Many patients are ashamed to bring up this topic and therefore suffer needlessly and in silence. However many sufferers can be significantly helped, by the non-surgical approach physiotherapists have to offer. Urinary incontinence is more common than bowel incontinence and can be experienced by women after childbirth or during and after menopause or by men who have had prostate cancer surgery.
There are different types of incontinence:
- Urge incontinence: You begin to leak urine as soon as you feel the need to use the bathroom.
- Stress incontinence: You leak when you cough, laugh, sneeze, run or jump.
- Mixed incontinence: A combination of both.
- Faecal incontinence: Loss of control over your bowels.
Some elderly people may become incontinent because they can’t reach the bathroom in time due to stiff joints or difficulty moving quickly.
Physiotherapists are primary practitioners for both males and females in the area of assessment and treatment of the various pelvic floor dysfunctions. The assessment and treatment of any client presenting with bladder or bowel incontinence, pelvic floor weakness or dysfunction, requires knowledge of functional anatomy and physiology beyond the scope of undergraduate training, therefore some physiotherapists have undertaken post-graduate studies in incontinence and are experts in this field.
As your physiotherapist, we will conduct a confidential assessment of how your bladder and bowel are working and affecting your life. We will then create a programme for your specific problem. Treatment may include:
- Specific pelvic floor exercises
- Advice on eating, drinking and lifestyle habits
Because people are becoming more open about discussing this problem, more physiotherapy clinics are equipping themselves to handle these cases. Therefore, you do not have to live with this embarrassing problem any longer. We can help.