Let’s discuss Pelvic Organ Prolapse

As women age, we often don’t realize how important our pelvic floor muscles are until problems start to occur. We think to ourselves:

• Why does my “undercarriage” feel heavy?
• Why do I feel like I’m sitting on a ball?
• What is that pillowy-like membrane coming out of my vagina?

Oh yes, this blog post is about something sensitive, embarrassing and incredibly important. POP happens to at least half of women between the ages of 45-80 and you never know when you may suddenly join that group. POP happens when ligaments and muscles become too weak to hold the bladder, uterus or rectum. It can show up as various degrees of bladder prolapse, uterine prolapse and/or rectal prolapse. The pelvic floor’s job is to keep all these organs in place but, overtime, women may feel an increased heaviness and other breakthrough symptoms in their Pelvic Floor.

POP can affect your everyday life and ability to engage in daily activities. POP will affect you mentally, physically, and (often) financially. Worse still, it will intrude into your sexual relationships and impact your general well being.

POP can happen for many reasons:

1. Vaginal deliveries
2. Episiotomies
3. Pelvic Surgery
4. Radiation in the Pelvic floor
5. Back surgery or injuries
6. Hip injury or surgeries
7. Genetics
8. Menopause
9. Stress incontinence and POP happens more with Caucasian women
10. Urgency incontinece happens more with African American women
11. POP depends on the age you were when you delivered your first child
12. Recurrenct Urinary Tract Infections increased risk of POP
13. POP and bone density correlate with each other
14. History of POP risk is higher with family history of the disease

You may be able to think back and remember your mom, aunts or older sisters who struggled with POP. I remember thinking that the “device” in my mom’s bathroom drawer was a diaphragm, but it was actually a pessary device. At the time, I had no idea women used this object when they suffered from POP. She needed it after four challenging vaginal deliveries and during the onset of menopause. She finally ended up getting a mesh repair done, a surgical intervention done to help support the pelvic organs. This carries its own risks and requires a lot of recovery time. Even after all that, the procedure is not 100% successful.

Factors that can contribute to POP include: chronic cough, seasonal allergies and cigarette smoking. Chronic over-stretching of the ligaments of the pelvic organs along with excessive straining and improper lifting at the gym can contribute to POP, as well. Even excessive straining due to constipation may greatly weaken the pelvic floor. Menopause is also a huge culprit due to the decrease in estrogen, meaning that baby boomers are now especially susceptible as their ages continue to increase.

Thankfully, the Venus Kegel Chair can help with both POP and incontinence, no surgery required! Venus Wave Therapy is a non-surgical option for POP depending on the nature and severity. Why should surgery be your first option when you could have just come to Venus? Venus Wave Therapy is a risk-free option and is highly effective.

One third of women have both stress and urgency urinary inconteninence when they have POP. A great reason to take advantage of Venus Wave Therapy is that you will receive incontinence treatment while treating POP. The chair provides over 11,800 strain-free Kegel exercises in one sitting, strengthening the pelvic floor to treat POP.

How do you know if you have POP? You’ll experience:

1. General heaviness in the perineum and feeling like you’re sitting on something.
2. Incontinence during sex
3. Incontinence
4. The feeling like your bladder won’t fully empty
5. Occasional bleeding in your underwear
6. Lower back pain
7. Unable to empty your bowels
8. Sensation or visual of a pillowy bulge from your vagina

Every woman’s situation is different when it comes to POP. We think the best step forward is to destigmatize conversation and provide awareness. When it’s affecting your everyday life it’s time to address your POP and do something about it before it gets worse. If you’re struggling with POP, there are professionals available that can help you find your path to better pelvic floor health. We’re just a phone call away at Venus and ready to talk about your POP.