So you’ve had bladder leaking for a bit.

Leaking has bothered you for a while, but you’ve been busy with other things.  You feel like you have the time and space to address it now, so you made an appointment with your provider but can’t get in for months.  You’re anxious to get started, so what can you do?

Get the right products.

Fixing your leaking doesn’t happen overnight.  It takes time and effort.  Make sure you have the right products for your leaking.  Many women use menstrual pads for bladder leaking.  They don’t work as well as products designed specifically for bladder leaking since they are designed to hold a different fluid.  You can get incontinence pads at the grocery store, or you can buy them online (hello Amazon), or you could check out the products at attn.grace.  These pads were created to be sustainable and are of excellent quality (link https://attngrace.com/).  If you don’t like the idea of pads, get some incontinence underwear.  I really like the products at ONDR (link https://ondrwear.com/).  Incontinence underwear can take care of the problem and are often less noticeable in tight-fitting clothes.

Journal your leaking

Do you know why or when you are leaking?  How about what makes the leaking worse?  Take some time and answer these questions!  The easiest way to do this is to journal your symptoms.  Take 24 hours and write down what you are drinking, what you are eating, when you are emptying your bladder, and when you are leaking.  You could even include your exercise habits.  Look at your journaling and see if you can find patterns.  Do you only leak after running 5 miles?  Do you leak more after drinking carbonated water?  Identify your triggers and then modify your behaviors

Get rid of your bad habits.

Smoking, constipation, and weight gain all make leaking worse.  If you are a smoker, it’s time to quit.  If you are constipated, add more fiber and water to your diet.  And if you have a little weight to lose, commit to losing it.  Small weight losses can improve leaking.

Start working on your pelvic floor muscles.

Kegels help.  Yes, there are more sophisticated ways of working on your pelvic floor strength.  But Kegels have been shown to work, and improving your strength will help your leaking.  Do three sets of 10 contractions a day.  You can start doing them in a lying position (this is the easiest position).  You can progress and do them in a seated position and then standing.

These are the first steps that doctors almost always start off recommending to their patient.  Try these basic steps, and you will be moving in the right direction!