Fix the Leak

Do you have issues with occasional urinary leaks? You thought it was normal, apart of the ageing process, and something you have to live with? Did you know physical therapy can help you with this embarrassing problem that affects so many women and men. This can often prevent surgery when protocol is followed. Not only does physical therapy help with learning how to use your pelvic floor muscles and strengthen them, but how to use them functionally so that this issue can be completely or significantly improved.

There are two main types of incontinence: Stress and Urge Urinary Incontinence. Stress incontinence typically is characterized as remaining continent until force or jarring motion is applied such coughing, sneezing, lifting, jumping, jogging. This can be a direct muscle problem, as your internal sphincter near bladder can weaken from having children, heavy lifting, aging process, some surgeries. That force from a cough or sneeze can be greater then the strength of your sphincter allowing urine to pass through until the force is stopped and strength of the sphincter is regained. Strengthening your pelvic floor muscles and learning how to correctly use them, as well as when to use them, can be key to successful correction of stress urinary incontinence.

Urge Urinary Incontinence is much like the overactive bladder analogy where an over exaggerated urge is created when the bladder is not overly full. This can occur usually due to many years of poor toiletry habits. Using techniques to help retrain the bladder to fill, will in a relatively short period of time, calm the bladder’s overactive contractions. This can regain back your quality of life maintaining a normalized toileting pattern.

As a pelvic floor therapist for over 9 years, I can say for both urinary incontinence issues, these treatment techniques are very successful for many men and women. At Healing Arts Physical Therapy we can provide this service to our community. As a pelvic floor rehab specialist, I can also work with pelvic pain, pain with intercourse, prolapse, and some cases of constipation and fecal incontinence.

Here at Healing Arts Physical Therapy, we are proud to announce a new therapist coming onto our team: Dr. Behnaz Jabaripour, DPT. She is also a pelvic floor therapist and will join me in better serving our community with all their pelvic floor rehab needs. If these issues described sounds like your current situation, please feel free to call us at 530-329-8490 to make an appointment. Call soon while appointments are still open!