THE STORY OF FAITH
At the age of 58, it seemed too early to suffer from incontinence and I didn't want to accept it
After the menopause I started to have more and more episodes of urine leakage, but I didn't want to admit to having a problem.
It had already happened to me during my two pregnancies, almost thirty years ago, and it had never happened again until the menopause: my body was in total turmoil, so I didn't pay any attention and thought that the leaks would just disappear with time. But the months passed and the situation showed no signs of improving: I stop-gapped by using normal sanitary pads, which I was forced to change all the time and which did not remove the unpleasant smells as much as I would have wanted.
At work I never stayed longer than was necessary and I was careful to drink very little, then I started to go out less with my friends and to decline, whenever possible, invitations from family members too. With my husband it was even more difficult, but using the excuse of not wanting to disturb him with my sudden nocturnal awakenings due to hot flushes, for a while I managed not to tackle the subject and to avoid sleeping together. One evening, however, while we were chatting, we burst out laughing and I wet the chair, in shame I ran and locked myself in the bathroom.
The next day I called my doctor and made an appointment. I discovered I was suffering from stress incontinence and I understood how to handle it: I changed my diet, I avoid drinking before going to bed and above all I found the right pad for me. Now I'm free to do what I did before, without feeling embarrassed when I'm with others and, above all, with my husband.
THE STORY OF ISABELLA
I have been involved in sports since I was a child and after my pregnancy, I feared having to give up forever: urine leaks were becoming an unmanageable problem
I have been involved in sports since I was a child and after my pregnancy, I feared having to give up forever: urine leaks were becoming an unmanageable problem.
I am young and have always prided myself on following a healthy lifestyle: from food to physical activity, I was very careful to take care of myself.
When I got pregnant, I was the happiest woman in the world, I tackled pregnancy like a new adventure and when Alessandro was born I didn't think I could be happier than this. Of course, as the months went by, I gradually resumed physical activity, starting my workout routine again: but I happened to have small urine leaks when exercising at home, so the idea of going back to the gym was becoming increasingly remote.
Sure, they had told me that after giving birth the pelvic floor muscles get longer and weaker, but I thought that at some point the situation would return to normal, so I tried to stop the losses with normal pads (which I had to change at least 4 times a day) and to postpone the thought of having real incontinence problems as much as possible. But the day I wet my pants while I was playing with my son, something sparked: I immediately made an appointment with my doctor because I couldn't stand this situation anymore.
She advised me to do the so-called "Kegel exercises" (obviously with an empty bladder): just contract the muscles, imagining that you should urinate, "hold" the flow for five seconds and then relax again, doing ten repetitions a couple of times a day. If only I had known before, I would have spared myself the discomfort and embarrassment of the last eleven months
Now I'm finally getting back to my life, I have started to do light exercises again (being careful to avoid positions and movements in which the bladder is under pressure) and I have begun using specific incontinence pads, which despite my thoughts, work much better than normal sanitary pads. I know it will take time but I am super determined and, above all, I feel at ease with myself and with others again.
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