www.incontinentsupport.org

aurora, I wish you the very best - hope the Kegels work well for you.

Wetters

Thanks, Wetters! I am continuing with the kegels, although I find them hard to do, and not sure whether I am doing them properly. I have to make appointment with my health care practitioner for the end of Septermber.
This seems a long time to wait, but I suppose it takes awhile before I will know whether the exercises are working. I hope they are, as i don't want to have to have surgery, to correct the prolapsed bladder.

Aurora,

You mentioned that you were uncertain whether you were performing your Kegel exercises correctly. That certainly is understandable as I had a similar experience. I do Kegel exercises several times a week to help control my double incontinence.

Below I have included some of my draft notes for a possible future book on incontinence, which I hope may be of some help.

Kegel exercises are particularly effective for those with stress urinary incontinence. Upon sensing a strong urge to urinate, stop, “freeze and squeeze.” The “freeze and squeeze” method involves doing three quick Kegel contractions until the urge subsides. This should provide you with time to get to the toilet.

How long will it take to see improvement? That varies significantly from one individual to the next. You can expect to see some improvement in two weeks and marked improvement within a month. However, expect several months to reach your goal.

First it is necessary to learn which muscles to exercise. Contract the same muscles that you would use to stop the urinary stream during urination. Initially practice exactly that – at the toilet contract the muscles and stop your urinary stream several times until you are sure that you can identify and contract the same muscles. If you touch your perineal area (between the anus and vagina or penis), when you do a Kegel you should actually feel your pelvic floor lift upward slightly.

How many exercises is it necessary to do per day and how long should the contractions be? Medical authorities all agree on the benefits of pelvic floor muscle training, but disagree over the details of the exercises. However, most agree that, during the initial core training program, lots of contractions are necessary per day. Dr. Kegel had his new patients performing 300 exercises per day! However, don’t be scared off by this as you need not do that many.

IMHO, none of this is sacred and the most important thing is plain ordinary persistence. Just staying with your program is more important than the specifics of how we perform any particular Kegel exercise.

For an exercise session, lie down on your bed with your legs drawn up. Initially practice several sets of 10 contractions each for a brief period of time, such as 6 seconds. Gradually increase both the number of sets and the duration of each exercise. Add two sets of “quick flicks” of brief contractions of only one to two seconds. Once you are doing 6 sets (10 contractions each) of 15-second contractions, plus your “quick flicks,” you can add a smaller number of longer contractions of 30 seconds or more. Work up to about 150 contractions per day.

Next add some Kegel exercises while sitting on a chair (where leaks often occur), and while standing. Once you are comfortable with this, add some exercises while walking. You even can combine this exercise with your morning walk to save time.

Add one or two additional, and briefer, exercise sessions later in the day. You should be doing a total of more than 100 Kegel exercises per day. Once you have reached your peak, you will be able to reduce the number of daily exercises to about 30 to 50 per day.

If you also are doing Kegel exercises for fecal incontinence, as I do, I have found that the longer contractions are of greater benefit to me for anal sphincter control.

For example, I may do 1 set of 10 at 2 seconds, 6 sets at 12 seconds, 2 sets at 20 seconds, 1 set at 2 seconds, 1 set at 30 seconds, then five individual Kegels at 1 minute, then three individual Kegels at 2 minutes, then two Kegels at 3 minutes. I would do another smaller session in the afternoon.

Can it be boring? Definitely. Need some motivation? Probably. I found it to be very helpful to download several inexpensive Kegel exercise apps for my iPhone. They sound tones whenever I am supposed squeeze. They vary the routine, keep track of the contractions and sets for me, and measure my progress.

If you do not experience an improvement after performing Kegel exercises for some time, it is likely that you are not doing them correctly and should receive instruction from a medical professional such as a physical therapist trained in pelvic floor therapies.

You say that you are too busy for the Kegel exercises? Remember that, after you have completed the basic exercise program, you can reduce the total number of exercises per day. Also, note that you can do your Kegels while sitting at the office, while watching television during the evening, and while walking the dog.

Another thing you can do is to purchase a Kegel pelvic floor exerciser. Dr. Arnold Kegel, for whom the original device is named, intended the exercises to be performed against resistance (think of what you do in a gym). A small probe or sensor is inserted into vagina or the anus (for males) during the exercise. This device provides resistance against which you squeeze the vaginal muscles or the sphincter. It provides bio-feedback by means of a visual meter so that you can measure the strength of each contraction. These devices may be used in the privacy of your home.

Good luck Aurora and keep us posted on your progress.

Also, feel free to PM me with any questions you prefer not to post in the public messages.

--John

Thanks JD for your detailed explanation. You have given me more information than my healthcare professional.
This is now making more sense to me, and I have been laying down on the floor, with my legs drawn up. I have been doing the squeezes, as if, I am trying to close off the muscles that would open, to allow urine to flow out of the body, but I didn't know I had to incorperate the quick flicks.
From what you have described to me, I now understand what I must do. So the best thing would be to set a timer and squeeze and release, quick flicks, then see how many I can do before the timer goes off. I guess this is something that needs to be done regularly, to gain any benefit from it. I have about a month to get these exercises working properly, before my next appointment with the nurse.
Once I have mastered this technique, i guess the idea is to continue on with the exercise to keep the bladder in the right position. I hope these exercises correct my prolapse, as i really don't think I could face surgery.

Thank you again for all your sage advice. I will keep you informed of my progress.

Aurora

Aurora,

You can make good progress with your Kegels during the next month.

Also, Kegels are perhaps the most affordable incontinence treatment we will can find!

Pelvic floor exercises can help with pelvic prolapse. It depends on how severe it is.

Other nonsurgical options for females include the use of a pessary. A pessary is a ring-like device that is worn in the vagina to help support the pelvic organs, including bladder and bladder neck. Unfortunately, a pessary will not cure pelvic prolapse.

Good luck.

--John

aurora borealis,

I do Kegels religiously. However, I still experience some bladder and bowel leakage. Understand that Kegels are not guaranteed cures; however, if you understand your situation, understand what can be reasonably expected of them, Kegels can be a valuable tool in our management kit.

Thank you Wetters, JD and Patrick for your continued support. I am still continuing with the kegels, and I hope this helps with the prolapse.
From what I have been told, by my healthcare professional, I have a slight prolapse of the bladder and was advised to start the kegel exercises.
I think these exercises are supposed to get my bladder,back into alignment so i will continue doing them as best I can. I just hope that this will work out for me, as I am terrified of having an operation to correct this problem. I am due to return to see my healthcare provider at the end of September, so I will find out then, whether these kegels have worked.
Thank you for being here, for me. Your valued and continual support is much appreciated. I will keep you informed of my progress.