Bladder Leaks: How To Get Professional Help
You’re done with monthly periods and you’ve had enough kids to keep your hands full for another 20 years! You’ve begun to experience bladder leaks, but you’re not sure that your gynecologist can treat that. So whom do you go to?
Dr. Toni Harris explains that gynecologists care for the whole woman. Watch the full interview with Dr. Toni here to see Why Going To The Gynecologist Is Important.
However, there is a subspecialty of feminine care doctors who specialize in certain areas that most gynecologists don’t. These doctors are called urogynecologists. Postpartum mothers and menopausal women who have pelvic floor disorders, such as stress urinary incontinence, more commonly known as bladder leaks, are often referred to urogynecologists.
Urogynecology is a subspecialty of gynecology that has been growing in response to the demand for specialized care and greater acceptability of topics like urinary issues. According to Dr. Toni, 25% of women will experience troublesome bladder leaks at some point in their lifetime. Unfortunately, most of these women will wait an average of 2 years to seek treatment. This is largely because they are unaware of the care available to them or are embarrassed by their problem.
How to find a urogynocologist near you:
- Ask for a referral from your OBGYN
- Ask for a referral from your family practitioner
- Alternatively, the American Urogynecologic Society’s “Voices for PFD” website provides a list of credentialed urogynecologists in different regions here
How to prepare for your first appointment:
- First track your symptoms and note the circumstances that are associated with your leaks.
- Create a bladder diary, in which you record your liquid intake, bathroom visits, leakage amounts, and associated activities.
- Here you’ll find an example of what your bladder diary should look like as well as other helpful resources on how to prepare for your first visit to the urogynecologist and what to expect.
Seeking Treatment for SUI:
- Tracking your leakage symptoms will help your urogynecologist determine the type and severity of your incontinence and what treatment option will work best for you.
- Depending on the severity of your symptoms, a urogynecologist may suggest pelvic floor exercises (Kegels), devices worn in the vagina, or surgery. You may have already started to wear pads to try to manage the leakage and specialized pads are available for this purpose. However, if your degree of stress urinary incontinence is only light to moderate, there is a new, non-invasive, and easy to use solution that could help you get through each day with no worry of accidental leaks. Finess is a small, soft, disposable patch that you place over the urethral opening to block bladder leaks. Instead of holding urine in a pad, Finess stops it from escaping, so there’s no fluid to absorb.
Women who have settled for intrusive and potentially irritating, bulky pads that simply soak up urine will be glad to know that they don’t have to be uncomfortable and fear odor any longer. Dr. Toni, experienced urogynecologist for over 25 years, is very excited about this innovative incontinence solution, and can’t wait to see the ways it improves the lives of women everywhere.
Try Finess for a drier you.
Discreet, comfortable and compact, Finess is available in a 12 or 36-pack on our Website or Amazon. To learn how to use Finess, visit our YouTube channel. Take the stress of stress urinary incontinence with Finess.
Want to learn more about stress urinary incontinence? Check out some of our other articles.
Stress Urinary Incontinence: The 3 Causes of Bladder Leakage
How to Use Finess- The Girl Scout Salute
3 Ways to Manage Your Stress Urinary Incontinence
Prevent Bladder Leaks Instead of Soaking Them Up
Babies Are a Joy, But Bladder Leaks Sure Aren’t