Is there any hope?

Submitted by pat1493 on January 3, 2005 - 1:30pm
Body: 

Christine,

I have your dvd and book and have been doing the exercises. MY question is this: I am 69 and on a scale of 0-4, I am 3 1/2- 4. Have been to a GYN and Urologist and they both say to have a hysterectomy. The GYN tried 4-5 pessaries but could no find one for that fit me.
I do get bladder infections every month or two. Also, I have been seeing an accupuncturist and taking Chinese herbs for prolapse as well as the infections. Am I too old to save myself from surgery?
One doctor told me if I wait too long for the surgery, I may not be healthy enough to have the operation. What do you think?
Thank you for all your research. May the Lord bless you as you
continue your mission.

Pat

Christine

January 3, 2005 - 6:04pm

Hi Pat, and Welcome to Wholewoman,

Well...I can't give you a definitive answer. It's hard to believe that you don't at least have time to try the bodywork to see if you can reach a level of comfort that you could live with for the duration.

This work is new and we don't have an overwhelming amount of data. We do have Marie (Big Marie, as opposed to Little Marie) who is 74 and has said the posture has improved her prolapse, and Flora who is 69 and has said the same. We have several women in their 50's who have experienced significant improvement.

Once you internalize that your condition has stabilized and your organs are not going to prolapse further, you can look around at your clothing and environment to see how else you might support your body. I still have prolapse, but I hardly notice it because I do all the things that make room for it and don't do the things that make it worse (well...taking off a few holiday pounds would help!)

I really can't advise you further, Pat, but can only remind you that practically ALL doctors say that prolapse will only worsen and we are the first group of women on the planet who are proving them wrong. I can't do more than I've already done to outline the risks of prolapse surgery and convince women that we are better off keeping our organs and working to improve our conditions naturally.

Wishing you well,

Christine

a6a25725

January 3, 2005 - 7:06pm

Dear Pat,
I too am 69 and as Christine said I have found the posture has certainly helped stabilize my prolapses,uterus and bladder. I have a pessary and a fembrace and use one or the other when I go out or need to be on my feet a lot. At my age I'm not sure I will ever be able to go completely for any lenghth of time with out one or the other.
There are many types of pessaries perhaps your gyn just hasn't tried the right one. It took three tries before I got the one I am using now. There is also the fembrace and the v2 support belt that can be used to support a prolapse.
I have used pure cranberry juice to control my bladder infections. The juice you buy at a health food store not the kind you buy in the supermarket. You dilute it 6 ounces of juice to 28 ounces of water. You may want to add a sweetner as it is quite bland. You sip it through out the day. I haven't used the juice for a while but do take a 1000 milligram gel cap of pure cranberry every day and haven't had a bladder infection for about 7 months now.
I hope this helps you some. Best wishes.
Flora.

pat1493

January 5, 2005 - 4:24pm

Flora,

Thanks so much for your response. What is a fembrace and a vsupport belt? I am new to Whole Women and am surprised that there are so many women with similar problems. Will try the cranberry juice the way you recommend. In the past, I would take 1 or 2 oz. of the juice just once a day. What brand of capsule do you take?
A happy new year to you.
Pat

a6a25725

January 5, 2005 - 6:53pm

Pat
Fembrace has their own website it is www.fembrace.com. Their website describes and shows pictures of the garment. For the v2 supporter belt you need to type "v2 support belt" into your search engine. This will take you to several websites that sell maternity stuff. Once you are on a site you will have to scroll down to find the belt. If you live in Canada ask the search engine for Canadian sites. If you decide to order one you can pay in Canadian funds and save some money. Fembreace is in the U.S. But will ship to Canada.
The brand of cranberry capsules I am using now I get from GNC. They are their brand. I believe they are in the U.S. too, but any good health food store will have a good brand ask the clerk. I know we have different brand names in Canada than they do in the U.S.
You should peruse some of the other posts on this site. Some of them
mention the v2 supporter and the fembrace.
Best wishes.
Flora

catwoman

January 5, 2005 - 9:15pm

To ward off urinary tract infections, every morning I first drink a glass of pure water. Then I take a juice glass of blueberry juice along with two capsules of CranActin by Solaray. CranActin, Solaray claims, is supported by clinical and pharmacokinetic research to have guaranteed bacterial antiadherence activity. It is the first commercial cranberry supplement of its kind to be tested and guaranteed. They are vegetarian capsules. I also take Solaray Multi-dolphalis capsules at the same time. I have had great success with this regimen. Solaray is sold at Whole Foods Markets and better vitamin/supplement stores. Eating plain yogart is also helpful. Blueberries are also an extremely effective aid for the bladder and urinary tract. Some research that I have read indicates blueberries may even be more effective than cranberries. Enjoy both fresh cranberries and blueberries especially when they are in season! Then find ways to include them in your diet year round. Hope this information is helpful.

Evie