Erica’s Story: Bowel Incontinence, Birth Injury and Truth as Armour

Helen is back with a one-off episode in association with IMEDicare - Pelvic Health Naturally, sponsor of season 5 of Why Mums Don't Jump.You'll hear from Vicky Grubb who's an upholsterer from Hampshire and mum to two boys. Vicky discovered she had stress incontinence when she took up tennis and then running in her mid thirties. She explains how she found a new lease of life with the Efemia bladder support - a vaginal pessary designed for stress incontinence:'It's been life changing...I don't think I've ever leaked when I've worn it running'And Helen catches up with iMEDicare's founder Darren Breen to find out what motivated him to start the business 20 years ago, and to take a look at some of the other products that are helping people to manage their pelvic health symptoms:'Making people aware that these devices exist is the great passion for me, because it can transform their quality of life'Season 5 of Why Mums Don't Jump is sponsored by IMEDicare - Pelvic Health Naturally. IMEDicare supplies a range of easy-to-use, medically approved products including Lumana incontinence leggings and running shorts, the Efemia bladder support and Enna Pelvic Ball; a discount code is available via the Why Mums Don't Jump online affiliate shop. Find out more about pessaries in this episode of the podcast and this episode of the podcast.Listen to this episode to find out more about what to expect at an appointment with a pelvic health physiotherapist.

Somehow it's the season 5 finale! And it's a good one!In this episode Helen speaks to the German footballer Melanie Leupolz who returned to play for Chelsea just months after giving birth to her son and to the pelvic health physiotherapist Emma Brockwell who worked with Melanie to get her back on the pitch. They talk about the unwavering support Melanie had under former Chelsea manager, Emma Hayes; a lack of female-specific research when it comes to elite sport; and how taking female health into consideration can be game-changing. We get an insight into how pelvic health conversations go down in the locker room and Melanie explains why she wanted to share her story.Buy Emma's book: Why Did No One Tell Me: How to Protect, Heal and Nurture Your Body Through Motherhood in my affiliate shop.Season 5 of Why Mums Don't Jump is sponsored by IMEDicare - Pelvic Health Naturally. IMEDicare supplies a range of easy-to-use, medically approved products including Lumana incontinence leggings and running shorts, the Efemia bladder support and Enna Pelvic Ball; a discount code is available via my online affiliate shop.Sign up for the Why Mums Don't Jump email newsletter for the latest news and offers! 

It’s so easy to get confused about pelvic floor health. One minute you know nothing about it, the next you’ve fallen down a social media rabbit hole of do’s and don’ts. In this week’s episode, Helen does a spot of myth-busting with US-based pelvic health physical therapist, Dr. Carrie Pagliano. Carrie hosts the Active Mom Podcast and is brilliant on Instagram where she makes evidence-based information accessible to all.  Helen and Carrie talk about the changing face of pelvic health, how hormones might affect your pelvic floor issues and when vaginal oestrogen might help. They discuss gaps in research and the age old question - to kegel, or not to kegel?You can find Dr. Carrie Pagliano’s website here and follow her on Instagram hereYou can listen to Helen speaking to Carrie on the Active Mom Podcast hereSeason 5 of Why Mums Don't Jump is sponsored by IMEDicare - Pelvic Health Naturally. IMEDicare supplies a range of easy-to-use, medically approved products including Lumana incontinence leggings and running shorts, the Efemia bladder support and Enna Pelvic Ball; a discount code is available via my online affiliate shop.Sign up for the Why Mums Don't Jump email newsletter for the latest news and offers!

POP Club returns! You may remember, way back in season 1, that Helen met up with a couple of local mums who had pelvic organ prolapse and birth injury in common. They became friends, she persuaded them to speak on the podcast and well, the rest is history!In this typically chaotic episode, Helen catches up with Skye and Jess (not their real names) to find out where they're at with their pelvic floor problems. There's frustration over hospital care, nerve damage (pudendal neuralgia) and a missed birth injury. They discuss symptoms - old and new - and Jess makes a new prolapse friend...nearly. That first POP Club! episode led to unofficial POP Clubs forming in the UK and around the world. If you'd like to know more, read this. Season 5 of Why Mums Don't Jump is sponsored by IMEDicare - Pelvic Health Naturally. IMEDicare supplies a range of easy-to-use, medically approved products including Lumana incontinence leggings and running shorts, the Efemia bladder support and Enna Pelvic Ball; a discount code is available via my online affiliate shop.Sign up for the Why Mums Don't Jump email newsletter for the latest news and offers! 

