Chances are you have working knowledge about the normal functioning of your heart, lungs, eyes, nose, ears, teeth, etc. You may even have a good ability to recognize common symptoms that could be a reason to seek medical attention and consultation. The root of this is knowing what these areas of your body should be doing and then recognizing that they are no longer doing that.
Unfortunately, most adults don’t have a good idea of what their bladder should be doing beyond holding in and letting go of urine when desired. So as long as you’re able to keep your urine in when you want and release it when you want, there is no reason for concern.
Except for the fact that your bladder habits could be early indicators that something is not quite right and you’re lacking the knowledge about habits that support a healthy bladder. So here goes…
What a healthy bladder does:
- Emptying your bladder every 2-4 hours or 6-8x/day when awake
- The ability to delay your need to empty your bladder for at least 20-30 min
- The ability to sleep through the night without emptying if your under 65 year of age
- The ability to jump, sneeze, run, cough without leaking
- The ability to without pushing and have a steady stream of urine
- Feeling completely empty when you are done voiding
Tips for bladder health:
- Stay hydrated by drinking ½ your body weight in ounces throughout the day
- Avoid irritants like alcohol, caffeine, coffee, artificial sweeteners, carbonation, chocolate, spicy, citrus, vinegar
- Avoid hovering over the toilet to empty your bladder, no matter where you are
- Avoid stopping the flow of urine mid-stream- this is not a pelvic floor exercise
- Avoid going “just in case”, instead only empty your bladder when you have a strong urge to
Cheers to healthy bladder habits!
Hilary
PS: Realizing you don’t have the best bladder habits and looking for support? Let’s hop on a free consult call and see if virtual pelvic floor therapy support can help you! CLICK HERE to schedule.
