Prolapse / anterior / posterior / repair / surgery / recovery / every-type or POP

[MummaL32]

I've started this thread as have found there are hardly any real life threads on this, and there are so many women going through this and it doesn't get spoken about enough it's like it's a big hush secret to which anyone else going through is other then main websites like NHS etc for info but no discussion bored (that I've found ) that are recent!

I am currently 4 weeks post op for an anterior and posterior repair
I have absolutely no idea how I should be feeling at this point and weather or not things are as they should be,

I'll start from the beginning without being to long winded after having my baby 18months ago I prolapsed during delivery after some pelvic floor routines I managed to bring it slightly into check, a few months after birth we went away DH left the suitcase on the landing for about 2 weeks after we returned it was driving me mad so I got a ladder and lifted it into the loft to put it away that lift changed everything the heavy sensation was dreadful I couldn't stand without feeling like everything inside me was falling out, and sitting was no better as felt like I was sitting in a ball,
After a few weeks of it not improving I went to see the GP who said I had in fact prolapsed front and back Yaay! I was fitted with a pessary and given a referral - after 3-4 months of not hearing anything I started chasing the appointment as daily tasks become too difficult for me to manage even walking into the playground to collect the kids I was becoming unable to manage after over 13 months I managed to get my surgery booked in,
The day of my surgery was great the nhs had referred me to a privet hospital as they was unable to see me within adequate time frame (because of covid)
So I thought this was great I'm privet I'll get a better service my own room etc
It couldn't of been further from the truth

Morning of the op I had all my obs done and was taken down to theatre , I remember having some giggles with the nurses before passing out, I was woken up in recovery and instantly the pain hit me I started crying instantly and was given some strong pain relief on IV (morphine) I think. After a while

I was then taken back to my room , but they had moved my room to infront if the nurses station and it has a broken door besr in mind I'm in just a hospital gown nothing on me to cover me as I had a catheter and packing in place !!
I called for a nurse to try and close the door as I felt extremely exposed I was ignored ! I ended up getting out of bed after about 45 minutes of trying to get someone's attention and failing, this was a mixed ward also so both men and women patients walking around able to see everything I had going on, I got up and slammed the door shut I was furious felt absolutely humiliated I got my top half dressed into my own pjs and sorted the bedding out with the blankets ,

The night didn't get much better I was in so much pain I expected this to be like having a baby nope nothing like it !
They was extremely reluctant to give me pain relief even after begging for it, but this wasn't the worse to come.

The following morning of no sleep I had the catheter and packing removed and was told to lay for half an hour before attempting to go to the toilet or move around, so I did lay there and felt the urge to wee so about 45 minutes in I went to the toilet I was able to pee a tiny amount but didn't feel like I had gone the urge was still there, after another half hour I tried again nothing but this time I started to feel like I was having contractions no joke my body was trying to go into Labour or what it felt like ,
I called a nurse in in tears and unable to catch my breath through the pain which was coming in and off every few minutes the same as Labour dose, I asked if this was normal she said yes after surgery and a catheter it can take a while for body to adjust to going to the toilet, I explained I still can't wee, I saw my surgeon who explained what happened in surgery and said to the nurse to monitor how much I was weeing , this wasn't done, I was told I could get my husband to collect me at 12 and go home, before leaving I retold the nurse I am unable to wee to which I was again told this is normal!
I was taken to my husband in a wheelchair and helped into the car and waved off 🤦🏼‍♀️
Half was home the pain became so intense I was physically screaming in pain while in the car my husband called 111 unsure what he should do or if this was right I had a dr call back and explain they had called an ambulance on a cat 1 and they would be there within 15 minutes at the most,
I got into my house and headed straight for the toilet I still couldn't go my body was pushing like it was pushing a baby and I couldn't stop it to which I was able to dribble some wee out but not empty at all, I was taken straight to a&e to which I was told the hospital is under massive pressure with covid cases and I would need to be treated in the ambulance , I had no idea what was going on the pain was blinding
I eventually got a scan on my bladder and they confirmed I had Acute bladder retention to which I was told was at a dangerous level - I was re catheterised and had to wait to see a specialist they trained 1500ml in 30 minutes from my bladder , I was told a normal bladder can hold 700 - 800 max ,
They told me my bladder had gone into shock from surgery and I would have to ware a leg bag for at least 10-14 days to let everything calm down,
It was extremely hard to shower with a bag and a tube coming out of an area that was so swollen / bleeding / and so Sore!
12 days passed and I was taken in for a TWOC (trial without Catheter)
I managed to go to the toilet thankfully Altho it didn't feel at all natural - I spent another week in absolute fear of not being able to wee and it re happening and has constant bladder spasms every time I needed to go to the toilet which lasted another week - I am so worried from all the pushing and stress that I've undone my surgery

4 weeks post op I still feel really heavy down there when I stand , I have no idea if this is normal , I am not able to stand for long at all and I walk like I've wet myself /

I still have a slight bulged around my urethra I have no idea if that's normal I saw a doctor and he claims it is on women who have had children

I can not be the only person who's had this type of surgery would love to know how you felt at this stage

When did you feel better ? Able to do things ?
I am doing very minimal house work but of polishing folding clothes from tumble dry etc
I am not comfortable on a chair sitting up right or standing tho is this right? At this point? No websites tell you a real life truth of how you should feel just that it can take 4-6 weeks to heal 8 weeks for stitches to heal,

Really long winded post and sorry if TMI but I feel like because there is hardly anything on this I would also share what I've been through

You poor thing! That's horrific.
Have a look on Facebook for the Association of Pelvic Organ Prolapse Society (APOPS). Lots of women on there who have been through similar and may be able to answer some of your questions and generally empathise!
It is so infrequently discussed and so damaging to both physical and mental health. I hope you're feeling better soon. Kick up as much of a fuss as you need for the medical care you need

Thanks for the reply, I don't feel as tho I am able to join a public Facebook group with fear of others knowing my own privet health issues

I however can not believe it's not talked about on a site like this feel completely isolating and fear thag this op has failed is absolutely taking over my life

It's a private page if that helps any - none of your Facebook friends will know you're a member or be able to see your posts.

