Kegel and Pelvic Floor Exercises - How To Have Great Sex After A Caesarean
Posted: Friday, January 15, 2010
by Keira Benson
In the many weeks that it takes to recover from a Caesarean, the last thing on your mind is exercise... and even further down that list is sex. The dissection of your stomach muscles means that just trying to move about is a struggle and the area around your scar is very painful.
However, performing Kegel and pelvic floor exercises is vital to the future health of your pelvic and pubic areas and gentle squeezing of the muscle that you use to control your urine should be tried at the first opportunity. In most cases, it is possible to perform some gentle repetitions the day after your operation, with the agreement of your health professional.
This means that these exercises can be done whilst you are feeding your baby, so it's not something you have to try to fit in to what will become an increasingly crowded schedule.
For at least six weeks after this major abdominal surgery, you should not do anything more strenuous than lift your baby.
So, no matter how desperate you are to get rid of any remaining pregnancy weight or regain your flat belly, all you should be doing are your kegel and pelvic floor exercises and gentle walking. No crunchies or sit-ups until your stomach muscles have realigned and strengthened enough to cope with that level of exercise.
The thing to focus on is that, all the time that you are doing your kegel and pelvic floor exercises, you are repairing and reinforcing the foundations of a structure that will stand you in good stead for the rest of your life.
The pelvic diaphragm is a sling of muscles stretching from your back bone through your legs to your pubic bone. They hold your bladder, your womb, your vagina and your rectum in place.
Carrying the weight of the baby and placenta on top of the normal organs will have placed additional pressure on this structure. Towards the end of pregnancy, hormones are released which are designed to loosen and stretch the tissues in that area to allow the baby's head to pass through the cervix, but this also affects the tension in the hammock of muscles that form the pelvic diaphragm. It is, therefore, vital to help those retaining muscles to return to their pre-pregnancy size if you wish to avoid a prolapse of your womb, rectum or vagina.
As well as preventing problems with prolapse, gently exercising the pelvic floor aids circulation to the womb, bladder, rectum and vagina, so regular repetitions will stop you from becoming incontinent, make your orgasms better and reduce your chances of getting piles.
The avoidance of haemerrhoids is one of the big advantages that a caesarean has over the vaginal method of delivery and our sisters who have had to push! Piles can become such a nuisance in later life that a few minutes a day now will save you a whole lot of painful irritation later on.
When your baby gets to 12 weeks old, you should consult with your health professional to ascertain whether your scar is sufficiently healed to begin participating in more advanced exercise programmes, but these should be undertaken alongside your Kegel and pelvic floor exercises.
At about this time, you can also start to use the various available internal aids which assist with squeezing - barbells, balls, cones and battery-powered pelvic health aids. Most of the latter come with a specially-formulated stimulation pattern designed to get your post-pregnancy pelvic floor back into shape.
As the old adage says, Use It or Lose It! Which brings us to the thorny subject of sex after a caesarean.
This is an issue that will start to become pressing right about 12 weeks. Now that your scar is less painful, you become aware of the needs of the man who has been supporting you throughout this difficult time.
To be honest, the longer you put it off, the more difficult the subject will become. Like all new mothers, you will be worried about the changes that he might find in your nether regions.
However, unlike those women who have given birth vaginally, for the mother who has had a caesarean, it is the scar that is the concern. The redness will diminish over time and, after 12 weeks, it should be able to bear the weight of your partner in missionary position. If you are concerned, then you can try spooning.
Back at the business end, we have the other major advantage of the caesarean over a vaginal delivery. The fact that the baby's head has not stretched the vagina to facilitate its exit means that its appearance and shape should not have changed.
However, if you have been doing your kegel and pelvic floor exercises regularly, the increased blood flow to the vaginal muscles will mean that it will probably feel even tighter than it did before you had the baby. Cue more intense orgasms for both parties.
Kegel and pelvic floor exercises. Keeping those love muscles in trim.
Enjoy!
This article may be reproduced elsewhere providing a reference to the author and a hard link to the websites in the resource box is retained.
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Keira Benson has had two Caesareans and wants to help other women get their pelvic floor back in shape.
To learn more about Kegel and pelvic floor exercises, visit:
http://www.kegelandpelvicfloorexercises.com
For information on the various internal aids available, go to:
http://www.tightenmyvagina.info
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