SPD Sofa - support and advice offered at no extra charge!

[pumpkinpureeandghostlypearls]

I am suffering SPD (for the second time) and just need to vent without driving everyone else on my pregnancy thread mental. Not that they aren't supportive but I still have 20 weeks to go and I don't want to ruin their pregnancies by talking about mine!

Please come and join me so I don't feel so alone, and feel free to share tips if you have any....

looL00, pleased to hear you won't be deserting us! having read that site, i'm pretty certain that i've correctly self-diagnosed. ooh, i'll dig my gym ball out of the attic (or more correctly, send DH up there to get it!)

bagel.. that's exactly how i felt ie knowing someone else understands

i'm wondering whether to just cut out the mw and get a referral from the GP. it can't hurt, can it?

is there another number for the midwifes you can call, perhaps the maternity day unit at the local hospital?
i had to give up driving after about 3-4weeks of things starting, like you said, doing the pedals is agony!

the GP can also refer to the physio yeah, worth a try if your having problems getting hold of a midwife

thanks Kt, i'll give it a go if mw doesn't call me in the morning. quite conscious of getting the ball rolling!

this is going to be a ranting question!!:

ok so i need some advice/thoughts here. like ive said before, last time i spoke to my consultant (3rd opinion!!) i was offered two options, and two weeks to go away think about it, and come up with questions etc.

option 1: induction at 37weeks
option 2: csection at 39 weeks.
(im 35+1 today and see the doc in a weeks time for decision)

now initially i was after the csection, as i truly am scared shitless (excuse my language) of physically pushing the baby out, i have no idea how to do it, the midwife are telling me its possible, but i cant have an epidural (i have a crappy spine), and i have no 'pain free gap' so therefore my brain is telling me its just not physically possible without making recovery from this much longer or not possible.
this is DC3, and i had 1+2 just on gas and air, induced with 1 followed by spontaneous delivery with 2 - so its not like i dont know whats involved and im scared of the pain.

i am now leaning towards taking the option of induction up, but purely because im so damn miserable being in so much pain, so immobile (i am crutches around the house, but cant go up the stairs anymore, wheelchair anywhere else, bed bound basically), that im considering the induction on the off chance that i will get some movement back after delivery.
im just not sure how i can manage through to 39 weeks.
i had quite severe depression with DD1 and DD2 (it was post natal in time line but normal depression, not specifically post natal i.e. i did bond with baby, i just hated myself), and im also worried that either waiting too long and getting more down and depressed now will lead to everything being harder after the baby is born.

so what do the fellow SPD sofa girls think? im drugged up on the maximum codeine for the moment, as the next step up in pain relief is morphine, and im not keen on spending the next 4 weeks completely off my face, as id like to be able to interact with my current children in the mean time! i dont think i can manage waiting till 39weeks without upping my pain relief again, but i think i could manage to 37 weeks on my current pain relief if i dont do anything silly like try and stand up for more than a couple of minutes!!

if i cant make up my own mind, then i will of course go through this with the consultant, as luckily having gone onto a 3rd one, shes understanding and i feel willing to listen and talk to me. but id rather have made a decision so i can get my mind straight in the mean time.

sorry for the rant, hope some of it made sense!

I really feel for you KT, it's not an easy decision and I don't know what I would have done in your position really. I wouldn't like to choose - I've had enough trouble coming to a decision when I only had to consider labour.

Have they given you any indication as to how likely they think early induction is to work?

not really, im guessing they will check the head, see if its engaged at all at my appt next week, doesnt feel engaged to me, mainly as i had a huge leap in pain when she went head down, so im figuring the more engaged she gets i would have more increase in pain given everything.
im figuring the consultant wouldnt suggest induction at 37 weeks if she didnt think we could do it without it taking weeks!
when i was induced with DD1 at 41 weeks it toook a couple of days, but wasnt too bad, but its all different this time around.

ive got waaay too much time to think about this, im going round in circles. im scared to hell about labour, specifically the pushing part, but i am at the end of my tether with the pain and the isolation, immobility etc!

HUGS KT. I'm glad they booked me in so fast, saves me having time to talk myself back out of it! For me, I was more scared about the prospect of what labour/birth might do to me, but everyone is different.

