Backache ideas needed

I have that backache too, and what I've noticed is the ache will go when you sit. Unfortunately, I can't at work, so when I can, I drop over and do a "Sun Salutation" which exercises a lot of muscles. What really strengthens back muscles is a whole routine.

Individually, you might get some relief from bending at the hip - not the waist - and with your legs straight, try to just hang. You can do this with legs close together or legs wide apart. If your legs are together, the goal is to rest your nose on your shins - if your feet are wide apart, the goal is to rest your head on the floor. When you come up, come up with a straight back, pull it all up before you come up.

Another standing pose is Warrior. With feet apart, turn one foot out. Bend one knee and leave the other straight. Bend into the pose while pulling everything up. It's amazing how good this works on stubborn prolapse because it takes all the pressures off while you work pelvic muscles and that's what is giving you the backache.

Lie on your back and draw up both legs and hug - pull buttocks tight and roll from side to side. Do this about two minutes. You won't want to stop.

There are a lot more, but see if these don't help your back.

hi

i just added a tip for arthritis in the above post thread "is surgery so bad" it's about apple cider vinager for arthritis,, check out the same for lr back ache.. again you'll either see progress by day three or you won't i think..

An acupuncture's great - (but the acv's cheaper!)

oooh and wise women - isn't that nice... i supppose we're all certianing learning in a roundabout way from our 'cele's : )

x
anne-helen

Hi Clonmacnoise

I can vouch for the Sun Salutation as a quick fix for heavy period pain. I am on day 3 of a real corker, after several years of lessened pain and lessened flow (I am 54). This might be the grand finale, but I am not counting my chickens just yet.

Yesterday morning I was in real pain when I got up and did the Sun Salutation under the shower, only for about 20 seconds, with my feet jammed in the corners of our roman bath. It really did ease the pain immediately and my pelvic organs, which were in early morning sag, moved right up afterwards. I had also tried it during the previous day (day 1), but on a solid surface, with the same result. I am afraid my only goal doing this one is not to fall over!! LOL I will try to do it for longer though, and more often.

I have heard medical people say that prolapse causes no pain. They say it is always something else, but I think this disproves that statement for me. The relief is unbelievable. The challenge is in keeping the organs up over the pubis when you stop doing the exercises. There are so many body parts to concentrate on when I have my monthly setback. Roll on day 6!

It may be that there is a vicious circle of pelvic prolapse, pelvic congestion, producing inflammation and pain, which worsens with increased pelvic fluid retention and ligament relaxation during the runup to menstruation (or pregnancy), so POP is only part of the problem, not the direct cause. I don't care. It still hurts, and I would rather it didn't!

With the Warrior pose, which knee do you bend, the one facing outwards or the one stil facing straight ahead?

I can also vouch for hugging your legs lying on your back and rolling side to side. It is addictive. I discovered it by myself some time ago. I think it just gives gentle mobility to all the joints in the area.

I have another pose which I invented myself. *Comments please, yoga experts.* I find that it stretches all the muscles down the sides of the spine and lower back.

I lie on my back and, holding around both bent knees with my hands I rock myself forwards and back until I can swing my bent legs up in the air. As I am going up I shift my hands so that they are on my waist and my upper arms are lying on the floor. It is like a half shoulder stand. I then move my feet over my head, legs still bent, lower my hands to the floor again and just consciously let go of all the tension in my back muscles. As they relax my feet slowly descend to almost floor level behind my head over 20 seconds or so. I never push it to pain, only stretching sensation. It is all movement of centre of gravity. Some days I can go further over than other days. Then before I come down I swing my arms around on the floor to stretched out straight behind my head, along the floor, then uncurl my body slowly from the upper back down the spine until my buttocks are on the floor. Then I lower my feet, legs, still bent to the floor. Aaaahhh, 'tis lovely! But I have found that it is easy to overdo it during menstruation, so it is one for next week.

What about that one?

Cheers

Louise

i second the accupuncture if you can do it (but need someone good!)
it got rid of my backache (and they can try to lift things as well)
kiki

I'm 56, so we're in the same ball park. I stopped at 54 and spent two awful years trying to die - literally. My estrogen levels got so low, I didn't even want to live. I'm better now.

