What is this? Pelvic pain, pressure, incontinence

[coffeandbookstore]

Turning to the wise community here after a disheartening gp appt this morning.

symptoms:
pelvic pain, burning in pelvis, sensation of heaviness/ pressure in pelvis. Lower back cramps. Rapid pulse rate, some leaking of urine (unusual for me). When I feel inside my vagina I can feel a squishy sort of ball- no idea how long that has been there so may not be new or related to this.

gp seemed stumped, said he thinks it a uti though I’ve had my fair share
of these and it doesn’t seem to fit that. said trace of blood in my urine but not conclusive 🤷‍♀️wouldn’t do an internal exam as said he doesn’t do many speculum exams and would he better if I saw a female
gp!

started the antibiotics and have an appointment with a female
gp in 10 days but I’m uncomfortable and not convinced it is a uti.

any other ideas?

Should add I’m 43 and perimenopausal

You may have a fibroid. I'm same age and identify with a lot of what you say and said to also be peri.

Ask for a scan. When I had my first nhs scan on the basis of looking into periods, it took 6 weeks.

I've had my fibroid nearly 3 years, first sign was numbness of the tummy then increasing pressure in the pelvis. Periods erratic with blood in past in urine. As I've lost weight I'm beginning to think it is raging and have an incident where I'm also really unsure it is a uti.

Prolapse?

Sounds like a prolapse to me.

agree With couple of others…prolapsed bladder

Sounds like the same list of symptoms as me, with bladder prolapse and thrush.

Definitely worth getting a female GP appointment for an internal examination.

I had these symptoms for months. As soon as I rang the surgery was told to take in a urine sample, which of course was negative. I knew it wasn't a UTI have had them in the past. Turned out to be a cystocele,yup, bladder prolapse. I now have a vaginal ring pessary to hold it in place.i also had Vulval eczema, after about a year of agony, could wear clothes,walk with out pain. Went to a private dermatologist.

Couldn't wear clothes, sitting indoors with a blanket over my knees,bare from the waist doing.. to add, sometimes a uterine prolapse,womb pressing on the bladder can produce similar issues..

Sounds like a prolapse. Mine sometimes masquerades as a UTI if I'm a bit constipated

I vote fibroid too. The symptoms fit & i’d be asking for a scan.

Thank you so much for all your incredibly helpful replies. Just back from an appt with another gp armed with your help, who think it’s is a bladder prolapse, front wall. Referred for a scan and to women’s health physio. Have to keep a bladder diary and then they will grade it. She said treatment is just pelvic floor - which isn’t great as I have
always done these exercises and don’t fancy walking around for the next 50 years leaking urine 😖
Anyway thank you all you wise owls 🌼

Just to throw a spanner in the works, if it's not bladder prolapse, ask the sonographer to check for Pelvic Congestion Syndrome (varicose veins in the pelvic region- gross, I know. I have it!). This can mimic prolapse, ovarian cysts, ovarian cancer, bladder disorders, and all sorts of other conditions; incontinence is, in fact, a common symptom. In fact, all of the symptoms of prolapse match those of PCS, though they are different disorders.
Not all technicians know how to look for PCS on a scan. And so many GPs don't know how to refer for this condition if it's diagnosed. They tend to refer patients to gynaecology, which is not the correct pathway. Vascular surgery is the referral you would want, if you do have PCS, because it is a vascular disorder in a 'gynae' region, but not a gynae disorder, which can get confusing. But you would approach Pelvic Congestion Syndrome as you would varicose veins on your legs. Hope this is helpful. I just want to give you an alternative scenario.

Good news on the physio referral.

And don’t give up hope for improvement. If the women’s health physio only ran to telling you to do your squeezes then it wouldn’t be a niche speciality with waiting lists. It’s more like the difference between taking yourself for a jog in the park vs a running training session with an Olympic coach.

Although I had all the "classic" symptoms,as I said as soon as I mentioned the symptoms,go receptionist, MSU, which I knew would always be negative, i was crying with the pain, I took myself off to the local ED, I had had pain on and off for a year, and then solid murderous pain 12 days. Lovely young dr.ct with contrast, cystocele. I had to wait a year for a gynae appointment. Have a ring pessary.i had always done pelvic floor exercises every night in bed for years, I now do them standing up as well. If you get this far down the road, and you have a grade 4, I would say, if you are offered surgery,think very long and hard! I was nursing over 40 years, chatted to the gynae who said yes, forget surgery. I have 2 relatives by marriage, one had a hysterectomy 3 years ago, following year, cystocele, operation, complications,2 more major surgeries,more complications and urinary incontinence. The other cystocele,3 surgeries. Neither took hrt. The gynae consultant said to me,it's the lack of estrogen. I have bad vaginal atrophy,was on hrt oral for 17 years, when we moved new gp refused . I do use vagifem vaginal pessaries. Should it be relevant to you, you can still have sex with the ring! Let us know how you get on.

I’m so sorry to hear how hard it’s been for you, thank you so much for sharing this. I didn’t know they are caused by low hormones, I’m so uncomfortable and on constant painkillers and can’t imagine just managing like this for the future without some more help ☹️

Oh I didn’t know this, what a great analogy, thank you!

Be prepared for it to be thorough. Like internal exam whilst also doing exercises thorough.