Could you ask how long they would try induction for/whether they would give you a section if you tried and were finding the pain just too much to deal with on top of SPD? For me half of the problem would be not knowing how I would cope with labour + SPD, but at least if they would agree to try then section if you couldn't cope, it wouldn't be all or nothing?

yeah i would that if after a couple of days if i hadnt had the baby they would csection me anyways, as i couldnt cope with that much exhaustion, considering im barely sleeping as it is.

how can they tell how succesful an induction is going to be? i figured it was one of those things where you can never really tell whether the body is going to take to it well.

i cant have the epidural cause of my back, not that id want to really as i dont want to do things i shudnt and definitly injure myself further because of the epidural. im fine dealing with pain, gas and air and pethidine sound good to me, but pethidine was really good for labour when i had no other pain, not sure what effect it would have considering the level of pain i already have.
im having braxton hicks every couple of days and they are killing me (long ones but def braxton hicks) on top of the pain, but all through all 3 pregnancies i had terrible braxton hicks!

hi ktw, if it were me they'd be no way I'd have an induction unless they can guarantee that an epidural is available.And you can't have one. With dc1 I wasn't induced but they put me on a syntocin drip and it was pretty well unbearable, no epidurals as understaffed! So if I have to be induced with this one i'm not going on that drip without an epidural,at least I don't intend to! So if you can't have an epidural I think you're mad even considering induction. It could take 3 days so you're only gaining a week and a half. You'll be in an uncomfortable hospital miles from the toilet. Sit it out for an extra 2 weeks and you're guaranteed no damage to your pelvis.Sorry if that seems a bit opinionated and I have no expertise or experience of induction, it would be my last option though.
have you read the bit about spd on the homebirth website,it's quite positive about the pushing stage.
What do braxton hicks feel like? I've never had them . I thought i was having them when I was in labour with dc2 but I was in labour. I get whole bump pains but I think
that's wind.

good luck again scotsgirl for tomorrow!!

get that gymball out MrsM, I'm off to sit on mine right now

saw the mw this morning and she said i'm ok for a homebirth if that's what I want. Now DH is wavering!

i will look up on the homebirth website, i just have no idea how its physically possible without opening your legs lol!!! i cant get my brain around it!

braxton hicks are (well in my experience) like non starting versions of contractions. they feel just the same to me, they just dont go anywhere, i dont worry about anything unless it goes on for more than an hour.

glad the mw said your good for homebirth, good to get what you want

thanks for the reminder re gymball! i'd completely forgotten about it!

our original plan is for a home water birth. really hoping that remains a plan!

sorry kt, no words of wisdom but Lool00's got a point about induction taking a few days and therefore you'd only be gaining just over a week. i guess its something else to consider

at this point gaining just over a week would be fantastic!

just found out the hospital want to see my husband on tuesday. hes had previous bowel cancer and on his latest follow up CT they found enlarged lymph nodes on his lungs, and hes been getting symptomms. it all points to not good news in my books - i actually work in cancer and know a bit too much about these things.
im not thinking its better to have the baby sooner so that im not worrying like hell waiting for test results whilst pregnant.

oh kt, its a horrible thing to happen at any time but particularly now

why do you feel it will be easier waiting for results with a newborn?

mw's phoned me back. recommended i see GP to get referral because that will be a quicker route. and she said to get onto ebay to buy a support belt. but i do at least have an appt with her next friday!

the physio should give you a support belt, crutches etc to help you move around easier, or at least with less damage to your hips, thus being able to move more.

im not sure why i think it would be better, i just know that im anxious and stressed now, which is being passed onto the baby, and at least when shes out its a less direct share of anxiety? ive dealt with this too many times before, my dads also got terminal cancer, had a year or two left and it took me about 6months to get over just his diagnosis...long day shall we say!

Hello again ladies, I've missed a couple of days on here as I've been writing a long and boring essay!

I'll try a quick catch up:
kt sounds like you are having a bit of a poo time at the moment, I really do hope you get things sorted - can't help you with the decision making as this is my first so NO IDEA about ANYTHING!!! I can't imagine what it must be like for you guys who already have DCs at home?!!

LooLOO Thanks for the advice re: physio, I thought I was right in thinking they could help and would manipulate, but I guess it'll be different depending on the physio's experience etc. I will wait til I see them but I hope they don't just dismiss me... I imagine tht'd be easy to do as I am only 17 weeks and they will probably think I m just being big baby!

MrsM thanks for the link to the PGP website thing. I'd checked it out and a lot sounds really positive. I just think your treatment is really dependent on where you are and who you see.

xxx

i think if i saw the physio again at this stage i would be taken much more seriously, but given i cant really move at all, and we're a couple weeks away from the end, theres not much point!
im lucky in that my DC are in preschool 5 days a week, and the preschool/nursery it literally accross the road from my house, so i can muster up the energy to get them there in the morning, and hubby collects them when he finishes work. also lucky to have a mum who comes round everyday to keep me in contact with humans!