Helen speaks to Hayley Schoenberg who lives in Hamburg, Germany, with her wife and three-year-old daughter. She discovered she had a prolapse two years after her daughter was born, whilst going through fertility treatment for a second child. It's something that had a big impact on her life and on her work as a dancer, burlesque performer and hypnobirthing teacher.  In this roller coaster of an episode Hayley tells Helen about her journey to find the support she needed, how she's feeling about her second pregnancy, and how a change of mindset has made a big difference. They talk about the German healthcare system, about pessaries and pelvic physiotherapy...and how to handle yourself in a grocery store!I texted my wife and said I think my pelvic floor has just fallen through my ass. I knew instantly this was not good.Hayley is @theschoenbergfamily on InstagramFind out more about pessaries in this episode of the podcast, as well as this episode of the podcast and in this Instagram liveSeason 5 of Why Mums Don't Jump is sponsored by IMEDicare - Pelvic Health Naturally. IMEDicare supplies a range of easy-to-use, medically approved products including Lumana incontinence leggings and running shorts, the Efemia bladder support and Enna Pelvic Ball; a discount code is available via my online affiliate shop.Sign up for the Why Mums Don't Jump email newsletter for the latest news and offers!

When we talk about pelvic floor problems after childbirth, you can't escape the fact that many women don't get the birth they wanted or signed up for. A difficult experience can leave you feeling distressed, anxious or traumatised, but how often do you really get to reflect on what happened? And might it be something worth exploring? Illiyin Morrison is a birth trauma specialist midwife and a birth debrief facilitator. Illiyin supports women to overcome a difficult perinatal experience - whether that's pregnancy, birth or postpartum. She's the author of The Birth Debrief and a mum-of-two, who you might know from Instagram as @mixing.up.motherhood. In this episode, Helen and Illiyin discuss what we mean by a birth debrief, who it's for and why it may - or may not - be a useful tool. They talk about how we define trauma, how we begin to pick up the pieces, and how sometimes feeling heard is enough.You can find Illiyin's book, The Birth Debrief: Reflecting on pregnancy, reframing birth, redefining post-partum, hereYou can find Illiyin's website hereFor more support with birth trauma check out:The Birth Trauma Association - UK charity that supports women who suffer birth traumaMake Birth Better - Collective of parents and professionals working to end the suffering from birth traumaMASIC - Charity for mothers with anal sphincter injuries in childbirthYou can find further resources for pelvic floor dysfunction here In a previous episode, Helen discussed the mental health implications of pelvic floor dysfunction with perinatal psychiatrist, Dr Rebecca Moore. You can listen here.Season 5 of Why Mums Don't Jump is sponsored by IMEDicare - Pelvic Health Naturally. IMEDicare supplies a range of easy-to-use, medically approved products including Lumana incontinence leggings and running shorts, the Efemia bladder support and Enna Pelvic Ball; a discount code is available via my online affiliate shop.Sign up for the Why Mums Don't Jump email newsletter for the latest news and offers!

Bowel incontinence, also known as faecal incontinence, is estimated to affect up to one in ten women after childbirth. More if you include those who can’t hold wind, which may sound trivial but can obviously be pretty mortifying. Severe tears in childbirth are a common cause; third and fourth degree tears - which affect the muscle around the anus. In this episode, Helen is joined by Erica Macdonald - a listener who lives in Devon with her husband and three-year-old daughter. Erica was diagnosed with an anal injury - a severe tear - after her daughter was born and has been living with bowel incontinence ever since. She talks about the impact it's had on her life, her struggle to access support and her decision to take control of her own story:'You know when you're pregnant and you wear a badge on the Tube? It's like me wearing a badge saying 'my bum doesn't work'. And I own that. For me it just works so much better.'You can find out more about Sacral Nerve Stimulation hereYou can find the MASIC foundation hereListen to the Why Mums Don't Jump episode: Sara's Story hereNICE guidelines recommend that all women who have had a vaginal birth should be offered a post birth rectal examination. Find out more >Season 5 of Why Mums Don't Jump is sponsored by IMEDicare - Pelvic Health Naturally. IMEDicare supplies a range of easy-to-use, medically approved products including Lumana incontinence leggings and running shorts, the Efemia bladder support and Enna Pelvic Ball; a discount code is available via my online affiliate shop.Sign up for the Why Mums Don't Jump email newsletter for the latest news and offers!

