More than 117 million Americans are expected to travel this summer. An estimated one in three (or more) will be bringing along an unruly companion – an overactive bladder.
If you are among them, you might already be dreading the inevitable “overact ups”: the urgent need to go while driving with no rest stop in sight. Stressing about whether there are facilities on that sunny beach. Being in the midst of a long hike and fearing an “accident.”
Living with these fears suggests your bladder may be overactive. Nearly33 million Americans live with OAB, mostly women, and for many, the condition can be managed.
But when you embark on summertime travel, the predictability of your bathroom trips change, increasing the risk of an accident. So plan ahead, by packing these OAB preparations along with sunscreen and hiking boots.
Hot Bladder in the Summertime? Here’s Why
Your bladder is like a storage tank. It’s continuously fed urine through two tubes called ureters that are connected to your kidneys, which filter your blood.
As it fills, your bladder expands. Typically, a healthy bladder can store up to two cups of urine for two to five hours. Two circular muscles (sphincters) ensure the urine stays in place by tightening around the opening. When the bladder is full, its nerves tell you to squeeze its muscles and force the urine out.
But if your bladder is overactive, its muscles will squeeze involuntarily, possibly due to nerve damage, miscommunication with the spinal nerve, a urinary tract infection, or an enlarged prostate (in men).
These Symptoms Can Determine if You Have OAB:
A sudden and frequent need to urinate that’s difficult to control
Leaking urine (accidents; urge incontinence)
Needing to go more than twice a night to urinate (nocturia)
How to Make Your Bladder a Good Travel Companion
The following tips can help provide the confidence to take your summertime vacation accident free.
Train your bladder for tourism. Prepare several weeks before your journey by holding off the urge to go. Start with short extensions, 10 to 15 minutes, and gradually lengthen them. After a week, schedule your bathroom trips to enforce endurance. Travel advice: Pelvic muscle exercises, called Kegels, can strengthen your bladder and, if performed when you have the urge to go, buy you time. Practice them.
Pack for your bladder. Choose outfits that are easy to get out of in a bathroom emergency. Belts will slow you down and can squeeze your abdomen. Button flies take time to undo. Be sure to pack underwear liners and extra undergarments. Travel advice: Store an OAB emergency kit in a day bag with an undergarment, absorbent liner, hand sanitizer, and tissue packet.
If you’re flying, book for your bladder.If you can, reserve an aisle seat in a row close to the bathroom. Depending on the severity of your OAB, wear extra-absorbent underwear liners (or overnight pads). Limit your drinks, and sip slowly. Travel advice: Carry your day bag/OAB emergency kit on the plane. Store it under the seat and keep the kit at the top of the bag, for easy access.
Know your uh-oh drinks and foods. An important part of exploration is trying new delicacies, but you should know which foods and drinks overstimulate your bladder. Common triggers include caffeine, alcohol, carbonation, artificial sweeteners, oranges and tomatoes (acidic), spicy foods, chocolate, processed foods, and even onions. Travel advice: Experiment with these foods ahead of time to know their effect.
Eat like the Greek. Research has suggested people who stick to a Mediterranean diet experienced fewer OAB symptoms, Healthline reports. So while experimenting with the above foods, mix in healthy fats, fiber, and lean-proteins such as olive oil, fish, and plant-based foods). Travel advice: Do ensure you are getting a healthy, balanced diet. You’ll need the energy for all that vacation fun!
Ask about your meds. Some alpha blockers and antidepressants can worsen OAB. If you take them, ask your doctor about changing prescriptions. Also ask about medications that help manage OAB by blocking involuntary muscle contractions or by relaxing the bladder, including a skin patch. Travel advice: Tell your doctor all the drugs you take, to be alert of potential side effects.
Ask about Botox. It’s not just for cosmetic use. A Botox injection can ease OAB symptoms by partially paralyzing the bladder muscle, reducing overactivity but leaving enough control to go when you want. Another option is Bulkamid, a gel that adds volume to the urethra walls. Travel advice: Recovery time for these treatments is minimal, 24 hours at most. However, it can take several weeks before Botox shows results, so schedule with your urologist well in advance.
Look into new devices.Your phone apps can track your flight, find off-the-wall hidden gems (Roadtrippers), and book your room. Add to them a bathroom-locator app such as Flush and Bathroom Scout (3.3 million locations).Travel advice: Test these apps before you leave to ensure they cover the areas where you will be. Use them proactively, to manage how much and when you drink.
Leave the smokes behind. The chemicals in cigarette smoke bother the bladder. Further, smoking can trigger coughing fits, which pressure the pelvic muscles and can weaken them (resulting in incontinence). Travel advice: Trim back the amount you smoke as early as you can. Look into cigarette substitutes, including nicotine patches, nose spray, and gum.
When to Book a Trip to See a Urologist
If you experience persistent symptoms of OAB and have not seen a urologist, this might be the time to ask about treatment. Our care team can guide you on a bladder-training plan, prescribe medications, or perform minimally invasive nerve-stimulation treatments, as well as surgery.
Then you can pack away your OAB worries and leave them at home.
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