Gynecologist visit yesterday

Submitted by peacegarden on April 12, 2012 - 11:29am
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Yesterday, I saw a new gynecologist - a female doctor whose card says the word holistic on it. I had heard very *wonderful* things about her from some of my closest - also very holisitic - friends, among them a network chiropractor and a naturopath. I trust these women friends explicitly. dI hadn't been to a gynecologist for about four or five years and having self diagnosed my cystocele last month, I thought I should have an exam to confirm my own thoughts and make sure nothing else was going on.

She confirmed what I suspected (grade 2 cystocele - she said 1 to 2 but I was lying down so how would she know?) and grade 1 rectocele. Fortunately my urethra is not loose (ok - I'll look for any blessings here!) and she said that my tissue looked good - possibly, she said, a result of my good diet (maybe flax seed oil?). She also commented on the large scar left behind by my 4th degree episiotomy 20 years ago.

I took Christine's book with me to see if this doctor had ever heard of or read it. She hadn't, which I guess shouldn't surprise me but did. I truly felt sad. She showed me pictures and told me about my "pelvic floor" and "hammock" which supports all of my pelvic organs. She said that when I abruptly entered menopause last summer, the lack of estrogen made my "hammock" loose and weak. She was confident I would benefit from kegels and talked about the possibility of a surgical sling or mesh. I said the statistics along that route were pretty devastating and she said she refers patients to urologists now and sticks with doing what she likes and knows best.

All of this to say, that even a very supposed "enlightened" woman doctor can be woefully mistaken and misguided. I wish I felt that if I had left the book with her, she would have read it, but I don't think she seemed interested enough.

I wonder how many female ob/gyn's have pop?

Forum:

Surviving60

April 12, 2012 - 12:18pm

Wow - I read this post a couple of times and couldn't find much of anything "holistic" there! Disappointing, but not surprising, and it certainly shows how far there is still to go in this fight. At least you can cross "visit gyno" off your to-do list!

louiseds

April 13, 2012 - 11:02am

Hi Peacegarden

Yes, unfortunately that is often the way. I get all enthusiastic when I find a professional who I think might understand what I am on about. But the eyes just glaze over. It is very hard not to get cynical about it. I have come to the conclusion that it is not worth giving/lending them your book. It will just sit on the shelf. Save it for someone who is genuinely interested.

At least you found this site before you found the new Gyn!

Louise

kiwigirl

April 14, 2012 - 5:45am

Hi Peacegarden, I haven't been on forum for a few months or even this year, until this last week.I could feel your disappointment,having felt and seen similar myself.I'm learning all the time to keep an open mind in my quest for truth and balance.
Hi Louise and Surviving60,Christine and all, Ive been busy since my first grandchild was born last November, and that in itself has been a learning curve and dare I say a hard one, to watch one's child go through a birth not in tune with one's holistic beliefs.Im very proud of the way she handled what came her way, and I think this will help her in the future.She has a very healthy and happy wee boy, whom we all love to bits and is doing everything else as naturally as possible since his birth.
Now to the positive feedback, some time ago I went to another of the chiro's at our practise. I had recommended one of my adult children go to, given his sports related ailments.And then because of my dancing aches and pains I decided to go to him as well , on good feedback from 2 of my family,now going to him (now its 4 lol).As I got use to him and found him to be quite open, I eventually told him about my pop and WW.He asked if he could borrow my book.I said hmm well It's all Ive got and I don't want to be without it long or at all, and he said...Im travelling to USA and I will read it en route! And give it back to you next visit.And he did! His verdict....it made a lot of sense, he just had 2 questions for me to answer about it...as our visits are very short and he is very busy, I replied that I would give the answers next visit(following week).Now Im not the most confident at explaining to the qualified, about stuff Im only just getting to grips with myself(not eloquent). Suffice to say I answered perfectly and he was impressed. But I was even more impressed when he said he had told a few female patients about the posture and weeks later rang me for the name of the book and website address.By the way, he gave me a link to read about that he was interested in, so we both kept an open mind about each others findings.
I should have posted this later last year, but life has been very busy.I've recently started coming back reading the latest posts.My pop got quite bad,as my daughter needed physical help for a few months, and I wanted to protect her body more than mine and was soo tried ,that's all I could cope with on top of Christmas and birthdays.
A few weeks ago I pushed myself back to doing the first yoga wheel exercises, and am now seeing small improvements, and oh the relief! I can now see that the posture is more natural on me (I think and hope).
I see momentum is building for the 1st WW conference next month, which unfortunately I can't make, but Im sure will go off extremely well.
BUT, in September, I am passing through where Christine's Centre is, and Im hoping I can make an appointment with her, even if its a short one.As I only have 1 night there, and may arrive mid to late afternoon.I know I will need to contact you Christine, when I can pinpoint my arrival time more,as I will be touring via motorbike with hubby and friends :-) and I have told them this is my "want" for this trip. Usually I will be quiet and just do what everyone else wants.
Hello to all the new ladies this year,I see there are many, and have read some very sad stories.I hope you all find some comfort here, like I have, and I also take comfort in reading your stories of symptoms I have, and know Im not the only one.
eg how difficult the posture can be to start with, and tiring .But then I read such inspiring stories from other posters diligently doing the exercises most days and posture and so much more , how can I complain,if I can dance eg.I am having a rest from one type though, while I work at the yoga.I can feel my hips are less stiff so thankyou to the poster(it may be you Surviving60) who said the yoga would not only help our Pop but also our joints into old age, and that changed my views about how I approached it.Im doing the yoga approximately x4 weekly. And a much more gentle start than previous times where I ended up at the chiro so much.
Sorry Louise, this should probably all be under another thread title or whatever, but by time Id have worked that out my post wouldn;t have got done.

Surviving60

April 14, 2012 - 6:32am

Hi kiwigirl, so wonderful to wake up this morning to your very uplifting post! The best of luck to you with the wonderful new grandson. It is so valuable for all of us to hear, oldies and newbies alike, that you can have a bit of a setback when you get away from taking care of yourself, but you can make a comeback once you set yourself on that path. Any of us can get discouraged at times, so thank you for that, and keep it up! If there is one thing this journey has taught me, it's to take care of number one. That isn't always possible, as your story points out. The important thing is that we can gain back lost ground. This body change is for a lifetime.

Love the mental picture of you cruising right up to the WW center on the back of a bike. Make this your mantra, Albuquerque or bust!! - Surviving

louiseds

April 14, 2012 - 9:16am

So exciting to hear from you again. You have had a lot happening in the last year or so, haven't you? I am sure you will get through it all OK, and that you will achieve POP stabilisation again. I think you sound confident to achieve that, and rightly so after all you have learned over the years, and how you have been able to incorporated WW methods into your very active life.

Good to hear that you are visiting Albuquerque and the Wholewoman Center. I am sure it will be a worthwhile investment of time, energy and sticking up for what you want out of the trip. Sorry we won't see you at the Conference.

Louise