Acupuncture for Urinary Urgency and Other Embarrassing Symptoms

by General Urinary IncontinencePelvic Organ ProlapsePOPUrge IncontinenceUrge Urinary Incontinence

This blog is part 10 of an 11 article series of 11 New Year’s resolutions that actually work and WILL improve your pelvic health. Get the full list of all 11 New Year’s resolutions HERE.

What’s worse? A few tiny needles the width of a human hair or experiencing that embarrassing “wet pants” look that comes with urinary urgency (and other symptoms of urinary incontinence)?

We don’t know about you, but for women with urinary incontinence, a few tiny acupuncture needles may seem like a very small price to pay for a reduction in symptoms. Acupuncture, a well-respected healing technique from the East, has long been considered an excellent “middle of the road” option for women with urinary incontinence symptoms like urinary urgency, frequency, and leakage. This conservative therapy has also proven effective for women with pelvic organ prolapse. More importantly, acupuncture is a wonderful solution for women who, for whatever reasons, choose not to take medication or cannot make lifestyle changes, such as weight loss and smoking cessation.
What is Acupuncture, Exactly?
If you are considering using acupuncture to solve symptoms such as urinary urgency and frequency, then you probably want to know exactly what this kind of therapy entails. We don’t blame you! When someone starts talking about using a bunch of needles to alleviate symptoms of urinary incontinence, you probably want to know more–specifically, the details!

According to the National Institutes of Health, acupuncture is defined as follows:

“The term ‘acupuncture’ describes a family of procedures involving the stimulation of points on the body using a variety of techniques. The acupuncture technique that has been most often studied scientifically involves penetrating the skin with thin, solid, metallic needles that are manipulated by the hands or by electrical stimulation. Practiced in China and other Asian countries for thousands of years, acupuncture is one of the key components of traditional Chinese medicine.”

The use of acupuncture is very widespread–more than you may think. According to the National Health Interview Survey, in 2007 an estimated 3.1 million U.S. adults and 150,000 children received acupuncture treatments within the past year. And that number has only been on the rise since the 2007 study.

As for actual treatments, practitioners use either very fine acupuncture needles or mild electrical stimulation (meant to mimic the stimulation provided by needle insertion) to increase the flow of energy in the body. Needles are inserted at specific points located along meridian lines that circulate energy throughout the body, and specific combinations of points can be used to create healing effects. While many people know about the use of acupuncture for pain relief, fewer people recognize the effectiveness of this conservative therapy for other conditions, such as urinary incontinence, constipation, and pelvic organ prolapse.

How Effective is Acupuncture for Urinary Urgency and Other Symptoms?
Acupuncture has been shown to be just as effective for relieving urinary urgency and other symptoms of urinary incontinence as dry or behavior therapy (Oregon Health and Science University). According to researchers Sandra Emmons, M.D. and Lesley Otto, M.D., “Acupuncture perhaps can offer a middle ground for the appropriate patient who prefers not to take daily medication but is unable to commit to the active involvement of behavioral therapy.”

If you have found the side effects of drug therapy intolerable and, for whatever reasons, cannot make lifestyle or behavioral changes to alleviate your symptoms of women’s urinary incontinence, you may want to look into acupuncture. In addition to board-certified acupuncturists, many physicians also now practice medical acupuncture. Check with your family doctor for a referral, and check with your insurance company to see if acupuncture services are covered. Some insurance companies will cover acupuncture services provided by an in-network physician, but not by an acupuncturist, so be sure to ask.

Most acupuncture “programs” for relieving urinary urgency, frequency, and leakage last from five to eight weeks, and you should see a noticeable reduction of your symptoms within that time period. Because each woman has differing symptom patterns and severity, your physician or acupuncturist will design a specialized program just for your needs.

