Our Guide To Urinary Incontinence

August 31, 2018 4 min read

"INFO: The team previously at hannahpad Canada launched their own new brand, illum! These blog posts have been written when we used to run hannahpad Canada. All information is still relevant and everything is the same! We simply changed the brand that we offer. "

What? Incontinence?

Whenever the term “incontinence” comes up, it reminds me of a TV advertisement I saw when I was little. In the ad, an elder lady was smiling and dancing thanks to a huge diaper. I was bit shocked because that was the first time I realized even adults would wear diaper. I didn’t know exactly why the lady needed it, but now I know- Urinary Incontinence. Many women including young females may have same symptoms and suffer from the inconvenience due to incontinence in their everyday lives. However, just few of them would like to talk about it. Don’t feel alone! You’re not the only one, and there’s always help for you.

Pregnancy, childbirth and weight gain can be main contributors of incontinence since they stretch the pelvic floor muscles.

First of all, we should know what it is. What is incontinence? The term “Urinary Incontinence” means an accidental release of urine. There are several types of incontinence, and the most common ones are Stress Incontinence and Urge Incontinence. Stress Incontinence occurs when you get physically stressed or pressured such as sneezing, coughing, laughing, exercise or lifting up heavy things. There’s high possibility of having it when you are pregnant. Urge Incontinence occurs when you have intense, sudden urge to urinate but can’t hold on for more than few minutes once you feel the urge. This type of incontinence might even happen when you’re asleep.

Symptoms of incontinence are way more common in women than men. Pregnancy, childbirth and weight gain can be main contributors of incontinence since they stretch the pelvic floor muscles. When the weakened muscles can’t support bladder properly, the bladder drops down and pushes against the vagina. Hormonal deficiency may cause incontinence because lower estrogen level let the vaginal tissues to become weak and thinner. Therefore, it is common for women to experience incontinence after menopause. In addition, bladder muscles become weaker as you get older. Overactive bladder, urinary tract infections, emotional stress or brain conditions may cause the symptoms as well. It is highly recommended to consult with your doctor in order to find out the exact cause of your symptoms and get appropriate treatment.

Here are some treatments you can try at home along with doctor’s assistance:

Try pelvic exercises, known as Kegel exercises
Bladder Training. Try to delay urination whenever there is an urge, schedule bathroom at set times in a day, and try “double voiding”-urinating, then waiting for a couple of minutes, and then urinating again.
Eat food high in fiber to avoid constipation
Keep track of your symptoms and any leaking of urine. It will help you to control and manage your symptoms.
Refrain from caffeine drinks, fizzy drinks and alcoholic beverages

Incontinence is not an issue you have to hide or feel embarrassed. There are lots of products, devices and abundant information out there for you to treat the symptoms. We receive numerous inquiries whether one can use illum cloth pads for incontinence, and our answer is always a YES! illum cloth pads are not only for your periods, but also great for incontinence as well (and any other daily backup protection you need). The basics of how disposable incontinence pads work is the same as period pads. It just usually comes in forms of diapers rather than pads. So, why not switch to illum cloth pads so you don't have to be wearing a diaper all day and also be more environmentally conscious!

When choosing pads for incontinence, just follow the same criteria as you would for a period. Here are some questions to think about:

How much leakage is there?
How much coverage area do you need for day and/or night?
How many would you need for every laundry cycle?

So, for example, if you have very light leakage, simply using the Pantylinersas everyday backups would be sufficient. But if you have some more significant leakage, especially like me where I'm currently pregnant with my second baby and so every sneeze gets me jumping (lol), you might need Regular Pads for good enough protection throughout the day.

And just to note, washing the pads when used for incontinence doesn't have to be as much as when you would for periods with blood stains. Simply give it a good rinse before throwing them in your laundry basket and you're done!

Again, don’t feel alone and come out to find the best solutions for you ! And if you need our help along the way, feel free to reach out to us anytime :)