Frequent Urination in Women – What Can You Do?
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Frequent urination is a problem most often associated with older men, but it can also affect women, of any age. Frequent urination can have a genuinely harsh effect on your quality of life, whether it causes you to lose sleep at night or prevent you from going out and about for fear of being too far from a bathroom for too long.
First, let's define our terms. Average urination frequency for an adult woman is between six and eight times inside a 24-hour period. Pee more than that on a regular basis, and you are a frequent urinator. And for purposes of this discussion we assume you are not urinating frequently because you are drinking too much coffee or tea.
Medical reasons why you may be urinating overly frequently include:
- low estrogen levels
- urinary tract infection
- bladder stones
- obesity
- diabetes
- pregnancy
- interstitial cystitis
- weak pelvic floor organs
A history of vaginal childbirth can also contribute to frequent urination. The children may have weakened your pelvic floor organs.
Of course, to help fix the problem, your doctor will need to make a determination as to the root cause. If, how and where you experience pain while urinating, or a complete inability to control your bladder, are all clues to the cause of the condition. Other clues can be found in:
- a changing color to the urine, such as red, pink, or cola-colored
- experiencing a sudden, strong urge to urinate
- having trouble completely emptying the bladder
Your doctor may measure the the pressure of your bladder – a procedure known as cystometry – or actually take a look inside your bladder with specialized instruments (cystoscopy).
Treatments will depend upon the cause, and might be as straightforward as a prescription of antibiotics for a urinary tract infection. Your doctor may prescribe from another family of medication, which includes imipramine and oxybutynin, that encourages bladder relaxation and will reduce spasming.
Very often your doctor will recommend lifestyle changes which can include adjusting when and how much you drink, and avoiding certain foods (such as coffee, artificial sweeteners, alcohol and carbonated drinks).
In some cases your doctor will help you “re-train” your bladder by having you adopt a regular schedule instead of waiting until you feel the need to urinate. Often times such a program involves learning specialized relaxation techniques.
In more extreme circumstances, your doctor may recommend botox injections designed to reduce the frequency of bladder spasms and relax your bladder so that it can become fuller before you feel the need to urinate.
Sources: The Mayo Clinic