Embarassing question...and maybe TMI for someone who hasn't had a baby

[meg39]

I hate to admit it, but using a tampon really does work. My "baby" is now 19, but my "leaking" has gotten worse as I've gotten older. I was actually crying about not being able to run anymore without the leaking, read about the tampon tip on Runners World, and tried it, and it worked. No leaking whatsoever, nor even feeling of leaking. I think I read that it helps to support the muscles down there.

[ked]

I am surprised no one mentioned rebounding for incontinence.
of course at first you need to wear a pad, but after a couple of weeks it really makes a difference. It helped a lot after having twins.

Kay

[spotted zebra]

Originally Posted by meg39

I hate to admit it, but using a tampon really does work. My "baby" is now 19, but my "leaking" has gotten worse as I've gotten older. I was actually crying about not being able to run anymore without the leaking, read about the tampon tip on Runners World, and tried it, and it worked. No leaking whatsoever, nor even feeling of leaking. I think I read that it helps to support the muscles down there.

Dr. Christiane Northrup also made that recommendation on Oprah. She said "Before aerobics or anything where you're going to be jumping up and down, you can put a tampon in your vagina and that will hold the bladder up at the right angle so you won't leak."

She also stressed the importance of doing kegel exercises, which if done properly will eliminate the need to wear a tampon. (And let's face it, with the toxins companies put into tampons I sure wouldn't want to put one of those in my body every other day). She said if you don't think kegel exercises work it's important to make sure you're doing the exercises correctly. And that she'd go to a physical therapist "who specializes on the pelvic floor because a lot of women do not know how to do them properly—and if you do them properly—they're very, very effective." Which, jokes aside, would also explain the effectiveness of the Kegelmaster along with its added resistance.

[videofit]

I noticed that since my hysterectomy years ago, I've had a couple of leaking episodes, usually when I've had a full bladder and done strenuous physical activity. That's because when the uterus is removed, the bladder drops down to fill the space and the angle of the urethra is different. Who knew!

I know kegels work but I haven't been doing them for a while, so this thread has got me motivated again. You don't need that kegelmaster device if you've got a boyfriend or husband - or both . Practice "in the moment" and I guarantee he will give you instant feedback!

[tytbody]

Which, jokes aside, would also explain the effectiveness of the Kegelmaster along with its added resistance.

DO you mean that big pink thing. ??? just looking at it I can't figure it out. does that whole thing go up inside of you? And what's that pink button on their for? it just looks weird.

Now I understand how a tampon can/could work. But I still would also not want to have to wear one every day. bad enough some days you do. Who wants to think about time to change that baby all day long. I got other things to think about besides the last time I put that thing up there. I'll skip on that one to.

I know kegels work but I haven't been doing them for a while, so this thread has got me motivated again. You don't need that kegelmaster device if you've got a boyfriend or husband - or both . Practice "in the moment" and I guarantee he will give you instant feedback!

are you suggesting that women on vf have boyfriends AND husbands. gosh no...

[LovingLife]

I've been dealing with this problem since my last baby was born almost 6 years ago. I tried pretty much everything mentioned on this thread -- yes, even the Kegalmaster (woo hoo! -- I'd use a sarcastic smiley if there were one). I went to physical therapy (even using the Kegalmaster as part of that program). I also used a pessary to keep things in place while I did cardio (think of a running bra that keeps the motion to a minimum). That's also when I bought my rebounder, which also helped, but not completely.

Maybe my incontinence/prolapse problems were worse than most, but I found after trying all the exercises/devices, that even with a strenuous (and very inconvenient to use that Kegalmaster) program, I was fighting the tide. I made improvements, but still would just improve from wearing 9-10 maxi-pads a day to 2 or 3. If something disrupted my PT, it would just go back to where it was.

I eventually succumbed to pelvic floor repair surgery, which was miraculous until my 3 month don't lift anything over 10 pounds period was over. After that, I was allowed to lift up to 40 and started seeing some leakage again after that.

