Anyone had surgery for Stress Incontinence

[golfgirl79]

Hello
I'm 30 years old and just had my second child 5 months ago. A traumatic forceps birth, it has left me with severe stress incontinence... its so bad I am having accidents every time I stand up, walk, basically anytime except when I am sitting down still.

I am hoping to hear from anybody who has had surgery for incontinence. The doctors want me to wait another 7 months before I consider it. I really feel if it was going to get better, it would have by now... I have been seeing a physio and also using eletrical stimulation with no results... I am tired of my life being 'on hold' while I deal with this...

My uro-gynae says he has no doubt I will definitely need surgery, but to wait 12 months til after the birth to give my body a chance to fully recover... I just feel if I am going to have the surgery what is the point in waiting.

He is suggesting tvt, although I have read some horrible things about it. Keen to hear some success stories...!!

Also since I'm only 30, I am worried in a few years time my symptoms will come back (as the surgery doesn't last forever) and then I will have no further avenues, since surgery is sort of the last stop.

I'd love to hear from anyone who can give me any advice or offer personal experience.

This is the worst thing I have had to deal with and having this for the next 50 odd years scares the hell out of me.

Thanks in advance,
Golfgirl79

feel free to hijack i don't mind at all...

thanks everyone for taking the time to offer advice... i suppose it does make sense to wait the 12 months, now that i think about them trying to delicately place the mesh in the right place, i can understand if my body is still going thru changes how it could affect things.... BUT, in saying that, i am just in a dreadful way... have tried the pessaries and wearing a tampon to see if it helps and honestly it doesn't, doesn't make an ounce of difference...

i think my case is so severe that nothing is going to help... i am definitely going to keep doing the physio, for life...

i suppose i am just feeling like i can't keep missing out on life.... if i have the op at 10 months rather than 12 months, is it really going to make a huge difference to the outcome? i feel the timing will make a huge difference to me, in having it that little bit earlier, its something i can countdown a lot quicker, rather than having it next year.... i stopped breastfeeding at 2 months, because it wasn't working, but also because i wanted to get rid of the pregnancy hormones as i heard this can often make things worse... i also have had quite a few periods, maybe 3 or 4.... still nothing is improving... i do find it is horribly worse from about 2 weeks before period... there is maybe a week right after period where it is marginally better...

its just so hard to live like this, to give an example, i went to the movies today and after the movie (even though i had been once during), lining up for the loo was just a nightmare... thankgod for tena otherwise i would have been a mess.... my friends want to organise drinks nights yet all i see is the logistical nightmare of what it would mean after a few wines, i just can't do it...

i know it seems pretty pathetic that i am thinking of my social life, but after having a 3 year old and being pregnant then having aanother bubs, i want to be able to now have some time to myself once the weather gets better.... i don't want to be sitting at home depressed missing out on life in general because i am literally like a leaking tap....

i also have help at home at the moment as my partner is taking time off.... so in a few months time when it has been 10 months since baby, i would have him to help at home...

i completely relate to lack of sleep making things hopeless, but we are taking it in turns to get up to the baby, so every second night i am fully rested... i feel like i am in a good frame of mind to make this decision...

i have another appointment next month with the uro-gyane so i will see what he thinks.... i'd also be interested in the bulking agent injections to perhaps see me thru a bit longer before the op, but when i asked him about these he said they can affect the success of the future tvt, not sure why, i will have to ask.

thanks all for reading.... this has been the longest wait in my life, and i can see myself piling on the weight because i can't exercise really at all.... and the extra weight won't be helping my pelvic floor!

i suppose the plan is to wait til my uro-gynae appointment and bring all this up and take it from there.... i have another six weeks til the appointment...... sigh.

golfgirl you say you've tried the pessaries and tampons. I was never offered pessaries, but did try using a super-plus tampon for a little internal support back when first got prob. Didn't work for me and also when I mentioned this to physio, she said tampon not good as it can dry you out too much if wearing one when you haven't got period. She then recommended the Contrelle Activgard. Do try the activgard. obviously it would prob be good to check with your gynae first if it is appropriate to try, but it really could be a interim solution for you??

