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....

whimsi glad to hear he's on his way back and your still safe and sound!

the appt went well, the liklihood of it being cancer is small, more likely to be something else, but the Dr was very nice, reassuring and DH is having a load of bloods done in the morning and hes got to go to southampton (we're about an hour ish away from there) for a small operation (day case) to have a biopsy done, should be in 2-4 weeks time, so im just hoping that we can have this baby sooner rather than later so the dates dont clash! thanks for the concern girls, i too keep telling myself that the baby is going to come out fine, between cups of tea!!!

KTW that's good news. I'm sure they'll change the date if it clashes, you just need to let them know what's going on. Try and get some sleep tonight( or is that a stupid pointless thing to say as obviously you'll try.).

Thanks for the advice re: my physio appt ladies. I think I'll keep it where it is as will prob have to wait another week or so if I change it to the end of the day.

Great big knickers coming up LooLOO though to be fair most of mine are great big ones anyhoo!!

kt I'm glad you had a good experience with your midwife, she sounds really understnding... that goes a LONG way! Really pleased about your DH too.

Whimsi glad you kept your legs crossed,... operation labour commences now I guess??

xx

Hey guys!

I'm so relieved to finally come across other ladies who are in as much pain as me! I'm 24 and this is my first pregnancy. I'm now 35 weeks 4 days. I was diagnosed with SPD about 6 weeks ago but had the pain waaaay before (too wimpy to ask MW for help!).

I had all these ideas about what being pregnant would be like and I have to say I didn't envisage me wanting to weep every time I try to get up off the sofa, turn over in bed or walk anywhere! When am I going to bloom and glow dammit? I demand my serene pregnant lady glow!!

Saw the physio 2 weeks ago and got given a belt and a ton of info and tips. The belt does help a bit but the pressure on my bump makes me vomit!

Been feeling like a bit of a loser really. I've never heard of SPD before and I kept thinking I should be coping with being pregnant better than I have. It's such a relief for me to read that I'm not alone. Although I am really sorry that you're all having such miserable times too!

Feel better already just for being on the SPD sofa!

welcome to the sofa leoni im 24 also (but this is pregnancy 3) i understand the pain your in, we all do i also found the support belt made me feel sick, your not alone, its best to wear it only when walking, as it just really squishes things when sitting down!

have you been given crutches? they helped me move around better earlier on. im 35+6 today so i know exactly how you feel, ive been sofa bound for months!

not too long to go now at least, have you got a birth plan yet?

Good idea kt I'll stick to only wearing it when walking! Not been given crutches. I'm back with the MW next Thurs so I will certainly be asking for some! Even though I don't often get off the sofa.

Yeah I've done a birth plan. It's pretty vague/flexible to be honest. I'm hoping to be able to use the birthing pool as apparently it can be good for SPD during labour? I'm hoping to avoid an epidural or CS but if needs must then so be it. With it being my first its such a huge unknown to me I don't want to put pressure on myself with a rigid birth plan!

Have you had SPD with all your pregancies?

LeoniPoni welcome!! I feel old (I'm 30) and this is my first so I get where youa re coming from with the whole 'feeling like I am being a wimp' thing. I am only 18 weeks though so probably not in as much pain as you... but on the other hand it is scary knowing that I have another 22 weeks of this (nd worse) to go!!!?!?!?!

I am also with you with the crying thing, I don't know if it is just normal pregnancy hormonal weirdness but when I am in loads of pain it jsut takes the tiniest thing to tip me over into a blubbering wreck.

kt/LooLOO/whimsi* anyone else who has experience of these belt things - is it something I should ask for at my physio next week? I am hoping they are really helpful and I'm willing to go with their advice, but I know some physios arent that hot with antenatal work and want to be fully prepared in advance. Any other useful tips/things I should ask for etc??

xx

MrsSenior 30 is not old! Haha I feel about 130 right now! I was struggling with pain from early on but was silly and didn't go to physio so I'd definately recommend going ASAP to get the maximum support you can. I was daft hoping it would go away.

I imagine they'll offer you the belt when you go and tell them you're in pain. I think they are worth a whirl, I like the support it gives even if it makes me feel sick when sitting.

I just got my belt on monday. It was comfy at first but feels less comfy the more i wear it. It seems to be slipping down my back. I only wear it when i'm walking cos the physio mentioned that you shouldn't wear it sitting - so it's not that.

Mine is not so bad on a day to day basis- it's just if I hurt it by separating legs too far getting out of car or have to move quicker across the road when a car is coming and then i'm in real pain.

Didn't have it in first pregnancy.

