We have spoken about the pelvic floor previously, but if you missed it just jump back through our blog posts and have a read! Now it’s time to get talking about something uncomfortable! Urinary Incontinence!!
Did you know that there are different types of urinary incontinence?
But first what actually is urinary incontinence? It is defined as “the complaint of involuntary loss of urine”. Meaning urine/wee is released when you don’t intend it to be.
There are 2 types of urinary incontinence that are mainly talked about, and these are called Stress urinary incontinence and Urgency urinary incontinence.
So, what is the difference between these 2 types of incontinence? Well, I’m going to get stuck into that in a second.
I know that urinary incontinency may not be something that people openly speak about often, but it is something that is very prevalent with 1 in 3 women experiencing it in their lifetime. 1 in 3 women does this make it normal? The answer is NO.
Your pelvic floor is there to help support your bladder and urethra to maintain your continence.
Stress Urinary incontinence (SIU)
Weeing a little or a lot when you cough, sneeze, jump or run is called stress urinary incontinence. Stress urinary incontinence is defined as the complaint of involuntary loss of urine on effort or physical exertion or on sneezing or coughing.
How does this happen?
Well, when you have an increase in the pressure in your abdomen, this pressure pushes down on your pelvic organs intern putting downward pressure on your pelvic floor. If your pelvic floor is weak or you have poor muscle coordination, then these muscles can struggle to keep your urethra (wee hole) closed and you can experience leakage. This leakage can vary depending on each person. Some women may leak a pea sized amount of wee, others it may start the flow of urine that they aren’t able to stop.
Urgency and Urgency Urinary incontinence (UUI)
Getting a sudden urge to pass urine that is difficult to differ, that doesn’t necessarily correspond with how full your bladder is? This is what we call Urinary Urgency. When you have urinary urgency, you may or may not experience urinary leakage. When Urinary urgency is coupled with the involuntary loss of urine this is termed Urgency urinary incontinence.
Common triggers for Urinary Urgency include but are not limited to:
- Pulling into the driveway
- Pulling keys out to opening the front door
- Pulling down pants
- Listening to running water (whether that be a tap or in the shower)
So, a quick Overview
- There are different types of urinary incontinence that are not just limited to stress urinary incontinence or urgency urinary incontinence.
- SUI is involuntary urinary leakage during effort, sneeze or cough.
- UUI is involuntary loss of urine with urgency.1 in 3 women will experience urinary incontinence in their lifetime.
- No, urinary incontinence is not normal!
There is no reason for you to continue having to deal with and manage these symptoms on your own! I am here to help! In clinic we will go through your pelvic floor history, symptoms, concerns and determine your individualised pelvic floor program along with giving you strategies to help self-manage your symptoms.
