Whatis urinary incontinence?Urinary incontinence is the medical term for when a person leaksurine or loses bladder control.Incontinenceis a very common problem, but it is not anormal part of aging. If you have this problem, there are treatments that canhelp. There are also things that you can do on your own to stop or reduce urineleakage so you don't have to "just live with it."Whatare the symptoms of incontinence?There are differenttypes of incontinence. Each causes different symptoms. The 3 most common typesare:●Stress incontinence –With stress incontinence, you leak urine when you laugh, cough, sneeze, or doanything that "stresses" the belly. Stress incontinence is mostcommon in females, especially those who have had a baby.●Urgency incontinence –With urgency incontinence, you feel a strong need to urinate all of a sudden.This is also known as "urge incontinence." Often, the"urge" is so strong that you can't make it to the bathroom in time."Overactive bladder" is another term for having a sudden, frequenturge to urinate. People with overactive bladder might or might not actuallyleak urine.●Mixed incontinence –With mixed incontinence, you have symptoms of both stress and urgencyincontinence.Isthere anything I can do on my own to feel better?Yes. Hereare some things that can help reduce urine leaks:●Reduce the amount of liquid that you drink, especially a fewhours before bed.●Cut down on any foods or drinks that make your symptoms worse.Some people find that alcohol, caffeine, or spicy or acidic foods irritate thebladder.●Try to lose weight, if you are overweight. Your doctor or nursecan help you do this in a healthy way.●If you have diabetes, keep your blood sugar as close to yourgoal level as possible.●If you take medicines called diuretics, plan ahead. Thesemedicines increase the need to urinate. Try to take them when you know you willbe near a bathroom for a few hours. If you keep having problems with leakagebecause of diuretics, ask your doctor if you can take a lower dose or switch toa different medicine.Thesetechniques can also help improve bladder control:●Bladder retraining –During bladder retraining, you go to the bathroom at scheduled times. Forinstance, you might decide that you will go every hour. Make yourself go everyhour, even if you don't feel like you need to. Try to wait the whole hour, evenif you need to go sooner. Then, once you get used to going every hour, increasethe amount of time you wait in between bathroom visits. Over time, you might beable to "retrain" your bladder to wait 3 or 4 hours between bathroomvisits.●Pelvic floor muscle training –This involves learning exercises to strengthen and relax your pelvic muscles.These include the muscles that control the flow of urine and bowel movements.When done right, these exercises can help. But people often do them wrong. Askyour doctor or nurse how to do them right. Your doctor might suggest workingwith a physical therapist who has special training in these exercises.ShouldI see my doctor or nurse?Yes. Your doctor or nurse can find outwhat might be causing your incontinence. They can also suggest ways to relievethe problem.Whenyou speak to your doctor or nurse, ask if any of the medicines you take couldbe causing your symptoms. Some medicines can cause incontinence or make itworse.Somepeople choose to wear pads or special underwear. These can help if youaccidentally leak urine once in a while. But they can also cause skinirritation if you use them a lot. If you have incontinence, ask your doctor ornurse how to treat it.Howis incontinence treated?The treatment options differ depending on what type ofincontinence you have. Some of the options include:●Medicines to relax the bladder●Surgery to repair the tissues that support the bladder or toimprove the flow of urine●Electrical stimulation of the nerves that relax the bladderUrinaryincontinence is more common in people who have been through menopause.(Menopause is when you stop having monthly periods). Some people have vaginaldryness after menopause. If this is the case for you, a treatment calledvaginal estrogen might help.Whatwill my life be like?Many people with incontinence can regain bladder control or atleast reduce the amount of leakage they have. The most important thing is totell your doctor or nurse. Then, work with them to find an approach that helpsyou.