period is back with a vengance!!!

Body: 

just got my period back after 11 months postpartum......this is not good not good at all!! I had no cramps or heaviness before it started it totally took me by surprised and even after i started bleeding i felt perfectly normal but then once I started getting ready for the day and was on my feet for probaly only 20 min the heaviness began...and it radiates all the way through my lower body!! it hurts so bad when I stand up even in posture....will this get better after the first few days of my period or is it like this the whole time? and how long does it take to get back to the other normal that i had started to except?? The tampon really doesnt help any and im bleeding like crazy...I wonder if my first few periods are going to be heavier than normal but will eventually settle out and the prolapse wont be quite so bad. At this point my house is a reck, i need a shower, ive got a yard sale coming up, and i just can't deal with this right now....I can cook dinner either!! all i want to do is lie down which is what i have been doing for the most part. Would walking benefit me right now...Im so uncomfortable I can't even imagine it....my cystocele and rectocele are actually in their normal places. Maybe a different tampon would work better like a super super big one or something??
this really just sucks for lack of a better word.
Is it normal to feel this bad though??
Amanda

After 15 months mine finally returned and it was wicked. I had heavy bleeding/cramping and my prolapses were killing me. I called the gyn and she said heavy bleeding is normal for the first couple of periods as things even out. I can hardly wait to do it again in 8 days. I did have some warning though. My back was killing me the day before. I'll let you know how the second one goes at the end of next week.

Mel

P.S. By day 3 I did feel a lot better.

I wish my period had waited 11 months to return! I'm seven months postpartum and mine returned at 5 months postpartum. It felt terrible!!! I felt like my insides were falling out again which was really depressing since my prolapse (I think I have all 3) was feeling quite a bit better in the weeks previous. I also had no warning of it coming. This month I felt saggy and draggy a few days before my period arrived and now I'm on day 4 and I feel MUCH better. I wore SUPER big tampons during my period and that helped somewhat, but to be honest, it was quite awful both times. However, at least I know now that when it's over, I feel better again. Sorry I can't be more helpful - take care!!!

tomorrow will be day 3 so im hoping for things to feel better by the end of this week. My computer has a virus so I may not be on for a few days but I hope people will keep posting their experiences with this...ill check when I can.
thanks for the responses girls it is the worst feeling of my life....I dont remember feeling this bad after I had the baby although Im sure I did at some point. I hope its not like this at every period for the rest of my premenopause years!! If it is I will deffinately have to do something about it even if i have to take birthcontrol pills to shorten the periods!! this is just not cool.
thanks for listening,
Amanda

Hi Amanda

Re "I hope its not like this at every period for the rest of my premenopause years!! ", I am sure it won't be. However, a lot of women experience heavy bleeding and more pain with periods for a while during perimenopause, before it all gets lighter and shorter, then eventually stops altogether. When I was having heavy bleeds a couple of years ago, maybe for a couple of years, I could see why women who have other gyn problems and don't know much about their bodies would find it really easy to go see the gyn and request a hysterectomy. However, I am so glad I didn't. It was a bit inconvenient for a while and I did have a lot of lower back pain before each period, but once I associated the backache with the coming and going of a period, and knew that it would pass, I was able to befriend it and just nurture myself a bit more for a couple of weeks.

And it does pass ...

L

I just had my 4th or so period, and it was easy. The heaviness eased up after the first day. And I am a very active mom of 3 kiddos 4 and under, I am on my feet all day long.

Oh, and I am tandem nursing and got my period back @ 7 months PP! Bummer!
Liv

my first few PP were awful, and i really felt my POPs....then they got "better", but still quite heavy for a good few days (i've always had heavy periods so this was normal for me).
i mentioned it to my accupuncturist who did her magic, and now i only have 24 hours of heavy--then light for a few days. huge difference.

but definately do think the first few back are their own thing. now, i don't even notice my POPs before, so no idea they are coming!

I might have to try acupuncture!! I am on day 4 of my period and it is deffinately lighter now and when i stand im not feeling as much pressure. This really freaks me out though....I just don't know how i will survive when I go back to work. I read somewhere on the forums, i dont know if it was on this thread since i cant lookback right now ,but someone said they went back to working 12hours a day sometimes on their feet without much problem and that makes me feel so much better!!! I don't know what i will do the first few days im on my period but maybe by then the heaviness wont be as bad!! thanks everyone for your responses.
Amanda

i keep meaning to start a thread about working, to hear others' experiences of it...

what kind of work do you do? is it very physical? standing all day? sitting a lot?
when do you go back? full time? part time?

