sinking fast

mumtogirlslondon ---

I'm also pretty new to managing a diagnosed and symptomatic rectocele, I posted an update earlier today with more detail in the pelvic health forum. My symptoms have been the heaviness/fullness/poor emptying of the bowel, but also acute pelvic pain episodes and acute lower back pain & wobbliness episodes. The 2 things I've found to help most are 1) adding psyllium to my diet (here in the US it's also called brand-name Metamucil, you add a tablespoon to an 8 ounce glass of water and try to drink it before it gels too much), once a day in the morning and more often if my bowel feels heavy or full. It's not like a laxative that irritates your bowel or causes spasms, or creates diarrhea, it just sort of makes everything softer but more important slimier so that you don't have to strain at all to empty your bowel. Also, when I was in the ER for a very acute episode (lower back pain and pelvic spasms that made me faint on the toilet, felt much like first stage labor), the doctor reassured me that there's no imminent danger if you can't empty your bowel, it's doing no damage and creating no imminent harm just to leave stool there that doesn't come out on its own, and I found that using the psyllium and deciding not to worry about clearing the persistently still not emptied feeling, trusting that what was left in my gut was doing no harm and would come out when ready, helped a lot. 2) The second thing that has helped a lot is wearing a maternity belt whenever I am up and about, to snug and support the pelvic area, provide gentle pressure on my lower back, and to lift excess belly weight off the pelvic area so that its weight is carried by my hips. My old maternity belt (from 9+ years ago, I am much farther from postpartum than you!) was a bit wimpy to support that flabby excess, but a stiff one like the Gabrialla maternity belt really makes me feel so much better. When my lower back hurts I am basically forced into posture just to minimize the pain, and I find the maternity belt nudges me into posture as well. Like you I've only been trying the posture and workout a short time.

Good luck!

alphamom

Hi mumtogirls/fellow 4 months pp mom

I just wanted to say, DON'T GIVE UP HOPE! You WILL improve! I can't comment too much on the rectocele issue, but I can relate to the firebreathing and nauli frustration. I cannot feel much of a "lift" with firebreathing, and when I nauli, I feel everything move up, only to fall back again immediately after. I think when our tissues tighten up a bit more, we will feel more of the benefits.......Granolamom had a hopeful post for me. If you look up my post "I'm struggling...", I believe the last post is from G-mom. She commented that she was very late in seeing improvement, all the newbies that came on after her were seeing great improvements, but not her. She kept persisting, and low and behold, she became asymptomatic!.... I just try to take it one day at a time, and not to think too far ahead - that makes me mental!...Keep rereading the positive posts, you will feel better........I hope some more experienced people will also respond!......By the way I just keep thinking if this doesn't get better, I WILL find a way to visit Christine at the WW Centre for a consult, or call her on the phone - this always makes me feel better!

Thinking of you and sending healing vibes your way,
Janice

mumtogirlslondon,

I was in the same spot as you when I was 4 months pp. I was 38 with a HUGE rectocele and to say I was anxious about it would be the understatement of the century. I kept telling myself I can't live like this. Mine causes pain, spasms, and I have to splint each time I go. Well, I can tell you 4-8 months post partum were the worst of it for me. My pain was constant and so was my worry/checking. I started CBT and it helped me a ton. The pain is made much worse by the worry. Once I got over that and started living my life again things got better much faster. I am also struggling with wacked out hormones(having the baby threw me into early perimenopause). CBT helped me deal with that somewhat too. I am eating a healthy diet with tons of fiber. I still have to splint everyday to completely empty, and by evening I can usually feel the stool backing up again and pushing my rectocele out. It doesn't hurt it is just annoying. I still get PAINFUL spasms that can cause me to blackout but they are much less frequent than they were. The best advice I have is eat plenty of fiber and drink a ton of water. Do the WW work and find some way to distract yourself(I played board games with my 10 year old). I can't lift like I used to or be on my feet for more than a few hours at a time. However, for the most part I feel I have a life that is happy and I can enjoy my children. I still lament that things won't be the same as they were when my son was little, but I have made peace with that and am moving on. As a testament to my progress, I was able to take my kids to the aquarium in Chicago(a 2 hour drive from here) and I didn't feel uncomfortable for about three hours. I can live with that. I hope you find some comfort in this. I wasted so many of my early months with my little girl worrying about my rectocele. I pray the same will not happen to you. You will find what works for you, it just may take some time.

P.S. The women here are wonderful. I moved through it mostly because I knew I wasn't alone.

this is super quick as i gotta go work but wanted to give you a big hug and say don't give up!
4 months pp is still so early in prolapse land. i didn't start having much progress till a bit after then, and it was still really slow....i'm nearly 2 1/2 years on and i still have spurts of progress now, so don't think it can't change as it can still change a lot. not sure where you are--but in the UK they won't even examine you again till at least 1 year PP, and then if you keep breastfeeding they say wait till you are done (though i didn't notice any change when i stopped).
rectoceles are hard. mine was really stubborn for a good year. ugh. diet is my key. if i stay with no diary, no chocolate, and an absolute ton of fibre, fresh veg and fruit especially, it's absolutely fine. deviate and it's not good... i also have to drink maybe 10 glasses of water / herbal stuff a day, and be sure i'm not at all constipated.

i spend a lot of time at the beginning on hands and knees, lying down, and just really focused my first year to be all about healing. i didn't do anything that wasn't about healing. we cancelled trips, didn't go on long car journeys, i didn't lift other than my babe, and just focused on healing healing healing.

personally, i know it's hard, but i'd focus on the actions of looking after you which it sounds like you are, and not worrying about where you are at yet. think of it still as very very early.

I love EFT for getting over anxieties, and i use Bach Flower remedies.
i can post more if you want but gotta run--but big hug to you and just know you aren't alone, and a lot more can change.

kiki

Mumtogirls
i can't remember--do you have a cystocele too?
my cyst was baaaaaad with barely a rectocele. as the cyst got better, my rectocele got much much worse.
wondering if this is a possibility for you?

kiki