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Um a question for women... Leaky Bladder...

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Ulcerative Colitis
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Posted 1/5/2010 11:25 PM (GMT 0)
I have for the most part stress incontince...I sneeze, cough, or jump and I wet my pants a little and on occasion alot.   I can kegal all day long and it won't change. It happens right after I've just gone too.  

I had my annual recently and requested possibly getting treatment.  He said surgery and or meds were out because of the UC!  Has anyone ever heard of this? He said the meds will put back into my body what the Asacol is supressing and that with the surgery, that sometimes it works too well and they have to give you meds that will allow you to go and that will conflict with the UC meds..

Yea I am trying to loose some weight, it does help, if I can stay off pred. 

Also is it my imagination, or does the incontaince get worse when in flare? (for those of you that have the problem. 

Posted 1/6/2010 2:45 AM (GMT 0)
I have chronic urinary retention (which means I don't empty my bladder all the way when I pee, so I have to pee ALL THE TIME) and it is so incredibly annoying. I have had one (unsuccessful) surgery already a year ago and am about to schedule a second one. I have been on medications for it--quite a few, actually. Strangely, I don't notice it affecting my IBD, but my IBD meds often have urinary retention as a side effect so I can't take THEM. It's so frustrating--having just ONE of these two medical problems is enough to majorly affect your quality of life, but I have them both and can't even take the proper meds because of it! SO annoying!! I've always wondered if they're related but it seems like I'm one of the only ones on here who seems to have both problems.

Posted 1/6/2010 3:22 AM (GMT 0)

I have had a leaky bladder many years - way before diagnosed with UC.  I am 69 and have tried the medications and exercise - nothing changes.  My Mom and Gram had it too.  I have worn a pad for many years and just deal with it.

I do notice when flaring it was worse and now even when I lay on my left side I have to go more so I try not to turn over on that side.  I believe it is the inflammation and swelling pushing on my bladder!  There are a LOT of things much worse than a leaky bladder!

ElaineNY

Posted 1/6/2010 3:35 PM (GMT 0)
Can't hurt to get a second opinion...right?
Posted 1/6/2010 4:32 PM (GMT 0)
What kind of meds would they give you for that? I'm wondering what it is exactly they'd be "putting back" in??? Have you undergone a vaginal delivery childbirth? I find I have a much harder time holding my urine these days- over the past 3-4 years, it's gotten worse. I swear it's because of all the straining one does while flaring- I have too vivid memories of being up all night, sitting on the toilet, straining & pushing.... and of course, passing nothing, maybe a little blood or mucous. That tenesmus makes you push, push, bear down, etc. & it's got to affect those muscles negatively. Plus childbirth, for me, was pretty physically traumatic. I think..... if I were experiencing the type of urine loss you describe, I'd invest in poise pads, or something similar. For a condition that doesn't necessarily require one to use any meds, or undergo surgery, it's probably best to err on the side of caution & just deal with it as best you can. Like Elaine says, there are truly a LOT of things much worse!
Posted 1/6/2010 10:01 PM (GMT 0)
Please don't take this as complaining....I am not happy about it, and I have way worse problems then that, I was just asking for information. It was something I thought I could get a little better control over. Does it affect my quality of life? Yes, it makes me feel dirty and unsexual and I avoid exercises that cause stress like jumping.

I wish I could remember what it was he said it would affect, but he told me that he has several other patients with UC. Something to do with the inflamation in the intestin. He is way better than my GI and I have had him through 3 female cancers. He explains things throughly to me.
Posted 1/6/2010 11:04 PM (GMT 0)
No surgery because of UC? Nonsense! Why would it make any difference at all?

I had a sub-urethral sling two or three years ago. No more leaks. It had been a real headache, I had to wear protection whenever I played golf, because with every big hit I leaked a little. No more!

The sling is outpatient surgery, and it was covered by insurance.
Posted 1/7/2010 12:53 AM (GMT 0)
I  just wanted to put my two cents in...for what it's worth, yes, a little bladder leakage is nothing compared to UC so you shouldn't necessarily harp on it, especially since you can definitely live with it and it's better to stay positive than to be negative about it.

 HOWEVER, that said, it still affects your quality of life FOR SURE and I totally know how you feel. You're allowed to try to improve your life and if that means finding a solution to this annoyance, YOU SHOULD!! If that means getting a second opinion, fine. If that means trying a surgery, fine. If that means trying a medication, fine. I don't think you're asking too much at ALL.

I have had some pretty bad flares with my IBD and I honestly struggle sometimes deciding which is impairing my life more, the bladder problems or the diarrhea. Granted, I have a slightly different bladder issue than you do, but I completely understand your frustration and I think you should do anything you can to improve your quality of life.

I hope you can find a solution.

Posted 1/7/2010 1:19 AM (GMT 0)

I am sure if I were 40 again my opinions would be different.  My husband has lung cancer, COPD, mostly deaf and terrible neuropathy so I guess my little bladder problem seems like nothing to me!  Hope I did not sound like you should not do anything about it - I just don't have time to persue it when I have worse problems. I just wear a pad and go about life!

ElaineNY

Posted 1/7/2010 2:37 AM (GMT 0)
Me too. I wear one of those tiny daily pads. Sometimes I laugh so hard that they get more than soaked. No big deal. I just clean it up.

Do you think it is prednisone-related or age-related? I took prednisone for three months and afterward I started having peeing issues. I did get a bladder infection though that lasted for almost a year.

Great. I just read that prednisone can cause bladder infections, and bladder infects can cause incontinence.
Posted 1/7/2010 11:27 AM (GMT 0)
How it affects my quality of life varries....I need to get my weight back down. Holidays are over and I no longer feel the effects of pred...Some of the other things he told me to do...not to bad..I really only drink about 2 cups of coffee a day so that is my only caffene. By cutting out acidic foods such as tomatoes and spices would suck...

Me and medicines don't agree very well, if there's a side effect I usually get it...I may ask to go see a uroligist...Inbetween the GI, GP, Hemo, Dermatoligist, and Rematogist what's one more doctor?
Posted 1/7/2010 9:10 PM (GMT 0)

FairyGen said...
I may ask to go see a uroligist...Inbetween the GI, GP, Hemo, Dermatoligist, and Rematogist what's one more doctor?

I was having peeing issues so I asked the doctor about it when I went to urgent care for an ear infection. I wasn't showing any signs of a bladder infection; so he said he felt it was age related. He did a urine test just in case. It turned out it was a bladder infection.

I'm not saying you have a bladder infection; only that the doctors will probably tell you it's age-related if you don't have one. I've always peed a tiny bit if I laughed too hard, but I've never had such troubles with peeing by accident since being on prednisone. I think the prednisone is much worse than many think, because many of these kinds of side effects never get reported or aren't taken seriously.

I'm not saying that your peeing issues are prednisone-related. Only that mine probably are. Same with my eyes. My eyes definitely got worse after being on prednisone. I now wear prescription reading glasses. There is no way to show that my eye issues are prednisone-related and not age-related, because after all isn't that what prednisone does, age the connective tissue. Being middle-age, I must have been on the cusp, and prednisone pulled me over to the other side--the side of having age issues.
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