Managing Pelvic Organ Prolapse
Two week ago I talked about prolapse symptoms, who can get a prolapse and what a prolapse even is. As I mentioned, prolapse symptoms are common and with some rehabilitation can be managed very successfully. If you want more information about pelvic organ prolapse, feel free to lead that blog here.
In my last post, I promised some suggested to help manage a pelvic organ prolapse, so here they are! It is really important to note that this is not a substitute for medical advice, there are just some things to consider when you are managing prolapse symptoms. Having a pelvic physiotherapist on your team can be a very important aspect of prolapse management.
- Lifting: When you are lifting try to make sure you aren’t holding your breath. If you are holding your breath, it creates pressure in your abdomen, which pushes down into the pelvis. Imagine you had a balloon and pushed on the sides, where would the air go? Down. So, to minimize the force in your pelvic, when you are lifting, try to think about gently breathing out!
- Some examples where this technique might be useful are; lifting your baby, lifting a laundry basket, lifting grocery bags, lifting weights and much more.
- Bathroom habits: Similarly to holding your breath when lifting, straining/pushing to go pee and poo can make symptoms like heaviness and pressure worse. Try to manage your bathroom habits so you don’t have to push, ideally, you should be able to go pee and poop without pushing. If you need some more advice to mange bathroom habits, feel free to check out my instagram page here, where I have some videos to manage constipation and strategies if you have to push to pee.
- Z-Lying: This is a great position to get into, to help reduce the pressure. I love this one at the end of the day especially if that is when you get your worst symptoms! To get in this position, you need a pillow, and something you can comfortably put your legs up on. Start by laying on your back with a pillow under your pelvis and your legs up on a chair/stool or exercise ball. You want your legs to be at a 90 degree angle (hips, knees and ankles). Try to focus on relaxing and taking deep breaths. Hang out here for 10-15 minutes.
I hope some of these tips will help to keep your pelvis happy and pressure free! If you need more advice, I would recommend getting an assessment with a pelvic floor physiotherapist. For questions, you can email me directly here.