I would have faith you will be fine. keep pulling back into the posture, firebreath and nauli in the bathroom, and go for walks on your break. if you sit, really pay attention to sitting posture. try to change positions. at the end of the day at first, rest your body. at first i lay down after work, now i don't feel any need to.

and your periods will probably shift. also, i find the distraction of work helps, and i just don't notice so much. i went back at 6 months PP, and it was good to get my mind off of my body more. i'm lucky in that my supervisor knew what was going on and was very understanding, but to most people i just say my back is hurt. I am clear that i don't lift, and other than that i just get on with it and keep WW with me at all times...

Hey Kiki
my job does require a lot of strenuous activity that I think a lot of people would be surprised to learn about being a hairdresser. I plan on going back in Janurary only part time...so thats good ive got time and I wont have to go back full time. When im at work I have to stand for atleast 4 1/2 hours straight some times longer depending on how busy we are then i should get a break of 30min. I am constantly standing with my hands up in the hair lifting blow dryers and clippers....kids are a whole other story because the chair sometimes wont go high enough for me to comfortably cut their hair without bending over plus you have to really wrestle them sometimes and the parents seem to expect me to lift them in and out of the chair....other than that I will have to bend over to shampoo hair....sweeping hair is a pain but wont be too bad sense we have a floor vacuum sucker thing that sucks it all up so you don't have to bend over...I dont think lifting will be too big of a problem though I can have others lift the product boxes when they come in or i could just push or drag them on the ground to where i need them. Overall its deffinately do able i think but I will have to get some really comfortable shoes....this has really caused me a lot of anxiety thinking about going back to work though....im thinking about going back to school next fall just so i can start on a degree that will let me have a sitting job...standing on your feet is just so hard on your body....
I would deffinately love to hear what others have done when they went back to work and what kind of work they do!
Amanda

You know this may sound really obvious, but are you taking ibuprofen? I found that I have to take advil a few days in advance of getting my period. 2 every 4 hours. It does a number on my digestion, but it sure helps with the pain. You may want to try acupuncture too. I can't imagine being a stylist with POP and a nasty period. You're so strong though. You'll be fine!

I havent tried ibprofen...I will nurse for only a few more months so next time I get my period I might try that...I thought about it this time but I didn't think it would be any good for the heaviness but who knows its worth a try! Ill just continue with all the things i have learned here and maybe things will get a lot better to where even my periods arent too bad...?? honestly though the way i have felt the last few days I welcome the old feeling of my pops back with open arms!! :D I was literally crawling in the floor after standing for only a few min at a time..not to freak anybody out...sry
Amanda

So sorry you are going through this- my only period in 6 years (that ended up being an early miscarriage) was really hard on my body. My whole body. My cramps were out of this world- I was exhausted- my back ached- and it felt like the bottom was going to drop out of my perineum. I got in bed and did not get out for an entire day. So yes I would have called in sick for work.
but after 3 days of wearing tampons 24 hours day and night my prolapse actually felt smaller than baseline.
So then there is this little issue that sometimes comes up about breastfeeding and prolapse and I have read everyone's response with great interest in this regard. Having a period makes prolapse more uncomfortable- plain and simple.
So the recommendation that prolapse would be better/ heal better if you stop breastfeeding is no good. I know I sound like a broken record about it all- and you guys probably think I am some breastfeeding fanatic- but oh well- it is what I think about.

for comfort measures I like to use heat and cold -
there is a product called wombstringe that is an herbal tincture that helps as well-

Hi Amanda

Whoops! When I first read, "when they come in or i could just push or drag them on the ground to where i need them. " I thought you meant kids who wouldn't climb up in the chair!!

L ;-)

haha too funny...sorry if I didn't word that too well the product boxes, not the kids!haha
by the way my period stopped saturday and became much lighter the day beore..so it only lasted about 5 days which I find surprising since they use to last atleast 7 days...maybe the nursing is helping still! My pops feel back to normal too. Thanks for the encouraging words!
Amanda