www.incontinentsupport.org

Hi all, I'm Cheryl, 28 from the UK. When I was 19 I was involved in an accident and ended up with some spinal damage that wasn't found until later on, and a chronic pain condition that also causes mobility issues. When it was discovered I was told that eventually I may become incontinent. Well it seems that time has sort of arrived. For the last 6 months or so, I've only been getting about 30 seconds warning of needing to pass urine, and with having mobility issues getting to the bathroom that quickly is rather a challenge. There has been many of accidents! Well in the last month or so, that 30 second warning has reduced down to about 10 seconds. I suddenly feel I'm about to burst, stand up, and then I'm going whether I want to or not. My doctors don't seem to want to do anything about it, so I gave in and got my first incontinence product (It arrived Saturday 14/02/15). I went with the pull-up type pants, as having mobility issues I thought this would be easier on me for the rare times I can make it to the bathroom in time. I got the highest absorbency I could find (4099 ml) however the last 2 days I've already had several leaks after just one use.

I'm looking for advice on products for both day and night time, with a high absorbency. I can't keep changing after every use!

Many thanks in advance,

Cheryl

Howdy Cheryl

Welcome to our family here.
Im sure that you will find a lot of help from our members.

Schoppy

I too and in the UK. The way to get help is either via your GP or directly referring yourself to the local Continence Advisor, the latter is able to supply products to help you as well.

Hello Cheryl,

I am sorry to hear about your incontinence, but PLEASE know you are FAR from alone in this. As far as product selection goes, it sounds to me like you are mananging all right, but it also sounds like you want different options for different situations. I think Wheel's advice is sound, since I am in the US, and I don't know much about the UK system for products and whatnot. However, I do believe Abena products are widely available in the UK. You mentioned you are using the pullup style. You say that you think it may be easier on you on the rare times you do make it to the toilet, but then you state that you can't change after every use. I hate to say this, but if you really want to wear a product for multiple wettings, your best bet really is a tape-on adult diaper. But that doesn't mean that you have to use them all the time. You could ask for both styles, and use which one suits you best in each situation. I deal with moderate to heavy incontinence, and while i could get away with pullups in theory because my incon has light days, i use the tape on diaper style exclusively, because I find for males that is the only way to go. Our anatomy makes for a variable "exit point"," and the only way to be sure that there is padding where we are pointed is to have maximum padding all around our urethra.. ergo.. an adult brief. Being female, you may find that you may not need that all around padding. However, you also say you have mobility issues. I think the pullup was designed with the more mobile user in mind. There are tape on diapers that you can fasten and refasten multiple times in order to use the toilet. That is what I do with Attends Breathable. The products in the UK no doubt are different and if I had to guess better quality than we have in the US. I am not sure what the products are, but I can do a Google search, and let you know what I find. We are here to help!

Peace out!

Rob

_________________
"We cannot do great things. We can only do small things with great love" Mother Teresa

"THERE ARE FOUR LIGHTS!" - Captain Picard from Chain of Command, Part II

Welcome Cheryl

It is a shame that you find yourself here however on the positive side it is great to have another member to join the ranks of UK crowd here.

I can relate to your predicament however you have my full respect with the added mobility issues you have if being incontinent was not bad enough on its own. I too have issues where the message to go does not reach the brain on time. I found this community at the same point you are now at. From experience the crowd here are one of the best don't be afraid to ask any question however daft.

On a personal note being active male wearing diapers is great as I now have a life. I wear Attends Active Slip 10 during the day with stretch/compression briefs, at night I have recently converted to Molicare Super Plus I also wear terry briefs over the Molicare diaper and waterproof pants on top the terry briefs that absorb any leakage. You will find that choosing the correct product a challenge as we are all different however the manufactures are very helpful with providing samples.

I found the below link invaluable as it set me off on the journey and is a great resource.

http://www.incontinentsupport.org/primer_index.php

Kind Regards

Greenbank

Hi, Cheryl, and welcome - I, too am a woman with urge incon and mobility/motor skills deficits (due to a stroke 3.5 years ago). I also have night wetting episodes about 2/3 of the time. I like Abena Abri-Flex pull-ups for nighttime, and store-brand women's disposable underwear for daytime. When I'm out and about during the day, I always have a couple of spares on hand and take advantage of restroom opportunities when they present themselves, so as to avoid having my bladder get overly full. That way, when and if I have an accident, it's a minor one, and I can quickly and easily take care of it.

