About the Bladder

Bladder Leaks are one of the top challenges for active women. 

Let’s learn about it!

Your bladder is a hollow organ that responds to changes to urine and chemical 

Your bladder has 2 jobs:

• Storing urine

• Elimination of urine

Urine travels to the bladder by way of the uterers, the tubes that connect to the kidney.

The uretha is the last passage way out of the body after urine leaves the bladder. 

Staying dry is a team combination:

• Bladder neck,

• External uretheral sphincter

• Pelvic Floor muscles

Typically a bladder:

• holds 300-400ml of fluid

• 6-8 times of voiding in a day and 1 time at night (depending on age)

• You can hold an urge without leaking

How do we pee?

Urine elimination happens when the PFM & bladder neck are relaxed and the detrusor (muscle INSIDE) the bladder contraction.

Normal is NO pain, steady steam, NO blood

Because the inside of the bladder is sensitive to chemical changes, restricting fluids is not ideal because that can end up causing irritation to the inside of the bladder and increase risk of infection and pelvic floor problems. 

 Common personal consequences of bladder problems- 

• Anxiety, depression

• Lowered physical activity

• Missing work

• Sexual dissatisfaction 

• Poor sleep

• Increased stress

The bladder does change as one ages however modifying habits can help have normal bladder function, therefore it is never normal to be suffering with burdensome bladder problems just because you are old (or had a baby!)

This is important because bladder problems like leaking with the urge or rushing to the toilet when you have the urge can increase risk of falls to an aging person. 

Falls contribute to increased mortality due to consequence disability and complications as well as poor quality of life and increased risk of nursing home placement 

You might be a young female athlete blowing off your bladder problems with running or box jumps and it is important to recognize the biggest risk factor of leaking in pregnancy or postpartum is leaking prior to becoming pregnant. 

Childbirth has a significant impact on bladder as the pelvic floor floor stretches up to 300%, abdominal wall stretches 110% and other compounding sequel can contribute to pelvic pain in addition to more severe leakage after birth and road block your return to sport.  

If you are ready to start healing your pelvic floor problems that holds you back from living the active life you love. 

Reach out today!

References

• Kari Bø. Pelvic floor muscle training is effective in treatment of female stress urinary incontinence, but how does it work? Int Urogynecol J (2004) 15: 76–84 DOI 10.1007/s00192-004-1125-0

• Selman R, Early K, Battles B, Seidenburg M, Wendel E, Westerlund S. Maximizing Recovery in the Postpartum Period: A Timeline for Rehabilitation from Pregnancy through Return to Sport. Int J Sports Phys Ther. 2022 Oct 1;17(6):1170-1183. doi: 10.26603/001c.37863. 

• A healthy bladder: a consensus statement. Lukacz et al. 2011. International Journal of Clinical Practice
  Evidence-based criteria for pain of interstitial cystitis/painful bladder syndrome in women. Warren et al. 2008. Urology