bag on woman's head

Women’s Urinary Incontinence – Overcoming Embarrassment

bag on woman's headIf you are a woman suffering from urinary incontinence, here are three things you should know:

  1. Only about 50% of women with urinary incontinence ever seek help
  2. Embarrassment is one of the primary reasons preventing these women from asking for help
  3. According to the Agency of Healthcare Research and Policy, urinary incontinence can be improved in 8 out of 10 cases

Does this sound crazy to you?

Why Urinary Incontinence is Embarrassing
Despite the fact that urinary incontinence affects more people than conditions like diabetes or Alzheimer’s, half of all women with urinary incontinence won’t seek help. Those who do seek help wait, on average, almost seven years. Why?

In a recent seminar co-sponsored by the National Association for Continence, experts discussed how cultural taboos prevent people from talking about this topic. These experts explained how shame is associated with bathroom issues from an early age, during the potty-training stage. Young children are taught that they are either “good girls” or “bad girls,” depending on whether they “performed” well in potty training.

Years later, the same “good girl” and “bad girl” language subconsciously haunts women, and keeps them from discussing their problems of urinary incontinence with healthcare providers.

How to Overcome the Embarrassment
While discussing urinary incontinence is embarrassing for many women, there are ways to overcome that emotion. After all, most of us have learned to overcome embarrassment about other situations in our life, why not about urinary incontinence? If you are ready to get over your embarrassment and get help, here are two simple steps you can take:

Discuss Your Situation with the Right Person
Chat with a close woman friend who has had urinary incontinence and sought help. Not only will she understand and sympathize with your situation, but she will be able to offer you guidance and advice based on her own experiences. You need not feel embarrassed talking to someone who has had the same experiences as you.

Learn More About Your Condition
Knowledge is power. Learning more about urinary incontinence gives you the knowledge and power you need to ask for help from a healthcare provider. Learn more about the different kinds of urinary incontinence and the available treatment options. Knowledge about your condition helps you understand that there are solutions available, and gives you the words you need to comfortably discuss your condition with your doctor.

People say that it’s never too late to have a happy childhood. We say that it’s never too early to seek help for your urinary incontinence. The earlier you address your condition, the faster you will see positive results with the right treatment. Commit to taking a step toward drier panties today, whether it be talking to someone about your condition or learning more about urinary incontinence online.

 

If you enjoyed this post, we invite you to check out our book, leave a comment, contact us, download our free ebook, or interact with us on Twitter and Facebook.

Image courtesy of Stuart Miles / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

woman thinking

Women’s Urinary Incontinence and Menopause Don’t Always Go Together

woman thinkingReally, no kidding. Women’s urinary incontinence can and does regularly occur when mature women reach menopause, but it doesn’t have to. Despite the popular belief that urinary incontinence is “natural” or “normal” when a woman reaches menopause, it simply isn’t true for all women … especially women who have been exercising their pelvic floor muscles.

Why Does Urinary Incontinence Occur with Menopause?
Like almost everything associated with menopause, urinary incontinence occurs because of the hormonal shifts in a woman’s body during this phase of life. Primarily, levels of the female hormone estrogen drop significantly during and after the process of menopause.

This is significant because estrogen is important for keeping the bladder and urethra healthy. Also, lower levels of estrogen in the body contribute to thinning of the urethral, vaginal, and bladder lining. With a thinner lining, the pelvic floor muscles responsible for keeping urine from leaking tend to weaken, which can lead to urinary incontinence.

What Kinds of Urinary Incontinence are Common Post-Menopause?
Women going through menopause or who are post-menopausal most commonly experience either stress urinary incontinence (SUI) or urge urinary incontinence (UUI).

With SUI, urine leaks when you put any pressure on your abdominal cavity, such as when you sneeze, laugh, or step off a curb. This happens because the weakened pelvic floor muscles that are supposed to keep urine in the bladder can’t withstand the sudden increase in abdominal pressure, and allow urine to leak.

With UUI, you experience a sudden and urgent need to urinate, often before you have time to reach the bathroom. This occurs because the bladder muscles squeeze at the wrong time. Many women with UUI feel the urge to go when they hear the sound of running water.

What Should Menopausal Women Do?
If you are experiencing urinary incontinence during or after the process of menopause, seek help from your doctor, whether it be your regular family doctor, your gynecologist, or your urologist.

One of the common conservative medications prescribed for your situation is transvaginal hormones, specifically estrogen. Estrogen, has been shown to increase blood flow, improve nerve function, and rejuvenate the tissues in the urethra and vagina.

Transvaginal hormones have been shown to prevent urinary tract infections in post-menopausal women. These hormones are available in the form of creams, tablets, or a time-release intravaginal ring. Note that transvaginal hormones are different than oral hormone replacement, which may actually worsen incontinence symptoms for some women.

Ready to Get Help?
Here are some resources to help you get help you want and need for your urinary incontinence:

How to Find the Right Doctor for You
Discreet Online Resources
Learn More about Urge Urinary Incontinence
Learn More about Stress Urinary Incontinence

 

If you enjoyed this post, we invite you to check out our book, leave a comment, contact us, download our free ebook, or interact with us on Twitter and Facebook.

Image courtesy of graur codrin / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

 

doctor

Would You Rather Have a Red Face or Wet Panties?

doctorEmbarrassment.

It is the main reason women suffering from urinary incontinence (UI) hesitate to discuss the problem with their doctors. Two-thirds of women never do. The women who do ask for help from healthcare professionals wait, on average, almost seven years before doing so.

That’s a long time to wait, but nothing compares to the true story of a woman who waited 40 years before seeking help! This woman had been dealing with wet panties since the vaginal delivery of her youngest child 40 years ago. Why did this woman wait so long?

Forty Years of Wet Panties
This woman was kind enough to share her story with us so that we could share it with you. While her delay in asking for help is extreme, her story is much like that of many women dealing with UI. Below are the reasons she waited so long before getting help. If you suffer from UI then these will probably sound familiar. She says:

-I was embarrassed to tell my doctor.
-I thought my UI would go away naturally.
-I lost some weight and the UI symptoms got better.
-UI was not really interfering with my life until now.
-I was afraid I would be told nothing could be done.
-I was afraid they would just tell me I was too fat. In fact, one doctor did tell me that.
-Every woman in my family has had this problem so I thought it was normal.

Wow! Does that ring any bells for you? If you have used any of these reasons to justify not seeking help for your UI, you might want to reconsider your position. Here are some thoughts to consider about UI.

Urinary incontinence:

-is not healthy or normal at any age, even if it “runs in the family”
-can and does interfere with your life, whether you acknowledge it or not
-can improve with weight loss, but you may need additional treatment to get maximum relief from your symptoms
-usually does not go away without treatment
-is treatable, with most women finding significant relief or cure via conservative therapies or surgery

The bottom line is that UI can have a stronger negative impact on your life over the long run than any embarrassment you might feel about seeking help from a healthcare professional. Think about it: would you rather be red-faced for a short period of time or deal with wet panties for the rest of your life?

