You’ve got a long flight ahead of you, so to prepare you limit the amount of water you drink that day to the bare minimum. As you walk up to your gate, you feel the urge to go. You swiftly get to the nearest restroom, but you can already feel the leakage before you get to the toilet. And you barely had anything to drink today. So, what gives?
Urinary leakage (incontinence) is a common complaint that often inhibits day-to-day activities and leaves people feeling like pads are their only option to somewhat normalcy. This is not the case.
Involuntary loss of urine can be caused by different factors, many of which can be treated conservatively by a pelvic health physical therapist. The muscles in your pelvic floor actually contract to hold in urine and relax to allow urination. Therefore, leakage during coughing/sneezing, physical activity, or on the way to the bathroom are indicative of a pelvic floor dysfunction.
Pelvic floor dysfunction can also cause urinary frequency, urinary urgency, pain with urination, reoccurring UTI symptoms, or difficulty initiating a urine stream. Some people complain of feeling a strong urge to go to the bathroom and sometimes, but not always, followed by leakage. Many people attempt to limit the amount of water they drink so that they won’t leak as much. However, if the pelvic floor muscles are not working properly, this will not prevent leakage and may even cause worsening symptoms.
Bowel and gut health conditions such as chronic constipation or straining, pain with bowel movements, fecal incontinence, and Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) symptoms can also be treated conservatively by a pelvic health physical therapist.
