What is Urinary Incontinence?

Urinary Incontinence Fact vs Fiction

There are different types of urinary incontinence = FACT

Here are the different types of incontinence typically seen¹:

• Stress incontinence. Urine leaks when you exert pressure on your bladder by coughing, sneezing, laughing, exercising or lifting something heavy.
• Urge incontinence. You have a sudden, intense urge to urinate followed by an involuntary loss of urine. You may need to urinate often, including throughout the night. Urge incontinence may be caused by a minor condition, such as infection, or a more-severe condition such as a neurologic disorder or diabetes.
• Overflow incontinence. You experience frequent or constant dribbling of urine due to a bladder that doesn't empty completely.
• Functional incontinence. A physical or mental impairment keeps you from making it to the toilet in time. For example, if you have severe arthritis, you may not be able to unbutton your pants quickly enough.
• Mixed incontinence. You experience more than one type of urinary incontinence.

Stress incontinence is what is typically seen in the female athlete. 

2. Urolon

Only “old” people experience incontinence = FICTION

Urinary incontinence can occur in any age group.

It is “normal” for female athletes to experience incontinence = FICTION

Athletes: How often have you heard some of your friends discussing urine leakage during a sport? I’m sure it’s more often than you would like to admit. As a former collegiate myself, this was often a topic of conversation. We may have just been “that weird” or quirky, but we did openly chat about it. We always just thought it was a normal thing that happened occasionally in the heat of a game. Jumping up to win a header almost always followed with a small burst downstairs.  

It wasn’t until PT school that I learned this isn’t normal and that it should NOT be considered the norm in female athletes. In my pelvic health course, my professor shed light on this difficult topic of discussion.

1 Mayo Clinic. 2020. Urinary Incontinence - Symptoms And Causes. [online] Available at: <https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/urinary-incontinence/symptoms-causes/syc-20352808> [Accessed 9 November 2020].

2.Urolon. Stress Urinary Incontinence. https://urolon.com/urolon-for-women/stress-urinaryincontinence/.