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In June, my very first mom friend texted me about a relay for her 50th. I said yes. THEN I asked what I'd signed up for.
3 running legs in less than 24 hours including night running. And I'm a morning runner, because over the years, evenings are exactly when leakage sneaks in for me, even on a walk.
So I did what I'd do with any patient. I fit myself for a pessary. It took 4 devices, a lot of frustration, self-talk, and a brain trust of PT friends talking me off the ledge.
This is a solo, fully TMI episode (you've been warned) about the whole process, start to finish line.
What we get into:
🔹 Why I stopped blaming "endurance" for leakage that shows up later in the day
🔹 Support pessaries vs space-occupying pessaries, and why that difference ended up mattering for me
🔹 The dish, the ring, the Soma and the cube: what each one did (and didn't do) for MY anatomy
🔹 Why "that didn't work for me" says nothing about what will work for you
🔹 What it was actually like wearing a cube through a relay, including the one gravel stretch where I wondered if I was about to lose it (literally)
🔹 The running research out of Linda McLean's lab in Ottawa that changed how I looked at my own problem
If you've ever been offered a pessary and thought "not for me," or tried one, hated it and quit... listen to this one. And clinicians, this one's for you too.
Oh, and our team of masters women came in second. We also brought the music. Leave it to the moms to make it fun.
Have you ever been offered a pessary? Tell me how that conversation went.
Questions about my pessary journey, or trying to find someone near you who fits them? Email me at carrie@carriepagliano.com or DM me on Instagram @carriepagliano. I'm happy to help.
This episode is education, not individualized medical advice. My anatomy, my solution. Yours may be completely different.
Chapters (approximate)
00:00 Why a solo pessary episode
02:21 How I learned to fit pessaries
05:30 My history: 2 C-sections, perimenopause, evening leakage
07:40 Is later-day leakage really just endurance?
09:40 Support vs space-occupying pessaries
12:00 Trial 1: the dish
13:00 Trial 2: the ring
18:00 Trial 3: the Soma, and why "it didn't work for me" isn't a verdict
20:30 Trial 4: the cube
24:00 Race logistics: when to put it in and take it out
27:25 Night leg: 5 miles downhill in the dark
30:30 A 5:30 a.m. porta potty and posterior wall support
34:36 Final leg: 7 miles uphill
37:00 Awareness vs discomfort
38:30 The research that changed how I saw my own problem
41:54 Your story isn't my story, and where to get help
44:16 Next up: the DC half
The Active Mom Podcast — a real mom's guide to pregnancy, postpartum, perimenopause & beyond, for active moms and the professionals who help them get there.
Quick-hit conversations with moms, providers, and researchers... because you don't have a lot of free time (you're probably listening at 1.5x right now).
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