If you do decide to get help for your UI, here are some resources to get you started:

Some Facts about Urinary Incontinence to Inspire You to Get Help
How to Find the Right Doctor to Treat Your Urinary Incontinence
Discover Which Kind of UI You Have

If you enjoyed this post, we invite you to check out our book, leave a comment, contact us, download our free ebook, or interact with us on Twitter and Facebook.

Image courtesy of stockimages / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

pregnant

Women’s Urinary Incontinence: Post-Partum Statistics

pregnantDid you know that women who have given birth are 2.5 times more likely to have urinary incontinence than women who have not?

It’s sad, but true. During pregnancy, a woman’s body undergoes many physical and hormonal changes. These changes can result in urinary urgency, urge urinary incontinence, and incomplete emptying of the bladder during pregnancy.

While some women who experience urinary incontinence during pregnancy do not have urine leakage after delivery, many do. The opposite is also true: women who were continent during their pregnancy may discover that they leak urine post-partum.

Some Statistics about Women’s Urinary Incontinence Post-Partum
What’s a mom-to-be or a new mom to think? Well, here are some statistics which may offer you some guidance on what to expect (according to Carolyn Sampselle as reported in the American Journal of Nursing):

–    Vaginal delivery is linked to a high rate of urinary incontinence in the period directly after birth
–    21% of women experience urinary incontinence after their first vaginal delivery with spontaneous birth
–    36% of women experience urinary incontinence after their first vaginal delivery with forceps delivery

Now zoom into the future about five years and you get this statistic: women who experience urinary incontinence for a period of time post-partum are three times as likely to have urinary incontinence five years later.

In addition, in a study by Brown and Lumley (2000), urinary incontinence was one of the three major health factors associated with poor emotional well-being post-partum. The other two factors were tiredness and a higher than usual number of minor illnesses. Ultimately, if left untreated, these factors can lead to long-term depression.

So What is a Post-Partum Mom to Do?
If you suffered from urinary incontinence during your pregnancy, or post-partum, then you should take definite and immediate action. Make an appointment and speak honestly with your doctor about your condition. Find out what conservative measures you can take to improve your symptoms.

Then take charge and be your own best health advocate! Browse through the various posts on this blog to learn how to find the best doctor, talk to your doctor, prepare for your appointment, and more. Or, download our free ebook, “What’s Up Down There” and do a quick self-assessment of your situation “down there.” The ebook also gives you step-by-step instructions on how to do a correct pelvic floor contraction, or Kegel, which helps alleviate many symptoms of urinary incontinence.

If you enjoyed this post, we invite you to check out our book, leave a comment, contact us, download our free ebook, or interact with us on Twitter and Facebook.

Image courtesy of imagerymajestic / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

doctor

Solving Urinary Incontinence: Avoid Doorknob Conversations with Your Doc

doctorWhen it comes to female urinary incontinence, many women are doorknob conversationalists. What’s a “doorknob conversation”?

It’s where you avoid talking about urinary incontinence during the entire doctor’s appointment because you are too embarrassed to bring it up. Then, at the last moment, literally when your hand is on the doorknob and you are walking out the door, you raise the issue.

Those conversations usually start with, “By the way …” or “I forgot to mention this, but …”

You know what we’re talking about, right? We’ve all done it, and it’s nothing to be ashamed of.

Unfortunately, these kinds of conversations prevent you from getting the help you need. Your doctor isn’t likely to have time at the end of your appointment to fully discuss your urinary incontinence issues, so you’ll end up having to come back for another appointment.

Three Steps to Avoiding Doorknob Conversations
Instead of waiting until you are walking out the door to ask your doc for help, get right to the heart of the issue at the beginning of the appointment. Here are three tips to help you avoid doorknob conversations.

1. Be Clear About the Purpose of Your Appointment
When you call to schedule your appointment, be sure to tell the staff at your doctor’s office that the purpose of your appointment is to discuss urinary incontinence. Be sure to use the words “urinary incontinence” so that your meaning isn’t lost in translation. Be firm with yourself about this!

2. Jot Down Your Symptoms and Questions
To be sure you get exactly the help you need, make a list of all of your symptoms. Include items like when you leak urine, how much urine you leak, triggers for urine leakage, and any other related symptoms. Make a list of all the medications you currently take, as some of these could be related to your symptoms. Finally, jot down any questions you want your doctor to answer.

3. Grab a Buddy
If you are afraid that you will chicken out at the last moment, either by skipping your appointment or failing to actually discuss your symptoms, take a buddy with you to your appointment. Ask your buddy to remind you of the purpose of your appointment, and ensure that you cover every item on your list during your appointment. A trusted friend can offer a lot of moral support and courage.

Need more tips? Check out these resources:

Using the Right Words – Don’t Let Your Symptoms Get Lost in Translation
Learn About the Different Types of Urinary Incontinence 
How to Keep a Voiding Diary

 
If you enjoyed this post, we invite you to check out our book, leave a comment, contact us, download our free ebook, or interact with us on Twitter and Facebook.

Image courtesy of marin / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Women’s Urinary Incontinence: How do You Feel about Bathrooms?

When you think about bathrooms, how do you feel about them? Are they happy places or something less pleasant?

According to a study by the National Association for Continence (NAFC), the majority of respondents claimed that the bathroom was a happy place for them, a personal refuge. Aside from the obvious, what do these people do in bathrooms?

– 53% read
– 47% think about serious issues
– 33% talk on the telephone
– 27% make love

On the other hand, people with bladder issues had a very different take on bathrooms. Specifically:

People with bladder issues viewed the bathroom as a symbol of incarceration.

In other words, instead of being a happy place, for people with urinary incontinence the bathroom is more of a jailhouse. The fact that 61% of these people have to constantly look for bathrooms when they leave the house for around 3 hours would make it seem like they are perpetually “tethered” to some bathroom or other.

Get Help for Women’s Urinary Incontinence
So what should a gal with urinary incontinence do to “get out of jail”? Get help! Whether you read up about your condition to understand why you experience urine leakage, or simply pick up the phone and make an appointment with your doctor, do something. Here are some places you can start:

Read our in-depth book on women’s pelvic health
Read up on pelvic floor health with our free ebook “What’s Up Down There?”
Find the right doctor
Access discreet online resources about urinary incontinence
View the many faces of women’s urinary incontinence

If you enjoyed this post, we invite you to check out our book, leave a comment, contact us, download our free ebook, or interact with us on Twitter and Facebook.

 

Women’s Urinary Incontinence: What Questions Will Your Doctor Ask?

Have you finally taken the big step of calling your doctor and setting an appointment to deal with your urinary incontinence symptoms? If so, good for you.

To prepare yourself for your appointment, you might like to know what kinds of questions your doctor will ask you. Well, we can give you the list of questions, straight from the horse’s mouth, so to speak.

Most physicians in the U.S. will follow the guidelines issued by the Agency for Policy and Research, a branch of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

According to these guidelines, physicians are encouraged to ask the following questions:

•Can you tell me about the problems you are having with your bladder?
•Can you tell me about the trouble you are having holding your urine?
•How often do you lose urine when you don’t want to?
•When do you lose urine when you don’t want to?
•What activities or situations are linked with leakage?
•Is it associated with laughing, coughing or getting to the bathroom?
•How often do you wear a pad for protection?
•Do you use other protective devices to collect your urine?
•How long have you been having a problem with urine?

