Have you ever had sudden urges to use the bathroom? You try to fight it, but sometimes the urge becomes too great and then the unthinkable happens: you wet yourself.
This dilemma is all too common for those who suffer from urge incontinence or an overactive bladder (OAB). This is a condition, not a disease, where sudden bladder spasms can result in the involuntary loss of urine. Causes for urge incontinence include: spinal cord injury, diabetes, prostate surgery, and urinary tract infections (UTIs).
Many people who experience this frustrating and embarrassing condition choose to wear incontinence products, such as adult diapers and incontinence underwear, to help them stay dry. However, there are several behavioral changes that can help reduce and may even eliminate this bladder control problem. One of these methods is timed voiding.
Timed voiding is a bladder retraining technique where the individual uses the bathroom on a schedule. The purpose of timed voiding is to empty the bladder on a regular basis and eliminate the number of wetting accidents that can occur due to the bladder spasms and frequent urination.
So how do you practice timed voiding? To start off, create a voiding diary, or bladder journal, and record how often you have an accident and what you were doing at the time of the accident, what you ate and drank, and how often you use the bathroom.
Based on your voiding diary, you or your doctor can come up with an appropriate interval for your timed voiding. Remember to accommodate your timed voiding schedule with your work and school schedules.
Many people may choose to set their timed voiding schedule at every two hours. This means emptying the bladder every two hours throughout the day, even if you don't feel the urge to. If you feel sudden urges before you're scheduled to use the bathroom, relax, and squeeze your pelvic floor muscles. These are the muscles you use to stop the flow of urine midstream. It's important to stick to your schedule as it'll help you regain control over your bladder.
Since life can get a bit hectic, it can be difficult to remember to use the bathroom at specific times. This is where a vibrating reminder watch comes in handy. Vibrating watches can either be set to go off at intervals or at specific times. They're great because they're discreet and easy to use. Once the watch goes off, it's time for a bathroom break.
Timed voiding can take time, so you need to be patient. If you're still experiencing a leaky bladder after six weeks, ask your doctor about more incontinence treatments, which may include Kegel exercises and dietary changes.
Nancy Pham is a passionate health blogger who focuses on women's health, specifically urinary incontinence issues. She is a blogger at National Incontinence, a major supplier of incontinence products.
