Incontinence Advice

Incontinence can be a distressing and debilitating condition, but if you talk to your doctor, midwife or obstetrician they should be able to offer help and advice. Before they are able to offer any treatment, they will first have to diagnose which type of incontinence you are suffering from, and there are various different methods they may use.

Diagnosing Incontinence

You may be asked to keep a record of your urination patterns and bladder habits for a few days, recording information such as the frequency of your toilet visits, the amount of urine you produce on each trip, and the amount of fluids you consume.

Your doctor may also carry out physical tests, to help identify which type of incontinence you are suffering from. They may check your pelvic floor muscles or your prostate, or perform tests on a sample of your urine to check that your incontinence is not caused by an infection. Once they have identified the cause and type of incontinence, they will be able to prescribe an appropriate form of treatment.

Other Options

If you find it difficult to approach the topic of incontinence with your doctor and would prefer not to speak to your doctor about problems of incontinence, you can visit a continence clinic. You can book an appointment without having been referred by a doctor, and will receive the same diagnosis testing and treatments as you would from a doctor. Continence clinics are often associated with hospitals and health centres.

Continence Advisors

Many health services will provide information about continence advisors. Continence advisors are specially trained nurses who can help you in a variety of ways, from advising people on how to deal with incontinence to teaching people how to perform self-catheterisation and bladder strengthening exercises. You can find your nearest continence advisor by contacting your local health service.

If you would rather not speak to someone face-to-face, there are many support groups for those with bladder problems online.

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