It's not often as bad as it was before (in fact, my OBGYN says the prolapse was fixed, but my something in there tilts under pressure and still causes leakage at times. They have a new surgery that covers that, but I don't really want to go through surgery again if I can help it).

So at this point (sorry for the novel) with 4 years of dealing with this, I've found a few things:

1) Rebounding or high impact cardio is done best in the morning for the least amount of leakage. I learned from my physical therapist that the bladder doesn't completely empty each time we thing we're emptying it. The morning is the most thorough for some reason. As the day goes on, more fills up and is apt to leak out in high impact exercises. The difference between a morning and evening cardio workout is (no, I won't say like night and day ) huge.

2) Diet (I won't get specific here) has made the biggest difference in if I'm dry or not than any device or exercise I've done. I still do my pelvic tilts in workouts, tend to favor the Pilates flavor of core work (and the stability ball too), but I've retired my Kegal Master for good. I'm somewhat intigued by the smart balls, but probably won't get them unless my eating fails to make the difference. Just to give an idea of how much my eating changes things. If I'm eating like I've found to work, I can go all day with a panti-liner and be fine. If I'm not, (and sometimes it's within an hour of eating something), I can wear 4 or 5 maxi-pads a day and have embarrassing moments when one of those wasn't enough. Yes, it can be pretty awful.

I've explained the diet factor to my OBGYN and he always seems puzzled by it, but says (obviously) to keep it up if it's working.

3) If I lift too much (even under the 40 pounds) like stacking wood or helping my dh move some furniture, I see more problems. So I'm more careful about this. I can still lift up to 40 in my workouts, but I sit for some upper body work when the standing isn't necessary.

The woman in the bed next to me at the hospital had the same surgery I had. She was probably 15 year older than I was and said she'd had a similar surgery 10 years before. She said it worked fine until she started lifting her grandchildren (not just the little ones) and didn't pay attention to those limits.

Debbie -- I'm with you. Even though Anna is innovative and I'm sure helping many women with this, I didn't think I could work with her -- something eery about it. I also would rather just know some exercises that take about 10 minutes to add-on to another workout (like I do with pelvic tucks or Pilates) than to spend all my workout time doing these kind of exercises.

Re: the boyfriend/husband comparison -- That really doesn't compare to the Kegalmaster because it has springs in it and is a weighted resistance exercise. I guess it's kind of like that Thighmaster that Suzanne Summers used to sell -- but has different strength springs that make it harder and harder to close according to how to set it up to begin with. It's pretty hard to do (and you have to watch the clock and do slow twitch and fast twitch movements for the different muscle fibers -- it really is a tedious thing!)

[bzar]

i also don't remember to do kegels as often as i should.

i've found ways of challenging myself to remember, like doing a kegel when i am not "commanded" to do so - in all types of yoga poses, when doing weights, doing ab work. those are some ideas.

[yaya]

Oh my, Renee, your post really scares me! I took it really easy (no lifting at all) during my recovery period but now, with my doctor's ok, I've gone back to lifting heavy like before. I haven't noticed any leaking from lifting or from jumping since I've gone back to working out, but now I'm a little freaked out. I certainly don't want to undo anything!

Can anyone elso who's had this surgery chime in with your results and offer any reassurance??

[LovingLife]

Originally Posted by yaya

Oh my, Renee, your post really scares me! I took it really easy (no lifting at all) during my recovery period but now, with my doctor's ok, I've gone back to lifting heavy like before. I haven't noticed any leaking from lifting or from jumping since I've gone back to working out, but now I'm a little freaked out. I certainly don't want to undo anything!

Can anyone elso who's had this surgery chime in with your results and offer any reassurance??

One thing I learned afterwards was that some doctors recommend no more than 40 pounds and some as low as 25. Maybe the 40 was just too much for me. I started carrying my then 1 1/2 year old around (who was about 25 pounds and grew with time) -- that probably didn't help at all.

[Debbie]

I'm glad I brought up this subject! There is some really good advice and information being shared here.