I get mine from these people ... hopefully there is somewhere over in Oz you can order it from??

activgard

It can be a bit awkward to position correctly to start with but you can get trial packs to see which size suits you best before committing to a whole box.

hth

I'm sure someone else on thread said they use them successfully too, can't see who as I am in preview mode at the moment

hmmmm i suppose anything is worth a try.... this i going to be way TMI, but i have been having trouble with tampons 'staying in place'... they all want to migrate south... so am thinking that this will happen with whatever i try to use in there.... the gynae when fitting me for the pessary said there wasn't alot of room in there (again, sorry) and fitted me with smallest pessary, so i am thinking it must be my poor muscle strength perhaps unable to hold anything in place.... another horrible situation to be in once a month, barely able to use tampons properly..... it just goes on and on!!

i did try a thing called incostress, which is like a tampon shape but silicone, but that wouldnt' stay in place, but again that was fairly soon after birth (6 weeks), so maybe i should try again and see if things are any better now...

will investigate. thanks :D

Thank goodness you said that golfgirl. During the first few days of my period I can't even hold a mooncup in , no way would a tampon (of any size) stay insitu. I never thought I would be a sanitary towel wearer again but here I am! However I have no problem with keeping the contrelle activgard in place, even the smallest. So it may be worth a try. I have just taken a look at the inconstress and it looks like the activgard would probably offer more support to the urethra.

I'd be interested to hear why the bulking agents reduce the effectiveness of the TVT. This wasn't mentioned to me.

Interesting! I wish I could have heard you girls mention these problems with tampons 2 years ago. I was so freaked out. When I had my first gynae appointment re prolapse/stress inc I mentioned that I was having trouble with tampons "looping the loop". i.e. I'd put one in and then it would either seem to work its way out and/or when I came to remove it, it would have complety looped the loop inside me and be upside down with the string at the top as it were. I thought it might be relevant info to pass on re prolapse/stress inc, but it was just sort of brushed over like I was slightly nuts!!??
Anyhow, the good news is that this has got better. It def hasn't happened for the last year or more. (body keeps recovering and less strain on pelvic floor as youngest needs less lifting. I have also found that I have had to change the angle that I insert a tampon at. It's been a bit trial and error, but your whole shape has changed in there and for me cervix is lower down and of course cos of cystocele prolapse, the front wall of vagina bulges down. If someone had told me back when youngest was 6- 9 months, was I sure I was inseting my tampon correctly, I'd have slapped them and/or burst into tears.
Anyhow, hopefully for you golfgirl, yet again, time and PF exercises could see an improvement in this area too? Bellamy, not sure how long since your LO was born?
Can't believe I am sharing loop the loop tampon stories on-line

lol!!! am so glad to hear i am not the only one that can't keep a tampon in!! i thought i must have been as loose as a goose (?? Is a goose loose?) but when he examined me he commented that i would need a small sized pessary, so at least that was a slight relief that it must be my muscle weakness, not that there is a huge area for a tampon to play in, lol...

Lol @ loop to loop.... hahahha not a laughing matter i know, but a funny term, i like it.

i looked at the activgard and i am excited, it looks completely different to the incostress which is basically just a silicone tampon really... maybe the activgard will help... i have emailed them to ask where i can purchase from.... i am so so so hopeful... i tried the incostress again but it was hopeless... just wouldn't stay put... i also did some online research and read somewhere that this happens in 8 out of 20 women or something like that.... so its fairly common, thank god.

okay am patiently waiting a reply email from the activgard people.... fingers crossed they help, or even if they stay in place i would be pleased with even that small victory!

I would urge (forgive the pun!) you to wait.

I had ds by forceps and was a total mess afterwards. The worst thing was every time I returned home from shopping etc, I'd only have to think about putting the key in the lock and... gush.