There you have it. Now that you know what questions your doctor is likely to ask, you can prepare your answers ahead of time, so you get the most from your appointment. In addition you may want to check out our three suggested steps for preparing for your appointment:

Three Steps to Prepare for Your Doctor’s Appointment

If you enjoyed this post, we invite you to check out our book, leave a comment, contact us, download our free ebook, or interact with us on Twitter and Facebook.

 

How to Find the Right Doctor to Treat Your Urinary Incontinence

It can be hard to ask for help with your urinary incontinence (UI). In fact, the average affected woman waits seven years before getting help. What can make the situation even worse is finally asking for help, and then showing up at the doctor’s office and not getting the help you need.

Discussing UI is embarrassing enough, and dealing with a doctor who is insensitive or doesn’t offer the right solutions for you can make you regret asking for help. So how do you find the right doctor to treat your UI? Women who have experienced successful treatment for UI typically get recommendations from one of these sources:

  • Other women who have been treated for UI
  • Referrals from their family doctor
  • Advertisements or internet referral sites

Word-of-Mouth Still Works Best
No one understands the trials and tribulations of UI like another woman who has suffered the same symptoms. Ask women you trust if they have been treated for UI, and if they had a good experience from their care provider. According to the Women’s Sexual Health Foundation, asking women who have already been treated is an excellent way to find a care provider, since these women know “which doctors and other professionals have been helpful.” These same women “often know the inside scoop,” meaning they can provide a more personal view on whether the doctor showed caring, had the right knowledge, and offered useful treatments.

Your Family Doctor Knows You Well
If you don’t feel comfortable asking your women friends for referrals, check in with your family doctor. Chances are that he or she knows you pretty well. Many patients follow this route. A study by the Center for Studying Health System Change shows that seven out of ten people looking for a specialist relied on referrals from their primary care physician. One of the benefits of asking your family doctor for a referral is that he or she is likely to match you with a specialist who suits your personal treatment preferences and personality. They may also be able to refer you to a specialist who works within your health insurance plan.

Find a Specialist through Advertisements or the Internet
While it used to be taboo for doctors to advertise their services, these days it is a perfectly normal practice–and can help you find the UI specialist you need. A doctor who advertises a specialty in UI is likely to have a lot of experience treating this condition with a variety of methods.

Another option is to browse internet referral sites for doctors specializing in treating UI. If you do choose to use the internet as a referral resource, experts recommend that you look through multiple referral sites for greater accuracy. Also, place more importance on objective information (“Dr. X followed up within 24 hours to review my test results.”) than on subjective comments (“Dr. X was a jerk!”).

If you suffer from UI, there’s a world of help out there. All you have to do is ask. These three sources should give you some great places to start looking for the right doctor to help you with your UI.

If you enjoyed this post, we invite you to check out our book, leave a comment, contact us, download our free ebook, or interact with us on Twitter and Facebook.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++=
RESOURCES

Online Referral Sites
http://www.cnn.com/2008/HEALTH/04/17/ep.finding.docs.online/index.html

Word-of-Mouth Study
http://www.hschange.org/CONTENT/1028/

Women’s Sexual Health Foundation
http://twshf.blogspot.com/2009/02/finding-doctor-who-can-help.html

Women’s Urinary Incontinence: How to Be a Better Patient 5 Ways

If you’ve got women’s urinary incontinence, then you probably know that the process of actually becoming a patient–that is, seeing a medical professional–isn’t all that easy. It takes a lot of courage to overcome embarrassment and make an appointment, not to mention show up at the appointment.

If you have already overcome the first hurdle of making an appointment, then make the most of your courageous act by following these 5 tips on how to be a better patient. What do we mean by “a better patient”? We mean an empowered patient. When you are an empowered patient, you are a powerful advocate for your health. You become a powerful force in relieving and even curing your symptoms of women’s urinary incontinence, such as urinary urgency, frequency, and leakage. You become the key to a new sense of freedom for your life.

Sound good? Then read the following tips on how to become a better patient!

How to Be a Better Patient: 5 Tips You Can Use Today
Knowledge is power, and you will discover that a lot of our tips on how to be a better patient are related to increasing your level of knowledge… or translating your doctor’s knowledge into terms that make sense to you.

Tip #1: Know Your Terminology
While most doctors will try to translate their technical medical knowledge into layman’s terms, you can help yourself by learning the terms related to your condition–women’s urinary incontinence. For instance, did you know that there are three different types of urinary incontinence? You may have stress, urge (or overactive bladder, also called OAB) or mixed urinary incontinence. Learning at least a little about each type of urinary incontinence will give you a head start when you discuss your condition with your doctor. Get an overview HERE or dig deep and learn the full details about each type of urinary incontinence HERE.

Tip #2: Insist on Having Your Questions Answered
If you take the time to research your condition, and your most probable type of urinary incontinence, then you will probably have a list of questions by the time you see your doctor. If for any reason your doctor does not seem to want to answer your questions, be politely but quietly persistent. If your doctor continues to ignore your questions, consider finding a new doctor. Getting the answers to your questions is crucial to relieving your symptoms of urinary incontinence, so a doctor who dodges your questions or will not give you a straight answer may not be the doctor for you. One way to ensure your questions are answered is to bring a buddy with you to the appointment. Your buddy’s job is to ensure that your questions are answered, and that you do not get distracted by a ton of medical jargon. Having a good gal pal at your appointment can make all the difference!

Tip #3: Ask for Clarification as Often as Necessary
Many doctors are used to using medical terminology on a regular basis. While many healthcare providers are good at explaining those terms in a way non-medical people can understand, other doctors are less skilled at this. If your doctor uses a term you don’t understand, gently stop him or her and ask for clarification. If your doctor’s explanation still leaves you confused, ask for even more clarification. Don’t worry about whether you appear “stupid.” You are paying for your doctor’s time and attention, so make the most of it without worrying about “saving face.”

Tip #4: Fire Doctors Who Don’t Respect Your Time
Healthcare providers are feeling the “crunch” of needing to see more patients in less time. The result is often that you, the patient, wait for a long time to see the doctor only to feel rushed during the appointment. One way to be a better patient is not to tolerate a doctor who disrespects your time in this way. While a certain amount of waiting is to be expected, regularly waiting 30 minutes or more to see your doctor AND routinely feeling like you are being speed-walked through your appointment is not acceptable. Like all professionals, your doctor can and should be held to a certain level of efficiency and skilled time management. If your doctor routinely makes you feel like his or her time is more valuable than yours, it’s time to fire that doctor and find a new one.

