Believe it or not there's a good chance that every adult has had a little "accident" at one time or another.  Sneeze or laugh too hard and ... oops.  This type of thing is probably rare for most people and simply because of that sudden strain on one's bladder, or from not using the bathroom when you should have.  But for some people, they seem to have a problem with regular bladder control and have accidents more often and for no apparent reason.  If this sounds like you then you may not yet have need for alarm; you can learn some natural methods of bladder control that can strengthen your system and protect you from those embarrassing accidents.



You may have heard of the Kegel exercises that women typically do to tighten the birth canal in preparation for childbirth, however, these exercises work for men as well, and for anyone that needs to learn some bladder control.  The Kegel exercises strengthen all the muscles in the pelvic area including those used to stop and start urination.  When these muscles are weak they don't hold back a sudden burst of urine the way they should and the way they're supposed to. 

To practice Kegel exercises for bladder control, tighten the muscles that you would use to stop your stream of urine, not when you're urinating but when you're just sitting in front of the television or at any other time.  You don't want to do these exercises while you are urinating.  If you feel you are not exercising the pubococcygeal muscle correctly then men may stop the flow during urination just long enough to get a feel for the muscle, but again you do not want to perform the Kegel exercise regularly during urination as it could lead to a urinary tract infection. 

Hold these muscles for 4 second and then release for 10 second, then tighten them again and release again, just as if you were lifting weights or doing any other exercises.  You want to repeat this process for about 10 or 20 times.  Between each contraction of the muscles you want to make sure that you allow the muscles to relax completely.  After you get the hang of it you will be able to contract the muscle for up to 10 seconds and then completely relax for 10 seconds

You may wonder if you're actually using the right muscles for bladder control as you may feel your stomach, leg muscles, back muscles, and area around your anus tighten as well, but you don't need to worry about this.  It's very difficult to tighten just one set of muscles in the pelvic area without tightening others, so you're probably getting the right muscles worked along with other muscles as well.

Remember too that sometimes a person thinks they have problems with bladder control when in reality they simply need to be emptying their bladder more often.  If you drink a lot of liquids but don't use the bathroom as often as you should, your bladder gets very full and you're more prone to accidents.  Not relieving yourself when you need to can also lead to kidney stones and even a kidney infection, so don't keep "holding it" if you don't have to.  Practice your Kegel exercises and take care of yourself physically and you may experience better bladder control in time.

Always consult your doctor before using this information.

This Article is nutritional in nature and is not to be construed as medical advice.