Cerclage and Pessary Removal @ 36 weeks

Haven't seen many cerclage and pessary removal experiences shared so I've decided to share mine.

I had them removed on 7/17/17 @36weeks. First up was the pessary. This part was extremely painful. My doctor attempted to remove it 3 times unsuccessfully. My vagina/cervix were swollen (doctor said due to a yeast infection) and she could not figure out the angle to remove it. Finally she enlisted the help of another doctor who was able to remove it within ten seconds of locating it. She attributed the easy and painless removal to her technique of aiming for the bottom of the pessary instead of the top. Ladies, don't hesitate to request your doctor to get assistance if necessary. I'm convinced I would not have been in so much pain and I could've saved my tears had she passed the job after the first try. Removing the cerclage was next. It took a while to locate the knot that needed to be cut for proper removal. This part was relatively painless...it was uncomfortable and hurt a little due to searching for the knot but paled in comparison to the pessary. It took about 20 minutes to locate the knot and cut out the cerclage. I was grateful because had she not found it, I would have been scheduled for cerclage removal surgery a few days later which would've meant another epidural.

After the cerclage and pessary were out I had some light bleeding for the rest of the day. I still felt the pressure of carrying my baby but it felt different (not better or worse). I did notice I had more trouble walking around and felt like I would fall down more often. At this point I'm resting. I've been having tons of back pain and what I think are BH. We will see if I make it to my due date 8/14. If you have any questions feel free to ask.