Coping With Urinary Incontinence After Childbirth

After giving birth to my second child, I begin to leak a bit of urine whenever I laughed, sneezed or coughed. According to my doctor it is usually caused by stress. Also it is very common in women after childbirth. It is usually caused by weak muscle tone within the vagina wall that supports the urethra and bladder. The bladder can push through the weak musculature which can cause a cystocelo or a hernia.

I was told that by doing kegel exercises on a daily basis it can help to strengthen the muscles in the vaginal wall and may even eliminate the problem. A kegel exercise is done by firmly tensing the muscles around your vagina and anus. Hold for as long as you can for about ten seconds, then slowly release the muscles and relax for several seconds. I have done this exercise for about six months and according to my doctor it has really helped.

I did find out that if this were a more severe case it may have been necessary to have surgery, to help alleviate the problem. Sometimes they even have to remove the uterus to prevent this condition from recurring. Which will usually happen if you become pregnant again. If you think that this may be your problem do not hesitate to see your doctor. No mother wants to risk losing her uterus over something that can be fixed.

Talk to your doctor about the kegel exercises, they may have some other options that you can try. If the first thing that your doctor suggests is medication you may want to get a second opinion. Some doctors in my opinion are too quick to prescribe medication. They also may want to run some test to make sure that it is not severe. Fortunately for me I did not have a very severe case and was able to be treated early enough so that I could have more children. I was informed however that it is a possibility of it happening again after my next child.

So since my doctor is aware of this they will be checking for it after I have my next child. Speak openly with your doctor and make sure you ask any questions that you may have. Most doctors are more than willing to answer all of your questions.