Tip #5: Don’t Tolerate an Inefficient Office Staff
Many times the receptionists, nurses, and assistants that make up the office staff act as the conduit between you and your doctor after and between appointments. If you find your doctor’s office staff inefficient or unprofessional, you might be putting your health at risk. Suppose your doctor prescribes a new medication, and you begin having side effects, you will probably call your doctor’s office. In all likelihood, your doctor’s staff will take a message to pass on. If that message does not get passed on in a timely manner–or not at all–the side effects could really affect your health. Do not tolerate members of your doctor’s office staff that fail to pass on messages or minimize your situation. One way to be a better patient is to insist on speaking with the doctor or find a new doctor.

How to Be a Better Patient–Why It Is Important
As you can see, being a better patient is really about being persistent in seeking solutions to your women’s urinary incontinence. If you are unable to easily communicate with your doctor or the office staff, even after your best efforts to clarify communications–chances are that you will need to find a new doctor. You are more likely to find the solutions you seek with a doctor who “clicks” with you. So go forth and seek your perfect doctor!
If you enjoyed this post, we invite you to check out our book, leave a comment, contact us, download our free ebook, or interact with us on Twitter and Facebook.

 

Women’s Urinary Incontinence: What if Your Diagnosis is Unclear?

So you have finally worked up the courage to talk to your doctor about your women’s urinary incontinence symptoms. You have showed up at your appointment, discussed your symptoms (such as urinary urgency or leakage), and had some generalized tests. That’s all good.

But what do you do if your diagnosis is unclear? Yikes! You worked up all that courage to show up at the appointment, only to have an unclear diagnosis. What should you do?

Don’t panic. Check out the following tips, which may help you and your doctor find a clear diagnosis for your condition. After all, there are three types of urinary incontinence, not to mention multiple other possible causes for urinary issues. So you and your doctor may need to do a bit of sleuthing to come up with a final diagnosis.

What to Do if Your Diagnosis is Unclear
It is not uncommon for your doctor to be unable to pin down an exact diagnosis on your first visit. This is because the generalized tests he or she will probably perform are meant to exclude certain conditions while not necessarily generating specific diagnostic answers.

For instance, your discussion with your doctor may give him or her a general idea of your symptoms, such as urinary urgency, leakage, or frequency. However, these symptoms alone will not necessarily reveal what is causing your urinary issues. Your doctor may perform a urinalysis to rule out infection and discover whether you have blood or other substances in your urine. He or she may also run a blood test to find out whether medications or other chemicals and substances are present that could be causing your incontinence symptoms. These generalized tests help your doctor rule out temporary causes of urinary incontinence, including urinary tract infections or diuretic medications, which could cause urinary urgency and frequency.

If these generalized tests are inconclusive, then your doctor may not have a definitive diagnosis for you after your first visit. But don’t panic. Instead consider the following options:

1. More Tests
Ask your doctor whether more tests will help clarify your diagnosis. Chances are that your doctor will raise this issue anyway. Further tests can include postvoid residual measurements, stress tests, urodynamic testing, pelvic ultrasounds, pelvic exam, cystograms, and cystoscopies. All of these tests reveal more specific information about the health, position, and function of your urinary system. With these tests, your doctor will very likely be able to offer a specific diagnosis, as well as multiple therapies to address your condition.

2. Ask Questions
It is possible that your doctor may not have a specific diagnosis, but instead have several possible options. He or she may suggest that you try one or more therapies to address the most likely diagnosis. If the therapy is effective, then the diagnosis is confirmed. If the therapy does not alleviate your symptoms, then your doctor may suggest other therapies. The use of therapies to confirm a diagnosis is not uncommon. However, if you feel uncomfortable with the vagueness of this approach, do not hesitate to ask questions. You may wish to ask which diagnosis the suggested therapy is meant to confirm. Or ask which diagnosis is most likely and why.

No questions are ever “stupid,” and you are visiting your doctor because he or she has expertise and information relevant to your condition. So avail yourself of that expertise. Keep asking questions until you are satisfied. If you run out of time during the appointment, ask whether you can discuss your remaining questions with another member of the staff, or request a follow-up email or phone consultation. A question that is never asked might never be answered. Your doctor cannot read your mind, so it is up to you to raise any issues not covered in your discussion.

3. Get Another Opinion
If you are unable to get satisfactory answers and information from your doctor about your condition, there is absolutely nothing wrong with seeking the opinion of another doctor. You may even wish to ask for a referral to a new or different kind of specialist.

For instance, if your urinary incontinence symptoms did not start until menopause, you may want to ask your doctor for a referral to a healthcare provider who specializes in problems associated specifically with menopause. If your doctor is a man and you would feel more comfortable with a woman, ask for a referral for a female physician, either within the same practice or in a different practice. Other referral options include urologists, ob/gyns, and gerontologists. There is no point in continuing to see the same doctor if you are not getting the help you need. If you have asked your doctor for information and assistance more than once, and do not get the help you seek, look elsewhere.

Persistence Pays
When it comes to women’s urinary incontinence, persistence always pays. The women who are most successful at alleviating or even curing their symptoms are the ones who are most persistent. These women are not afraid to keep asking questions until they get the answers they seek. These women are willing to try multiple therapies, either singly or in combination, until they find a solution that works. These women will ask for referrals or will follow up via phone or email after appointments until their problems are solved. These women are, in short, persistent!

The question is, are you willing to be that persistent to gain relief from your urinary incontinence symptoms? We hope so! If you are not yet ready to visit your doctor but have questions, ask us on our Facebook page… you ask and we will answer!
If you enjoyed this post, we invite you to check out our book, leave a comment, contact us, download our free ebook, or interact with us on Twitter and Facebook.

 

Attention Women: What to Do If Your Doctor Is Not Hearing You

For women with urinary incontinence, working up the courage to make an appointment and actually go to the appointment with a doctor is a HUGE deal. Sometimes the thought of discussing topics like urinary urgency or urinary leakage with another person–even a medical professional–can be so embarrassing that picking up the phone to make that appointment seems impossible. After all, the phone weighs 100 pounds, right?

But the situation becomes even worse when a woman actually goes to the appointment, only to discover–perhaps in the middle of describing her urinary urgency–that her doctor is not even listening. Or perhaps the doctor appears to be listening, but is putting his or her own interpretation on the situation.

If you suffer from women’s urinary incontinence, the situation described above can be one of the most frustrating, humiliating, and saddening situations ever. Luckily, you can take action steps if you discover that your doctor is not hearing you!

Action Step #1: Prepare for Your Appointment
Before you ever step foot into your doctor’s office, you can prepare for clear communication by documenting your urinary issues and habits. Verbal communication can sometimes lead to crossed wires, but actual documented facts, written on paper in black and white, can clear up a confusing conversation quickly. A week or two before your appointment, begin keeping a bladder diary, which documents your urinary habits and problems (to learn how to keep a bladder diary, click HERE. Then be sure to bring that diary with you to your appointment and show it to your doctor at the beginning of the appointment. Not only will your documentation allow your doctor to quickly get a “snapshot” of your situation–perhaps even saving you some embarrassing conversation–but the clear documentation also prevents your doctor from dismissing your symptoms as not being an important health issue.

