and tell him I suspect this reticole lark and could he please refer me to a different consultant - do you think if it is that that they might tighten up the old vag at the same time, and maybe remove the skin tags while they're at it? I would do just about anything to be able to have normal sex again. Please elaborate on the pelvic floor lift - I assume this is a different thing from a fenton's procedure? xxxxx

retocele*

Hi noumie - I just briefly poked my head into MN, we're in Seattle this weekend, and we're just about to go out, but we'll be home again tomorrow and I'll send you all the info I have on rectoceles etc. If you want you can CAT me and maybe we can email if you're shy about posting more details on here - personally I think you're a brave soul for putting it on MN for all to see!! Talk to you tomorrow, k? (Oh, by the way, I'm in the Pacific Time Zone so I'm always 8 hours behind you.)
Have a good rest of the weekend!

Oh hey Well, hope you had a great weekend! You are, it would seem, as addicted to the net as I am.

I'm actually not bothered about airing all this for all to read - noumenon isn't my real name ;) - as I kinda think the more this stuff is talked about, the more empowered we'll all be (haha how terribly pretentious of me!). And maybe someone else will come along who's experienced the same things too

Hi noumenon! So I'm a complete idiot - I posted everything I had on rectoceles on a completely different thread - which promptly killed it (the thread, I mean) - I got a few and "WTF?" and then everyone ran screaming, I'm sure. LOL!!
Anyway, here is the condensed version:
Repair of Rectocele
Wikipedia article on rectoceles
Different types of prolapse
I hope all that helps a little - it really sounds like something you need taken care of.

needmorecoffee - good luck with your DD's op!!! And with rescheduling yours. I hope everything goes well!!!
xxxx

Noumenon have you seen this thread??

I wanted to fix my vaginal lips 2years before...because i know sex is a important to human life. And my aunt said about myotaut. I bought and I used for a week.. Yeah it definately works... Not only my vagina became tighter but also my vaginal flaps also became smaller too.

Vaginal lips getting loosen after giving birth.I thought let me try first dermalmd tightening serum then choose another option.It works well and its tighten now. It helps keep your moist, what I was concerned with.