It will most likely take some trial and error for you to discover what product(s) work(s) best for you, based on your job/school commitments, living arrangements, leisure time pursuits, etc., but I like the idea of a continence advisor. I have an HMO here in the U.S., and I don't think that resource is available to me. I've tried on 2 separate occasions to discuss incontinence with my PCP, but during the first visit, he delegated the task to his nurse, who only offered the option of surgery to "stretch the neck of my bladder" (no, thanks). Surgery (and only surgery) came up again when I attempted to revive the discussion several months later.

Wetters

Hi everyone, thank you all for the replies and the warm welcome. I now have a doctors appointment next Tuesday, but have also been pro-active, and rang the local continence service. I am now waiting to hear back from them but apparently that could take 3-5 weeks. I've gone from trying only pull-up's to trying the Tena slip super. Although I found it difficult getting it on myself as I have extremely painful hands, I was getting on with it much better than the pull-up's, well until last night anyway. In the past week, I've noticed than most of the time now, I'm not feeling that I need to go until I've already started voiding. Sometimes I can go hours in between voiding, but on the other hand in could be 2-3 times in an hour. In the early hours of this morning, I woke to find that I had obviously wet myself multiple times, only I hadn't felt it/woken up. It was only the fact that I was getting cold that woke me. I woke up to find my nappy (diaper), pyjamas and mattress pad all soaked, so I am now looking for better night time options. I have given some thought to cloth, but can't wrap my head around what weights/sizes I would need to get me started. I do know it would need to hold multiple heaving wettings. Once I start I have no control so end up emptying my bladder.

Cheryl

It is worth the wait with the continence service as once diagnosed you will get your pads free of charge on the NHS as I now do.

Cheryl,

Although I can usually get by with pull-ups during the day, at night I do need the heavier protection of cloth diapers and plastic pants. I am unfamiliar with cloth diaper suppliers in the UK. That might be a question to discuss with your continence adviser. Good luck.

Welcome Cheryl,

I am a mobility-impaired (non-wheelchair user) female with frequent partial bladder incontinence as a side effect of chronic pain/GI conditions that can also cause occasional partial bowel incontinence. I prefer to continue to use the toilet and have difficulty using taped products in any case-- cannot physically maneuver quickly or sometimes at all in a narrow public restroom stall depending on energy level and other chronic symptoms, cannot consistently place tapes in the appropriate places. Howevver, I do work in a professional job with considerable public contact and cannot risk often unpredictable, sudden leaks.

I am in the U.S. and have tried many pull up styles, cloth and disposable, but prefer the Abena AbriFlex, which I settled on a few years ago and use most days. Even though it is relatively expensive and imported from Europe, it is the best for me. It's comfortable, it reliably can hold multiple minor leaks of urine, 2-3 moderate leaks and 1 full bladder leak (for me about 300 ml) with at most minor leaking from a sudden full bladder release., none for less sudden, less heavy leaks. The relatively rare times I have had full bowel incontinence, it has been contained. It also does fairly well with menstrual discharge. All of this is true whether I have been sitting, standing or lying down, prone or supine, although side is a bit chancy. I am confident enough most days that I can wear it with a cloth fixing pant to hold it up and no plastic pants unless I am really going to be out for a long time or have no clean cotton pants available. (Plastic pants tend to be uncomfortable for me.)

Assuming I only have minor intermittent or moderate leaks, I can get through a full work day or outing of several hours with *one* pull up and then return home or if traveling, to the place I am staying, and change in privacy at my leisure. (Yes, a single one) If I have had only intermittent bladder dripping, or a moderate leak, often I can sleep in the same one and not feel wet or uncomfortable because it absorbs very, very, very quickly. (I am not incontinent in my sleep but sometimes wake with extreme urgency with little or no time to get out of bed.) using the same one for 24 hours, the capacity is that good. If I flood or have a bowel leak or a menstrual period, obviously I cannot do that, but a high end pull up such as Abena is certainly doable for people with major (though perhaps not complete) incontinence.

Many people on this board are apparently completely incontinent so it does not work well for them, but your issues seem similar to mine and I would urge you not to rule out a very good option because of others' categorical statements against pull ons. I would assume that because you are in the UK, and Abena is a European brand, they are probably less expensive than they are here in the U.S. as an import. There is one other U.S. brand, Tranquility, that I consider second best, though I would not use it regularly because of some other concerns. Recently I have tried the new U.S. brand Northshore, and unfortunately, cannot recommend it at this time, even though it claims to be more absorbent than the Abena. That is another post.

Good luck.