Urinary Incontinence

Cheryle Gartley

My mom lives by herself and is having trouble getting to the bathroom fast enough. How can I keep her independent?

Bladder control problems can certainly add to the challenge of remaining independent long into old age. However, at risk of sounding like a broken record, the first step is to find out what is causing your mother’s bladder trouble and to explore the available treatment options. Remember that age in itself is not a barrier to treating and curing incontinence. If your community is lucky enough to have a geriatrician or a geriatric nurse practitioner you may want to begin by talking to him or her, as they specialize in understanding the nuances of aging.

In addition to exploring what can be done about the reason for the feeling of urgency, a closer look at your mother’s environment and her ability to function within it is important. Hurrying, especially when one’s mind is on other things (such as fear of leakage) can increase the risk of falling. Be sure to remove all throw rugs and relocate any furniture which could precipitate a fall on the way to the bathroom.

At night, the pathway between the bedroom and the toilet should be adequately lit. Depending on the layout of her home, a change in the location of her bedroom in relationship to the bathroom is something to consider.

Part of the reason that your mother may be hurrying to the bathroom is that once there she is faced with a struggle to remove her clothing. Changes in the type of clothing or the manner in which it fastens might give her more confidence that she can reach the toilet in time. Also, a grab bar at the toilet will help to insure her safety.

Wearing an absorbent product (one designed specifically for urine loss and not menstrual hygiene) could also be a confidence booster which would allow her to reach the bathroom without the worry of an episode of incontinence along the way.

With the graying of America, both aging in place and remaining independent will be a goal more and more of us share -- one’s bladder should never stand in the way of achieving this goal.

Cheryle Gartley
Founder and President, the Simon Foundation for Continence
www.simonfoundation.org