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[Wobbles]

Menopause sucks. I'm up early (got up at 3.3am) because I have indeed wet the bed again despite wearing a jumbo pad for 'leakage'. This has been going on for over 8 months now. I have a urine test which came back 'normal' and that's it from my GP. I take Estradot 50 patch twice a week and Utrogestan 100mg orally nightly. Sometimes I wake up with a massive urge to go and wee, other times I just wake up because I've wet myself already 

I also started having extreme nerve pain in my arm, hand and back in the new year so now I'm on Gabapentin 2 x 300mg per day which sometimes works. I've had nerve conduction tests which were 'abnormal' but then told it was to be 'expected' so now I'm waiting for physio. I've noticed that a change of oestrogen patch makes the pain significantly worse so I've started to lower the dose by cutting the patch in half. That's led to a couple of sweaty nights but tolerable as that's easing off. If it's a toss up between worse nerve pain and the sweats I'll take the sweats thanks. I stopped taking the Utrogestan for a few days and got a few womb aches as if a period was about to start but nothing happened and that fizzled out.

Am at a bit of a loss what to do now. The incontinence really annoys me though. Wet sheets are bad enough through the sweats but incontinence is something else and there's so much I now have a waterproof mattress topper, a waterproof cover sheet and a bed protector thingy. I want to try stopping HRT but use a vaginal thing (other than Vagifem pessary because that irritated me inside) and hopefully won't aggravate the nerve pain so much. Strangely I don't have the incontinence during the day at all, although I get a bit of urge leakage I can 'hold it in' in time for the loo.

It's all crap and I'm fed up. I feel like I've just been forgotten about my GP.

[Taz2]

I'm so sorry to read this Wobbles. You should have been referred for bladder investigations especially as your incontinence is only at night. If it is down to menopause and pelvic floor function you can then be given appropriate treatment. Its not fair that you have been left to cope like this.

Taz x 

[CLKD]

Morning.  Some GPs have no idea about perimenopause and the symptoms it may cause.  On Monday ring the surgery to ask for a referral to a dedicated menopause clinic, not a Gynae. 

Also ring the local Hospital to see if there is a 'continence nurse' to talk to.  The physio needs to be au fait with womens problems so that the correct exercises can be suggested. 

Awful that you have been left to 'get on with it'.  Let us know how you get on.

[CLKD]

Urinary and bowel incontinence help and advice

Age UK


20 Sept 2022 — The right incontinence products will also help you manage the problem ... Washing regularly and drying carefully with a soft towel will help ...



Also: some pains can be caused by hormonal upheaval, i.e. carpal tunnel syndrome is 'common' in pregnancy.  As oestrogen levels fall, muscles may become lax = aches and pains.

[CLKD]

Who Are We?

Incontinence UK is operated by Incontinence Shop Ltd a business aquired in 2018 (previously operated by MT Mobility Limited, a business acquired in 2009) by the current management team and operated with an experienced team who have been in the healthcare sector for over 10 years.

The owners of Incontinence UK have worked together over a number of years and have held senior roles in a variety of sectors with particular expertise in Internet businesses.


they sell products on-line.  There is a request form on the website.

[CLKD]

This is what I was searching for:

Two physiotherapists from Peterborough City Hospital are encouraging men and women with bladder problems to seek help with their brand new campaign - Don’t Be Shy, Stay Dry, as part of World Health Continence Week (17-23 June).

The campaign is the brainchild of physiotherapists Kate Mitchell and Liezl Rossouw and aims to help people feel more comfortable talking about urinary incontinence and seeking help. It will promote just how many people live with the condition and what treatment options are available.

Liezl Rossouw, Women’s and Men’s Health Team Lead Physiotherapist, said: “Bladder problems are quite common, affecting more than 200 million people worldwide. There are two types of urinary incontinence: stress incontinence, where you leak urine during physical exertion such as sneezing, coughing or exercising; and urge incontinence where you get a sense of real urgency and have to rush to the bathroom.

There is hope!

[Wobbles]

Thanks for the advice and kind words CKLD and Taz2. It's all a bit frustrating and it seems to happen at once which is just as annoying. Hopefully it will eventually right itself. I did have a look at the sister site to this one called Bladder Matters but it doesn't seem to be that well used.

[Minusminnie]

I wondered if this website might have some help https://www.bladderandbowel.org/

I carry one of their cards as i have a prolapse. Looks like they now do a download to phone one. With public toilets closing everwhere it gives some confidence. The one time i needed to and tried to use it the person objected and it got me nowhere but that doesn't mean that everyone would react the same.

[CLKD]

I wouldn't bet on this condition 'righting itself'  .  Once these issues begin, the muscles in the affected areas may not tighten up correctly. 

[Wobbles]

I wondered if this website might have some help https://www.bladderandbowel.org/

Thanks for posting this, I've had a good look and it's a good resource. x

[Wobbles]

@ CKLD - I was doing my stalwart/don't want to make a fuss thing not because I've got a stiff upper lip but because I'm so knackered from interrupted sleep that I've zero thinking energy. Yes, I'll give them a ring Monday though 

[CLKD]

Stiff upper lip for who exactly   

If we don't take care of ourselves, who else will be bothered?  I no longer tell any1 other than my GP and husband, dental surgeon and Nurse Practitioner anything about my health.  Mine, mine, mind  [seagulls in Nemo]

Some find that keeping a mood/food/symptom diary of use to chart progress. 

[Wobbles]

Just been doing some more research from the Urology incontinence article and the comment to contact the continence nurse you (CKLD) mentioned and apparently you/we can self-refer to the Continence Team/Nurse without GP referral which I never knew! This knowledge has perked me up no end so thanks again for it. Love this site 😍