If acupuncture sounds like a conservative therapy you would like to try, but maybe scares you a little bit, just remember that acupuncture needles are very fine–about the width of one of your hairs! That’s pretty tiny!
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Women’s Pelvic Health: 11 New Year’s Resolutions That Actually Work!

by Decreased Sexual SensationGeneral Urinary IncontinenceOveractive BladderPelvic Organ ProlapsePOPStress Urinary IncontinenceUrge IncontinenceUrge Urinary IncontinenceWomen's Healthcare
Happy New Year! The New Year is always a great time to give thanks for all the gifts in our lives, and also the perfect time to look at ways in which we could improve certain areas of our lives. Hence the practice of making New Year’s resolutions.
New Year’s resolutions can be great motivators, especially when it comes to life goals or lifestyle changes. Many people look forward to making New Year’s resolutions with joy and hope. But for those whose resolutions have failed to live up to expectations in the past, there can be some anxiety about setting yet another resolution that might not work.
But don’t worry … be happy this New Year, especially if you are a woman and suffer from any symptoms of poor pelvic health! Why? Because in the coming days we are going to give you 11 New Year’s resolutions that actually work and WILL improve your pelvic health. These simple lifestyle changes can improve symptoms of all forms of urinary incontinence, as well as symptoms of pelvic organ prolapse and decreased sexual sensation. Plus, we will help you set yourself up for success with extra tips and techniques for staying focused on your resolutions throughout the year.
Sound good? Then listen up — here are the 11 lifestyle changes that we will be discussing in the next days and weeks:
1. At-Home Pelvic Floor Retraining
2. Pelvic Floor Retraining with a Physical Therapist
3. Keeping a Bladder Diary and Bladder Retraining
4. Smoking Cessation
5. Timed Fluid Intake
6. Diet Modification — Avoiding Certain Foods and Beverages
7. Diet Modification II — How to Avoid Constipation
8. Diet Modification III — What to Do When You Go Off Your Diet Plan
9. Weight Loss and Management
10. Acupuncture as a “Middle of the Road” Solution
11. Percutaneous Nerve Stimulation and Other Conservative Measures
Have a great New Year’s Day and keep your eyes and ears open for blogs and video blogs on these great upcoming New Year’s resolutions!

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

 

Did You Know Your Ankle Bone is Connected to Your Bladder?

by Overactive BladderUrge IncontinenceUrge Urinary Incontinence

For those of you familiar with the song “Dry Bones” by the Delta Rhythm Boys, this may sound pretty funny! After all, the song never mentions the bladder. In fact, the song is all about bones and has lyrics more like this:

“Well, your toe bone connected to your foot bone
Your foot bone connected to your heel bone
Your heel bone connected to your ankle bone
Your ankle bone connected to your leg bone
Your leg bone connected to your knee bone
Your knee bone connected to your thigh bone
Your thigh bone connected to your hip bone
Your hip bone connected to your back bone”

You’ll notice that this song is all about bones … not a single mention of the bladder at all. But for women with urinary incontinence, you could say that the ankle bone is connected (sort of) to the bladder. Really!

Women’s Urinary Incontinence: The Ankle Bone and the Bladder
By now you are probably wondering what we’re talking about when we connect the ankle bone to the bladder. It turns out that there is a nerve in your body, called the percutaneous tibial nerve, that is located just above your ankle bone. This nerve is part of the nervous system that controls the action of your bladder. By using a therapy called percutaneous tibial nerve stimulation, which sends a gentle electrical current into the nerve, doctors have been able to alleviate symptoms for women with overactive bladder or urge urinary incontinence.

More About Percutaneous Tibial Nerve Stimulation
This conservative therapy is a wonderful option for women with overactive bladder or urge incontinence, especially those women who have not had much luck with behavior modification or drug therapy. Usually performed by a urologist, this therapy can also be delivered by nurses or physician assistants who have received the appropriate training.

For the procedure, your doctor will have you elevate your leg while in a sitting position. A very fine needle is then inserted just above the ankle bone into the percutaneous tibial nerve. A mild electric current is delivered via this needle for 30 to 60 minutes per session. Don’t be surprised if your toes or foot flex gently during the treatment as this is perfectly normal. You may also feel a mild tingling sensation in your foot or around your ankle. Most doctors recommend four treatments per week, with the total therapy lasting between eight and twelve weeks.