Anyway, it really did improve. My life is still slightly governed by "where's the nearest loo" issue and I shall never be able to bounce on a trampoline after three wines and two black coffees, but things really do improve down below after a year.

hi there gramercy, thats great that you have improved.... sadly with my stress incontinence i can't even have half a glass of water without standing up and - gush.... it is extremely hard to have any type of normal life...

anyways everyone i am so excited as i managed to see my uro-gynae, he has suggested (without even hearing that its exactly the plan i wanted to take) waiting another 3 months and doing the physio, then if there is no improvement, having the tvt surgery done.... i said this sounded perfect, and i am tentatively booked to have it done in october.... yay... such a relief that there is now an end date in sight.... i can count down until when this will get better....

best news is he is going to 'do me' as a public patient, which means i am saving about $5-6K as i don't have private health insurance (yet, i am getting it for future use though, just have to get myself organised)...

also for anyone wondering about the long term success of the tvt, he said the longest study ever done is 11 years, and the success rates after 11 years were still 80-95%.... i am so happy to hear this.... i suppose there is every chance it will last even longer than that, its just that a study hasn't been done as they have only been doing tvt's for around 14 years or so...

i asked him about erosion etc, and he said he has seen it, but it is very very rare, he says the figures say 1%, but he actually thinks it is less than 1%, in his experience.

what to do once the tvt loses its effectiveness down the track - he said not to worry about that now, to worry about the issues i am having now, and cross that bridge when we come to it, that he thinks in 10 years time we will be using stem cells etc like they do in other countries to cure incontinence all together.... he said i can't worry about things that may happen in 10 years time, i just had to worry about the things affecting me now.... makes sense.... you can do a tvt again but it may not be as effective...

to anyone considering getting it done i hope this info helps.... of course if you want i can report back after i have it done.

i am just so so so relieved that i only have to life with this horrible condition for another few months.... i get my summer back (im in australia rememeber)

and to top it all off i got my brand new volkswagen golf today (golfgirl), my first ever brand spanking new car, i have gone from a family wagon, to a zippy little euro car and am over the moon.

its been a good week

Hi - newie here. Good to hear all you mums sharing experiences.

I had a TVT and posterior repair last September. It sorted the UI; the operation and recovery were straightforward - even though avoiding lifting things was difficult (my youngest was 2 1/2).

I thought at the time that my family was complete but having the operation gave me confidence to find a wonderful partner. We are now married and I'm now pregnant.

I can find no information at all on the internet about the risks at pregnancy - esp. delivery - after TVT / posterior repair and my consultant has little experience to draw upon as most of the women treated seem to be slightly older - so not of childbearing age.

Where can I find out more? Has anyone out there been through it? I'd love to hear from you. Thanks!

golfgirl , sorry not been back on for a while , RL got a bit hectic. You sound so much more positive now that you have got a date to work towards. do let us know how you get on.
Also, thank you for sharing what your uro-gynae has said, I have found that quite reaasuring. As, I prob said before, I never got to talk to anyone directly who really knew enough to answer some of my queries ....
Did you ask him about removing the mesh should there be a problem? If he had personal experience doing this should it need to be done? or maybe if it needed to be removed 10 years later, how difficult is it?
Although, It sounds like he would probably advise not to focus on something that is viewed as very rare? I'm just thinking as I type here. Hmmm.
I think for me for now, as I am 'managing' my inco quite well with the contrelle, i'm probably going to hold off until I'm not lifting my youngest anymore as I can't get help for after the Op.
oh, yes and with regards the Contrelle Activgard, I really hope that offers you some relief (pun not intended) over the next couple of months. do ask us on here if you have any probs with using correctly ...we're not shy!!
HellnJoy congratulations, that is lovely news! as regards the TVT and pregnancy, maybe it would be good to start another thread to try catch the eye of anyone who has had a tvt and subsequent pregnancy? hopefully there is someone out there.

Another 'loop the looper' here.....thanks for sharing!!

I am having posterior repair in September.

Oh the nightmares of childbirth, no-one tells you at ante-natal classes!!

