I have just been told I may have to give up breastfeeding in order to regain my own health.

Here's my story.

September 2009 - C section delivery of lovely baby girl, but placenta fragments and is difficult to remove.......a week after she is born my uterus hasn't shrunk down so I am sent for US.........which shows a lump of retained placenta the size of a 50c piece.

October 2009 - get some tablets from Obs which will induce contractions for 2 days to see if my body will expel the fragment.....2 days of painful contractions, back for another US.........it hasn't worked. Booked in for D+C on the day my daughter is 1 month old. D+C removes the fragment, I feel pretty good afterward, and am relieved it is all over.

November 2009 - sneeze while getting up out of chair holding baby and tear my rectus diastasis and muscle. Hideously painful. Take medication for the pain and wait for the healing process to work. Doesn't get better in a week, so off to the dr. Pain is so bad I need a towel across my stomach for the 3km drive and can barely manage it. Can't wear pants due to the pain. GP thinks it is just a bad tear, and see how I go for another couple of weeks.

December 2009 - muscle tear improving but theres another pain now, deeper, and around at my back too. Back to the GP who is puzzled and thinks I need an US and review by the Obs. Taking panadeine forte and voltaren which are not touching the pain, it's worse than contractions. Go for US with trepidation........and shock the specialist OB doing the US - I have a massive organised blood clot in my uterus (size of an orange), my uterus has flopped forward closing off my cervix, and I have pus in my uterus. See Obs who is shocked and books me in for emergency D+C that afternoon. Another procedure, major dilation done this time, quite painful recovery with 8 days of leaking pus. Great over Christmas.

January 2009 - book myself in for Obs review as I am now paranoid and want to be on top of things. Go for review, get US - yep, another pus collection. Dr has never seen this in a woman of my age (ie not 70+). Try dilating and draining with catheter in office (yuck). 2 days of pus and a week of 2 diff antibiotics which play havoc with me and my daughter. Apparently the tilted uterus and kinked cervix are related to a lack of oestrogen - normal when bf. But that means that to combat it i may have to give up bf..........leave in tears. Back today, yep its back again. Book in for d+c, hysterscope and Mirena - the hope is that the Mirena threads will keep a way out open for any fluid. But I can't keep this up, a GA every month or 6 weeks is apparently not great.

I cant give up bf!!!!!! Mentally I am clinging to it as the only thing my body is doing right. I cant exercise as it causes pain, cant wear anything at all fitted on the middle due to pain. But I am a champion bf. Why should my 4 month old have to go on formula?? I am prepared to do whatever to keep bf even if that means going to theatre every month until she is 1 - but i dont know if that is medically feasible.

Barb, i am looking for support and encouragement any if youve ever heard of recurrent haematometra and pyometra in a 38 yo bf woman and any suggestions.