Two studies (the OrBIT trial and the SUMiT trial) have shown that tibial nerve stimulation is effective in decreasing the frequency of urination by 20% in women who need to urinate at least eight times every 24 hours. In addition, women report a 36% reduction of the severity of their symptoms, as well as a 34% improvement in the quality of life. Other improvements as a result of this therapy include reductions in urinary leakage accidents, frequency, and urge. Those are pretty solid success rates, so if you have overactive bladder or urge incontinence, you may want to ask your doctor about this form of therapy.

So you see? The ankle bone is indeed connected to the bladder!

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

Yes, Kegels DO Work When Done Correctly and Appropriately

by Decreased Sexual SensationKegelsOveractive BladderPelvic Organ ProlapseUrge IncontinenceUrinary Incontinence
Yeah, yeah … we’ve heard it all. Women tell us (a urologist and a physical therapist specializing in women’s pelvic health) that they do Kegels or other pelvic floor exercises to no avail. “Kegels don’t work” for women’s urinary incontinence, pelvic organ prolapse, or decreased sexual sensation. We hear that all the time.

Debunking Myths About Stress Urinary Incontinence (SUI)

by General Urinary IncontinenceStress Urinary IncontinenceUrge IncontinenceUrge Urinary IncontinenceUrinary IncontinenceWomen's Healthcare

Can having too much sex cause SUI? What about drinking too much water during the day? If you experience stress at the workplace, will that cause you to have stress urinary incontinence?

Surprisingly, many women don’t know the answers to these questions—even women who currently have SUI. There are quite a few “old wives’ tales” about this condition floating around out there. Many women continue to believe them because, as it turns out, urinary incontinence is less understood than conditions like allergies or diabetes.

Beliefs About SUI – True or False?
What do you believe? Here are some statements about SUI that the National Association for Continence used to survey women’s beliefs about this condition. See if you can tell whether these statements are true or false.

Drinking a lot of liquids puts a woman at risk for SUI.
False. Forty-two percent of women believe this myth. In fact, drinking too little liquid can actually worsen symptoms of urinary incontinence. A better option would be to focus on strengthening your pelvic floor muscles to prevent leakage, and modifying certain aspects of your lifestyle. This may include bladder retraining and timing your fluid intake.

Feeling stressed at home or in the office is a risk factor for SUI.
False. Over one-quarter of the women surveyed believe this myth. Actually, the “stress” part of SUI means that you leak urine when you put stress on your abdominal cavity, such as when you cough or sneeze.

The average age of women when they first experience symptoms of SUI is 44.
True. In fact 40% of women first experience SUI symptoms even before they are 40, and 23% had symptoms before they were 30. Despite these statistics, over half those surveyed believe that the average age at which women experience SUI symptoms is 50 and over. This reflects the myth that SUI is a sign of aging.

Having too much sex puts a woman at risk for SUI.
False. Women ages 25-34 are most likely to believe this myth (29% of them do), while 20% of women ages 18-24 also believe it. In reality, a healthy active sex life that encourages you to exercise your pelvic floor muscles reduces the risk of SUI.

How Did You Score?
Were you able to tell which statements above were myths and which were true? Do you want to learn more about SUI and other forms of urinary incontinence? Stay tuned for our next blog post, in which we debunk yet more myths about this subject. Also, you can learn more about pelvic floor health by visiting the Wet Matters website:

Ouch! The Rising Cost of Living with Urinary Incontinence

by General Urinary IncontinenceMixed Urinary IncontinencePelvic Organ ProlapseStress Urinary IncontinenceUrge Incontinence

As if the constant fear of smelling like urine and the need to laundry daily were not enough, women living with urinary incontinence are starting to feel the financial strain of their condition as well.

According to the National Association for Continence, the average person suffering from urinary incontinence spends approximately $1,000 per year managing their incontinence, which includes the cost of absorbent products, laundry, and pessaries. That’s a hefty sum in these trying economic times, and does not include non-generic drug costs, which can exceed $1,300 per year.

