‘Childbirth left me with life-changing injuries – it took 20 years to get my freedom back’
ok.co.ukWhat midwives originally thought was a minor perineal tear from labour turned out to be more significant, causing horrendous repercussions for Jo Prance that would last for two decades after welcoming her son.The now 48-year-old from Surrey has battled stress urinary incontinence, faecal incontinence, prolapse and severe pelvic pain.To date, she’s had 19 operations to try and tackle her symptoms, including getting a stoma and having a mesh sling inserted.
She’s also had to work hard to improve and maintain her pelvic floor health, with the help of training devices like femfit. Having felt “dictated by access to toilets” for the last 20 years, Jo now finally feels free and is sharing her story to lift the stigma around incontinence. “[After the birth], I was originally told I had a second-degree perineal tear and that it was repaired,” said the fitness consultant. “But it later transpired that it was more significant and a year after birth I started having issues with stress urinary incontinence.
I’ve been through two decades of operations, surgeries and treatments, and I still have to constantly keep on top of my pelvic floor.
It’s been a gruelling journey – physically challenging and mentally exhausting. “The personal toll of the injury has been immense.” In 2000, Jo had a mesh sling inserted to support her bladder – which helped, for a time – but left her with pelvic pain that became chronic.
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