Here’s Why Standing On Your Head Won’t Fix Your Prolapse!

Are you trying to fix your prolapse without surgery?

What works and what doesn’t?

Here’s a quick sample of prolapse fixes women ask about:

• Head stands
• Hanging upside down
• Pilates
• Inversion machines
• Yoga inversion poses
• Pelvic organ manipulation therapy
• Pelvic floor exercises
• Pessaries
• Diet supplements
• Hormones
• Genital bracing …

Read on now to find out:

1. What holds your insides up?
2. Quick prolapse fixes that waste your time and money
3. Non-surgical prolapse treatments that can help

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International best selling prolapse exercise guide for women with prolapse and after prolapse surgery.

Prolapse Exercises teaches you how to:

• Exercise safely after prolapse surgery
• Reduce your risk or repeat prolapse
• Avoid unsafe exercises
• Choose pelvic floor safe exercises
• Reduce your risk of prolapse worsening
• Improve prolapse support
• Increase your strength and fitness
• Strengthen your core
• Lose weight

The Lure Of A Quick Prolapse Fix

Who doesn’t want a quick no fuss fix!

Unfortunately there’s no quick prolapse fix aside from well fitting support pessary or successful prolapse repair surgery.

Why not?

It’s all to do with your inner elasticity.

Imagine stretching an elastic band. When stretched to a certain point the elastic recoils and the elastic band retains its shape, strength and elasticity.

If you overstretch the elastic it loses its elasticity and becomes just like stretching a piece of chewing gum.

Overstretching caused your prolapse and this is why you feel may feel heaviness and dragging especially after being on your feet for long hours.

1. What Holds Your Insides Up?

There are 2 types of tissues inside your pelvis that hold your pelvic organs up (ie. bladder, uterus, vagina, rectum).

a. Strong supportive tissues

These strong tissues known as (ligaments and tissue known as fascia) allow some movement of the pelvic organs while retaining them in position inside your body.

b. Pelvic floor muscles

Your pelvic floor muscles should work with your strong internal tissues to support your pelvic organs and prevent prolapse. If your pelvic floor muscles are overstretched they become weak, less elastic and less able to support your pelvic organs.

This is why pelvic floor exercises for prolapse that strengthen and support the pelvic floor muscles are effective prolapse therapy for some women.

2. Quick Prolapse Fixes That Don’t Work Long-Term 

While some women can temporarily relieve prolapse symptoms by hanging upside down on an inversion table as soon as they spend time upright again their pelvic organs will move back to the stretched position.

Unfortunately overstretched tissues don’t regain their elasticity.

This  is why head stands and other such prolapse repair methods may temporarily lessen prolapse symptoms but won’t fix your prolapse including:

• Inversion Yoga poses e.g. shoulder stands
• Hand stands
• Inversion tables
• Pelvic organ manipulation
• Genital bracing

3. Non – Surgical Prolapse Treatments That Can Help

The following prolapse treatments won’t fix your stretched elastic pelvic tissues however they can relieve prolapse symptoms, delay or even avoid prolapse surgery in some women.

1. Pelvic Floor Exercises

Pelvic floor exercises can help women with mild to moderate prolapse improve their overall pelvic organ support. Appropriate pelvic floor strengthening has been shown to reduce prolapse symptoms and severity by lifting the pelvic floor to sit higher inside the pelvis.¹

Pelvic floor exercises for prolapse aren’t necessarily a quick fix. Some women make rapid initial gains in their pelvic floor strength over the first few weeks however 5 months of pelvic floor exercises are recommended to achieve strength changes and improved function.

2. Support Pessaries

Synthetic support pessary devices are often fitted inside the vagina for varying degrees of prolapse ranging from mild to severe prolapse.

Pessaries take on the role that the support tissues previously played before becoming stretched.

Genital braces will not fix prolapse long-term. These items sit outside the body and can’t perform role of internal tissue supports i.e. lifting from the outside can’t fix or even lift your insides.

Support briefs may help relieve prolapse symptoms particularly in women prone to carrying abdominal body weight. This observation is based upon patient report and not supported by scientific investigation.

3. Lifestyle Modifications

Changing features of your lifestyle that impact upon your prolapse may reduce your prolapse symptoms and help your pelvic floor strengthening.

Lifestyle modifications to help your prolapse may include:

• Pelvic floor safe fitness exercises
• Pelvic floor safe whole body strengthening
• Dieting for weight loss if you’re overweight
• Pelvic floor safe weight loss exercises
• Managing your bowels i.e. constipation or diarrhoea
• Using safe lifting techniques and avoiding heavy lifting

4. Bowel and Bladder Habits

Good bowel and bladder habits to avoid straining may help relieve prolapse symptoms in women who habitually strain to empty.

Managing your bowels well with appropriate diet and bowel emptying techniques is key for long-term prolapse management.

Key Points To Fix Your Prolapse

• Pelvic organ prolapse results when elastic support tissues supporting them become overstretched, inelastic and weak.
• Some quick fixes for prolapse provide minimal temporary symptom relief only e.g. standing on your head.
• Non-surgical prolapse treatments such pelvic floor exercises, lifestyle modifications and support pessaries can help some women delay or avoid the need for prolapse surgery.

Bo K and Asheghaug A (2007) Strength Training. In: Evidence-Based Physical Therapy for the Pelvic Floor: Bridging Science and Clinical Practice (2007) Bo K, Berghmans B, Morkved S, Van Kampen M Butterworth Heinemann Elsevier pp 119-132.