Incontinence and pelvic floor muscle weakness are very common in older people but should not be accepted as inevitable.
This article was originally published in the Autumn 2022 edition of Bridge magazine by the Continence Foundation of Australia.
Authors
Kathryn Rogers, Pelvic Floor Physiotherapist at Alfred Health and Elizabeth Crowe, Nurse Continence Specialist at Alfred Health
The pelvic floor
The pelvic floor muscles play a key role in bladder and bowel control, so it is important to learn where they are and how to squeeze them correctly.
And no, you don’t have to be able to get on the floor to exercise your pelvic floor muscles. They can be done anywhere, anytime, without any equipment, and you are never too old to try!
What are pelvic floor muscles, and how do I find them?
The pelvic floor muscles support the pelvic organs (bladder, womb and bowel) and help with the control of your bladder and bowel.
You can think of them like the exit doors of your bladder and bowel, and you can learn to close and open them by contracting and relaxing these muscles.
Pelvic floor muscles can become weakened by lifting heavy objects and straining on the toilet to empty your bladder or bowels. Your pelvic floor muscles should be relaxed when you are sitting on the toilet to empty your bladder or bowel.
Other things that can weaken your pelvic floor muscles are:
- Pregnancy and birth
- The ageing process
- Hormonal changes
- Surgery
- Chronic coughing
It is important to do your pelvic floor muscle exercises every day to keep them strong. You can find these muscles by imagining you need to stop yourself passing wind. Or imagine yourself stopping the stream of urine.
As a test to see if you found the right muscles:
- You could try to stop or slow the flow of urine on the toilet, but only do this as a one off. Do not do this every time you go to the toilet to empty your bladder.
- Once you have found the muscles, then you should practice squeezing and holding them when you are away from the toilet.
- To prevent further weakening of your pelvic floor muscles you can tighten them when you lift heavy objects or cough and sneeze. This can also help to prevent urinary or faecal leakage.
