HELP prolapse and pregnant

Submitted by princessmummy on March 25, 2012 - 2:15pm
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Hi
im 28 i have one child whos 4 and 1/2 yrs when i gave birth to her u could only see the tip of her head when she flew out and the midwife's had to catch her, im pretty sure this is how i got my prolapse. i noticed something before i got pregnant but i was too scared to go see my gp. but once i got pregnant for the 2nd time i plucked up the courage to go and they told me i had a prolapse stage 2-3 they mentioned a historectomy once i had finished having children. i had a pessary put in at 11 weeks and my ob wants it to say in till im 26weeks. Once i had it in the pain in my back and stomach went which was great. but then after about 2 weeks every-time i would have a bm it would slip my ob told me to just hold it into place with a finger gross i know but needs must. but then i started to feel my prolapse coming back down then it would go back up. i went get it checked to see if my pessary was still in the correct position and it was i was told its probably just slipping past at that moment and should get better as my baby gets bigger. im currently 21weeks now and for the last 2 weeks my prolapse has come bk and is there all the time now not just during a bm i though it was meant to get better but mine did and now getting worse again plz help im scared ill lose my baby

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Surviving60

March 25, 2012 - 3:16pm

Princessmummy - There is a lot of information in your post, and plenty of young moms on this forum who will have good advice for you. I have primary rectocele and have never used a pessary (and I'm post-menopause). What kind of prolapse do you have? I do know that you aren't going to lose your baby, so please try not to be in total panic mode (not that anyone will blame you for that!). Have you had a chance to read up on the WW posture? You'll be fine, you just don't know it yet! - Surviving

princessmummy

March 25, 2012 - 3:26pm

its my cervix that is prolapsed. i dont understand why its gotton worse when it did improve at first i still have the pessary in so what the hell is it doing lol cuz it not holding it up very well and could it be pressing into my womb where the baby is. im mithered to death im wishing the weeks away :-(

Surviving60

March 25, 2012 - 3:54pm

I believe there will be a point later in your pregnancy where things will move back up for awhile. I'm not sure the pessary is helping much at the moment....but I want to wait for the moms to jump in.

granolamom

March 25, 2012 - 4:25pm

hi there princessmummy
I'm sorry you are having to deal with this right now. I agree with surviving60, prolapse is not going to put your baby in danger. so cross that off the 'things to worry about' list.
personally, I never used a pessary but I think you should be able to take it out and reinsert it at will. many women can and do. If I did use one, I would leave it out at night so the tissues can breathe.
also, most of the time, at some point during pg, the uterus rises up out of the pelvic cavity and usually pulls everything else up with it. many of us have a lessening of prolapse for a while when that happens. I dont remember at what point that occurs, my guess is soon for you.
as far as hysterectomy, I'd cross that off the list too. after you've had the baby you can start doing all the work here and managing your prolapse without sacrificing your uterus.

princessmummy

March 25, 2012 - 4:53pm

my pessary is one that is left in for 3 months i go back to see my ob in 5 weeks which ill be 26 weeks then and he wants to take it out permanent. so should i just leave it and see how i go on i don't wanna be a pain and make an appointment over something that may not be a big issue. its really hard not to worry i hate going to the toilet as im scared something is going to be wrong as i had bleeding at the start of the pregnancy which was due to the prolapse as i was knocking my cervix when i would wipe and cause an abrasions. Also im really scared about the birth i was told by one prolapse doctor that my hole womb could come out during birth. with my first u only saw about a 10p worth of her head and she flew out i had no control over my pushing my body just did it. and i tore pretty bad and lost 2 pints of blood. Also i was very ill after which my gps and midwife's kept fobing me of saying i had i virus and later found out 8 days after birth that i had retained products and my womb was servilely infected and was admitted to hospital for 5 days put on an iv and taken into theatre to have my womb cleaned out. so ive lost all faith in doctors. should i opt for a c section i know its not an easy way out and is major surgery but i dont want more damaged than ive already got and i think ill panic during labour incase something bad happens

kiko

March 26, 2012 - 1:02am

I'm a week or so behind you in my second pregnancy, although for now my uterus has been pulled up so my prolapse symptoms have lessened. However, at a recent scan it was noted that my cervix was low (but tightly closed - that's the important thing).

Even though your cervix is low, it is still tightly closed and holding your bub safe and sound inside. And the pessary can't get past the closed cervix into the womb. So don't lose sleep over either of those points.

I think there's a slight risk of the womb being expelled during pregnancy for us all, prolapse or not. You've had a rough time with the postpartum period of your last birth, but wait a while before you decide to go with the caesarean.

From one preggie girl to another - my best wishes.

x

louiseds

March 26, 2012 - 5:01am

Hi PrincessMummy

I can understand your lack of trust in doctors and hospitals after your first birth. You still sound very scared, and like nobody is listening to you on the professional front.

Yes, I am sure Granolamom is right. You are not going to lose your baby if your cervix comes down low, as long as it is tightly closed. The health of your placenta, not the position of your cervix will determine when the baby will come out out. Many women experience a low cervix as pregnancy progresses.

