Well oh my… where do I start??? Not only am I menopausal with all that entails my bloody bladder is turning on me too :S At the grand old age of 42, over the past couple of weeks I have noticed that I am not great at holding my bladder and find myself rushing to the loo. I am assuming it’s to do with the menopause and Tamoxifen as I have never previously had any problems. Thing is… Is there anything I can do about it?? I am ER+ so anything hormonal is out of the question…
Would love some advice if you have any.
Exercise is the only non-medication way of dealing with it. Get those pelvic floor muscles toned up! I do Pilates exercises, attend a class every 2 weeks and do 20 minutes at home every day, and what a difference it has made.
Sarah x
you can try bladder retraining… this is if you feel the urge to go try and put off going straight away… maybe by just 10 seconds to start with and then increase the amount.
dont get into the habit of going to the loo ‘just in case’ as this introduces you bladder to the idea of going when you dont need to and isnt full.
its a common problem as you gt older especially if you have had children and isnt necessarily related to tamoxifen or hormones but more like to be lack of muscle control and bad habits… pelvic floor exercises are a good way of helping too… see your gp and ask to be referred to urology/urodynamics for an assessment… the waiting time to be seen can be months eg its 18-24 months here for a urodynamics referral.
Do you know what? I think I will go to Docs tomorrow to see what they say. I have found that I’m going ‘just in case’ as I don’t want any embarrassing accidents. Thing is, I don’t seem to feel the need to go… there is no build up and where I could once hold it for ages these past couple of weeks have been nightmarish. I have become paranoid lol. Thank you for taking the time. It’s much appreciated
Hi Beth- really don’t think it’s anything to do with the Tamoxifen. Glad you’re going to your GP as you need to get it sorted asap- pelvic floor exercises etc etc …or maybe you’ve even got a wee infection?
glad your going to your GP they will prob get a sample just to do a check that you dont have a UTI either as running to the loo is often a sign of infection as topsymo has suggested.
you can also get a condition called over-active bladder which can be helped by medication.
you can also get a sluggish bladder and get dribbling from overflow incontinence… you tend not to feel the urge so much but have frequent dribbling… having a urology assessment would involve a flow measurement to see the speed volume and pattern of the flow followed by a scan to see if your bladder is emptying properly so i think from what you have said this would be a good route for you to go down.
just wanted to let you know I know how you feel and it is a horrible problem to have. It happened to me after both my babies were born as my first boy basically pulled my pelvis to pieces and then his brother tried to finish the job two years later.
I was sent to a specialist physio at hospital and she taught me loads of pelvic floor exercises, but in a staged way so they built up really well. They also recommended these cones with weights that you insert in your vagina and basically your muscles get used to gripping that weight and then you start on the next weight up. They had other solutions to try, including surgery if it’s extreme and exercises aren’t doing the trick. But itvworked for me, not as good as Pre children but I think that’s the Case for many women .
Let us know how you get on. Oh, I haven’t noticed it’s been any worse since me Chemo or tamox, touch wood, tho Chemo vomiting certainly put those pelvic floor muscles under pressure!
I used to have the bladder of a camel, but since becoming post menopausal 4 years ago I now find I have a real urgency to go. I read the other week that it’s to do with things like the walls of the bladder and vagina thinning. I don’t have any kids, so never had problems with pelvic floor etc.
Try googling “pelvic floor exercises” and/or Kegel exercises. You should get loads of info on what to do and how to build it up gradually. I’ve read useful suggestions such as doing the exercises whilst you’re waiting at traffic lights, or whilst you’re sitting at your desk, anything to make it less boring but still bring results. You don’t have to be poncing around in a leotard and headband to make it work!
Sarah x
Having no children does not guarantee strong pelvic floor muscles. Unless you actually use them by exercising them, they are probably weak since most of us do not normally use them much. The post-menopausal thinning vagina and bladder lining cause the incontinence problem but exercise can do a lot to overcome it.
Sarah x
Thank you all for taking the time to write. I am going to give it all a go. The doc is sending off my sample to get it tested and will now check out the tena lady site. Many thanks again xx