Taske care all x

hello all....
i tried the contrelle activgard but unfortunately it didn't help... i was excited and hopeful at first, and i tried size 1 and 2 and it didn't help... i still have a size 3 i suppose i should try... when i remove it however it makes me suspicious of whether it was in the right placement... as in if the wings had turned a bit to not be where they should be, and be more facing my thighs... i suppose this could have just happened on removal though.

the latest thing i am trying is a neotonus chair, which uses magnetic waves to contract the pelvic floor muscles... i still have extremely weak muscles despite 5 months of physio, i am beginning to think they are damaged beyond repair... anyways this latest conservative treatment the neotonus chair is my last stop before surgery... i have to go twice a week for 8 weeks, and i have to drive an hour to get to the clinic, so it is quite the committment....!! hoping its not a waste of time... i suppose afterwards i will at least know i have tried absolutely everything possibly on offer...

my surgery date is October 27.... 2 days away from my birthday....

the gynae i saw at the new clinic where i am having this new treatment made a comment that he wouldn't like to see someone my age having surgery, but in 10 years time no worries.... he obviously doesn't realise i am booked to have it later this year... this comment made me so depressed and down... how can anyone expect me to go on like this for another 10 years, i thought it was quite ridiculous and much prefer the opinion of my uro-gynae who has me scheduled in... lol

he also asked what i was doing for birth control, to which i replied with a chuckle 'abstinence'... he looked at me in amazement and bewilderment... i mean is it that hard to work out the fact that i am wetting myself all the time doesn't exactly paint the best picture for sex?? am i such a freak for putting this on the backburner until i am sorted??

i was really down when i left the clinic but have since talked myself out of thinking about it... he doesn't seem to realise what i am going thru.

anyways hope you are still reading, i couldn't find this thread for a while, had to do a special search.

ps i have heard of people getting pregnant after tvt, only thru the internet not in real life.... keep googling, i will try to find it... i think the doctors would definitely recommend a c-section though. even though we only want 2 kids which we have, it still scares me and saddens me to make the decision not to have anymore at age 30....

hi golfgirl
you sound really fed up today.

With the Contrelle, did you make sure that you really squeezed (at least 10 times) and soaked it under a running tap for a minute or so. It swells up a lot when you do this, and won't be as effective if you don't? If it hasn't swelled up large enough, maybe this could explain why it seems to be rotating a bit inside you. It could just be that you need the size 3?
Apologies if you did do this, but when I first started using them, there were a couple of times that I was in a hurry, forgot to do the water thing completely and it was completely usesless! Also at first I would not seem to insert it quite high up enough and thus the wing at the front would not be pushing into the front of vaginal wall in quite the right way to support the bladder neck thru vaginal wall. does that make sense?

i tried the size 3 today but it was just massive and didn't help....
i suppose there is maybe a chance i didnt soak and squeeze the size 1 and 2 enough, i did it alot more today with the size 3 and see what you mean about how it changes...
hmmmmm.
my two little ones are both sick at the moment, we just got over their last cold and now they have another.... i hate being up in the night with a snuffly baby, it kills me that i can't help him. urrrrrgh am so sick of cold viruses and can't wait for summer.

Oh No! I really feel for you and was just willing that the contrelle would work and help ease things for you a bit until october.

Our eldest has been up the last couple of nights ...the first time we've had broken sleep for ages. I am shattered (ha ha ...after only a couple of nights) and was just trying to remember how on earth I coped when they were both younger and I didn't really get a night's sleep for months at a time (or prob 2 to 2.5 years if I'm honest). It's truly exhausting and you are right in the thick of it at the moment with a toddler, baby and winter cold season.
Hang on in there! Be gentle to yourself and remind yourself what a fab job you are doing!

I found that first year with toddler / newborn so exhausting and it definitely takes it's toll on you. My stress inco was worse then and I used to get so low. Healthwise everything took so long to heal. For, example, I twisted my ankle (an old recurring sports injury) when youngest was about 3 months and usually a bad ankle sprain takes me about 3 months to fully recover ....it took 9 months! It's the lack of sleep thing. It's such a magazine cliche that you need your 'beauty' sleep ...but you really do.

