Over 33% of people in the U.S.A. have reported problems with frequent and urgent urination. If you have ever had the embarrassing moments of a urgent race to a washroom or habitually position yourself close to the washrooms, this book can help. Beating the Bladder Blues is an easy-to-follow, humorous book on making less washroom trips and enjoying life more.
The book shows the little known methods of:
1. Internal muscle control.
2. Herbs and foods for bladder health.
3. How-to protect your prostrate and urinary tract from inflammation.
4. Reprogramming your mind-body connection to reduce or end involuntary urination.
Over 33% of people in the U.S.A. have reported problems with frequent and urgent urination. If you have ever had the embarrassing moments of a urgent race to a washroom or habitually position yourself close to the washrooms, this book can help. Beating the Bladder Blues is an easy-to-follow, humorous book on making less washroom trips and enjoying life more.
The book shows the little known methods of:
1. Internal muscle control.
2. Herbs and foods for bladder health.
3. How-to protect your prostrate and urinary tract from inflammation.
4. Reprogramming your mind-body connection to reduce or end involuntary urination.
“I can make it,” I told myself.
But the long line of rush hour traffic was telling me otherwise.
I felt that I could maintain bladder control for at least the 10-minute drive to work before visiting a urinal. That was 30 minutes ago and the traffic along Vancouver’s Hastings Avenue was slowly crawling through various construction sites and there were hoards of jaywalking pedestrians that seemed to have appeared out of nowhere. I was squeezing my sphincter and butt muscles for all what I was worth and this was assisted by having the fingers of one hand inside of my pocket which were pinching down hard on my you-know-what. All the while just praying that none of the other drivers were watching my pathetic struggle.
It was a losing battle. I could already feel drops of hot urine starting to leak through onto my underwear. And, to top it all off, the damn traffic was just inching along. It would have been faster to get out and walk! Moreover, there was nowhere… and I mean absolutely nowhere to stop and relieve myself without getting run over or offending the public.
I should have prepared for this situation. For the last couple of years the urge to urinate had been coming on stronger and much more frequently. Sometimes this overwhelming need to urinate was triggered by stress. And, at other times I sometimes needed to run to a washroom soon after drinking any fluids. So, here I was. With a bladder full of a breakfast smoothie and hopelessly stuck in an infuriating traffic jam. I should have seen this one coming!!
Then I had an idea.
With reflexes and genius that might rival James Bond or Mac Gyver, I snatched up a near empty water bottle and quickly unscrewed the cap. Then, not giving a damn if pedestrians, drivers or a bus load of nuns saw me, I squeezed my sphincter muscles even harder as I took both hands off of my steering wheel and with magician-like dexterity and speed, I undid my zipper, unceremoniously whipped out said tortured body part and inserted it in the wide mouth of the water bottle. All I can say to this day is… THANK GAWD for wide-mouthed water bottles.
Continuing to drive with my free hand, I could feel the water bottle get warm as it quickly filled. Silently, I prayed that it would not overfill, stain my pants and car and leave that oh-so-familiar fragrance of urine ammonia. That acrid smell in my car on a hot day would be the icing on the cake….. Especially, if one of my co-workers asked for a ride.
Luckily, it was a good-sized bottle and I finished with room to spare. I waited until I was at a stop light before carefully screwing the cap back on, placing the bottle upright in a drink holder, tucking away my offending member and doing up my fly. Later, I poured the yellow solution out onto the base of some nearby trees, hopefully just ‘watering’ them and not killing them. Then I gave many thanks for my dry pants.
I will not even mention other incidents such as: Having to visit the washroom several times during a first dinner date. Searching frantically throughout a busy mall for a washroom in a bladder-bursting state and finally having to use a handicap washroom. Pulling off on a busy highway to use a wooded area (and stumble across a homeless settlement full of stolen bike parts)! And, constantly having to sit in an aisle seat at concerts, movie theaters and airplanes. This was no way to live. It was starting to look like my choices were reduced to either buying men’s diapers or going for surgery.
How I Dodged The Scalpel (….and Other Painful Treatments)
If you mention any male problem, right away most people start chanting, “Prostrate! Prostrate! Prostrate!” To be sure, prostrate problems are a well-known male affliction. And, with a diagnosis of prostrate trouble ……. comes the tests. Especially, THAT test, where the doctor or medical professional rams their finger up you-know-where. Then, you get a blood test and another finger-ramming test. (Everyone seems to want a piece of that action!)
In my case, once I was 45 years old, I started getting annual finger rams to ensure that my prostrate was not enlarged.
Then when I finally dared mention that I was urinating more frequently. Well, that just opened the floodgate to more testing. Then, one year, while serving in the army reserves, a low-ranking lieutenant doctor diagnosed me with a problem prostrate or urinary problem. (Even though he had no urine or blood tests!) I was referred to a urinary surgeon with long scraggly hair and a real mean jab up my you-know-where, (of course!) I am not sure how he made such a fast conclusion from ramming his finger that hard and fast. Nor could I figure out how he never got punched for his rude intrusions. None of that mattered because I was quickly scheduled for surgery.