Tips from physio; put plastic bag on car seat, satin pyjamas in bed, and pull tummy in when standing to activate stomach muscles. (easy said than done when said tummy is so big it has it's own gravational pull)

gravatational

baby brain.

leoni this is my third baby, but the first time ive had SPD, so ive been lucky really, well not so lucky, ive been sofa bound pretty much since 20weeks pregnant, slowly getting worse!
a lot of people have said the birthing pool is fantastic for a SPD delivery, check the availablity of yours, theres only one in my local hospital where i'l be having the baby and you certainly cant book it, so theres no gaurentee you have it. most hospitals will only let you have the birthing pool if you can get in and out yourself, so that if in emergency you need to get out, you can do it yourself. check with your midwife!

mrsS i would say a belt is worth getting (and crutches if you can) from the physio (def from the physio so its fitted properly) as it can help support the hips to keep them in place whilst you walk, enabling you to do it with less pain, like i said, just for walking, physios will advise you to take it off for sitting as it gets all squished and can make you feel sick!

me, well im not sure im going to make it through the night without getting DH to take me up the maternity unit and dragging my mum outta bed to look after the kids!!! really hoping i can just through the night till at least when the kids goto preschool!

kt poor you! You must be feeling really rotten to feel like you won't make it through the night without a hospital visit! I'll keep my swollen fingers crossed for you that you get some relief soon, I feel for you!

How lovely will it be when we can just kick back on the sofa/bed/chair and cuddle up with our yummy little babies and this will just be an irritating anecdote about how men have it easy!

good grief...if 30 is old, what does that make me?? really old!!!

kt do you feel like labour's starting? or is it that you're in too much pain?
i'm pleased your appt went well today for DH

hi there Leoni sorry that you needed to find the sofa but hope you'll find it comfy here

I called up the midwives, the told me to wait until morning and speak to the GP (er would i be calling at 10pm if i could wait...), so i comprimised and called the out of hours doctor, who was lovely but a bit clueless bless him, suggested a bath, i had to remind him that even if i could get upstairs to have the bath, getting in and out just doesnt wor right now! he told me that there would be no point in going up to the hospital as they wouldnt give me anything stronger in terms of pain relief.

i have no idea what to do for best now. i dont think i can make it through the night, but when theres no where to go if i cant...what can i do really? either way ive got my mum on standby, shes taken her phones to bed with her just incase i need her to come round to take care of the kids.

its going to be a loooong night. if anyone else isnt sleeping find me on msn: [email protected] or on facebook for a chat, its not like im going anywhere!!

forgot to add - definitly SPD pain, its not labour at all, its constant, not really increasing, just a lot higher level than before

oh kt i hope you managed to get a little bit of sleep at least. How are you feeling now or is that a daft question?

i got about 30mins sleep around midnight, but that was it. not feeling any better. ive asked for the duty GP to give me a call, i cant face going out to the GPs surgery, and the doc i spoke to in the out of hrs service told me to try complete bed rest now, so i figure that puts me in the fine position of being able to wait for the doctor to call instead of going out, especially since i have the obstetrician tomorrow.
its not the best dr who is on call today, but i can but hope and ask for better painkillers, if i get nowhere im calling the midwives again. going a little bit (well a lot) insane here with the pain, my patience is non existant and im snapping at the kids when theyre being brilliant!!

the out of hrs dr asked if id done anything to aggrevate it, or had anything happend, and sadly i couldnt think of anything, last time it took a leap in the amount of pain it was when she turned head down so that made sense to me.
id wondering whether my tolerance for the pain is decreasing, kind of makes sense since im not really sleeping, so my general tolerance is decreasing!!!

Oh no kt! I was hoping you managed to get a few hours to give you a much needed boost! How horrid. I hope your Dr gets there soon and gives you lots of lovely drugs. How far along are you? Are you seeing the light at the end of the tunnel yet? x

Morning everyone! Hi Leoni and Sassy!

ktw do you think maybe you should be seeing someone who specialises in pain management?You do really sound a lot worse than the rest of us. Hope you're feeling at least OK this morning.

mrsS the physio should give you a belt and some belts are better than others. The one I have you wear over your clothes and I just take it off if I sit down. I wear it if I'm standing in the kitchen and if I walk out to the car. Then I rip it off loudly when i get in the car. If your physio doesn't seem that helpful or experienced I would think about asking the pelvic partnership if there's anyone near you.Going to the physio has made a lot of difference to me, the difference between really nasty aching and those shooting pains which make it impossible to move.I think I must have a different kind of belt from sassy as mine has 2 sets of velcro and can't really slip. it's made by promedics but I can't find it on the website.

leoni I didn't have this so bad in my 2nd pg (even though dc1 was forceps delivery),I'm not sure if it is worse for my 3rd or if I just have to do more.

