physiotherapy- muscle stimulation work for any one?and a rectocile question

If you want to try E-stim I think you might want to seek out a therapist that believes in it.
I know you didn't want negative feedback, but as a PT, I have to tell you that I am not convinced that it will be helpful. all it can do is stimulate muscles to contract artificially. useful if those muscles aren't functioning normally on their own. but useless if they are.
that said, I am a huge believer in the placebo effect, so if you believe it to be helpful, maybe it will be. but not if your provider is constantly telling you otherwise.

Hi New Mum

I think Granolamom may be right about the e-stim. As you move through your life you will realise that things change all the time. eg how much effect has the presence of your baby had on your life? Your differently configured vaginal area may be one of these changes. Getting used to, and accepting it how it is may help you to feel better about it. (Easy to say, but not to do, eh?) then if you can make further positive changes you will get an unexpected bonus, without spending the meantime worrying and binding yourself guts up further.

No amount of bargaining, by doing 'something', regardless of its chances of success, is going to make it work any better. Sad but true. Bargaining is one of the stages in the grief process. Have a think about whether this may ring true for you. Many women who come here are showing very definite signs of being in deep grief, and understandably so. If you can recognise these stages in your journey you may have a better chance of moving through them and moving on (which is what 'acceptance' is all about. You will find that the word 'resignation' is often used instead of acceptance, or 'able to live with it and get on with life'.)

I have experienced the discomfort of wanting to empty at night and not being able to, only recently, but it did pass in a few days. Don't know what it was about, but I think stress was a factor. A week later, and I am fine. It does seem to be very persistent for you though. I am wondering if a fleet enema every night for a while might help. I really think that distension of the rectum that lasts for a long time is a real culprit. Allowing your rectum plenty of time to recover its normal shape and dimensions every 24 hours may allow it to work better on a regular basis. I have a feeling that distension of the rectum prevents the nerve pathway that makes the intestines move and expel stool from working.

I sometimes feel like I want to go, cos my intestines are moving around and pressure is building. So I toddle off to the loo, have a bit of a poo and the urge to empty just stops. Sometimes splinting will get it going again, but sometimes it just won't. So I go off and do something else till the urge strikes again.

I feel sure that eight hours with a full rectum while you sleep is not doing the rectum any good, particularly when it might be full for some of the day as well. Not good for the sex life either. Perhaps you could ask your doctor about using enemas regularly, or even occasionally.

Hope this helps.

Any enema experts out there?

Cheers

Louise

I read an article in this mornings paper by two doctors about magnesium.

They say your muscles (and your heart, nerves,and intestines) require this mineral to function properly. They go on to say 2/3 of us don't get enough of it. When you don't get enough you feel wimpy and the effects increase with age. Also, magnesium shortages encourage constipation. Foods that have magnesium are:1. Pumpkin seeds, 151 mg per oz.
2. Cooked spinach: 150mg per cup
3.Dry roasted almonds, cashews or mixed nuts: about 75mg per oz.(about a small fistful.
4. Whole grain cereal (oatmeal, bran flakes,shredded wheat) about 55 mg per serving.
5 Yogurt, non fat, no sugar added: 45 mg per cup.
6. Brown rice: about 40 mg per half cup.
7. Beans and lentils: 35 to 45 mg per half cup.
8. Bananas: about 30 mg per medium piece.

They say, eat as much as you can, and add a multivitamin/mineral that includes at least
100mg of magnesium. Don't depend on a supplement for more than 350 mg though, as the
concentrated hit of magnesium you get from bigger doses can cause kidney trouble.

I know I have suffered from chronic constipation until I upped my magnesium intake.

Talk to your doctor first but it is worth a try if all else fails.

Flora.

I'm presently taking vaginal estim treatments through my urogyn. I started it ~ month ago (7 mo post partum) I'm not sure what your problem is.....but with myself I suffered a nerve compression injury during delivery and complete tears of both internal and external anal sphincters (undetected until 10 days post delivery - so not repaired at delivery). My vaginal contraction of the levator ani muscle(kegel)was absent, and now after estim I am able to contract....although weak.