It really should be more widely talked about. I do see it pop up on here from time to time - you could try searching for previous threads, but the search function is lousy!

It takes up a lot of mental space and can cause depression and anxiety. Have you thought about talking it through with a counsellor?

I can’t help with prolapse specific as I’ve not had one but have had a lot of other gynae and bladder ops and like you, was left in a lot of pain after - the biggest op I was on a huge twenty bedded ward, thirty stitches and no pain relief, no buzzer, and 50 metre walk to the toilet (it was a day surgery unit, it was only a few years later that they said I should have been on a gynaecology ward and I should have been given morphine - I wasn’t even given paracetomal) . I was sent home 24 hours post op and then 36 hours after discharge before I got strong effective pain relief from GP and even then only because I couldn’t walk .

I remember other patients with prolapse surgery being in a similar position - have spent endless nights on gynae units unfortunately .

I’ve had urine retention a lot, partly because of anatomical issues but also anxiety seems to cause it with me and yes it’s difficult getting believed . I hit 2 litres once and even then doctor was still arguing with me, it was the patient’s mother opposite me who insisted they catheterise me (she was a nurse on a different ward) as I was bent double in agony . It does feel strange for a while once catheter is out . I found it helped to sit on the loo at regular intervals during the day with my phone or a magazine and to try to consciously relax, if you tense up or push down it’s more difficult iyswim . I found a rurally getting medical advice from someone who knew what they were talking about was nigh on impossible .

I ended up with a diagnosis of PTSD which I’m now beginning treatment for - my op was in 2011! - and got a very long apology and a debriefing from the NHS in 2018, a very very kind (and uninvolved) consultant sat with me and explained everything that had happened to me, over a period of an hour or so . She admitted they’d screwed up enormously.

It might be worth talking to a counsellor as I didn’t for years and it lead to a lot of issues, talking might be a big help . I agree with private Facebook pages for prolapse support too, they can be a huge help, there’s one for catheter support too that I’m on but hopefully that won’t be an issue for you again 🌸 if you were going to complain too, I’d do it sooner rather than later - more likely to get a good response now iyswim .

I hope that’s helped a bit, like I say I didn’t have a prolapse but you’re not alone in having had a horrible experience, very sadly .

Aw bless you sounds terrible ,
I can fully sympathise with the bladder retention it was by far the worst pain ever I was pushing like I was pushing a baby out and was completely unable to stop the contractions I didn't even know your bladder could do this!
I know have to go to the toilet every couple of hours to make sure I don't build back up and I agree I feel like I could have something there the anxiety and stress is horrible constantly worrying, flash backs / could it happen again, absolutely stupid, but unavoidable.
My main worry is that I've caused damage to the repair during this time from the straining and pushing on stitches that was not even 24 hours old, and fact that I don't feel I've got any relief at all from the downward pressure of the prolapse and I can still see a bloody bulge honestly from start to finish this whole process has been horrific and it's still not over I'm praying when I got for my 6 week check he doesn't say it's not worked and I need another op, don't know if I could go through this again x

Sending huge hugs xxxx

If you do want to join a group, I dont recommend apops as its predominantly American abd worldwide users, there is a fab UK group for prolapses for UK ladies only FPOPS UK many ladies going through the same thing

I'm on there I have 3 prolapses
I hope you get on OK xxxx hugs xxx

Hello, just wondering how you are getting on Op, I am 3 weeks post op and feeling like I wish I never had had the bloody operation, had the same weeing issues (worse pain than the stitches), tired and have head spins still - my experience of private hospital (in the Midlands) similarly not that impressive. Do you feel like it was worth it and how did your 6 week check go?

I’ve got a mild uterine prolapse and cystocele and was thinking about surgery in a few years but this thread has made me reevaluate! OP I am so sorry you received such an appalling level of care. I hope you feel able to complain to PALS when you feel a bit better. Thank you for sharing your story.

There was a series of long running threads about 10 years ago called Any Old Prolapse, they were in the General Health section as there wasn’t a Women’s Health section back then. They had a huge amount of useful info but it would be hard going through them all and might be a bit out of date now. I am in APOPs but haven’t looked at it for years now.

I had a rectocele repair about 10 years ago myself, it was successful and has held up completely. The early days of recovery were hard, I still couldn’t sit comfortably when I went back to work at 7 weeks but by 12 weeks I was back to normal. I also had a mild cystocele which wasn’t repaired, they warned me it could get worse without the rectocele to support it but it hasn’t. However I am careful about heavy lifting, do yoga classes run by a women’s health expert teacher and avoid doing too much high impact exercise. For anyone starting out on this journey I highly recommend seeing a specialist women’s health physio, either NHS or private, they can give lots of good advice on lifestyle, exercise etc to stop things getting worse.

So sorry you had to undergo such an experience.I have been suffering from prolapse symptoms- constipation,discomfort/burning sensation in vagina but GP did not take m seriously, decided it was due to perimenopause and hypothyroid.Finally it got diagnosed in October, after waiting for two months for hospital appointment I saw a private dr last week.Will get a scan done soon.
How are you coping up now?I hope you are better.