Christine's Story

My first experience with pelvic pain occurred immediately after the birth of our first child, when the epidural wore off! Although I was advised that the pain was normal after a delivery, I was able to convince hospital staff that something more serious was wrong when I could not walk or roll over in bed without crying out. I was extremely distressed and after assessment by the obstetrician and a physiotherapist I was diagnosed with Diastasis Symphysis Pubis (separation of Symphysis Pubis).

I was provided with a walking aid and a pelvic support belt and sent home.  Unfortunately, due to a serious illness that developed after the birth, I required hospitalization for another 3 weeks.  Whilst the second hospitalization was critical, factors relating to caring for me may have contributed to further elevating my pelvic pain. For this reason, I was then admitted to a rehabilitation hospital for pain management, and as I could not weight-bear at all on one leg, to learn how to walk on crutches.

At this time I was frequently tearful, felt overwhelmed and superfluous to looking after our two-month-old baby. I could only manage a few baby-care tasks, in addition to bathing and toileting myself. All household duties were beyond my physical ability and I felt like a burden.

month later, and assisted by my stubborn attitude, I was doing the basics to look after our baby and myself whilst my husband returned to work. My version of ‘managing’ involved hobbling around on crutches and transferring my baby daughter from spot-to-spot at home in a pram with one hand whilst using my crutch in the other.

Out of desperation came creativity, which involved such things as: bathing our daughter in the kitchen sink so I could hold the bench to help weight bear and walking around with crutches whilst holding the cordless phone in my teeth by the antenna. After only a few months, I even left the house on occasion to purchase a few groceries. Of course this involved using crutches, a Baby Bjorn to carry our baby and a backpack to hold groceries – yes I received many stares.

Whilst externally I seemed to be coping, internally I think I was just hanging onto sanity.  My extreme pelvic pain made sitting on hard surfaces impossible, so I required soft cushions and initially could only sit for about 20 minutes before I had to lie down to reduce pain levels. Long car trips (such as the 4 hour trip to my parents-in-law) were a nightmare. Getting into and out of bed took several minutes and I could only sleep on my back – something that was extremely uncomfortable. Needless to say, intimacy was minimal. Anti-inflammatories and painkillers became part of my diet.

Gradually I improved however, and within 6 months was able to walk short distances without crutches. Within a year, I was managing many household tasks – however my activities were limited and anything that required bending, getting on and off the floor and lifting heavy items was challenging – so vacuuming, mopping, etc. were left to my husband.

I did not return to work – although I did (and still do) greatly appreciate the opportunity to stay at home with our child. Whilst I could do many things, I was still mindful of not over-doing activities which induced or increased pain levels to an unmanageable point.

3 years on...

It was with much caution that my husband and I decided to pursue a second pregnancy.  Just over 3 years after the birth of our first child we discovered that I had indeed become pregnant. It took a great deal of courage to attempt the second pregnancy, so I felt extremely grateful that it happened so quickly and that fate had decided whether we should have another child.

Within only a few weeks of pregnancy I had nearly a week of very limited mobility (requiring crutches) due to intense pelvic pain – DON’T WORRY IT GOT BETTER.  We were extremely agitated and concerned that this would set the scene for the remainder of the pregnancy. There were several re-lapses where I had to resort to using crutches again, but generally, I was able to maintain mobility and pain levels by decreasing my activity levels to a minimum.

I now found purchasing even a few grocery items to be a real drain. Pushing way-ward trolleys was painful and holding a hand basket, which distributes weight unevenly, was another painful alternative. The days of using our child’s stroller were long gone as “I’m too big for a stroller now Mummy!” was often heard. So, my husband started doing the grocery shopping – and even if I ever make a 100% recovery I won’t be telling my husband!

For the last couple of months of pregnancy though, I had to use crutches at least for an hour a day when my pelvis was fatigued. Again, I was frequently tearful, as I felt overwhelmed with pain and the impending arrival of another child. I should perhaps mention that we were moving house, I was making curtains and looking after our very active nearly four year old!

As I sustained my pelvic injury with the birth of our first child, we decided to have our second child delivered by caesarean section following medical advice.  Luckily our second child was delivered healthy, and safely, as we had hoped. Whilst the caesarean section and its after-effects were not pleasant, within only a couple of days I was able to walk without crutches – YEAH!

I am now 4 months post delivery and coping fairly well. Whilst I am generally not using crutches, I do still sometimes need them for outings or when I am tired at home.  I am generally managing to do daily tasks, however my husband does the cleaning, gardening and (bless him) our grocery shopping. Admittedly, I am not yet fully recovered, but with more rest, time and sensible management to reduce re-injuring myself, I hope to recover further.

would never wish this injury on others, but I have been able to appreciate some positive outcomes from my experiences. Adversity issues opportunities that improve resilience and courage and the people closest to me sometimes comment that I have coped well, given it’s been a ‘tough ride’. Also, I have met some amazing people, such as the women and their families in the Pelvic Instability Association support group – including some fabulous health professionals who have been our guest speakers!

It’s been a great honour to be involved in the support group so that I can assist in the challenge to raise awareness of this condition and hopefully make the journey a little easier for other women who develop this condition.

Finally, I have two beautiful and healthy children and a husband who make it all worthwhile. I hope my story helps others.