Also all that lifting you are doing takes a toll on the pelvic floor. Lifting toddlers on and off toilets, car seats, highchairs and then even carrying a relatively light baby as well is still a major strain on a body that is recovering from pregnancy and is not getting the sleep it needs to heal. Lie down for a quick 5 mins whenever you can ...honestly ...it even helps just to give your pelvic floor a rest from carrying your own body wieght around, let alone that of your kids too.
I found lying down a good way to do PF exercises too, especially at first when they are quite weak.
I think I just want to say "chin up chicken" ...things will get better. You've set the wheels in motion to get things sorted longterm....just got to not get too fed up with the indignity/inconvenience/embarassment of it in the meantime. It really does get you down, I feel/have felt your pain.

back to the contrelle thingie .... I reckon you've got to get hold of another pack and try the smaller sizes again. I so want these to work for you ....I've found them life changing. They are still a bl**dy hassle and inconvenience ..... not fun this last weekend when camping, trying to get privacy in the campsite toilets to soak the damn thing under the tap before nipping into the cubicle ....but hey ...better than a pad on a hot day. ( we are actually having a real summer here in UK this year!!)

Anyhow, as I said, chin up and do come on here for a moan when you need it!

hey just wanted to update you mammamtundu, i had my surgery brought forward to september 2.... which is only like 7 weeks away.... i am excited but also very nervous...

i am having this magnetic therapy thing done (neotonus chair) for 8 weeks, and the doctor is very optimistic that it is going to fix things.... my uro-gynae however is sceptical however said it was worth a shot... so at the end of the 8 weeks if things haven't improved a great deal, i will just have the surgery.... hopefully it all works out okay.

i think if the magnetic therapy (sorry not sure of the official term!) starts to work, then i will try the contrelle again and see if things can be manageable.... i agree, if the contrelle worked for me i would definitely describe it as life changing... only a tiny bit of inconvenience but well worth it... i think i could manage using them for quite a few years actually.... anyways maybe if this neotonus chair helps, and the contrelle is all that i need, then maybe i can cancel the surgery....

the doctor (gynae) where i am having the magnetic chair therapy said he has seen women with problems like me get fixed, or lat least like 80% improved.... sounds good... but i can't help thinking if this is the case then why isn't everyone doing it! also the results of the trials i have read states that 6 months after the end of therapy symptoms can often come back, as you really have to keep doing the pelvic floor exercises.... so this is a bit misleading, as its hard to know whether the women in the trials didn't do any pelvic floor exercises aferwards, then i can see why the symptoms came back, however if they did do the exercises, then i would conclude that the magnetic chair therapy isn't worth it, as the results are only very short term... if that makes sense... sorry i am babbling.

anyways there you go, in under 2 months i will most likely go for the surgery, barring a miracle..... still very scared of the tvt....

just googled it and the proper term is extracorporeal magnetic therapy... most trials i have found have shown a huge improvement, but nothing that is long term.

sorry for the essay!

golfgirl - honestly the TVT is fine , only day surgery when I had it done .
You just go in ,go to sleep ,wake up .
If they offer you ant - sickness stuff take it .
I was sick - but groggy from op ,so not actually that bad .
I've no idea why anyone should say unhappy to carry out on someone of your age ?
And it cures the problem !!!
Good luck

hey golfgirl, I haven't been on for a while and will probably be off line for a bit as it's the summer hols here and i'm away with the boys for a lot of it!
Completely understand your nervousness of TVT ...as we mentioned earler, I think we'd both seen some horror stories on that american site and sometimes I do wonder if I over research and overthink things! But this thread has drawn out some really positive stories of MNrs who have had great success with Op, so that is really encouraging. I know I'm going to be seriously considering it again next year once no more lifting of youngest.
Best of Luck for sept.

I just had it on Monday, local anaesthetic, under sedation, went home at 8pm.

All ok so far, it does take a very long time to empty bladder though, no leaking...yet..! It will take a lot for me to stop using Always.

