Recovery after a posterior prolapse.

Hello linda. I had a posterior prolapse repaired just over 4 years ago and I can vividly remember the flatulance! I was also prescribed Lactulose and I can honestly say it improved dramatically when I stopped the Lactulose and I could go to the loo much more easily after about 6-8 weeks. So hopefully yours will improve or completely stop as mine did.

Hi Linda

I too am still taking lactulose with similar side effect. I am 12 weeks post op and was signed off from any further appointments this week. I told my surgeon that I was still taking and intended to keep taking lactulose for the forseeable future. She said there was no problem with this however, when/iif I ever decided to come off it ..............tto reduce the amount morning and night to 15ml then 10ml etc instead of just stopping completley. How much are you taking and how frequently? Maybe reducing your dosage slightly may get your flatulence under control!! Worth a shot. Goodluck.

Hi Linda,

It's miles too early yet to know how your flatulence is going to be in the future. Your insides will still be swollen and full of trapped air and it'll be like that for a little while yet. Flatulence is one of the common symptoms of rectocele/cystocele prolapse so I was a fellow sufferer. 

I had my rectocele and cystocele repair 16 months ago and it was months before everything settled down and felt 'normal' and 'yes' the flatulence did eventually go - unless I have baked beans - but that's TMI isn't it. HaHa! 

A tip for you to keep bowel movement soft and regular is to ditch the lactulose or any artificial laxatives (laxatives are great at first but you don't want to be dependent on them and they do tend to give you wind) so start eating plenty of high fibre food and fruits instead. Seeded bread, fibre cereals, AllBran is excellent; fresh fruit, especially mandarins, clementines, oranges, stewed cooking apple, prunes, mango and pineapple etc. I love to buy frozen mixed berries or summer fruits and stew them in a little water with artificial sugar. Serve with plain yoghurt; very yummy. I always include fresh fruit daily in my diet - oh and black chewy liquorice mmmm, that's something I can't resist - a good natural bowel mover!

Going to the gym is something I would delay until about 10/11 weeks - not until the heavy aches in your tummy and back have gone which most of us get after this op especially once you start walking around more. Hope I'm wrong but I get the feeling that you may believe things will be back to normal at 6 weeks. If doctors have told you this, believe me it's a load of tosh. They have no idea. That's only what they were told at med school. We are the ones in the know and who've got the tee-shirt.

Hang on in there Linda, 3 weeks is nothing. Do as you've been told about resting as much as you can. Be a lady of leisure; no housework, no staying on your feet, no lifting anything heavier than a full kettle, no lifting anything really, including small children. Walk for a few minutes every couple of hours and add a little further each week. Sex is best left until around 9 weeks or until you feel ready and no two people are the same but naturally you have to be careful at first. I waited until ten weeks which was 'right' for me and a wonderful surprise. Everything was far better than I could have ever imagined. 

So I hope you take it easy. The way you look after yourself now will be reflected in your final results which are so crucial for your future health and happiness.

Best wishes. LadyPink