pregnancy

“I am several months post-partum and I’m still having troubling with leakage problems. I’ve heard about exercise weights that I can use to tone my vaginal muscles. Can you tell me more about these weights?”

“I am several weeks post-partum and I’m having trouble controlling my bladder. I’ve heard about exercises I can do but I’m not sure what they are. Can you please help me?”

With all the talk of Kate Middleton and the royal baby (it’s a boy!), I thought it’d be appropriate to revisit the topic of incontinence after giving birth.

As many as 70% of women will experience bladder leakage, or stress incontinence, during or after pregnancy. You may unexpectedly leak urine while sneezing, laughing, coughing, exercising, or doing anything that puts pressure onto your bladder.

“Recently, I’ve been leaking urine, which has led me to wear bladder pads! I’ve heard that women who had babies often have bladder problems, but I’ve never been pregnant before. What is wrong with me?”

Women are more likely to experience urinary incontinence (UI), prolapse, and fecal incontinence 20 years after one vaginal delivery compared to one caesarean section, according to new research published in a thesis from Sahlgrenska Academy at Gothenburg University in Sweden.

“I am 6 months post-partum and just recently started running again. But whenever I do, I wet myself! I love to run, and I don’t want to give it up. What can I do to prevent this embarrassing condition?”

It looks like you’re experiencing exercise-induced incontinence, a form of stress incontinence. It means that urinary leakage occurs during any physical activity that puts pressure onto your abdomen.

It’s common for women to experience stress incontinence. This means that something as simple as lifting or laughing can cause a leak. As the uterus expanded for the growing baby during pregnancy, more pressure or “stress” was put on the bladder and the pelvic floor muscles may have been weakened.