Action Step #2: Stop the Conversation if You Keep Repeating Yourself
One sure sign that your doctor is not hearing you is if you have to keep repeating yourself, either to have your statements acknowledged or to correct your doctor. If you talk about the problems you have with urinary urgency, for instance, and your doctor persists in telling you that the issue is “nothing to worry about” or is “a normal sign of aging,” you need to stop the conversation. You might say something like, “Can you please summarize my situation as you understand it? I just want to be sure that we understand each other.” If your doctor does not address your problems or dismisses them, feel free to say, “I realize that this may not seem like a major health issue to you, but it is really affecting my quality of life. Could you please suggest some solutions for this problem, or is there another doctor with whom I could discuss my situation?” While it may seem difficult to contradict a healthcare professional, often times you have to be your own strongest health advocate. Since you have already worked up the courage to make and attend the appointment, you won’t lose anything by persisting until you are heard and get the help you need!

Action Step #3: Make Sure You Express Yourself Fully
If you find that your doctor keeps cutting you off or, even worse, ends the appointment before you have fully expressed your needs or gotten the information or help you need, stop the conversation. If your doctor keeps cutting you off, you may want to gently stop him or her and say, “I want to be sure that I am communicating clearly. Can we go back to the topic I was just discussing, my urinary urgency?” Many times your doctor’s lack of attention may have nothing to do with you or your health situation. Doctors, like all people, have good days and bad days. If you happen to interact with your doctor on a day he or she is very tired or unable to concentrate (for whatever reason), simply bring his or her attention gently back to your needs. Persist, persist, persist… if you do so gently and gracefully, chances are your doctor will bring his or her focus back to you.

If your doctor ends the appointment before you have gotten all the information or help that you need, raise the issue. Tell your doctor that you have further questions or need more information. Often your doctor will be happy to extend the appointment for a few minutes longer. If not, ask whether you could continue the conversation with a nurse or another provider. Some doctors are open to answering questions via email or phone after the appointment. If you have questions about medication your doctor has prescribed, you may be able to get your questions answered by the pharmacist. In short, ask for more options if you have not gotten what you need by the end of the appointment.

Be Strong for Yourself
While it may seem a bit silly that you would need to prepare yourself in the ways described above to get the help you need for your women’s urinary incontinence, the truth of the matter is that this is true in every area of life–be it healthcare or plumbing. While symptoms of urinary incontinence may make it more difficult to persist with your doctor until you get the help you need, you will find that the extra efforts you make in that direction will yield huge benefits. Not only will you get the help you need, but often you will gain more respect from your doctor. In any case, you will definitely increase your self-respect. So, as the Nike slogan goes, “Just do it!”

If you enjoyed this post, we invite you to check out our book, leave a comment, contact us, download our free ebook, or interact with us on Twitter and Facebook.

 

What to Do When Your Doctor Can’t or Won’t Help with Women’s Urinary Incontinence

We recently received a comment on our blog from a wonderfully courageous and honest woman about the often embarrassing and humiliating experience of seeking medical help for urinary urgency, leakage, or frequency–in a word, urinary incontinence. If you read our blog regularly, then you know that we are big advocates of women getting an accurate diagnosis and help from a qualified medical professional for urinary incontinence.

What If Your Doctor Can’t Help You?
But sometimes seeking help from a doctor doesn’t always work out the way we think it will. While we would all like to think that our doctor has a sympathetic bedside manner, is chock-full of solutions, and can “fix” our problems right away, sometimes that doesn’t happen. As the woman points out in her comment on the blog, even if you build up the courage to seek help from your doctor, there can be two negative outcomes from this kind of encounter with your doctor:

1. Your doctor does not feel you have a medical problem, and hence offers no medical diagnosis and no solutions.
2. Your doctor gives you a specific diagnosis of urinary incontinence, but has no solutions to offer.

Now those are definite show-stoppers. What do you do now? You’ve spent all that time and energy working up the courage to talk to your doctor… and the results are definitely less-than-satisfying, if not downright depressing!

What to Do Next…
If either of the above options happens when you seek help from your doctor for symptoms like urinary urgency, leakage, or frequency, don’t despair (or, don’t spend more than five minutes having a pity party!). You have multiple options, and will need to choose the one or ones that best fit your situation.

One additional factor noted in the blog comment is that women who experience either of the above mentioned outcomes from their doctor tend to be highly disappointed, and also much less likely to seek a second opinion. They have, as it were, used up their reservoir of courage, and don’t have any more to spare.

However, there are actions that you can take, even if you feel like you have no more courage to seek help from additional sources. Here are three options that we know work for women after a “failed” encounter with a doctor.

1. Ask for a Referral Before You Leave
If you don’t get the answers or solutions for women’s urinary incontinence you seek while sitting in your doctor’s office, you can and should take action before you leave the office. Chances are that you have seen your family doctor or general practitioner, who may not have the resources or experience to properly diagnose your condition or offer you appropriate therapies. What your family doctor can do for you is give you a referral to a urologist, gynecologist, or other specialist who is more likely to be able to help you. After all, a urologist is more likely to know how to help you with urinary incontinence than your family doctor.

2. Get an Appointment Before You Leave
With most referral systems these days, the office of the referred doctor will likely call you rather than requiring you to call them. This means that you do not need to gather up the courage to make another appointment–the referral system will likely take care of that for you. You can even ask your doctor if this is how your healthcare network’s system works. If not–or regardless of how the system works–you can ask your doctor if his or her staff can call the urologist’s office–right then and there–and make the appointment for you. Most doctors are more than happy to accommodate. This simplifies your life and helps you avoid the embarrassment of making another appointment.

3. Get the Pertinent Medical Records
While you are still at the doctor’s office, you can take one further step to reduce embarrassment and simplify your life. Ask your doctor to print out the medical record of that day’s visit, plus any other relevant medical history. Bring that record with you to your appointment with the urologist to avoid repeating yourself to the urologist. Some doctor’s offices can also simply forward the records to the specialist’s office. However, we recommend getting a copy for your own records, just in case the records fail to get forwarded in time for your next appointment.

How to Prevent Negative Outcomes
If you have not yet seen your family doctor for help with your urinary incontinence, you can take some steps to prepare for your appointment and, quite possibly, avoid the negative outcomes described previously.

1. Keep a Bladder Diary
A bladder diary is just how it sounds. It is a record of your bladder behavior and habits. You record when and how often your urinate, how much you urinate, how often you experience urge without leakage, how often you have leakage accidents, and so forth. For more information on how to keep a bladder diary, click HERE.

We recommend keeping a bladder diary for a minimum of a week. You may be surprised at how often you have to urinate, or how many lifestyle factors can trigger your urinary incontinence. Once you have a week’s worth of data in a bladder diary, you are ready to visit your family practitioner. The bladder diary will “do all the talking” for you, and let your doctor know immediately whether you have bladder issues or not. In addition, we recommend that you do some research on your own to determine what is and is not “normal” when it comes to urinary habits. Our book, A Woman’s Guide to Pelvic Health, contains a lot of data on the three types of urinary incontinence–including what is normal. Armed with this knowledge, you can confidently speak with your doctor about your condition and insist on getting the help you need, even if that means getting a referral.

