www.incontinentsupport.org

I'll be 75 y.o. soon, and I'm evaluating my life. I had some developmental delays growing up. I didn't walk until I was 2 and I didn't start being dry thru the night (temporarily) until I was 9, after a few months of intermittent dry nights that started when I was 8. A 6 y.o. boy on my block taught me to ride my brand-new two-wheeler when I was 8, after my mother lost patience with me. I never liked nor did well in PE or athletics. My mother never enrolled me in dance classes, and that was likely insightful on her part. Intellectually I was OK - I kept pace w/my classmates academically without private tutoring or Special Ed. I moved thru the public education system and graduated from high school with my classmates. I went to work as an office clerk for a regional utility company and built a career. My mother had once told me that I wasn't college material, so I never pursued it. I got married @age 21 (to an intermittent bedwetter). We'll be married 54 years this May. We retired several years ago. I've had some medical issues, including Type II Diabetes, a stroke and a heart attack, but my quality of life is generally good. There's no actual reason why I should feel ashamed and frustrated with myself. My daytime incontinence doesn't depress me to anywhere near the level that sleepwetting does. I had 11 years of dry nights prior to my bedwetting restarting @age 25. I was a young woman in what passed for the prime of my life. I haven't had any brushes with the law or any other negative societal experiences, but I can't get past the feeling of being not only inferior but despicable as well. Has anyone else here felt extremely depressed about bladder issues? If so, how did you handle it? Did you seek counseling? Thanks for your help. W.

I have the deepest concern for anybody whose incontinence causes them depression. Life throws us strikes, curve balls, change ups, you name it. We need to support each other, and incontinence can be just another challenge in a challenging life, or it can be depressing. But whatever it is, we must always be supportive in every way available to us. This site offers us the resource to do just that for each other. Keep up corresponding, and I'll try to do my part to justify my correspondence and concern.

Patrick, Thank you for your reply and support. I appreciate your reaching out to me. I know my life is actually good and I shouldn't be ashamed of myself just because I have wet nights which I handle responsibly. I'm even ashamed of being ashamed, lol. I just need to immerse myself in something creative or otherwise tangible. W.