If bladder leakage is something you have experienced since giving birth then you are all too familiar with the need to cross your legs when sneezing or coughing or the rush to the bathroom at a moment’s notice.
If it makes you feel any better, urinary incontinence is very common after childbirth and affects nearly ⅓ of women who have given birth. Just because it is common, however, doesn’t mean it is something you have to live with or that can’t be treated or improved.
We have seen so many women go on for years adapting to their urinary incontinence instead of seeking incontinence treatment in Springfield, Ohio. As urologists, we hope you feel encouraged to seek treatment if you are 1 in 3 women who experience this uncomfortable and inconvenient daily problem.
What is The Cause?
You may have yourself wondering, what is it that causes urinary incontinence after childbirth? Is it something that could have been prevented? Did you do something wrong?
The truth is, there isn’t much you can do to control or prevent urinary incontinence, so it is not your fault. At a glance, urinary incontinence is caused by a multitude of different changes that happen in your body during pregnancy and giving birth.
During pregnancy the weight of your uterus as it expands will apply a lot of added pressure to your pelvic floor. Your Pelvic floor is a set of muscles located between your tailbone and your public bone. These muscles support your bowel, bladder, and uterus. Needless to say, these muscles get a huge workout during pregnancy as they support your growing uterus for 9+ months.
After you give birth, your pelvic floor muscles, depending on how they heal and retract back into place, may be overall weaker or not functioning properly. This can lead to bladder leaks.
During childbirth, your whole entire body is put through a lot. Though it is all natural and the way your body was designed to work, sometimes complications can arise in pregnancy, childbirth, and through the postpartum healing process.
Nerves that control the rectum, bladder, and pelvic floor muscles can be damaged. Displacement of the urethra and bladder can occur. Tearing, an episiotomy, or vacuum or forcep intervention can all lead to damage in the pelvic floor muscles.
Any of the conditions or experiences listed above could be a cause of urinary incontinence after childbirth. As you can see there are a multitude of causes for what you are experiencing which makes it important that you seek treatment from an expert like a urologist.
When your body goes through something as powerful as childbirth, there is no shame in seeking help for any related conditions or difficulties that may follow. You don’t have to live your life adapting to urinary incontinence. There are a multitude of non-invasive treatment options for urinary incontinence of this kind.
At Urology Specialists of Ohio, we would love to meet with you and talk through those options. We hope to give you the opportunities to jump on the trampoline with your kids again or even just laugh and sneeze without worry. Schedule your appointment today!