Pudendal Nerve Entrapment...A BIG Headache In My Pelvis

     "A Headache in the Pelvis" that's the name of the book my physical therapist recommended. The title is a great description of what I deal with daily. How exactly has this been such a headache for me and my family?  Let me explain....

     Initially after surgery I just couldn't sit, not even for a few seconds, not even reclined. The pain I would describe as a constant, intense burning sensation, in the most sensitive and private area of my body. If I tried to sit the pain would intensify and it felt as if a metal fish hook had pierced through my left side of my in-between's and was being pulled with a sharp, stinging sensation. Let's just say, ice was my best friend for a very long time, I was totally addicted. I also lived in the tub, most days up to three times, the hot water was as calming as the ice. My lower back was just as irritated as my in-between's. I couldn't even lay flat on my back, laying on my side and stomach was the only comfortable position for me. Standing was also an issue, I would stand long enough to go downstairs to my kitchen for something quick to eat, and hurry back to bed. Even that was too much. Standing created a deep ache and intense pressure that was only relieved by laying down. And then there is all of the bathroom issues that come along with this condition, I'll spare the details, but I'm sure you could only imagine. In one word "terrifying" I'll leave it at that.

      Around my five weeks post-op I finally could tolerate a little bit of semi-sitting, but not like a normal person. I would lean so that all my weight would be on one hip or the other. Although I had somewhat adapted myself to my situation, I was still very uncomfortable on my hip, I could only sit like this for about 10 minutes, but it sure beat laying in bed all day. I was sooo over that! Sitting in an upright position wasn't even an option.

     Week by week, I started to make a little bit of progress, however it seemed especially slow. At my six week post-op appointment, I drove myself, hooray! This was my first attempt at driving since surgery. I reclined the driver seat back more than I normally would, I pushed my left foot and leg against the floor to lift my pelvis up from the seat, and then I tipped my pelvis so all the weight went on my right hip, and used the arm rest to prop myself up.  My shoulders and head are more lined up with the rear view mirror if that gives you any idea how much I tipped myself. Probably not the safest way to drive, but I was too ashamed to ask for a ride again, especially since by six weeks most people are usually feeling back to themselves.

     By six weeks I was losing patience, spending the majority of my days in bed suffering with chronic pelvic pain was not part of the deal after this surgery! I was suppose to be fully recovered and back into my normal day to day routine. I think my husband and kids were officially over it, and they began carrying on without me (They didn't have a choice). They were growing impatient with my slow recovery and seemed annoyed that I wasn't involved and helping out anymore, and that I wasn't able to come along and join them for anything. They desperately needed me to start getting back into the groove of things, and I desperately needed my life to return to normal again. But, there was one very big problem...I was stuck in the middle of this vicious cycle. The more I did, the more I hurt, and the more I hurt, the more time I spent in bed, "with ice of course." It totally sucked!

     At seven and half weeks post-op I was feeling very overwhelmed by just thinking about and knowing all of the important and special events that were quickly approaching. I was too consumed by my pain and the very thought of accomplishing even the simplest of task seemed impossible and completely daunting to me. In a week and a half my third child who had turned eight in March was going to be baptized. I wasn't sure how I was going to pull this one off. This huge mile stone comes with a lot of planning and work, which entailed a luncheon for 40 plus family members and friends afterwards. Two weeks later it was Easter which is another huge responsibility for a mother of five children. And then two birthday party's within a week of Easter, my husband's and my daughter's. Then, one week after that was Mothers Day. And, my responsibility with my church calling as a visiting teaching coordinator, I was up to my eyeballs in visiting teaching interviews, and planning June's Visiting Teaching Workshop. And the spring sports, I usually have three or four of the five kids involved in something.

     Wow! How am I going to do all of this? It was all I could do to get myself to the bathroom and showered and to get down the stairs to the kitchen for a quick bite to eat. These are all things you just can't put off, as much as I wanted to put everything coming up on hold, I knew it wasn't realistic. Unfortunately life just keeps moving forward, regardless of how you're feeling. Now comes the balancing act, of being a mother, and a wife, and taking care of all the responsibility's that come with keeping up a home for my large family, on top of learning to manage and cope with chronic and debilitating pelvic pain. This is when the fake it till you make it game begins. I think as mothers we've all been there, I've just never had to play this hard!