Has anyone else noticed that wearing underbump jeans can really irritate your pubic bone or is it just me? SO glad leggings are in again.I've just noticed that Blooming Marv have put their satin jamas in the sale.

morning everyone.

You're all making me feel old! I'm 33, and on number 3. had sciatica with number 2, but nothing this bad. I carried on walking 2 miles to work until I stopped at 8 months pretty much. Not because i'm superwoman you understand, but because the bus stop or parking was so far from the office it was sensible just to walk.

I had a big tubey grip thing that i wore either folded in half or thirds, depending on what i was doing.

Interestingly, my physio recommended not to wear it during the day except in exceptional circumstances, so like the day I presented at a big academic conference, and knew I'd be doing a lot of standing. Her rationale was that as the ligaments pack up (I paraphrase), the muscles have to work extra hard. If you let them off the hook with a belt, they don't strengthen, and then you're screwed. She recommended wearing the support at night so I didn't aggravate anything in my sleep. I did for a couple of months, but now it's too uncomfy.

Now I don't really do anything except knock back paracetamol with gaviscon. Knowing the pain should only last another couple of weeks has made me quite philosophical about it. I'm just dreading the prospect of going overdue and having half term with 2 boys!

And another thing! totally agree about under the bump jeans. Ouch ouch ouch. and then they fall down. Clearly designed by a man.

And the pair I had had a label on with all the activities they were suitable for, one of which was speed dating! Actually, maybe 9 months pg is exactly the time to go speed dating. Would certainly sort the men from the boys...

Hello ladies,
I am 15 weeks pregnant with my second baby. I had SPD with my first pregnancy and had physio at the hospital with helped a bit.
I've been have spd twinges since 12 weeks, but yesterday while i was at work my pubic bone seemed to 'ping' (that's the only way i can describe it!). I couldn't put any weight on my legs so couldn't walk and had to be almost caried out of work. I'm very sore today, but can walk. I am currently waiting for an NHS physio appt, but apparently i'll have to wait another 3 weeks. I am so miserable, i feel like I can't leave the house and I have an 18 month old who is climbing the walls!
I just wondered if this has happened to anyone else. It didn't with my first pregnancy, the pain just steadily got worse. I haven't heard of the pelvis/pubic bone just going like that before.
by the way, it's so nice to be able to contact people who are going through it to, as I don't know a single person with SPD and i haven't met anyone who has even heard of it.
Thanks in advance. xx

Hi sara, i know what you mean about the ping, i think if you really, really rest it might improve it, that ping is my sign to take to the sofa whether or not the dc are rioting. Can you maybe invite someone round for a playdate so that your dc can get a bit of excitement without you having to go out?

Hi whimsi, you've got a completely different belt from mine, there is no way i could sleep in mine, but same advice from the phyio about getting the muscles to work instead. That's what all the pelvic floor exercises are for.

Got to dash(!) and get dc2 from nursery.

bad luck Sara. I'd kind of had sore hips, but then had a really busy half term in feb - ironically without my kids. I was out one night with my husband and parents, and as I stood up from the table, totally felt my pelvis go. It hasn't been the same since!

I've tried really hard not to do too much with my kids since - lots of driving to soft play etc. they're quite a lot older than yours though. Good luck.

sorry to hear things are so bad sara - sometimes things can take a dramatic ping out of shape, every now and again i get a click/ping and my pain is worse! it really is hard finding people who have had the condition, let alone a HCP who actually has a detailed knowledge of it!
i dont think i could wear my support belt in bed, mines not very good, it crumples up quite a bit.

i think im kind of getting palmed off a bit, as im potentially 1 week away from induction, if i had more time to go then yeah i think maybe chornic pain managment would be the way, everyone keeps telling me to hang in for the next week, pretty hard to do when i just want to cry!!
i spoke to the Gp on call, he wasnt terribly helpful, hes changed my codeine around, different format of pills, but same dose, you never know it might help. he agreed with the out of hrs Dr that complete bed rest is at least something i can do. not sure what to cut out doing, going to the toilet or to the kitchen to fetch a sandwich!!
the Dr did suggest that since the pain is so bad we might be able to persaude the consultant to bring forward the induction, since we are so close to 37 weeks.
who knows, im just at my wits end, no one seems to want to help with pain relief no matter who i talk to, yet i know theres more they can do. hopefully the consultant will be able to help tomorrow!

sorry for all my pain induced ramblings guys, its a big comfort to know that im not alone