Photo by Janko Ferlič on Unsplash

Joanne Luff, 45, gave birth to her second child on a sunny autumnal day in Sydney. At the time, she described the experience as “amazing”. The fast and furious drug-free labour had proved a welcome contrast with the birth of her first child, who was delivered via an elective caesarean. But four years later, she is still recovering from the natural birth she so desperately wanted.

“My pelvic floor muscle ripped and detached from my pelvic bone. It caused a hat-trick of prolapses – rectal, uterine and bladder,” says Luff. “Of course, I didn’t realise that at the time. I thought that the heaviness I was feeling was normal.”

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