Newbie

If you type posture in the search box at the top of this page, you should get some very good descriptions of it. Primarily, you lift your chest, so that your lumbar curve is maximised. You relax your tummy and do not tuck it or your bum in. And you use diaphragm breathing; tummy out with the in breath, tummy in with exhale. It is also described in Christine Kent’s book “Saving the whole woman”.

It is pretty common to experience a pelvic organ prolapse after giving birth even an amazingly quick one as you described with your son. Such quick births can pose their own difficulties for the mother’s organs. The postpartum prolapse can stay the same or worsen before it gets better, but it will get better.

If you take on WWposture, you will be strengthening all the muscles in the pelvic region as well as your back, abdomen and legs. This comes as a surprise to women who are reasonably athletic. The difference is that WWposture works your muscles in their correct positions, because we consider that WWposture is how women should naturally move, but most of us lose sight of this with social and exercise demands to straighten tummy and tuck bum. If you take on WWposture it will set you up to avoid a recurrence of prolapse further down the track for example at menopause. A long way ahead for a young woman to be planning for sure, but once you master the posture, there is nothing to it after that.

Christine also has exercise DVDs which are safe for someone with prolapse to perform and which are designed specifically to reverse the prolapse and help the organs to return to their true positions.

If you walk slowly on the treadmill and in WWposture, you should do no harm; then increase the pace gradually and see how you go. Walking outside in the fresh air is really the best cardiovascular exercise you can do, and if you are pushing a pram or stroller just make sure that you can do so while staying in posture. That should keep you busy especially if you add the occasional rest. Put your feet up mum and cuddle the little ones.

You know that if you walk from point A to point B, you still burn the same energy that you would if you ran it, without the added strain on your heart and wear and tear on your muscles and ligaments. Some English research claims that if you do really flat out peddling on an exercise bike for twenty seconds (that’s not a misprint) three times a week, you will not only do your heart good, but lose weight. Now see how easy it will be to have your cardiovascular workout and lose weight if you need to after you have looked after your prolapse. And all being well that will go anyway but with just a little effort mastering posture you have a surety.

Best wishes, Fab

Hi Momtwice,
Welcome to the WW community. I'm so glad you found us. You'll find a wealth of information, advice and support within this website and forum.
My heart goes out to you. Most, if not all, of us on this forum have experienced pelvic organ prolapse (pop) - and many of us found it very distressing and difficult initially. However once you realise there are lots of things you can do to make things better and you're not alone, then there's light at the end of the tunnel. As you've probably found most of us are managing our prolapses so well we lead normal, healthy lives, so long as we adopt a healthy WW lifestyle and posture.

It will be helpful to have a diagnosis. Then you have confirmation of what you are dealing with. However please remember that the pelvic organs move positions throughout the day and certainly from day to day, week to week. Similarly your prolapse will not be constant and will change, sometimes getting worse and sometimes getting worse, depending on things like your posture, your evacuations, how you lift, whether you're very stressed or relaxed, your diet etc. So any diagnosis is just a snapshot in time. It's definately not fixed in stone and can be improved.

If by chance you are recommended surgery I really strongly advocate not doing so and giving WW a go. You have nothing to lose and lots to gain by doing so. There's no turning back from surgery whereas with WW you've gots lots of knowledge and resources to draw upon to improve matters- andyou're options are open.

There are lots of home resources available via the WW store. I find the Saving the WW book a wonderful resource for an in-depth knowledge about pops and management/recovery. I personally also find a regular WW yoga practice from the dvd's make a significant postive difference re healthy pelvic organ support. I would thoroughly recommend you purchase the WW book and whichever dvd/s you think interest you best. Many women start with pne of the introductory packages. I can assure you these practices can give you a good work out as well as build up the muscles you require to live in WW posture. These are lifelong investments for health.

As for sex, please rest assured sex is fine for women with prolapse. However it may take a while for your body to recover from childbirth. Some women feel anxious their partners may notice but the reported reality appears to generally be that the partners only know what the women tells them and how they are. I personally had a primary pop uterine prolapse. I find that sex is beneficial. It seems to push back the pops and it's very relaxing and basically nice - all of which seems to help a lot.

One thing I've become aware of is how much stress adversely affects my pop, and I've noticed this in others. I do think focusing on living well, finding happiness and reducing stress in our lives is a crucial factor in pop recovery and management.

love to you and babes, xwholewomanuk

Mom, before you commit to any program of basically doing kegels, you might want to check out Christine's blog post:

http://wholewoman.com/blog/?p=1497

She explains really well why kegels actually pull the prolapsed organs in the direction of the prolapse. They can and do aggravate prolapse, especially if overdone. I did them religiously for years, so when she says they don't work, I say "boy you got that right!"

Do your own research. There is a lot of misinformation out there. - Surviving

Kegels (done under expert supervision) definitely contributed to my prolapse diagnosis a couple of years ago, although I probably had a very mild prolapse before that anyway.

Mom, first of all, relax. I'm 32 and had my second baby in August. Around the 6 week postpartum period I realised that my prolapse was definitely worse. I would say that since then it has moved up and down (and at around 8 weeks postpartum I couldn't feel it at all for several days), but currently, at 4 months postpartum, it is doing okay. Not great, and some days it's annoying, but it's okay. It doesn't stop me doing anything. I stay in whole woman posture, do the DVD exercises, avoid kegels and above all else, enjoy my beautiful baby.

I do wish I'd had a physical exam at my 6 week checkup, as I'd like to know where things stand at least. That'll be very useful for you.

Oh, and welcome! Go gently on yourself - your body just did something amazing.

...sex is still great. Prolapse doesn't affect a thing there.