2. Call Your Family Doctor for a Referral
Depending on the kind of relationship you have with your family practitioner, you may possibly be able to avoid the embarrassment of having two conversations about your urinary incontinence: one with your family doctor and the other with a specialist. If you have a close and trusting relationship with your family practitioner, you may be able to simply call that doctor’s office and get a referral to a specialist. If you are able to do so, we still recommend that you educate yourself about your condition and keep a bladder diary prior to seeing the specialist. Both will help you get the answers and solutions you need for your urinary incontinence.

3. Ask a Friend for a Referral
If you know of friends who have seen doctors who have been helpful and sympathetic about urinary incontinence, ask those friends for the names of those doctors. Then make an appointment. If you are too “wiped out” after a negative first encounter with a doctor, ask your friend to help you make an appointment. Sometimes just having a friend standing next to you can give you the courage and support you need. You can go one step further and ask your friend to accompany you on your visit. If your friend has already been through the process of diagnosing and treating urinary incontinence, she will know the questions to ask as well as the answers you need to have ready for your doctor. Sometimes a good buddy is the best medicine!

A Little Preparation Goes a Long Way
As you can see, being prepared for appointments with medical professionals can help you make the most out of each encounter. Whether you have already seen your family doctor or not, you can take steps to get the solutions you need from any healthcare professional. Hopefully the tips in this article will be helpful and supportive to women who desperately want to get help for their urinary incontinence, but for some reason have not been able to obtain that help!
If you enjoyed this post, we invite you to check out our book, leave a comment, contact us, download our free ebook, or interact with us on Twitter and Facebook.

 

Got Urinary Urgency or Leakage? The Value of a Second Opinion

If you are a woman suffering from urinary urgency, leakage, or frequency–in other words, urinary incontinence of some form–then you know that it can be embarrassing to discuss your condition with your doctor.

Whether you have actually been to see a doctor about your condition or not, you know about the embarrassment factor, either actual or anticipated. You know about it as a patient. We know about the embarrassment factor from the other side of the exam table, as it were. In our practices, we see women all the time who have mustered up the courage to come see us, to tell us about their urinary incontinence, and to ask for help. We have seen the embarrassment first hand… and we do everything in our power to help these women overcome that feeling.

We are gentle when asking the woman about her symptoms, and we try to allow the woman to talk about her situation at her own pace, and in her own way. We try to be as sympathetic and empathetic as possible, especially since we have suffered from urinary urgency, leakage, and frequency ourselves!

Does that mean that we are the ideal and perfect healthcare practitioner for every woman who comes to see us? No. As much as we attempt to be patient-centered in our approach, sometimes we just do not achieve the perfect fit. Either our patient does not feel she is getting what she needs from us, or we do not feel we can help the woman with the tools we have in our repertoire.

What then?

The Value of a Second Opinion (or Third)
At the point that we realize that we have not achieved a good fit with our patient, we suggest the patient seek a second opinion, or even a third opinion.

Since talking about symptoms like urinary urgency and leakage is embarrassing enough the first time around, we realize that asking the patient to seek a second opinion is asking them to risk embarrassment yet again. At the same time, we know that women’s urinary incontinence is a health condition that often requires the affected woman to be persistent in her journey to find the right solutions for her condition.

Every woman affected by urinary incontinence is different in terms of which solutions will be effective. For some, the immediate solution offered by surgery (should surgery be recommended) is appealing. For others, the use of medication combined with dietary changes seems right. Still others find the side effects of medication to be intolerable, and prefer to try a pelvic floor muscle exercise program combined with other forms of exercise for weight loss.

The point is this: if you are affected by women’s urinary incontinence, your fastest route to cure is to find a healthcare practitioner with whom you can explore and find your perfect solutions. Your healthcare practitioner needs to be a good match for your preferences (conservative therapies versus surgery, for instance) and your willingness to explore options until you find the ones that work for your symptoms.

If finding the “right” practitioner for you means risking the embarrassment of telling your story to more than one doctor, then so be it. Believe us when we say that having a healthcare practitioner who is truly your ally is worth the potential embarrassment of seeking a second–or even third–opinion.

Remember, too, that you don’t have to limit your search for solutions to medical doctors. While we definitely suggest that you get a correct medical diagnosis from a medical doctor first, from there do not be afraid to expand your search for a healthcare provider to physical therapists, urologists, gynecologists, Pilates instructors specializing in women’s pelvic health, and more. Go where your need and your symptoms take you.

If you don’t yet feel comfortable reaching out for that second or third opinion, but prefer to educate yourself on your condition, consider reading our guide to women’s pelvic health, “A Woman’s Guide to Pelvic Health”.

This guide includes not only a pelvic health self-assessment, but also a complete at-home pelvic floor rehabilitation program. Best of all, you can educate yourself with this book in the privacy of your own home, avoiding the embarrassment factor altogether!

If you enjoyed this post, we invite you to check out our book, leave a comment, contact us, download our free ebook, or interact with us on Twitter and Facebook.

 

Women’s Urinary Incontinence: What You Gain When You Seek Medical Help

In our last article, we discussed all the quality of life aspects that go out the window when women with urinary incontinence fail to seek medical help for their condition. In this follow-up article, we take a look at all the benefits you gain when you seek medical help for women’s urinary incontinence. Yes, we know, seeking medical help involves having that “red-faced” embarrassing conversation with your doctor about urinary urgency, frequency, and leakage. But after you read through all the benefits you will gain once you get through that conversation, our bet is that you will be willing to ask your doctor for help (if you haven’t already)!

Benefit #1: A Medical Diagnosis
A lot of women with urinary incontinence know that they have a problem, but they don’t know exactly what the problem is. They know they suffer from urinary urgency or frequency or leakage, but may not necessarily know the causes of these symptoms. This lack of knowing “what’s up down there” can create a sense of tension and stress for many women. Therefore, one of the biggest benefits of getting help from your doctor is that you get a true and medically-correct diagnosis about your condition. You will find out if you have stress, urge, or mixed urinary incontinence … or just a mild form of urge incontinence called overactive bladder (OAB). You will discover whether your pelvic organs have “fallen” out of place, causing some of your symptoms. Whatever the cause of your urinary incontinence symptoms, you will emerge from your conversation with your doctor with the knowledge of what is happening with your body. Since “knowledge is power,” you will emerge from your appointment with a new sense of self-empowerment. That is a pretty neat benefit.

Benefit #2: Knowledge of Treatment Options
Once your healthcare provider discovers the cause of your symptoms, such as urinary urgency or leakage, the next step is obviously to discuss treatment options. Depending on the type and severity of your symptoms, your doctor may recommend either conservative or surgical treatment options. Conservative options may include lifestyle changes, such as smoking cessation, weight loss, and dietary changes. Other conservative therapies include bladder retraining, pelvic floor muscle rehabilitation, acupuncture, pessaries, and percutaneous tibial nerve stimulation.

