exercises and activities

Submitted by mowoman on July 9, 2010 - 6:11pm
Body: 

I am a 65.5 year old female in excellent health. No medications, no smoking, minuscule alcohol intake, longevity on my side (Mother lived to 92.5 and grandparents into their 80s). So I figure I have at least another 15 years to enjoy. My husband, who is 75.5, and I, use natural health medicine. We only go to a doctor when it is something that we are pretty sure is necessary. My prolapsed bladder and his detached retina are two examples! We are now on our retirement farm with lots of acreage and horses and the manual lifting and work that goes with that. Thus, the prolapsed bladder.

In 1991, at the age of 47, I had a complete hysterectomy, including ovaries .About 1 year ago, I discovered a bulge coming through my vaginal opening and went to doctor. He said I had a prolapsed bladder and gave me the option of using a pessary or having surgery. I chose the pessary because he said if I had the surgery I would not be able to ride horses again and that is not an option for me. The pessary has worked very nicely for me and I have had no pain, infections, etc., at any time before or after I discovered the prolapse.

My two questions are: 1. I had intended to buy your book and dvd to see if I could improve the condition. My lifestyle will continue to be one of outdoor, physical activity. I love it and that's why we chose this style of retirement. Will I benefit at all from the book and dvd since I will not be changing my daily routine? 2. What are some exercises I can do to flatten my abdomen, and strengthen my arm and leg muscles? Would your book and dvd contain help with that? What about using a stairstepper?

I just got approved to join so I'm a brand new participant. There is so much good information here. Thank you.

aza

July 9, 2010 - 6:40pm

Welcome :)
You and Louise will have lots to talk about as it seems that you have similar lifestyles and daily activities. One thing to take into account with your situation and WW is that WW is based upon the knowledge that there is inherent structural support in the female body, and proper posture works to support the organs and prevent prolapse. Having had a hysterectomy, this changes things a bit for you. Have a look in the hysterectomy part of these forums...there will be lots for you to read in there.
My intent is not to sound discouraging, as I fully believe that WW practices can be nothing but helpful for all women. We are not quite sure yet about the long-term help for post-hysterectomy women, though. Regardless, you sound like you will fit right in and I hope you stick around and help us to learn from you as much as you will learn from us!

louiseds

July 10, 2010 - 6:47am

Hi Mowoman

Yes, I am here, and yes, I do lead a similar lifestyle, but we don't do horses. I can ride a bit, but haven't tried it since having POP. Several women have tried it, with varying success, but none to my knowledge who have had hysterectomy.

As Aza has pointed out we really do not know how much benefit Wholewoman posture can be for you. However, we do know that carrying your bladder as far forward as you can will put your bladder further over onto the solid pubic bones, so it is not hanging in space, so to speak. However, the degree of forward positioning probably depends on how the top of your vagina is held up in the absence of the support that kept your uterus in place. You might also find some of the exercises Christine has designed may be unhelpful. Christine has posted about this on the Hysterecomy Forum. Use the Search box to find these posts.

Having said that, Saving the Whole Woman explains pelvic anatomy in a way that will help you to understand better how your body works, and enable you to visualise what is happening in your body, so you will be able to judge better how to use your body in ways that reinforce rather than strain the support that remains for your bladder. The diet recommendations are good for all women, and help to prevent constipation which can worsen rectocele, which you don't seem to have. the clothing tips are also sound because they are based on allowing as much room for your abdomen as possible, which in turn allows your bladder room to stay over your pubic bones as much as possible.

You might also find the HERS Foundation website to be a useful resource, www.hersfoundation.org , for understanding what has been done to your body, and how it affects your body.

One thing I would suggest is to get access to your surgical notes and find out exactly what was done, because that may have implications for exercises you would or would not be wise to do. These details may also be helpful for explaining other symptoms you might be having.

Re tummy exercises, tall, proud, and very female Wholewoman posture gives your abdominal muscles all the exercise they need to be strong and functional because this posture maintains both the pelvic floor muscles and the abdominal muscles at their functional length, and makes them work with everyday walking and everyday tasks. A more more slouchy posture with the butt tucked under makes both the pelvic floor muscles and the abdominal muscles loose because it makes their origin and their insertion points closer together. This means that they are never stretched much and they can never contract enough with everyday activities to maintain and develop their strength. So, of course you will need to do extra exercise to strengthen them. You will find an explanation of these phenomena in Saving the Whole Woman, but of course you will have to do some translating about the other effects of posture on your changed body.

Hope you can learn a lot here, and that we can help you deal with this errant bladder of yours.

Louise

meribelle

October 6, 2010 - 4:39am

Well, I do feel rather out of place here, since I did have a hysterectomy many years ago. I was feeling hopeful, but some of the posts lately have made me doubt that this will work for me since I have had my 'parts' removed. I still feel good after I do the exercises and I like my posture, so I will continue anyway. It is rather like the only way... surgery is not an option, and having some part of me protruding from my vagina is uncomfortable, so I will just carry on with the knowledge that any exercise is better than sitting and feeling sorry for myself. love to you all. m.

Christine

October 6, 2010 - 4:30pm

Hi Meribelle,

Please don't be discouraged! I think this work *must* work for post-hyst women. Logic dictates that, as you say, it is the only way. Your organs must be kept forward, too! You have even more reason for doing so, since enterocele can be so very difficult. How can the organs fall out the back when you are carrying them to the front?

We need more women like you getting good, lasting results before we can scream it to the world that reconstructive surgeons can take their 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th "pelvic floor" surgeries and....(fill in the blank).

You are in the right place - we are all sisters here.

((((hugs))))

Christine