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How soon after posterior repair....

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DorryC
DorryC

I am balancing two issues - back pain and rectocele.  The rectocele is very large and symptomatic.  Unfortunately the back pain is even worse and has been the first priority for both doctors.  My urogyn, like many, is pretty optimistic about recovery and said no restrictions at all after 6 weeks.

I really want to protect my repair and make sure it heals well so it lasts a long time.  I know things are still healing at 6 weeks and I don't want to be pushed into doing too much and jeopardizing the repair.

Some of the things I'm doing in physical therapy now, and that I know they will want me to resume, are trying to work on my core and my glutes so legs are moving a bit and it seems like it might pull and be uncomfortable.

How many weeks opst-surgery would you have felt comfortable doing exercises like clamshell leglifts?  Walking a mile?  Yoga?  

I see my back doctor soon and I want to make sure I give him a good idea of what I can do so that if he thinks we should wait on surgery, we do.  I don't want any pressure to push it and damage the repair.

Thank you for your help, as always!

 

0 likes, 15 replies

15 Replies

  • Jan999
    Jan999 DorryC

    Posted

    Dorry the best person to ask is your Urogynaecologist because he/she will have the best idea as to the extent of your prolapse and if it's that that's causing your back pain. There are lots of posts on this forum that will give you some idea but if you expect to be recovered at 6 weeks with no restrictions then you're being a bit optimistic, more like 12 weeks at the earliest. If you're in the UK there are a number of specially trained yoga and Pilates instructors who can help following surgery, I wouldn't advise taking part in any of this type of exercise unless I was taking their advice before 12-16 weeks. 
    • Jan999
      Jan999 Unicorn53

      Posted

      I stopped my pm's when I went on holiday. I'll update my account.
    • DorryC
      DorryC Jan999

      Posted

      Thanks, Matron.  It sounds like 12 weeks is more likely than 6. 

      My urogyn said 6 weeks =  no restrictions at all even though she said the mesh takes 12 we  That number came from her, not me.   I'm skeptical about recovery being so quick after everything I've read here which is why I was asking.  It sounds like it will be much longer.

      I have a very large (her words) rectocele that is very symptomatic.  First doc who examined me said it felt like there was just nothing there - no fascia at all.  My urogyn is doing the repair with the pig bladder absorbable mesh.

       

    • DorryC
      DorryC

      Posted

      didn't finish a sentence there in the middle.... "the mesh takes 12 weeks to absorb" is the missing bit.
    • Jan999
      Jan999 DorryC

      Posted

      I think you're right and 6 weeks is a bit optimistic however I have read on this forum other ladies who have been told 6 weeks but have found like you say 12 weeks is much more realistic. There is a new procedure being used for cystocele repair that has a much shorter recuperation period but rectocele repair is more complicated. Are you in the UK Dorry?
    • Jan999
      Jan999 DorryC

      Posted

      Is it porcine mesh you're talking about?
    • DorryC
      DorryC Jan999

      Posted

      yes, that should be it unless there are two kinds of absorbable meshes that come from pigs.  She was talking about pig bladders a lot.

      I don't have a cystocele, just a rectocele, so it won't be that new procedure.  I don't know exactly what is being done, but I know the surgery is vaginal, will be done by a urogyn, and that she is using an absorbable mesh from a pig.  And yes,  I am in the US not the UK.

    • Jan999
      Jan999 DorryC

      Posted

      She'll be using mesh made from a pigs bladder which is what my Urogynaecologist used. The surgery is more commonly performed vaginally so no external sutures which is sometimes why patients family/friends don't realise just how long the recovery time is. If you break a limb there's a plaster cast to prove you have an injury.
  • bresychen
    bresychen DorryC

    Posted

    Hi Dorry, my urogyn gave me a couple of good rules of thumb regarding exercise: nothing that takes both feet off the floor (running, jumping, plank, double leg lifts); nothing that takes my knees higher than my hips (squats, high intensity cycling); no heavy weights (light weights are good). I've also attempted to understand the way the abdominals link with the pelvic floor to form the core and this has helped reduce my fear. I don't have a back problem but need to strengthen my core due to muscles frequently going into spasm. Get some guidance from your urogyn and/or women's health Physio and refuse to do exercises you know will compromise your pelvic floor. There are always alternatives the Physio can use.
    • Jan999
      Jan999 bresychen

      Posted

      Good advice bresychen but just to add regarding the physio. Make sure the physiotherapist is specifically trained in urogynaecology. In the UK more and more Urogynaecologists have specialist physiotherapists in their team. It is more important than ladies realise.
    • DorryC
      DorryC Jan999

      Posted

      My phisical therapist for my back is also a pelvic floor physical therapist so I think she has the right training. 
    • Jan999
      Jan999 DorryC

      Posted

      That's good Dorry. Sounds like you're in the correct hands.
    • DorryC
      DorryC bresychen

      Posted

      Thanks bresychen.  Was there a time limit for those restrictions or is that forever?
    • bresychen
      bresychen DorryC

      Posted

      I have a risk of repeat because my tissues have thinned so realistically probably forever but very specific to my case (I didn't have large babies or long labours so my problems not so much trauma related, just an inherent weakness). That said I am hoping that if I commit to the Physio I will get my core to a place where I can do more, even if the exercises are different from what I used to do.
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