If your condition is more severe, especially if one or more of your pelvic organs has fallen out of place (a condition called pelvic organ prolapse, or POP), then your doctor may recommend some surgical options to treat your condition. The good news is that most of the surgical procedures for women’s urinary incontinence are minimally-invasive, plus have a high rate of success.  Most healthcare providers will recommend that you start with the most conservative therapy possible, and consider surgery only if your condition is not treatable with conservative approaches.

Benefit #3: Support on the Journey Back to Health
While talking to your doctor about your urinary symptoms may be embarrassing, you will find that most medical professionals are quite knowledgeable and compassionate about women’s urinary incontinence. By seeking help from your doctor, you will not only get the help you need to restore yourself to continence, but you will gain the knowledge that you are not alone. As the baby boomer generation ages, more and more doctors are helping women with urinary incontinence issues. Your doctor will not only provide you with solutions that will treat your condition, but can also reassure you that you are not alone. Your doctor may even be able to recommend resources, both online and offline, where you can find additional support from women dealing with the same kinds of symptoms.

Big Benefits from Seeking Help
As you can probably tell, seeking help from your doctor will yield some pretty major benefits for you. Not only will you be able to address your physical symptoms, but you will also be able to ease your mind as you gain knowledge about urinary incontinence. The more you know, the more control you will have over your condition. The more control you have, the less stress you will experience. All of these are major contributors to a good quality of life. Doesn’t that make a short conversation with your doctor worthwhile?

 

If you enjoyed this post, we invite you to check out our book, leave a comment, contact us, download our free ebook, or interact with us on Twitter and Facebook.

 

Women’s Urinary Incontinence: What You Give Up When You Don’t Seek Help

We hate to keep hammering on this statistic, but it continues to amaze and shock us: women with urinary incontinence typically wait almost seven years before seeking help from a medical professional … if they seek help at all! In fact, only 50% of women with urinary incontinence do seek help. The rest simply suffer in silence and cope with the symptoms as best they can.

The most ridiculous part of the above statistics is there are so many forms of help available for women’s urinary incontinence, from simple lifestyle changes to minimally-invasive surgeries with high rates of success. So why do so many women wait so long to seek help for their urinary incontinence, or refuse to seek help at all?

Embarrassment
Believe it or not, women’s urinary incontinence tops the list of health conditions that ladies feel most embarrassed about discussing with their doctors. As a result of wanting to avoid a red-faced discussion, 50% of these women suffer through almost seven years of urinary urgency, frequency, and leakage before gathering up the courage to ask for help. The other half would rather suffer through the symptoms than have “the talk” about urinary incontinence with their doctors.

Wow … what all of these women fail to realize is that they give up a tremendous amount in their lives simply to avoid having one embarrassing conversation about urinary incontinence with their doctors. In fact, let’s take a closer look at what women suffering from urinary incontinence give up because they want to avoid embarrassment.

#1 – Your Social Life
One of the first items a woman with urinary incontinence sacrifices is her social life. One study indicated that women worried about urinary leakage were most afraid to “sit on a friend’s couch.” If you are afraid to even sit on your friend’s couch for fear that you might have a leakage accident, then you can see how your social life would begin to shrink at a rapid rate! You will also begin to skip “Girls’ Night Out,” movies, and chats over coffee with your gal pals.

At that point, the isolation becomes apparent. The stage after isolation is often depression and unhappiness. In fact, even your immune system is affected when you stop connecting with your friends and social network. Consider this:

“Several studies support the idea that people who feel connected to friends – whether it’s a few close friends or a large group – have stronger immunity than those who feel alone. In one study, freshmen who were lonely had a weaker immune response to a flu vaccine than those who felt connected to others.” (http://on.webmd.com/W8CTPV)

#2 – Exercise and Fitness
For women with urinary incontinence, fitness and weight maintenance is a big part of reducing symptoms like urinary urgency, leakage, and frequency. Overweight women tend to suffer more severe symptoms since every extra pound above the pelvic area puts pressure on the bladder and pelvic organ, often resulting in leakage accidents. Therefore, the ability to exercise and stay fit is crucial to women who want to improve their symptoms. But there is a catch-22. Women with urinary incontinence tend to leak urine when they exercise. This leakage, in turn, tends to discourage exercise, since no woman enjoys the “wet pants” look. Lack of exercise tends to lead to weight gain, depression, and emotional eating … and more weight gain. You get the picture of the vicious cycle that can happen. Women with urinary incontinence who fail to seek help for their condition often toss their exercise regimen out the window, and fall prey to the vicious cycle described above.

#3 – The Stress of the Unexpected
Studies show that one of the worst aspects of women’s urinary incontinence is the stress of living with the unexpected. Women with this condition are always wondering when the next urinary leakage accident will occur. They stress about whether they will reach the bathroom in time. They prepare endlessly for that unexpected accident by carrying around changes of clothing, adult diapers, sanitary wipes, and scented baggies to avoid urine odor. They wear pants that can be quickly pulled down (but often lack a sense of fashion). In other words, women with urinary incontinence go “all out” to prevent leakage accidents, and live in a constant state of stress about such accidents. This kind of stress if highly detrimental to a woman’s health on multiple levels.

Do You See the Picture Now?
The above is just the “short list” of what you give up when you suffer from urinary incontinence and refuse to seek help from a medical professional. Of course, embarrassment isn’t the only reason that you might avoid seeking help, but our guess is that embarrassment is a big factor. But if you really stop and think about it, is embarrassment truly a fate worse than death? We think not! There are many women, very much alive, who can testify to that fact! So don’t be one of those statistics we mentioned at the beginning of the article. Don’t avoid asking for help and don’t wait seven years to ask for help. If you have women’s urinary incontinence, ask for help now before you sacrifice any more quality of life to this easily treatable condition!

If you enjoyed this post, we invite you to check out our book, leave a comment, contact us, download our free ebook, or interact with us on Twitter and Facebook.

 

Coping with the Complications of Women’s Urinary Incontinence

Coping with the complications associated with women’s urinary incontinence can be, well, complicated. Worrying about symptoms such as urinary urgency, frequency, and leakage can affect many areas of your life, from your exercise regimen to your work life to your personal relationships. At the same time, many savvy women have discovered simple yet effective ways to cope with their symptoms.

Before we begin discussing practical steps you can take to cope with your urinary incontinence symptoms, we want to point out that the best and most effective action step you can take for this health condition is to first seek help from your doctor. “Coping” with urinary incontinence is not the same as treating or even curing your condition. While you may be perfectly able to cope with your symptoms with careful planning, wouldn’t your quality of life be so much better if you didn’t have to cope? What would your life look like if your symptoms were drastically reduced, or even eliminated? We urge you to give some thought to seeking help from your doctor, even if you feel embarrassed about doing so. Below are some articles that can help you with seeking help from your doctor:

Urinary Incontinence: 3 Steps to Prepare for Your Doctor’s Appointment
Women’s Urinary Incontinence: 5 Things You Should Know When Seeking Help

Women’s Urinary Incontinence: Coping with the Complications
Because urinary urgency or leakage can strike at any time during your day (or night), you will probably find that every area of your life is affected by this condition. That’s why we offer below links to articles filled with practical tips on how to cope with the complications of women’s urinary incontinence so that you can get on with your life!
7 Tips for Coping with Urine Leakage During Exercise

Do You Need a Note from Your Doctor? (to give to your boss)

Women’s Urinary Incontinence: Protecting Your Skin

When Women’s Urinary Incontinence Messes with Your Intimacy

Female Urinary Incontinence: Are You Afraid to Sit on Your Friend’s Couch?

