Pelvic Organ Prolapse Repair and Vaginoplasty (Enterocele, Rectocele, Cystocele, Uterine Prolapse, and Perineum Repair)

“I delivered my 1st baby (7 lbs) vaginally at 20 years old. The doctor performed an episiotomy that healed pretty well, although I experienced pain at the sites of scarring for about a year. Luckily, I did not have any other issues besides occasional constipation.

Fast forward 13 yrs and another vaginal delivery later. This time I was allowed to tear naturally. The recovery was much more difficult due to a multitude of factors. I vomited the entire pregnancy and was in a constant state of dehydration. As a critical care nurse, I worked 12 hours a night on my feet lifting, pulling, and bending over bed bound patients. And was told due to my baby’s marginally inserted cord she was showing signs of being IUGR. Which meant weekly NSTs and ultrasounds. Already way too much drama for my high strung personality. To add injury to insult, I literally tore my right iliopsoas muscle and had awful pelvic girdle instability and excruciating pain walking the last 6 weeks of my pregnancy.

The blessing in all this was that our daughter was not growth restricted at all. She was a healthy 7.5 lbs. And at my 5’2 frame I felt every ounce of that sweet, fiery red head tear through my pelvis. After delivering her, it took about 3 weeks to regain the ability to feel my bladder, and about 2 months to control my bowels/gas, something my doctor at the time, said was normal. Although I strongly disagreed. I went through pelvic physical therapy from 34 weeks pregnant until over 3 months pp to recover my torn iliopsoas, but also for regaining my mind body connection in a desperate attempt to regain my sense of dignity back. I continued the exercises I’d learned until I could push my daughter in her stroller by myself, almost a year after she was born.

I still had stress urinary incontinence, had to use my fingers to press against my posterior vaginal wall to pass stool most of the time, felt pelvic pressure all of the time, and had constant lower back pain. Not to mention sex just didn’t feel the same. It wasn’t bad, as my husband is well endowed, but it was hard to feel him internally. He had nothing but kind things to say to me regarding how much he still enjoyed sex on the nights I would cry out of frustration when I couldn’t achieve orgasm.

I consulted with a world renowned urogynecologist in Atlanta who performed POP repairs on my mother and aunt. And while I believe he was perfectly competent, I did not feel that he or his office were a good match for me. Living in the Southeast, I felt like truly gifted and experienced urogynecologists were far and few between, and rarely talked about. And traveling more than a couple hours for me was not an option. So I continued to work and save.

Then I remembered a friend of mine had mentioned a few years back that she had gone to Dr. Litrel for some similar issues (none of which I truly appreciated at the time) and she was delighted by the experience and results. So I prayed for guidance and ended up consulting with Dr. Litrel. From the moment I walked into their office, I felt immediately at ease. The office staff is warm and welcoming. Dr. Litrel is very well spoken and respectful. I knew immediately that he would be my surgeon. He made it a point to make sure he was accessible to questions and conversation up to and after surgery. He said a prayer with my husband and me in pre op, which really displayed his mind/body/spiritual approach to his patients’ wellness. He repaired my enterocele, rectocele, cystocele, uterine prolapse, and perineum. And has personally checked on me since discharge from the hospital. As a nurse, mother, and wife I truly value another medical professional and surgeon who sees his patients as a whole human being.

His clinical scheduler, Erica, is also fabulous. She was on top of everything and is a very valuable asset to his team. She made the planning and paperwork side of things effortless and answered most of my questions before I even knew to ask. The staff from pre op to discharge at Northside Hospital Cherokee were kind and the location of the hospital is easy to get to and absolutely beautiful for those of you who love big mountain views over concrete jungles.

The pain from recovery has been much less than the pain from either birth and I think that just goes to show how naturally skilled Dr. Litrel is. I was literally able to walk around immediately post op with very little discomfort. That pelvic pressure I had grown accustomed to since baby #2 was immediately gone. On post-op day 1, I had an easy and painless bowel movement, thanks to Colace and about a gallon of water. And while I initially had urinary retention, that resolved by day 2 post-op. Those were two things at the top of my priority list. Can’t ask for a much better start to the road of recovery. So thank you Dr. Litrel, you truly are doing God’s work, in a way that is life transforming for so many women.”