When you decide to have children and go through the joys and the difficulties of carrying and birthing children, your body can go through a lot of changes and may not always recover after birth. Among some of the lingering effects of birth, there is a risk that you may develop a serious condition known as pelvic floor prolapse. Get to know more about pelvic floor prolapse so that you know what to do and expect if the situation happens to you.

What is Pelvic Floor Prolapse?

Pelvic floor prolapse refers to a condition in which one or more lower abdominal organs (like your bladder or small bowel) drop from their regular positions in the body and place pressure on the walls of the vagina. Because the function of these abdominal organs depends largely on their location in the body, this can cause serious health problems if it is not addressed quickly.

What Causes Pelvic Floor Prolapse?

While not all women who have had children will experience pelvic floor prolapse, the cause of the condition is often weakened abdominal muscles that can occur following child-bearing. This can also be due to the fact that the muscles in the abdomen stretch when a woman carries a child. Sometimes those muscles do not shrink back to their proper size after the fact causing problems.

What Are the Symptoms of Pelvic Floor Prolapse?

Many of the symptoms of pelvic floor prolapse can masquerade as symptoms of another condition. Some of these include frequent urination or the sensation that you need to urinate more often than necessary, constipation, feelings of pressure in the lower abdomen, and low back pain.

In fact, some women may worry they are pregnant again when they begin to experience symptoms of pelvic floor prolapse. Most of the time, they do not discover the precise cause of their symptoms until they get a pelvic exam from their OBGYN.

How Can You Treat Pelvic Floor Prolapse?

When a doctor diagnoses you with pelvic floor prolapse, there are numerous treatment options available to you depending on the severity of the condition. Sometimes, you can use physical therapy and various muscle strengthening exercises to rebuild the strength of your abdominal muscles and help your organs move back into their proper locations.

However, if your symptoms are extreme or you are unable to strengthen those muscles enough, you will need surgery to move the organs back into place and hold them there. The surgeon uses natural connective tissues in your body to hold the organs in place and secures them in their proper form and location.

Now that you know more about pelvic floor prolapse, you can watch out for signs and symptoms and get the treatment you need if this issue ever affects you. If you feel you already have it, you may want to consider contacting a local OBGYN, such as Women's Health Associate - Gilbert A Shamas MD, to discuss your concerns.