Difficulty with defecation - if you are having levator ani spasms, estim could be effective in fatigueing the muscle and therefore allowing you to retrain the muscles so that you can effectively relax and therefore allow stool to pass.

Also try Metamucil. It's disgusting but if you drink it fast it won't thicken up before you swallow. After awhile you get used to it. It's my "orange Tang" in the mornings. I wasn't able to have surgery when my tears were found (I was and am breastfeeding), my urogyn recommended Metamucil 2 tbsp/day in large glass of water to keep my stools bulked so I would have more warning to get the toilet before pooing my pants. Anyway took several weeks to get used to, but it REALLY works at keeping you regular once you stick to it. I'm not regular, like every morning at 8 am by any means, but I do defecate at least once if not twice daily and basically rarely ever have to splint (oh yeah, I have a perineal rectocele too) or manually assist with defecation.

Good luck

my diet has undergone a dramatic change and that had the biggest effect, along with the WW posture. Around 30g of fibre a day, only one meal with grains (cereal - oats, bran etc) and heaps of vegetables, salad, fruit, legumes etc. We have "light" dinners a few times a week - eg just some vegetable soup. I now feel awful after very heavy meals. I have lost a bit of weight and I now longer have that incredibly full feeling you are describing and don't have to splint all that often.

I also use Metamucil - but the "Fibresure" type as I can't stomach the other sort. The Fibresure is great as you can mix it into your tea or coffee or put it on your cereal etc, but you need to make sure you drink enough water.

I don't have any info to offer on the muscle stimulation. I'm very lucky to have a very positive and anti-surgery physio.

Best wishes

As I've said before, I think flax meal (flax seeds ground - we use a coffee grinder just for seeds) does absolute wonders for flushing everything through. Not to mention the omega 3's. You can put them on cereal, oatmeal, anything. A little warm water helps. I even put them on salads (sans the water). I stopped eating them for a few weeks, and lo and behold, much less regular and even constipation. Started again, and ease again.

Marie

I find that when I strain I feel like I am pushing out my bowel rather than the contents. What works for me is to use a glove and put my thumb in my vagina to stop the bulge and the support either side of the opening of my bowel with 2 fingers either side and then in a more swatting position ( you could use a stool ) or I lean very far forward. Then when I push I am able to empty my bowel.
I don't have a problem with constipation but the walls of my bowel have become like an over stretched balloon. Not from constipation but from stretching from child birth. If I have too much fiber I will go many times a day and that is much worse.

Hi MumofEight

If that works for you, you have found a solution. This may help other women with another option. Thanks.

There are so many factors that can contribute to prolapsed pelvic organs. Straining with evacuation produces high intraabdominal forces which I am pretty sure can cause fascia damage. I felt it happen to me. Equally, constipation means that the stool is not soft and malleable. It doesn't conform to the tubular shape of the (badly supported) bowel. It just spreads itself into a big wide plug. If the stool is soft I think you are more likely to evacuate it easily, but it is no guarantee. I think the effect of fibre is twofold. Firstly it absorbs water, so the stool stays soft, but it also stimulates the peristalsis contractions of the bowel that keep the contents moving along. I have often felt that my bowel was full, but there is little peristalsis moving the stool along, (and out into the shiny bowl!). It is not until the peristalsis starts again that my bowel will evacuate. I think constipation is mostly because of this loss of peristalsis, so the stool is in there for longer, and dries out, which is what the large intestine does best. And for me stress causes my bowel to stop moving. I think it is my body conserving water for the coming fight against 'danger' it perceives is threatening me. Dear old adrenalin, what would we do without it? ;-)

I can eat as much fibre as I can, but if the stress is there, nothing will budge until the stress has passed, which it usually does. I have had to learn to have faith in my body's ability to right itself when the stress passes. Now I have faith in it, the stress of being constipated no longer causes me further constipation!

I guess the secret is to keep up the fibre all the time at moderate levels, so your overall bowel health is good. Then if stress hits you know it is not lack of fibre plugging you up, and you can just drink lots of water and wait it out.

Cheers

Louise

Cheers

Louise