Possible prolapse

Submitted by Lovingmama on February 24, 2012 - 9:03am
Body: 

Hi Ladies,

I am 25yrs old and a mother to a wonderful 2yr old son. Currently, I am pregnant with my second (3 months along). I have been doing some research to find out if I have some type of prolapse, I had seen my ob ( last year) and asked him after noticing that when I would be strained to pass a stool, I could feel like a bulge( it felt some what hard) in the opening of my vagina( not protruding) but I was startled. He checked me to see if it was my cervix or if I had some type of prolapse inside my vagina but could not find anything. He said everything was in place and sent me home. I am thinking that I might have Rectocele prolapse, I did develop hemorrhoids while pregnant with my first at the end of the pregnancy. But nothing serious, as long as I don't push I do not feel this bulge. I am concerned though because I am pregnant again and am planning on having a natural water birth at home with a midwife. I am afraid that this might become more severe or constant. I noticed yesterday that while I was straining in the toilet I felt like I did not empty out completely and sure enough I felt this bulge again which with a finger I can push back in, is this a type of prolapse? What doctor should I see about this? I do kegel exercises all the time but I wonder if that helps at all.

Thank you for your advice ladies

Forum:

Surviving60

February 24, 2012 - 9:21am

And welcome to the forum. There is much to read on this website, and I'll start you with this article by Christine called "Why Kegels Don't Work":

http://wholewoman.com/blog/?p=118

Your symptoms do sound a bit like rectocele, and of course organs move around all the time. So maybe it just wasn't in a good spot that day for your doc to spot it. First on your agenda is to try and stop any and all straining on the toilet.

Take a look at the FAQ's above and read about Whole Woman posture. That is the focus this forum, and it's all about training your organs to move toward the front, instead of down and back. Pregnancy of course does change things and you will probably hear more from those ladies in the next few days. Meanwhile, use the search bar to look for topics.

Congrats and welcome. Lots of great information and wonderful helpful ladies here! - Surviving

wholewomanUK

February 24, 2012 - 1:13pm

Hi Lovingmama,
Gongratulations on your pregnancy - and welcome! Not much to add to surviving60's wise words. Just a couple of thoughts:
I guess you may have a mild rectocele or rectocele propensity or perhaps if you are somewhat constipated and your stools are large and hard they might project into your vaginal passage when you excrete. Whatever the case, this is a sign to look after yourself to prevent whatever's going on to getting worse and to attain or maintain optimum health and prevent further possible prolapse.
It may well be that as your pregnancy continues things will improve as the uterus rises up and forwards, although not everybody reports this.
Also just to agree with surviving60 - very important not to strain on the loo. That will definately make things worse. Take a look at your diet - and make sure it keeps your digestive and elimination system working as efficiently as possible. I find a little stewed fruit 2 or 3 times a day works wonders for me plussufficient fluids. Experiment and find out what works for you. Also, if you can lean forwards a little whilst on the loo, so your thighs are touching the front of the seat or off the seat. I find it works to just wait for the next time if nothing comes.
There is so much on this wonderful site. Plug in the key words you want to find out about in google - or look at the forum categories - and lots of discussions and suggestions will arise.
If you get interested in pursuing this further I also recommend Christine's wonderful bookk 'Saving the WW' and if you're interested in doing the WW exercises then the dvd's are v. helpful.
Wishing you all the best, wholewomanuk

louiseds

February 24, 2012 - 8:41pm

Hi Lovingmama

I agree with WholewomanUK that you might be a bit constipated. It kind of goes with the territory when you are pregnant. If you had haemorrhoids during the last pregnancy it may indicate that you have had some difficulty in the past with your bowel motions.

Don't worry too much. Your vagina is very tough. The bladder and rectum stay behind the vaginal wall when you have prolapse. They cannot come out. Your cervix may come down further into your vagina and may even come outside your body, but it is unlikely that the uterus will come right out, because it is joined to the inside via the round ligament which start at the sides of the uterus near the top, go forwards, through the inguinal canal in your groin, over your pubic bones under your pubic hair region and embed deeply into your labia majora. It is weird. The function of these ligaments is to hold the uterus forwards.

During pregnancy all the connective tissue and ligaments attached to your uterus grow to accommodate the growth and distension of the uterus. At birth, sometimes the uterus will come right out before the baby is through the birth canal, especially if there are interventions that make the labour speed up or make contractions more powerful, or the mother pushes too hard and in the wrong way, too early. The uterus may even turn inside out, especially if the cord is pulled in an attempt to detach it. There have been obstetricians who do a hysterectomy at that point, but usually the uterus can be repositioned satisfactorily inside the mother, and normal reversion of connective tissues and uterine shrinkage will take care of the rest. The woman may or may not end up with uterine prolapse later in life. We have asked repeatedly on these Forums if there is anyone who has had her uterus come right out later in life and nobody has said yes.

If the woman is not able to rest, undertakes heavy lifting or heavy exertioin in the first few weeks, her endopelvic fascia does not revert properly and remains stretched, and maybe is damaged. This is the sort of situation where a woman can experience complete proccidentia, where the whole uterus comes out and stays out. Poverty , heavy work, and abuse are the usual reasons why this happens. For some women, returning to heavy work straight after work is a necessity or they are forced to do it, irrespective of the effects on their long term health and welfare.

Normally, After we have a baby all the pelvic ligaments sand connective tissue (fascia) kind of go back to their normal size, more normal for some than for others. So these round ligaments will always anchor your uterus to the inside at the front. The uterus is also joined loosely to the pelvic diaphragm, which spans the pelvic brim. This is a loose sheet of fascia and peritoneum, which carries all the blood and nerve supplies for the bladder, vagina, vulva, ovaries, fallopian tubes and uterus in thickened bands (highways) which are also sometimes called ligaments, but are not true ligaments.

In the meantime, control your constipation and all should be well in the future, with some WW help. All the best for the remainder of your pregnancy, the exciting bit!

Louise