On a national level, the cost of treating urinary incontinence is also on the rise, according to the National Institute of Health. Conservatively estimates put the cost at $20 billion, making the cost of treating this condition on par with that of treating arthritis. The cost is also significantly higher than the cost of treating conditions like breast cancer, pneumonia, or influenza. Not cheap.

At the same time, according to the National Association for Continence, about 17% of women dealing with urinary incontinence use tissues, paper towels, or toilet paper instead of absorbent products designed for urinary incontinence. If you’ve checked prices in the adult diaper section recently, then you know that toilet paper is a lot cheaper to buy than adult diapers, which cost on average $0.70 each and last only 3 hours. Unfortunately, while toilet paper is cheap it doesn’t offer the comfort or security of an adult diaper.

How to Get Yourself Out of Adult Diapers
If you are feeling the financial strain of buying adult diapers but can’t deal with wads of toilet paper anymore, then stop. Ask yourself these three questions:

1. Have I sought help for my urinary incontinence?
2. Have I gotten a clear diagnosis for my condition? (i.e., stress, urge, or mixed urinary incontinence, or pelvic organ prolapse)
3. Have I learned about all the treatment options available for my condition, and have I taken action steps to try one or more of these treatments?

If you answered “No” to any of the above questions, then you may be buying adult diapers when you don’t have to.

To get yourself out of adult diapers, the first step is to ask for help, whether from sympathetic women friends, your spouse, your doctor, or a specialist who treats urinary incontinence.

The second step is to get a clear diagnosis that you can understand. If you either can’t get a clear diagnosis or can’t get an explanation of your condition that makes sense to you, keep asking until you get what you need. You have to learn the causes of your condition before you can treat it. Learn more about the different urinary incontinence conditions on the Wet Matters website.

The last step is to evaluate the different treatment options available, and to try one or more of them. What many women struggling with urinary incontinence don’t realize is that no single treatment works for every woman. You may have to try several different treatments before you find a treatment or a combination of treatments that work for you. The important point is to keep taking action steps toward resolving your incontinence until you find a solution that works for you. Then you can dump those adult diapers in the trash for the last time!

Urinary incontinence – Not Just for Mature Women

by Mixed Urinary IncontinencePelvic Organ ProlapseStress Urinary IncontinenceUrge IncontinenceUrge Urinary Incontinence
If you pay attention to the commercials on TV for urinary incontinence (UI) products, you might think that UI is a condition that only affects “mature” women. Whether you see a gray-haired woman promoting adult diapers or an active grandmother discussing drugs for UI, you start to get the idea that UI and aging go together.But UI isn’t just a symptom of menopause or aging – it can be caused by a number of different factors, and affect women of any age. UI doesn’t just happen to baby boomers, it also happens to women with babies. Childbirth can tear and stretch muscles in the pelvic floor, causing pelvic floor weakness and urinary leakage.

Lifestyle factors can also cause younger women to experience UI. Younger women are at risk for UI if they are:

Overweight: being overweight by even 7-10% can double the chances of UI

Caffeine Drinkers: caffeine is a bladder irritant that can cause urine to leak unexpectedly

Constipated: straining or bearing down on a regular basis weakens the pelvic floor muscles

Involved in Competitive Sports: such as marathon running, triathlons and gymnastics

Smokers: constant coughing puts pressure on the bladder and pelvic floor muscles

Ladies, don’t be fooled by the commercials you see on TV. No matter what your age, if you start leaking urine unexpectedly, it is a sign that your pelvic floor muscles are not as healthy as they could be. Get help now!

Learn whether you have stress urinary incontinence, urge urinary incontinence, mixed urinary incontinence, or even pelvic organ prolapse. Discover how Kegels, lifestyle modifications, and other treatment options can help with your UI symptoms. The good news is that the sooner you start treating your UI, the better your chances are of experiencing complete cure.