Bladder health 101

As any part of your body, your bladder can become unhealthy if you don’t take good care of it. That’s when people start consulting me for overactive bladder issues (going to the bathroom too frequently), urinary urgency, incontinence and so on.

What can you do to keep your bladder healthy? Here’s a few pro tips!

1- Stop going to the bathroom “just in case”: there is a muscle around your bladder, the detrusor, and if that muscle does not get stretched enough because you are constantly emptying your bladder before it’s full, this muscle can become stiff overtime! Start listening to your bladder signals to maintain a good bladder capacity – it will tell you when you need to go, no need to anticipate it 😉 This is also valid for any parent who may be encouraging their kids to go to the bathroom just in case – I tell ya, these kids will be in my office for overactive bladder issues when they grow older! It’s okay to do it for a “one off” before a long car trip, but in the day to day, try and teach them to listen to their bladder signals 🙂

2- Stay hydrated: to provide your bladder with a healthy, non irritant environment. What does that mean exactly to “drink enough water”? If you look at your urine colour, it should be pale yellow – not dark (exception is made for the first pee of the morning). The darker your urine, the more irritant for your bladder, which can in turn creates symptoms like urinary urgency (that unbearable sudden feeling that you need to go to the bathroom right now and you can’t postpone it!)

3- Be aware of bladder irritants in your diet: coffee, carbonated drinks, sugar, spicy & acidic food,  alcohol can all be triggers for urinary urgency and frequency, as they are considered bladder irritants. If you suffer from these symptoms, try to eliminate one item at a time for a few weeks to observe the effect on your symptoms. If you don’t have symptoms, just make sure to keep a healthy balance in your diet so you do not develop symptoms in the future.

4- Avoid straining while urinating: I know sometimes it is tempting when you are in a rush to try and  push your urine out through holding your breath. But all this extra force on your bladder can be damageable over time and lead to a bladder prolapse (when the bladder starts descending into the vaginal canal). Instead, take a few extra seconds to let your bladder empty on its own as you release your pelvic floor muscles. To do so, visualize the blooming of your vagina and release all the muscles around your vagina and urethra. You can do a gentle contraction of your pelvic floor muscles once the last few drops have gone through, in order to close the urethral sphincter properly – this is super helpful especially if you have symptoms of urine dripping while standing from the toilet. If you have no clue of what I am talking about by contracting and releasing your pelvic floor, consult with a Pelvic Health physio, or watch my video:

5- Do not hold urine for too long: meaning more than 3-4h between voids (depending on your liquid consumption). As much as it is not recommended to go to the bathroom too often, there is also a limit to what your bladder can hold! It is definitely not a good idea to hold your urine for too long – indeed, it can lead to pelvic floor muscle tensions and fatigue (as you will have to contract your pelvic floor in order to hold your bladder for that long…). This can lead to pelvic floor dysfunctions in the long run! So if you are a nurse or any worker on a the road who do not have easy access to a washroom, time yourself or put an alarm or something if you tend to forget to empty your bladder!

Hope this helps!!!

Sophie