Spending lots of time on elbows or hands and knees will help your uterus move up out of your pelvis as it grows. You may simply have a pelvis shaped in a way that keeps the uterus down in the pelvic cavity, instead of moving up and forward. Some women tend to carry 'in the back' instead of poking out the front. I am not sure why. Maybe it is to do with having a long torso with more room in it? I wouldn't worry about it, but allowing your belly to come out the front by consciously relaxing it and doing inversion and cat and cow exercises to limber up your lower spine and pelvis will certainly help you to loosen up in preparation for the birth.

I can understand your ambivalence about going through another labour and vaginal birth like the first. That fear of a repeat in itself may be curling you into a self-protective c-shape, with a straightened lumbar curve and your pelvis tilted back, keeping the baby inside your body. I can only suggest that you do some meditation and visualisation, perhaps with gentle, calming music and gentle pelvic rocking and circling movements, to help you to be more comfortable with your body and moving it around in a relaxed way. Allow your belly to come out the front, where you will both be more comfortable.

If the pessary moves down and wants to come out by itself I would let it. I cannot see that it can be doing much supporting at this stage of the pregnancy, when your vagina is slowly becoming more elastic and expanding. Maybe your cervix is growing and lengthening, in preparation for the big dilation in a few months, and is not really low at all, just the end of it is lower? If the doctor wants to leave it in until 26 weeks I doubt that it will do any harm, especially if it is moving around a bit.

Seeking out the occasional company of a group of pregnant women who are relaxed about their pregnancies will allow their attitudes to rub off on you, and reassure you about the normalness of your pregnancy, and your ability to birth instinctively and easily. Your body was designed to do this. Just allow it to.

Pull yourself up, tall and proud with a lovely curved spine, your pregnant breasts carried regally. Your countenance will be glowing, even though you might not feel glowing. Celebrate being sacredly full of the wonder of the new life within you. What you are doing is truly wonderful and worthy of celebration.

Hang about. We will continue to reassure you. The obstetrician is there to care for you. If you feel uncomfortable go back and see him. That is what he is for. I don't know where you live, and what are the terms on which you are seeing the ob. If you are not comfortable with him you may be able to find a more personable Ob or seek out a supportive midwife to help you through the pregnancy safely.

Louise

princessmummy

March 28, 2012 - 5:27am

thanks for all the surport ladies my prolapse has droppped quite low just inside the vagina ive spoken to my midwife and she got in touch with my consultant whome wants to do another scan on me next week to see what is going on. im so fed up with the hole situation i dont think ill be having anymore children i dont think i could put myself and my body through this again

kiko

March 28, 2012 - 3:28pm

I think the scan will at least put your mind at rest that your baby is safe.

Sorry it's a rough time. You'd rather be enjoying those tiny kicks and not thinking of prolapse at all, right?

princessmummy

March 30, 2012 - 1:45pm

im waiting to see my consultant next week but im so uncomfortable ive been having trouble having a bowl movement for a few weeks it get stuck as its coming out and i have to sit on the toilet for like 2 hours literately not straining but gently try to go and wiggling about along side this ive had a bruising feeling in-between my vagina and anus to the left hand side ive had a feel and it feels very bruised to touch and l;ike there is a lump inside is this still jus my womb prolapse causing this or do u think its a bowl or bladder prolapse too. i cant wait to have this baby so i can have the surgery to fix my problems and feel normal again

Surviving60

March 30, 2012 - 2:21pm

Hi Princess.....I can understand your frustration, we all can. If you are still considering surgery then I would ask you to please spend some more time on this forum and website, and figure out what it's all about before you pass the point of no return! Go to the Theater tab above, and watch Christine's video called "Whole Woman 101". Then post your questions here as related to posture changes and how they can help. You really need this knowledge NOW, and in the post-partum months to come. Best of luck - S60

louiseds

March 30, 2012 - 9:28pm

Hi Princessmummy

You don't mention doing any 'inversion' exercises, like I suggested on elbows and knees. Have you tried this yet? It will probably be more productive than sitting on the toilet for two hours.

I am wondering if your gut is just moving slower under the influence of pregnancy hormones, or if your stool is hardening and compacting as well? Constipation is a normal thing to happen in pregnancy. Have you made any postural adjustments? Have you made any dietary adjustments to give yourself more fibre and water?

You really have to be prepared to take some action Princess, or things are not going to change. You really have to make the effort and use all the different tools available to you.

Louise

granolamom

March 31, 2012 - 9:56pm

I very much agree with louise

It would be nice if surgery could fix you up good as new after the baby is born but the reality is that the surgery does not work quite that way. look into it and you will find lots and lots of adverse effects that will most certainly not have you feeling normal should they happen to you. and these effects are not rare but more common than you'd like to think. things like not being able to lift more than 15 lb ever again. scarring and pain in the vagina, incontinence (bowel and bladder), not being able to have intercourse comfortably and sometimes not at all, and recurring prolapse.

WW techniques/lifestyle is a bit of work and requires change and attention, but it works without any negative effects at all. getting into the positions louise suggested was very helpful to me when I was pg, give it a try.

the lump/bruising you feel, well, I cant really say what it is but I am wondering if this is scar tissue from you previous delivery?