Introducing myself and seeking help with embarassing problem

Body: 

Hello everyone,
Glad to have found you! I am 37 and have had problems with
prolapse since the arrival of my second daughter 21 months ago. At
first, it was the "bulge" situation (which was frightening and
awful), but that gradually has improved. It comes back, however, if
I'm not careful about lifting, etc., or when I tried to do step
aerobics. My daughter is now getting heavy, but I feel like I have to lift her in certain situations, like temper tantrums, grocery carts, etc. My doctor's attitude early on seemed to be: Your hormones are low and when those get in better balance this will improve.
Well, it has improved, as the bulge has ascended, but it is by no
means gone. I know my case is not severe, and I am so glad for that,
but I want to do more to guard against it getting worse and having to
have a hysterectomy.
To get to the point, my MAJOR for most of the past year is difficult to
discuss, but it is terrible gas/flatulence,
starting every afternoon and getting progressively worse in the
evening. (If the average person passes gas 14 times a day, which I
read, well I'm passing gas every 5 minutes in the evening.) Also,
bowel movements seem, rather than constipated, incomplete, like I
have to go in small amounts several times. There's some pressure and
almost feels like there's a kink in the pipes, so things aren't
moving as they should.
The gas situation is, needless to say, completely embarrassing, so
frequent I describe myself as a blown up and slow-leaking gas
balloon. I'm afraid to be around people in the evenings, and it
absolutely kills your sex life!
I am going to see my GYN tomorrow, thinking maybe this is a symptom
of rectocele, that maybe my prolapse has shifted to that area. Over
the past year, I've made several trips to the internal medicine guy
thinking I had some kind of intestinal allergy, maybe lactose
intolerance, etc. He tested me for celiac, and then I tried to
eliminate milk, and have adjusted my eating in myriad ways. I've had
times when it's less pronounced, but lately, it is daily. And in the
week of my period, it's beyond awful.
Anyway...I'm just beginning to explore the Whole Woman web site -
am so glad it's here - and would love some explanation of the
posture thing you all are talking about. I was a newspaper reporter
for 10 years and sat at a desk under stressful conditions for way too
many hours. Also, my grandmother had prolapse and hysterectomy at a
young age, so heridity is there, too.
Best wishes to all and hope for improvements for everyone...

I don't know if the two are connected- there is an artice about prolapse self exam- you could read it and then try to determine if you have a rectocele or not. Do you like to walk? Maybe a brisk walk a few times a day would help some.
Lifting the baby-I know that Christine dosn't put a limit on lifting she just suggests a certain form. but.... When my two year old has a tantrum now I get down of the floor with him- I don't lift him. it works for us. and the grocery cart- I don't lift either of my kids into the cart- I put it by the car and they climb or I just use one of the carts with the car thing on the front-
I am so glad to hear that your prolapse is better. I love to hear that.
I am so sorry that you are suffering so much with the gas. I hope you figure it out soon.B

Thanks for your response, B. I'm visiting my GYN today, so I should know if it's rectocele or something else. I'll make sure to let this group know in case others are dealing with something similar - but let's hope not!

Warmly,
Quiggins in Colorado

Hello,

Do you have a link to this article or know where I may read it? Thanks,

Bigmomma

on the main page-wholewoman.com- then under resources - then under resource options you will see articles- it is the only article - you need adobe acrobat reader to view it-
I think if you can't see it Christine will email you a copy- B

welcome to the site

by the way, what type of prolapse are you dealing with? Hysterectomy is not always inevitable, so there's plenty of hope, especially since as you say, your prolapse is mild. In fact there is reason to believe that hysterectomy causes further prolapse, and once a woman no longer has her uterus its harder to manage prolapse naturally. so you are right on the money in trying to avoid hysterectomy.
start by reading the faq's and the posts here, there is so much useful information, I found that I had to read and reread the posture descriptions a gazillion times until I had a good understanding of it. there is no rush, but I firmly believe that the posture is your best bet at preventing your prolapse from worsening.

your description of being unable to completely evacuate, going in small amounts several times, and a 'kink in the pipes' does sound like rectocele to me. I'm no expert, but I'm thinking that maybe the longer the stool sits around the more gas it creates? just a guess on my part. I'm also thinking diet has got to play a part.

good luck at the gyn.