Urinary incontinence - We joke about it, but what can we do about it?

Many women experience some urinary leakage as their pregnancy progresses.  This unpleasant symptom often goes away postpartum but in some cases, it does not.  Some studies have shown the incidence of urinary incontinence may be as high as 35% during pregnancy and may still be that high 2 months after pregnancy.  If you can relate to this, at any age, you don’t have to accept it! What can we do?  First, know that you can always request the help of a pelvic floor physical therapist to ensure that you are doing the proper exercises and doing them correctly.  Studies support starting a pelvic floor strengthening program early on in pregnancy, even before the onset of symptoms, to reduce the severity of a variety of symptoms.  Strengthening the pelvic floor not only helps reduce incontinence but also back pain, hip pain, and conditions those muscles for labor.  If you’re well beyond postpartum phase and still having issues, discuss your symptoms with your doctor. Physical therapy may still be helpful to assess the tonicity (how toned the muscles are) in your pelvic floor and recommend the proper exercises or stretches.

So don’t accept wearing a pad everyday as your new normal.  Ask for help and you may be surprised by how easy it is to get results!