Warrior Pose: If you were to put your left heal into your right instep and then separate your feet 3-4 feet apart, your left knee would bend to make your knee lie directly over your ankle. As you bend into that right knee, move your arms so that the back of your left hand is against your left knee and your right hand is reaching in the opposite direction to the ceiling. Pull in - super kagel for 40-50 seconds. Turn and do the other side.

Your own yoga move sounds delicious! Try to do the opposite with bridge for a reverse effect. As you lie down, pull flats of feet to the hips - knees in the air. Raise your pelvis off the floor and hold. Again do a super kagel. Repeat several times. Good for watching TV.

Glad you liked the bread thing. One of my teachers and I rolled out some dough and added cheddar cheese and basil from the garden. It was really really good.

Like you, I live in a small tourist town in Southwestern Indiana USA. My partner in business has an Aussie daughter in law. We both read Notebook, and there is an article this month on Prolapse.

Clon

Hi ladies

I had an Aha! moment under the shower the other day and ran it past Christine, who has had similar thoughts. The theory is that menstruation is like a little labour and is naturally accompanied by many of the symptoms of pregnancy and labour. Women vary considerably in their experiences of both processes, so maybe some of the symptoms are just our bodies doing what comes naturally, and we are left with dealing with symptoms of quite natural conditions, ie there is nothing wrong, it just hurts! Here's part of my email to Christine for you to have a think about.

"You remember your description of the muscle type of pelvic floor muscles as being designed for letting things out than keeping them in? When a woman is menstruating her whole pelvic area is in *letting things out* mode. Therefore the pelvic floor muscles will be quite relaxed and her pelvis naturally inclined into counternutation, as in second stage of labour. Therefore the pelvic floor will be more horizontal than usual and her pelvic organs will be back over the abyss, regardless of whether or not she has prolapses.

Therefore, with all the extra fluid in the abdomen pre- and during menstruation it is almost inevitable that existing prolapses will manifest themselves at this time.

It also explains why my body is more prone to back pain and inflammation with heavy lifting pre- and during menstruation. It is physiologically not possible to maintain the lumbar curve at this time of the month, so existing disc problems will be exacerbated whenever the spine is put under extra load before and during menstruation."

"Further to the Aha! moment. During the day it occured to me that menstruation is very like a 'little labour'. It begins in response to hormonal signals (drop in oestrogen and progesterone), and at a predetermined time after ovulation. There are often mood and energy level changes preceding it; also breast discomfort and swelling. There is often fluid retained prior to both, which is excreted during each process. During both processes the uterus contracts in spasms for periods of time to expel the contents, often accompanied by lower back and uterus pain. "After this emptying out of the uterus it reverts to its previous size within a very short period of time and another cycle of life begins. In the absence of breastfeeding, ovulation will commence again in a short time, just the same as ovulation follows menstruation after a short time.

In fact the only differences between the between the two processes are the two different time frames, (ie the labour time line is much longer), and that if the preceding ovulation results in fertilisation of the egg and full gestation there is a foetus and placenta expelled along with the endometrium at the end and the time delay is determined by the maturity of the foetus, as opposed to menstruation where a non-fertilised egg is expelled along with the endometrium and the time delay is determined by the tailoff in function of the of the corpus luteum after two weeks.

There could not be too more similar processes occuring in the human body! Labour is just menstruation with another quite complex set of miracles preceding it. They are both a part of the menstrual cycle and both begin and end the same way."

Cheers

Louise

Interesting to see some of the comments on here about prolapse and periods because my prolapse never came with any incontinence. Just intense pain. I was diagnosed right after my second child was born. I noticed that right before my period started and during the first 3 days or so, my pain would come back. When I tried to use a menstrual cup, I could only use it during the first 3 days because my cervix was hanging low and open.
I was never able to master getting the cup to work without leaking after my cervix started moving back up.
Consequently, the absence of prolapse pain was one of the only reasons I took a pregnancy test despite intense menstrual like cramping with the baby I am pregnant with now. I knew it got achy when things opened up for my period, but the achiness never came.