Help on my bladder?

Hi spirit3 – One thing that occurs to me is that you are very new here, and I’m not sure if your expectations for how much and how fast this works are realistic. This is not a cure for prolapse. There is no cure. It actually sounds to me like your progress has been quite notable in a relatively short time. If you can feel the organs moving forward, then you are on the right track. Having air in there is just part of the whole prolapse thing, at least it has always been for me. If it is new for you, then I’d take it as a sign of movement and progress. But the main thing is, to remember that this takes time and lots of work. I’m going on three years and I am still aware of my ‘celes the majority of the time I spend on my feet. But they are stable AND I’m still seeing degrees of improvement even now, and I couldn’t be happier. I’m grateful that I started this work while my cervix was still staying well inside, because I think that’s the bigger challenge that some of us face. ‘Celes are quite manageable with this work.

Make sure you are emptying your bladder completely. Wear a liner and change it often if you want to feel a little fresher. And keep working! This is for life! - Surviving

I started to write but the entire thing disappeared so I hope I don't end up sending 2 notes.

I want you to know that many of us have done "stupid" things to make our bad situation worse....I for one. Knowing full well that I should not, I took the risk of lifting and weighing several things over 50 pounds each. As I result I did major damage with my pessary to my prolapse of bladder and uterus. Like you, I have a constant bulge, but mine hangs down low, I don't know if yours is the same.

Do your best to accept what has happened and don't be angry at yourself...what happened to us happened and we have to accept it. If you have not had a hysterectomy, according to Christine, things cannot completely fall out. If you have had one, I cannot comment on that as I don't really know.

If you have trouble urinating, try this: do what you can sitting and then stand with your knees bent and bend forward from the waist and try again...you might have to wait a few seconds before you can "go".

I think you might be a little newer than I am on this site ...read as many posts as you can and you might find helpful hints. I know I have learned a lot and am very grateful to all the ladies that post.

All the best!

Spirit3, no one here can say what your results will be. Only time and dedication will make this known to you. Keep reading and working on it, this posture must become second nature if you are going to see the benefits down the road. Don't overdo. I didn't even try firebreathing for about a year, because I was afraid of doing it wrong. I still can't do nauli. But I do have this posture down, and that's what it takes. It's like my body has forgotten the old way. You can't speed up the process by overdoing these other things until you get to the point of frustration and discouragement. You are in a frantic mode. Just relax and try to remember posture elements at all times. Take some nice long posture walks. It will come. It takes TIME.

If you can hide the crying from your family, and it makes you feel better to cry, then do it. Otherwise - it might be time to pull yourself up by the bootstraps and go forward. You have too much on your plate right now to wallow in self-pity. - Surviving

Hi Spirit3,
You are going through a very stressful time, and stress tends to make POP worse. I know it does for me, and others have made the same observation on here. So, yes, absolutely cry if it helps. Don't try and be a super woman. Try and look after yourself. Be kind to yourself. Be patient with yourself. Get help with the kids if you can. Anything at all that will ease that stress.

I had a light bulb moment today, spirit3, about trying to fix things - vital psychological things or physical things - and about trying to get back to being someone I could be comfortable with. I realized I can't fix it; but thanks to the spirit, there is change and flexibility. I can't fix the past or even the results of it, but I can go on to something better. So c'mon....let's go.

You're welcome. I can imagine what you're going through with two small children and a divorce - a nightmare. I hope the daylight comes for you.

Spirit3, I just read about the divorce along with the POP. My heart goes to you. I have a feeling that you will get through all this with the support of the women on this site and your will to improve. When you are having a down day, remember that you are not alone and remember that many have had improvements with their prolapse. Those thoughts are helpful to me when I am having a tough day but I also know it is more difficult for you with 2 children to look after.

I am wishing you a nice weekend.

I to got divorced after 25 years and then my son had a bone marrow transplant for leukemia and my other son with severe asthma then I lost my job to be in the hospital when he had his transplant and know this with my bladder prolapse. been trying to stay strong but its hard. been doing the fire-breathing and posture and taking laxatives so i don't have to strain. don't feel alot of change yet .

Hello Zena and welcome to the site. With a bladder prolapse (cystocele), probably your main initial concern is the uncomfortable bulge. It is the bulge that WWposture will work on directly. So that is something to start with, but it will take time. So don’t worry too unduly if things do not seem to be moving upward just yet.

