Urge to pee (pregnancy/children not involved)

[HairTodayShornTomorrow]

First, I think I should say that I don't have children, so obviously I know that my bladder is not affected by pregnancy/childbirth - despite a couple of very early miscarriages 30 years ago. (And lots of for mothers who are affected by this.)

However, I do have a problem with regard to peeing. Over the last few years I've found that sometimes I really can't hold it in. (Sorry if too much information.) I'm 55, so clearly menopausal, even though this is not (as far as I can see) something that's signalled as a menopausal 'condition' among women who have not had children.

Sometimes the wish for a pee occurs completely out of the blue and I'm just so desperate that I have to rush for a loo (mostly at home; sometimes when I'm out .) But sometimes that just doesn't work, and I've found a little bit of pee trickling down my leg as I race to reach the loo in time. (In which case, obviously, I scrub my leg so that I won't smell of pee when I emerge from the loo.)

Does anyone else have this experience? What can I do about it?

Do you suffer from vaginal atrophy i.e. post menopausal dryness as this can lead to bladder problems. Your GP can prescribe Vagifem or something similar to help with this.

Have a look on the Menopause Matters website for info on bladder problems.

Thanks, Cait. (My internet connection's been down so I've only just seen your post.) I don't have that dryness, but I'll check out that website.

Hi - I had this along with all other menopausal symptoms. Since I've been on HRT, it's completely gone.

Hi Mimi. Thanks; that's interesting.

I guess I should really see the GP.

There are different types of bladder problems- what you seem to have is overactive bladder and urge incontinence. This is linked to falling oestrogen after the menopause. Women who have had children can get this too along with stress incontinence which is when the muscles of the pelvic floor get slack after giving birth but also at menopause. you will find loads about this on the web- NHS site and patient.co.uk it's very common. As PP said, you may well be treated with vaginal HRT but there are also drugs for overactive bladder and bladder training to help you hold on. don't suffer- go and talk to dr!

p.s. you won't always know if you have vaginal dryness or atrphy. Sometimes we can get sore there and sex can be painful, but loss of oestrogen can also affect the bladder and the urethra even without you thinking you are 'dry'.

I have this but only at certain times of the month. Seen various doctors spoke to helpline and have tried medication. Nothing has really worked for me so far unfortunately. Since it is not all the time I am managing to cope with it but it is horrible. I am peri menopausal but when spoke to the nurses from the website ( think it was the the bladder problem one) they had not heard of any link between the two. I am fed up with going to doctors about this ( in another country as well) so I am hoping it will stop or improve when I am through when I am through the menopause.

Definitely go to the doctor since they seem to have more options for this in the UK.
If something works I would love to know.
But just to say you are not on your own.

Do you know when it is worth in the month? If it's the 2nd half that is a) when your oestrogen levels fall and b) when progesterone is higher. Some people find progesterone irritates their bladders. if it's loss of oestrogen it won't get better after menopause- if anything it will become worse. Not sure which country you are in, but peri meno, loss of oestrogen and bladder problems are very common and most drs ought to know about it.

worth- worse.

Thanks for info pinkfrocks I will monitor again since my periods are erratic now. From memory when I monitored the occurrences when I was more regular it was just before my period ( but not always). I spoke to the advisers in the UK and I described my symptoms I,e not all the time only maybe for a few days a month then fine, and I asked them if they thought it could be related to the menopause and they said they had not heard that this was related. Maybe I will ring them again.

To be really honest This I doubt advisors- not sure what you mean by this- will know anything on this. It's almost a specialist topic for gynaecologists and drs interested in menopause. People who are nurses are unlikely to know enough from their training.

I've got this. I'm late 40s and I think going through the menopause (no hot flushes but generally lighter and less frequent periods.)

I've been diagnosed with a huge fibroid (I've nicknamed it Mango, as that's it size.) It's putting pressure on my renal tract, which gynae think is causing the weeing thing.

Unfortunately because of the size & position it's likely I'll need a hysterectomy . I'm waiting for an MRI for further investigation before I make a final decision.

Also like you I don't have kids....fibroids are more common in women without children, especially if they started their periods early and/or a late menopause-something to do with oestrogen levels being related to the amount of periods you have and a lot of oestrogen is related to fibroids forming.

Gosh that's a long sentence.

Pink by advisors I spoke to a nurse at the helpline offered on the bladderandbowel.org website on th assumption that they would have some insight into this.

Ah, I see this. It's a tricky one. Some people with Painful Bladder Syndrome go for years and years without any real diagnosis even from consultants because it's such a poorly understood condition and hormones are only part of the picture. That's why I said nurses may not know but I didn' t know you had contacted a specialist site.
You might find the COB Foundation site helpful too.

Thanks pink. When I get back to the UK I will try and see a specialist as you suggested. In the meantime I will monitor again to see when it is happening.

Interesting suggestions. I also find that drinking tea and coffee makes me run to the loo.

tea and coffee are known to cause urgency etc in people with OAB- there is list online of drinks and foods that can be irritating.

This is all very interesting and helpful. Thank you all so much for your suggestions.

pink, your suggestions have really made me think, and I've wondered if you're a health professional? (Please don't answer if you'd rather not, but your posts have been particularly helpful for me.)

Thisissomething, that sounds awful and I'm so sorry you're having such a bad time. I really do hope pink's advice will help.

WatchWithMerlot, your post too is very helpful, and detailed; thank you. I've made a note about Oxybutynin tablets and will look at the Bladder and Bowel Foundation website.

Donna, interesting about fibroids and I do fit the profile of someone who started their periods early and is having a late menopause, so I suppose I should mention that to my GP. I'm so, so sorry to hear you may need a hysterectomy. No surgery is a great thing, but that's particularly hard, so please have these from me.

Miranda, I do drink quite a lot of tea (though very little coffee), but have made an effort over the last couple of months to cut down my intake in case that is making the problem worse.

Thank you all so much! To all of you: and even (but probably not too much ).

It's helped me a lot just that people have taken the time to read and to make suggestions. So I do hope this thread will also help anyone else who looks at it.