Are You Tired of Being Incontinent? Physical Therapy Can Help

What is urinary incontinence?

Urinary Incontinence is the loss of bladder control leading someone to leak urine. This condition is more common as we age and affects twice as many women as men. The two most common types of urinary incontinence in women are stress incontinence and urge incontinence. Stress incontinence is when too much pressure is placed on your bladder during activities such as coughing, sneezing, laughing, and lifting causing urine to leak. Urge incontinence occurs when someone has a sudden urge to use the bathroom and leakage of urine happens before the individual makes it to the bathroom. No matter the type of urinary incontinence you may experience, physical therapy could be the answer you’ve been looking for.

HOW PHYSICAL THERAPY CAN HELP

Urinary incontinence accidents can be embarrassing for people and stop us from doing the activities we love. Physical therapists are movement experts, and their main goal is to get you back to performing your daily activities while managing the symptoms of your urinary incontinence. During your treatment session, a physical therapist will examine your muscles located in your pelvis, hips, and lower back. They may ask about how your urinary incontinence affects your daily life, the symptoms of your urinary incontinence, and whether you experience any pain in your pelvis, hips, or lower back. After the examination, your physical therapist will create a treatment plan designed to improve the functioning of your pelvic muscles.

TREATMENT 

Pelvic floor muscles are a group of muscles that span across the bottom of your pelvis and are responsible for supporting your pelvic organs including your bladder. Physical therapists will help you perform exercises designed to improve your pelvic floor muscle strength. Strengthening these muscles will improve your bladder function and allow you to gain control over your urinary incontinence symptoms. Your physical therapist may offer you another treatment option called biofeedback. This is a technique where you learn how to control your body’s functions and the correct way to use your pelvic floor muscles.

Physical therapists possess a wide range of tools that can help you manage your urinary incontinence in addition to pelvic floor exercises and biofeedback. Contact us to learn more about your urinary incontinence treatment options and for a free consultation. 

References:

1. “Physical Therapy Guide to Urinary Incontinence.” Choose PT, 1 Feb. 2022, https://www.choosept.com/guide/physical-therapy-guide-incontinence.
2. “Urinary Incontinence in Older Adults” NIH National Institute on Aging, 24 Jan. 2022, https://www.nia.nih.gov/health/urinary-incontinence-older-adults.
3. “Urinary Incontinence” Office on Women’s Health in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. 26 April 2018. https://www.womenshealth.gov/a-z-topics/urinary-incontinence.