With the upsets that you have sustained with your marriage and your sons, it would have been very hard for you to relax ever. I recognise that feeling of constant vigilance that my own asthmatic son compelled in me. In fact, often the only time I had a mental break was during my toilet break. As well, the tension did not help my bowel either. Just on that, the nature of laxatives is to attract water so that the stool is softened and moves through the intestines faster. In this case, you need to be looking at a little extra water intake. Having said that, overuse of the bladder is not a wonderful feeling for someone with bladder prolapse. Perhaps, magnesium and probiotics would be a better route to go rather than laxatives.

It seems unreasonable in light of your circumstances to suggest that you relax. Being sole carer of children with health issues, your body would be on full alert and tense. But it would be possible to make one gift to yourself and practice a few minutes of deep diaphragm breathing when you settle down to sleep at night. Your lower tummy goes out on the inhale and comes in on the exhale.

With so much on your plate, you will successfully approach your situation with a plan and with small but regular steps. I wish you luck and good cheer. Lucky you to have two beautiful sons you love so much.

Best wishes, Fab

thank you for all you said. yes it has been very hard and I am really stressed. just trying to do my best to take care of all of us. I can see my bladder and urethra inside my vagina,I hope doing the WW posture helps and the breathing. Any other things I can do please feel free to tell me. I wish you the best also. And yes I love my boys more than anything. Thank you again so very much

When you also have the urethra drop it is called cystourethrocele. They may cause stress incontinence (during coughing, laughing) or overflow incontinence when the bladder becomes too full. It is important to really empty your bladder at least once a day. This can involve voiding, then waiting around a little and then going back to the bowl to urinate again. Another method is to semi-squat so that you are bending forward at the hips and in effect hovering over the toilet bowl with your full weight on your two feet, or when in the shower getting down on all fours to urinate. Your end result is to ensure that you void fully at least once a day and hopefully eventually each time you urinate so that residues of urine are not left in the bladder. The main reason is to prevent urinary tract infections, but I find the relief from the pressure of having a half full bladder makes life infinitely more comfortable.

Cheers, Fab

I'm new, was diagnosed with cystocele about one year ago, it wasn't too bad. Got pneumonia a few months ago and couldn't stop coughing. This caused my condition to worsen. I have been doing the exercises for about three weeks now and there are times I feel better but for the most part I am so uncomfortable. This has caused me to get depressed. I'm getting married in less than nine weeks. Will this affect my sex life? I don't feel sexy at all. Will I ever feel normal again?

Hi Lilian and welcome. Congrats to you! There are lots of discussions on here about sex and prolapse. It need not affect your sex life at all - lots of men don't even notice. If there is any irritation, use plenty of lube.

Whole Woman is way more than an exercise program. The posture change is what this is all about. Are you learning to maintain this automatically as you go throughout your day? Standing, sitting, walking, lifting? - Surviving

Thank you surviving60 for the response. I'm trying to do the posture daily, it's hard. I sit in front of a computer the majority of the day and find it hard to sit at the edge of the chair and my back starts to hurt after a few hours. Today, I put used a flat bench instead of my chair and it feels a little better. I've been sitting indian style. Do you ever get to the point where you don't feel the bulge between your legs? Is it ok to wear leggins?

Lilian, it takes lots of time and work for this posture to become automatic. It's something all of us have had to work through. Many members, myself included, started learning the posture and then for various reasons, got sidetracked for awhile, only to return to it later when symptoms seemed to be getting worse. I had my big breakthrough in the second year, but it doesn't have to take this long, if you make up your mind.

I am post-menopause with cystocele and rectocele, coming up on my 3rd anniversary here. I am rarely symptom-free, except after a really really long posture walk. Symptoms fluctuate all the time, and they are a good reminder to keep up posture, exercise, good diet, no straining, all that stuff. My symptoms are usually in a very comfortable range, and they are stable over time. I know my organs aren't going anywhere and I can get on with life! My goal was never to get rid of symptoms completely, because I did understand early on that this is not a cure. Younger women with post-partum prolapse, and others whose prolapse is very mild, can sometimes reverse their symptoms entirely; but if they do not take up this posture for life, you can bet it will all be back.

Wear anything you like that does not restrict your belly. You will be able to tell which wardrobe adjustments you might need to make. Good luck to you! - Surviving