Simple, easy-to-use solutions are helping Canadian women experiencing leakage take back their independence and reclaim confidence.
Many women believe urinary incontinence is a part of aging that they just have to live with. While it is common, it doesn’t have to be accepted as normal.
More than 3.3 million Canadians live with incontinence, and approximately one in four women experience bladder issues. Yet many suffer in silence because they believe nothing can be done.
“Society tells us it’s part of aging and you have to live with it,” says Angela Yamaoka, a product specialist at Mothers Choice Products, a leading Canadian distributor of maternal and women focused health products. “But it’s a manageable and treatable problem.”
Understanding the types of incontinence
Urinary incontinence is the lack of voluntary control over bladder function. The three primary types of incontinence are stress, urge, and mixed.
Stress incontinence occurs when the pelvic floor is not strong enough to hold urine back. “This may affect you when you sneeze, cough, or jump,” Yamaoka says. “You need to strengthen the muscles in order to help keep the urine inside.”
Urge incontinence occurs when the nerves in the pelvic floor are overworking. “For example, when you walk into a room and suddenly you feel like you need to use the bathroom right now, urgently, even if you may have just gone not that long ago and don’t have a full bladder,” says Yamaoka. “In that case, you need to soothe that inflamed nerve.”
Mixed incontinence is a combination of both stress and urge incontinence.
Pregnancy and childbirth are common risk factors for stress incontinence. “Urge incontinence can be triggered by things like caffeine or fizzy drinks. It’s often diet-related,” says Yamaoka. “So, lifestyle modifications absolutely can help when you have milder urge incontinence, and with stress incontinence, the only real thing you can do is strengthen your pelvic floor.”
Yamaoka recommends pelvic floor physiotherapy, though limited availability in Canada can mean long wait times. Doing Kegel exercises on your own can also help.
“But many women don’t know how to engage their pelvic floor, or their pelvic floor is so weak that they need assistance from a pelvic floor physiotherapist or a pelvic floor device,” notes Yamaoka.
An easy-to-use option that may help
With this in mind, Mothers Choice Products distributes the TensCare range of pelvic floor exercisers, including the Perfect PFE, iTouch Go, and Elise devices which have both TENS (transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation) for pain and EMS (electrical muscle stimulation) to strengthen the muscle. The Perfect PFE, Elise and iTouch Go all use electrical stimulation to help women correctly engage and strengthen their pelvic floor muscles, just as if they were doing a Kegel exercise on their own. The devices give the full benefit of contraction and full relaxation, doing the Kegel exercise correctly for you.
This range of pelvic floor exercisers features programs for both stress incontinence, which strengthens the pelvic floor muscles, and urge incontinence, which helps calm the nerves that control the bladder. For those who may have both urge and stress incontinence or are not sure which one they have all three devices offer a mixed program. The iTouch Go and the Perfect PFE also have the addition of a pain program to alleviate chronic pelvic pain due to Vulvodynia, Symphysis Pubis, or Interstitial Cystitis and more. Many insurance companies will also cover this medical device as a treatment option.
TensCare and Mothers Choice Products have helped tens of thousands of Canadian women strengthen their pelvic floor since 2013. “Incontinence isn’t a life-threatening condition, but it impacts quality of life,” says Yamaoka. “With treatment, you don’t have to worry about your bladder leaking. You don’t have to plan your day around your bathroom stops. You can go for a long walk with a friend or a bike ride and do normal everyday activities.”
Learn more about your options and explore the TensCare pelvic floor solutions available on Amazon.ca.