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Stress Incontinence

What is stress incontinence?

Stress incontinence is the most common type of incontinence, which can affect all aspects of a woman’s life. If you have stress incontinence, it means your pelvic muscles have become weakened, which can cause you to accidentally leak urine. This can happen when extra pressure is placed on your pelvic floor muscles, which support the bladder, womb and bowel, such as when you sneeze, cough, run, jump, lift things and even when you laugh. This can be embarrassing but it can be treated.

What are the causes of stress incontinence?

The pelvic floor muscles (the muscles that support and close off the bladder) don’t work properly and so urine leaks out). Pregnancy and childbirth are common causes of stress incontinence. They put a huge strain on the pelvic floor muscles, which can leave them severely weakened. Other causes of stress incontinence include being overweight, constipation, the menopause and having a chronic cough.

Who does stress incontinence affect?

Stress incontinence affects approximately one in three women in the UK. Women of all ages can be affected, but it is more commonly found in women over 50 years old and those who are pregnant.

How can it be treated?

There are a number of methods to treat stress incontinence. You should speak to your continence advisor to establish which method is the most appropriate for you. 

• Pelvic floor exercises - The answer for most people is simple, exercise. It is important that you give your pelvic floor muscles plenty of exercise, especially if you’re pregnant or if you’ve just had a baby. Your muscles will have become weak, therefore you need to make them stronger like you would with other muscles in your body. Many will see a substantial improvement, but only if they persist for weeks, even months in some cases. Fortunately for many, stress incontinence is overcome when using pelvic floor exercises. Qualified practitioners, such as a continence nurse or physiotherapist, can help teach the correct exercises for your pelvic floor muscles
• Weighted cones - Weighted vaginal cones, such as Aquaflex, are also very popular at strengthening pelvic floor muscles. There are two different sized cones with four weights, which can help improve the effectiveness of pelvic floor exercises. By simply using the cones for 15-20 minutes each day, your pelvic floor muscles will get a good exercise
• Surgery - Sometimes surgery is necessary for more severe pelvic floor problems, such as extreme stretching and very poor strength, and there is a high success rate