Have An Overactive Bladder? Symptoms, Causes And Treatment Options To Help You

Health & Medical Blog

If you have an overactive bladder, this can be very frustrating and disrupt your life in many ways. Below is information on some symptoms of this problem, as well as causes and treatment options to help you.

Overactive Bladder Symptoms

One of the main symptoms of an overactive bladder is suddenly feeling the urge that you have to urinate and may find it difficult to get to a bathroom in time. You may also urinate more frequently than you normally do. You may have incontinence, which means there is urine leakage when you feel like you need to urinate. You may also have the urge to get up and urinate one or more times each night.

Overactive Bladder Causes

A common cause of an overactive bladder is having weak pelvic muscles. If you are a woman, this can be caused by childbirth or pregnancy. There may be nerve damage that can be caused by things like back or pelvic surgery, radiation, herniated disc, stroke, multiple sclerosis, and Parkinson's disease. There are some medications that may cause an overactive bladder. If you drink too much alcohol and/or caffeine, this can also cause you to have an overactive bladder. 

If you are overweight, you may have this problem. This is because extra weight adds more pressure to your bladder. If you are a woman and have low estrogen levels, this can make an overactive bladder worse. A doctor can give you vaginal estrogen to help with this problem. Having low estrogen levels is often due to menopause. 

Treatment Options

How the doctor will treat this problem will depend on the cause. They may ask you to make changes, such as drinking less alcohol, losing weight, and more. The doctor may put you on medications. There may be foods that you eat that can make the problem worse, such as chocolate, tomatoes, spicy foods, acidic foods, and more. If you continue to have this problem after making changes, the doctor may suggest that you have surgery. One type of surgery is known as augmentation cystoplasty. During the surgery, the surgeon removes tissue from your intestines and transfers the tissues to your bladder wall. This increases the size of your bladder so it can hold more urine.  

Another surgery the surgeon may perform is known as sacral nerve stimulation. With this, the nerve impulses from your brain to your bladder are regulated. This is done by implanting a tiny pulse generator under your skin in your lower abdomen area. The implant will likely never have to be removed. 

For more information about overactive bladder, contact your doctor and ask about symptoms, causes, and treatment options.

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18 November 2021

Help Others Make Health Decisions when They Cannot

One day I was playing a game of basketball with a friend, and the friend I was playing ball with tripped and took a hard fall to the ground. He hit his head hard, but he insisted he was okay and just wanted to go home and take a nap. I knew in my heart that he was not thinking clearly, and I didn't feel right letting him go home. I talked him into letting me take him to the hospital, and after some tests, it was determined he had a bad concussion. The doctors told me that if I had let him go home and sleep, things could have taken a turn for the worse. I created this blog to remind everyone to look out for each other after injuries. Not everyone thinks clearly after a head injury, and just being a good friend could save a life.