i gotta pee

Urinary incontinence is a common symptom with Parkinson’s. Other things that can contribute to incontinence include pregnancy, childbirth, menopause and medications. Fun right? Stress incontinence is when you have leakage from pressure, let’s say when you cough, sneeze, or laugh hard. Urge incontinence is the feeling or sensation that you have to urinate even when your bladder is not nearly as full as it should be for a normal urinating sensation. There are a few things that can help.

Diet - Certain foods may exacerbate your symptoms including caffeine, alcohol, carbonated beverages, spicy foods, high doses of vitamin c, & chocolate.

Exercise - Pelvic floor muscles are just that, muscles, and doing regular kegel exercises can strengthen the muscles of the pelvic floor. Michelle Kenway is a Physical Therapist that has free online videos tutorials that show how to do them correctly.

There are also phone apps that are a good way to set reminders and keep track of how often you do them. Kegel Trainer PFM Exercises for iPhones and Kegel Trainer for Google Play are just a couple.

Bladder Training - Bladder training involves voiding at timed intervals with the goal of spreading the times further and further apart over the course of six to twelve weeks. You typically keep a diary to track your progress. Here is an article with more details from the University of California San Francisco.

Medication - There are a number of medications that may help. Of course talk to your health care professional about all of the above options to find the best fit for you. There is no need to be embarrassed, it’s a common problem for both men & women and the good news is there are things that can help.