 

If you enjoyed this post, we invite you to check out our book, leave a comment, contact us, download our free ebook, or interact with us on Twitter and Facebook.

 

Women’s Urinary Incontinence: Overcoming Your Fear of Surgery

When it comes to women’s urinary incontinence, embarrassment tops the list of reasons that affected women don’t seek help. Another major reason these women don’t seek help is this: fear of surgery. Affected women are afraid that seeking a medical diagnosis from a physician will automatically lead to surgery. Many people, not just women with urinary incontinence, have a fear of surgery. Luckily, these fears are mostly unjustified.

Women’s Urinary Incontinence: Try Conservative Methods First
Do you suffer from women’s urinary incontinence, and are you afraid that your doctor might suggest that you have surgery? If so, then we have good news for you. Unless your condition is very severe, most physicians will suggest that you try the least invasive and most conservative therapies first. These include pelvic floor retraining, lifestyle changes (such as weight loss, diet changes, and smoking cessation), bladder retraining, taking medication, using a pessary, and acupuncture. They may even suggest you try a combination of these therapies until you find what works to relieve your symptoms.

An interesting note about these conservative therapies is that they are more effective when used early on–that is, as soon as you notice the first signs of pelvic floor weakness. These therapies are effective for relieving symptoms of all three types of women’s urinary incontinence, as well as alleviating symptoms of pelvic organ prolapse and decreased sexual sensation. This information should definitely motivate you to seek medical help as soon as you begin experiencing problems with your pelvic health.

Overcoming Your Fear of Surgery
But what happens if conservative therapies are not effective for relieving your symptoms? In that case, you may need surgery to address the problem. If your condition is severe, such as when one or more of your pelvic organs have significantly shifted out of position (prolapsed), your physician may recommend surgery as the first step towards curing your condition. Or you may find that conservative therapies are effective for many years, but cease to work over time. This can occur because of aging, menopause, and the continued downward pull of gravity on your pelvic organs. In this case, you may also need surgery to alleviate symptoms that were formerly relieved by conservative therapies.

If your physician does recommend surgery, don’t hit the panic button just yet. We have some statistics about women’s pelvic surgeries that should help you breathe a sigh of relief, especially if you have a fear of surgery. We have categorized the different types of surgeries according to the condition treated, and we describe the level of invasiveness for each procedure as well as the success rate. Minimally-invasive surgeries are usually done as outpatient procedures, and you often go home the same day. Surgical procedures with a moderate level of invasiveness may require a short stay in the hospital.

Surgeries for Stress Urinary Incontinence
Number of Procedures: 6
Names: Transobturator tape, single-incision transobturator tape, tension-free vaginal tape, pubovaginal sling, Burch procedure, Marshall-Marchetti-Krantz procedure
Invasiveness: The first three procedures are minimally invasive, the last three are considered moderate.
Success Rates: No procedure has less than a 66% success rates, and most have success rates between 70% and 95%.

Surgeries for Overactive Bladder, Urge Urinary Incontinence, Urge-Dominant Mixed Incontinence, and Urinary Retention
Number of Procedures: 1
Name: Sacral neuro-modulation
Invasiveness: Minimal
Success Rates: 31% to 65%

Surgeries for Pelvic Organ Prolapse
Number of Procedures: 4
Names: Cystocele repair (bladder hernia), rectocele repair (large intestine hernia), enterocele repair (small intestine hernia), sacral colpopexy (vaginal vault prolapse)
Invasiveness: All are considered moderate
Success Rates: 80% to 96%

As you can see, almost all the surgeries have a very high success rate, and the majority are minimally-invasive. This list of women’s pelvic surgeries should give you a starting point for discussing your surgical options with your physician. If you have a significant fear of surgery or simply want to avoid surgery for any reason, you may wish to seek a second opinion from another specialist. Additionally, you may want to ask your physician whether a different type or a different combination of conservative therapies would be useful to try before having surgery. For many women, the first few conservative therapies tried are not completely successful at relieving symptoms. The women who have the most success with conservative therapies are those willing to try multiple approaches or multiple combinations of therapies until they find something that works. Persistence is often the key to success when working with conservative therapies.

If you ultimately decide to undergo surgery for your pelvic health condition, rest assured that success rates are high and most procedures pose a fairly low risk. Be sure to discuss any questions or concerns with your physician until you feel completely comfortable with any proposed surgery. In this case, educating yourself about your condition and your options is the best medicine!

 

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How to Find the Right Doctor to Treat Your Urinary Incontinence

It can be hard to ask for help with your urinary incontinence (UI). In fact, the average affected woman waits seven years before getting help. What can make the situation even worse is finally asking for help, and then showing up at the doctor’s office and not getting the help you need.

Discussing UI is embarrassing enough, and dealing with a doctor who is insensitive or doesn’t offer the right solutions for you can make you regret asking for help. So how do you find the right doctor to treat your UI? Women who have experienced successful treatment for UI typically get recommendations from one of these sources:

– Other women who have been treated for UI
– Referrals from their family doctor
– Advertisements or internet referral sites

Word-of-Mouth Still Works Best
No one understands the trials and tribulations of UI like another woman who has suffered the same symptoms. Ask women you trust if they have been treated for UI, and if they had a good experience from their care provider. According to the Women’s Sexual Health Foundation, asking women who have already been treated is an excellent way to find a care provider, since these women know “which doctors and other professionals have been helpful.” These same women “often know the inside scoop,” meaning they can provide a more personal view on whether the doctor showed a caring attitude, had the right knowledge, and offered useful treatments.

Your Family Doctor Knows You Well
If you don’t feel comfortable asking your women friends for referrals, check in with your family doctor. Chances are that he or she knows you pretty well. Many patients follow this route. A study by the Center for Studying Health System Change shows that seven out of ten people looking for a specialist relied on referrals from their primary care physician. One of the benefits of asking your family doctor for a referral is that he or she is likely to match you with a specialist who suits your personal treatment preferences and personality. They may also be able to refer you to a specialist who works within your health insurance plan.

Find a Specialist through Advertisements or the Internet
While it used to be taboo for doctors to advertise their services, these days it is a perfectly normal practice—and can help you find the UI specialist you need. A doctor who advertises a specialty in UI is likely to have a lot of experience treating this condition with a variety of methods.

Another option is to browse internet referral sites for doctors specializing in treating UI. If you do choose to use the internet as a referral resource, experts recommend that you look through multiple referral sites for greater accuracy. Also, place more importance on objective information (“Dr. X followed up within 24 hours to review my test results.”) than on subjective comments (“Dr. X was a jerk!”).

If you suffer from UI, there’s a world of help out there. All you have to do is ask. The three sources we discuss in this blog post should give you some great places to start looking for the right doctor to help you with your UI.