Anxiety and incontinence

[newmercies]

Something I've been struggling with for a while now is incontinence linked to anxiety. I have a hard time knowing what triggers the (mainly urinary) incontinence and how to manage it. Does anyone else have a similar struggle? I feel a lot of shame about it, and it impacts my life in a large way. Any tips/advice/personal experiences would be much appreciated.

[EndUser13]

Um *blush* I can kind of relate... though anxiety tends to have the opposite effect on my bowels. I don't know if it's something you should feel ashamed about, we all poop!

I was reading about the potential helpfulness of probiotics and prebiotics in relation to the brain-guy connection (enteric nervous system?) and seemed to find sporadic comments about their usefulness as well as high prices. A number of things I read mentioned that healthy eating can help promote a healthy amount of gut bacteria/viruses without breaking the bank. I have a lot of mixed opinions and plan to ask my GP's opinion tomorrow on how effective a certain expensive, mood-related might or might not be for me.

Do you have a regular diet? I mean as in specific times of the day that you eat? I don't and my diet is crap so I know I'm doing a lot of this to myself. I read some comments about eating foods like fiber or fruit, but again I don't need help going and this probably sounds like a no-brainer.

When I was caring for my elderly grandmother she was taking opioid painkillers and would deal with constipation on occasion. She got into the routine of taking psyllium husk pills and mentioned that it seemed to have a great effect.

Good on you for daring to bring up this topic if it is something you feel shy about, I appreciate your courage and willingness to advocate for your own health.