How do you get the most out of your GP appointment if you have symptoms of pelvic floor dysfunction? Whether it's urinary incontinence, bowel incontinence, pelvic organ prolapse, sexual dysfunction or chronic pelvic pain - how do you maximise your (all-too-brief) consultation to get the help you need?In this episode Helen speaks to Dr Aziza Sesay, a GP with a special interest in women’s health and an educator, who shares evidence-based health information on social media and through her website: ‘Talks with Dr. Sesay'. Dr Aziza explains how to help your doctor help you - with suggestions on what to prepare, what questions to ask and what to do if you feel you're not being listened to. She lifts the lid on vaginal examinations and reimagines a world where women's health is made a priority. Oh and there's a farting chair. Yep. Dr Aziza is @talkswithdrsesay on InstagramYou can find the the NICE guidelines for the prevention, assessment and non-surgical management of pelvic floor dysfunction hereYou can read more about Perinatal Pelvic Health Services hereSeason 5 of Why Mums Don't Jump is sponsored by IMEDicare - Pelvic Health Naturally. IMEDicare supplies a range of easy-to-use, medically approved products including Lumana incontinence leggings and running shorts, the Efemia bladder support and Enna Pelvic Ball; a discount code is available via my online affiliate shop.Sign up for the Why Mums Don't Jump email newsletter for the latest news and offers!

Helen speaks to Holly Puddephatt, a content creator from Leeds, host of the podcast Me, Myself & Mum Life and mum to toddler, Thea. Holly discovered she had pelvic organ prolapse in October last year, two years after her daughter was born. Like so many of us, she'd never heard of it and was terrified about what it would mean, especially as someone with a huge passion for exercise.'I love exercise. It's a massive part of my life...and I was reading all this stuff online saying you can't run, you can't do this or that. And for me, that would be like ripping my legs off. That's how it felt.'In this episode, Holly describes how she set about reclaiming her life: absorbing as much information as she could, seeking out the support of a pelvic health physiotherapist, practising hypopressives and sourcing a pessary, as well as sharing her journey on social media. Holly is @hollyandthea on InstagramFind out more about pessaries in this episode of the podcastFind out more about hypopressives in this episode of the podcastFind out more about returning to exercise with prolapse in this episode of the podcastSeason 5 of Why Mums Don't Jump is sponsored by IMEDicare - Pelvic Health Naturally. IMEDicare supplies a range of easy-to-use, medically approved products including Lumana incontinence leggings and running shorts, the Efemia bladder support and Enna Pelvic Ball; a discount code is available via my online affiliate shop.Sign up for the Why Mums Don't Jump email newsletter for the latest news and offers!

Everywoman is back! After a sparkling launch in 2023, the Everywoman Festival is returning to Cardiff on Saturday June 15th, 2024! The festival is about offering empowerment, support and education on health topics that may be difficult or considered taboo to talk about. This year there'll be a whopping six tents, with more than sixty expert speakers, drop-ins and workshops covering topics including menopause, pelvic health, sexual health, IBS, endometriosis, gender health inequalities, cancer survivorship and chronic conditions, as well as drop-in sessions, support groups, music, street food, burlesque and booby pompons!Helen is an ambassador for the festival and in this special, bonus episode she's joined by fellow ambassadors: the GP and health educator Dr Aziza Sesay; pelvic health physiotherapist and creator of #SqueezeAlong, Suzanne Vernazza; Love Your Period founder and an activist living with a brain tumour, Molly Fenton; and Everywoman founder and colorectal consultant, Julie Cornish. They share their highlights from 2023 and what they're looking forward to this year. You can buy tickets from The Everywoman Festival websiteYou can follow @theeverywomanfestival on Instagram