Try to bulge your pelvic floor, or bear down like you're having a bowel movement. Do you see any bulging of tissue towards the vaginal opening? If you see a couple of bulges, more like a snowman make note of this as well.
Feeling of fullness, heaviness, or pain in the pelvic area or lower back. This feeling may get worse when the person is standing, lifting, coughing, or as the day goes on. The bladder bulging into or out of the vagina. Painful sex.
With a grade 2 or 3 level prolapse, you may be able to feel a small bulge at the vaginal opening, or may even be able to see the bulge coming out of your vagina when looking with a mirror.
Since the pelvic floor supports the bladder, strengthening it helps to improve prolapse. Kegel exercises are most effective in tightening the pelvic floor. Not only that, but they can be done at home or anywhere. To perform the exercise, make sure your bladder is empty and squeeze your pelvic muscles.
Insert 1 or 2 fingers and place over the front vaginal wall (facing the bladder) to feel any bulging under your fingers, first with strong coughing and then with sustained bearing down.
Stage 1 – the bladder protrudes a little way into the vagina. Stage 2 – the bladder protrudes so far into the vagina that it's close to the vaginal opening. Stage 3 – the bladder protrudes out of the vagina.
The most common disorders that pelvic organ prolapse is mistakenly diagnosed as include urinary and fecal incontinence, constipation, and irritable bowel disease. Unfortunately, when pelvic organ prolapse is misdiagnosed as urinary incontinence, surgical outcomes are poor and women can be left with worsened conditions.
Diagnosis. Your gynecologist may order an array of tests to determine the stage of your prolapse and its effects on your bladder and other organs. Cystoscopy, pelvic ultrasound, urodynamic (urine) testing, and computed topography (CT) scans are all common tests to diagnose POP.
Symptoms of pelvic organ prolapse
a dragging discomfort inside your vagina. feeling like there's something coming down into your vagina – it may feel like sitting on a small ball. feeling or seeing a bulge or lump in or coming out of your vagina. discomfort or numbness during sex.
Symptoms of a Prolapsed Bladder
Tissue protruding from the vagina (The tissue may be tender and may bleed.) Difficulty urinating. A feeling that the bladder is not empty immediately after urinating (incomplete voiding) Stress incontinence (urine leakage during sneezing, coughing, or exertion)
It is very common, with about 50 percent of women having some degree of prolapse. Over 12 percent of American women will have surgery for it in their lifetime.
Will my insurance cover the prolapse procedure? Most insurance plans, including Medicare, cover these procedures.
Prolapse of the vagina
Total vaginal prolapse may cause pain while sitting or walking. Sores may develop on the protruding vagina and cause bleeding and a discharge. Like prolapse of the uterus, prolapse of the vagina can cause problems with urination. Having a bowel movement may also be difficult.
Many women contend with pelvic floor problems, including urinary incontinence and pelvic organ prolapse -- when pelvic organs drop due to weakened muscles and tissues.
A pelvic exam.
You may be examined while lying down and possibly while standing up. During the exam, your provider looks for a tissue bulge into your vagina that indicates pelvic organ prolapse. You'll likely be asked to bear down as if during a bowel movement to see how much that affects the degree of prolapse.
There are many symptoms of POP, which usually develop over time. Occasionally POP happens suddenly. For example, a woman could be doing squats at the gym that cause the last bit of support from weak connective tissue to give way.
Prolapse can feel different for each woman. Some women say it feels like they're sitting on a ball all the time. Other women feel fullness or pressure around their vagina, bladder, or pelvic area. The most obvious way to tell if you have prolapse is if you feel a bump or “bulge” at the bottom of your vagina.
Prolapse symptoms may be worse at different times in the day. Some women notice that they feel more pressure after walking or standing for long periods of time.
You may not need any treatment if the prolapse is mild to moderate and not causing any pain or discomfort. Treatment options include: lifestyle changes. pelvic floor exercises.
Sometimes you can reverse a mild case of bladder prolapse by doing exercises that strengthen your pelvic muscles. In other cases, the degree of the prolapse can increase over time as you age and this can occur more rapidly in some women than in others.
Possible Aggravating Factors:
Slacking off with pelvic floor exercises (causing weakness) Overdoing pelvic floor exercises (causing fatigue and tightness) Constipation and straining. Change or increase in higher impact exercise including running or lifting heavier weights.
They often go away when you lie down. If the vagina and womb bulge out of the vaginal opening and can be seen from the outside, it's usually particularly distressing. That greatly affects your sex life too. Many women who have a severe prolapse feel ashamed and it can take an emotional toll on them.
How common is vaginal prolapse? Vaginal prolapse is relatively common. About one-third of women will experience some degree of prolapse during their lifetime. If you have more than one risk factor, your chances of developing vaginal prolapse increase.