That is, until a friend of mine who had that same type of surgery told me how he had passed blood for 12 weeks afterwards.
Hearing this, I cancelled the operation and went to another, but higher-ranking medical doctor, a major. Right away the major was furious that anyone would send me to an operation without my consent. He checked me over without the finger jab and gave me a clean bill of health. Within a couple of months, the lieutenant doctor, who had scheduled me for surgery, mysteriously left and nothing was ever heard of the prostrate surgeon either.
Later, after a blood test, I was diagnosed as having high “prostrate specific antigens” (PSAs). These PSAs are proteins that are produced by both the healthy and cancerous prostrate gland. Fortunately, the new doctor asked me a few questions and determined that riding my bike with a hard bicycle seat to the testing clinic might have caused the higher-than-normal readings. Later, when I drove my car to the testing clinic, the PSAs were low. (How about that?) So, in this case, the high PSAs were eventually from riding my bicycle to my prostrate test that day. Sometimes a second opinion and a bit of research can save considerable cost and pain.
But “dodging the scalpel” did not do much for my ever-increasing urination frequency.
I was sick of always staying close to washrooms, getting up two or three times a night (nocturia), sometimes staining my pants and generally looking like an old man with “normal” health problems. Then I started reading about men in their 40’s who were scared to stray too far from a toilet. Really, it is not much of a life if all you are concerned about is how close you are to a urinal!!
So, I researched and self-experimented with herbs, supplements, diets, acupressure, meditation, self-hypnosis and deliberate dehydration. Finally, when I hit age 63, I found a system that took me from bathroom-tripping from over 15 times a day and two or three times each night to less than eight times per day and sleeping soundly through the night, uninterrupted from numerous bathroom visits. And, let me tell you what a relief this can be, especially with finally having more deep and uninterrupted sleep.
The methods that are shown in this book were selected because they are:
1. Affordable.
2. Simple.
3. Designed to cure more than one cause of frequent urination.
4. Non-evasive (like surgery); and
5. Proven to work!
So, let’s learn how the urinary system works in the first place.
Frequent urination (incontinence) or late-night urination (nocturia) is an all-too-common dilemma that plagues adults and children. Those who suffer from either of these two issues might experience uncontrollable leakage. Accidents can cause embarrassment and make one shy away from social engagements, or when nighttime visits are the culprit, the afflicted don't get adequate sleep.
Doug Setter speaks the truth when they openly discuss what lengths they went to when the urge to go was upon them and no restroom in sight. I haven't peed in a bottle before, but that's only because I am a woman and didn't think my aim would hit the mark 100% of the time. As a person with weak bladder muscles, I am familiar with the need to go multiple times during events. It's annoying, a nuisance, and can be embarrassing.
Since I don't have a prostate, I could not empathize with the author's talk about the exam. However, the physical therapy intake exam to strengthen my bladder muscles was intrusive and made me uncomfortable. I had to complete exercises while the therapist monitored me internally, manually. So I can, in a way, relate to Doug Setter's displeasure over the unpleasant physical exam.
In chapter two, Doug discusses various reasons why a person might be having plumbing issues: UTI, excess consumption of liquids, diabetes, bladder stones, and kidney conditions to name a few. After these possible reasons, Doug included a detailed image of your "plumbing parts" and explained their function in simple terms.
I would advise taking Doug's "five-pronged approach to urinating less" before going straight to the scalpel to fix your urinary system and problem. Sometimes eliminating a trigger or doing Kegel (pelvic floor) exercises improves the matter. The good news about these exercises is anyone can do them, regardless of age, and anywhere too! If you're unfamiliar with Kegel exercises, Doug gives you a step-by-step guide to walk you through the process.
I found photos of the exercises taught in yoga and other exercise systems helpful. You don't have to wonder if you're performing it correctly or not. I encourage you to read the steps, look at the pictures, and then try your hand at the four additional stretches.
As I stated earlier, removing a trigger can improve or stop your symptoms. Chapter five mentions several food and beverage-related items that might be your culprit. My doctor has told me to avoid citrusy and acidic things, so their presence on the list didn't shock me. However, my doctor never mentioned spices. I'll have to examine that one in more detail. Now, all triggers do not have to be food-based. Stress can also play a factor. I never knew that either. I have realized that when I'm busy, I urinate less than when I'm bored. Maybe my mind is preoccupied and not focused on the need to go. Bored seems to be a trigger for me.
No matter the organ, there will be things that make it perform poorly and superbly. Doug discusses both. On the good list is cranberries which I consume daily. There was also horsetail, something I'd never heard or seen before.
Some sections are directed to male readers: boosting testosterone and prostate issues; however, both genders can benefit from bladder training, knowing what's good and bad for their urinary health.
If you have bladder control issues or know someone who does, read this book or share it with them. It might change their life or yours!