The bruising, however, is magnificent! I would love to show you pics, it's all colours of the rainbow but mostly black.

noooo!! I don't want to see pics of bruising
rest up! no lifting and all that!!

enjoy your summer hols and check back when you are around to see my update on how i went....

hinnypet when you say its taking a very long time to empty bladder - how long?? even if it took 5 minutes i still think i'd prefer it to what i am going thru now, lol!

thats great that you haven't had any leaks yet.... i am praying for that!! how bad were your symptoms before can i ask...?

about 6 weeks for me to go until the surgery!

Can't rest, have two small people here, one of which has chickenpox and DH works all day, nobody to look after me (don't mind though!!) I just get on with it, piggy backs, carrying, calamine lotion applying, it all has to be done!
However, I think I might have pulled something yesterday, i was really sore on one side. had a nice warm bath last night and it's gone now.

Golfgirl it's taking twice as long to empty, so a good minute.
When you have your op, the nurses won't let you go home until you've "voided" more than is "retained" (they stick a catheter in to take out what's left) and I was determined to get back home to my DC's so I tried really really hard!!!!

I couldn't void at all after my op and was sent home with a catheter and bag ,( top tip - ask for a big bag because they make you drink loads in a mistaken attempt to help you wee and i was up and down all night emptying the b**y thing ).
Went back couple days later and all ok ,bruising had gone down I guess .

Hello - may I join this thread as am a wreck and you all seem to be sensible and know how I feel? Sorry to hijack Golfgirl

Had DC2 3 months ago (forceps). About 6 weeks post birth I started feeling like my bladder was just wobbling around inside me and like I needed the loo all the time. Some UI but not severe. Had tests for infection, ultrasound to make sure no cyst etc and finally consultant who said mild bladder prolapse which she wouldn't recommend surgery on.

No one has really said what's causing the symptoms though (some say irritable bladder, others say prolapse and some that it's just the pf muscles) Have had one physio session and more booked. Doing PF exercises regularly. Some days I think "this isn't too bad I can cope with this" and then others it's like I've taken a massive step backwards.

Am SO depressed about it all. Feel like I can't do anything with the children, feel really old before my time (am 36) and like I'm never going to get better. And, dare I say it and please don't think less of me for this, but I have found myself wondering how life would be had I not had DC2 which makes me feel like a terrible mother.

Is there hope? Will PF exercises alone really do the trick? Docs say 3 months is still early days but it feels like ages to me and I'm really not coping well. Should I insist on surgery and does that correct the sensation of needing to go or just UI?

Sorry for length and all the q's - am so desperate and dh is sick of hearing me go on about it. Feel SO alone in all this.

Hey aycaramba

PLEASE don't feel alone, for the simple reason that you're (sadly) not.

We're all out here with the same/similar issues and ready to share/listen.

I am waiting for a cystocele (bladder prolapse) and rectocele (bowel prolapse) repair op, it was meant to be in September but have had to delay until at least January for reasons I won't bore you with.

I'm 33 but have had it for a while - I too feel alone, I also feel sick and dirty sometimes when I think about it, horrid condition to live with.

I look round at the school gate and imagine all the other mums would have no idea what I was going through and lucky them...it's only reading mumsnet which has made me see differently...there are loads of us suffering.

All I can say is, yes PF exercises do make a difference. Ask to be referred to the women's health physio and they can do some really good stuff. They have special machines which measure your PF level and then monitors it as you go thru treatment and (hopefully) improve. They show you how to do exercises properly too which makes a massive difference.

3 months is v early doors, you must still be full of hormones etc so give it time. Easier said than done but try not to rush to the loo every 5 minutes as that only makes the bladder weaker/more irritable....

Don't feel like a bad mum, many of us wonder what our bods would be like had we not had bubbas. Personally I feel regretful that I did not have c-sections because I am sure my big babies (10lbs 14ozs and 9lbs 10ozs) were the start of the problem. I certainly would not think less of anyone for wondering what if, and anyone who does I would not give the time of day to TBH......so there! XX