I've got DS at home with me so its actually a break to go into work pt!

MrsS, you're welcome

sorry kt, wasn't meaning to quiz you about your decision, just wondered what your thought process was. how's your DH dealing with things?

i've dug out the support belt from 1st pg. It was intended originally to help with dodgy back last time but seems to be helping now as well. There are benefits of being a hoarder and keeping things 'just in case'!

mrsmiamla glad the belt is helping, hopefuly it can keep you going until you see the physio
dont worry, DH is scared, ignoring it, but i think glad that weve got the appt on tuesday so we can start the ball rolling. im kind of hoping that as we have caught whatever this is early enough to be able to do something about this. just earie for me, a friend of mine whos youngest DS is a month older than my youngest DD, her husband got diagnosed with pancreatic cancer just after their DS was born, and died 9 months later. i know its not the same, as whatever this is, its been caught early.
i hope im overreacting, reading too much into it because of his history, heck id rather be wrong!

had an awful night last night, but was able to talk with DH this morning about birthing plans etc. I think as my brain stands right now im going to take the Dr up on the induction at 37 weeks as i just cant face an extra 2 weeks of this! - and kind of of secretly hope that the induction doesnt take and they CS me anyway!

i've decided to do NOTHING this weekend in a hope that I feel a bit better by monday. Had to go to 3 appts this week and get the mot done on my car which meant getting in and out of DH car which is a stupid hulk of a vehicle with a storage compartment between the door and the seat.So i've had to go out nearly every day and we had a children's party on tues. All too much.

Hugs KTW. I can see why you feel like going for the induction as you've had enough, but if you're so worried about pushing this baby out then maybe that's just more stress and i can't see that you need more stress right now. By the way, what sort of anaesthetic will you have for a section?

mrsM the physio gave me a support belt and checked it was the right size. I do have a carriwell support band which I wear all the time too and is more elastic. I'd like a waterbirth but dc2 arrived so quickly that i think i might be wasting my money getting a pool at home(wishful thinking) and I'd be worried about dc1 jumping in and drowning if I set it up early.

mrsS if my nhs physio wasn't so good I'd have found a private one from the pelvic partnership advice. I'm not sure what the situation is with nhs physio and whether you have to go to your local one but fortunately for me our local hospital does have a good one although she is overstretched.

looloo im doing nothing this weekend too! mots can be stressful, hope the car passes! weve got a kids party this afternoon, its all going on at the moment! hope your appts go well this week

i will have to have a GA for csection because of my back. i think i need to talk with the consultant, i want to have her sooner rather than later because i am not coping at all, but im worried that if i do try and push her out i will end up with permanently damaged hips, not just something which should resolve after the birth.
i hope that if i explain to her why im so torn between the two options, she might be able to suggest a third alternative or work something out...

Hi ktw just realised we crossposted. Sorry you had (another) dreadful night.

And crossed again!

The appointments were all what you'd call last week, and all went well. The car failed but has passed now and i have it back.

I agree that you should talk to the consultant and tell her all your family reasons for thinking about the induction which are actually preventing you from making a decision based on your needs.

This is probably a stupid question, after reading alot of posts, but what exactly are the symptoms?
My riend has had it twice, and spent the last two months in hospial on morphine!
Another friend spent the last 3 months in a wheel chair.
I want to quiz them, but don't want to look daft, as I am no where near as bad as they were!
I am 33.5 wks with second, and had no problems at all with first.
I have had a ruptured disk whilst preggers this time, which seems to be under control over the past 2 months.
But for the past two/ 3 weeks, I have a sort of constant groin strain type feeling, like I can't put pressure on it when standing up, or get off a chair properly after being sat down.
When I get up, I sometimes get a hot sharp type pain shooting across my pelvic bone.
Could this be the start of something? Or am I just being a wimp this time around?
It's not as painfull as when my disk went,and nowhere near as bad as some friends who have suffered!
But, don't want to be rushing around like a mad woman if it sounds familiar to anyone?
See my midwife on Weds, so will mention it then.
Any suggetsions/opinions in the mean time?

Sounds like it could be SPD, everyone gets SPD at different levels, for some people it causes discomfort and slight immobility and never gets much worse at all, and some people have it where it just gets worse and worse, everyone suffers differently, mine is more one sided whereas most peoples is more central, so im weird in that respect!