Wednesday, March 27, 2024

Can Anxiety Cause An Overactive Bladder

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The Best Ways To Improve Bladder Health After The Holidays

Overactive Bladder, Causes, Signs and Symptoms, Diagnosis and Treatment.

While taking preventative action before and during the holidays will help you reduce the severity of bladder conditions, most people like to enjoy themselves and indulge a little. Theres nothing wrong with this. To help deal with post-holiday stress and your bladder, getting back to your healthy routines as quickly as possible is essential. Some ways to do this include the following.

Can Anxiety Cause Urinary Incontinence

Incontinence. Just the word alone evokes feelings of anxiety. Those who suffer and their friends and family can attest to the mental stress associated with this uncomfortable and often embarrassing condition.That said, can anxiety be the cause of your incontinence? Or, does urinary incontinence simply cause stress? Honestly, this question is kind of like which came first, the chicken or the egg? At best, its confusing.First, it is important to point out that incontinence is often a symptom of another issue. Its causes are broad-based and can include, but are not limited to, obesity, smoking, weak muscles, and a variety of illnesses including prostate cancer, infections, and diabetes. It can also be the result of aging sometimes those who are elderly simply cannot move quickly enough to reach a restroom in a timely manner. If you suffer from incontinence, your first step should be a visit to your physician to help identify the underlying cause of your issue.Understanding this, anxiety and incontinence often go hand in hand. And, they aggravate each other. In some cases, anxiety can be the cause of your incontinence. In fact, some people actually suffer from uncontrollable urination and leaks when they become stressed. Its like their bodies lose the ability to control themselves.

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Keeping A Bladder Diary May Help Identify Triggers

Keeping a diary may sound time consuming, but it will help both you and your doctor identify any triggers for your overactive bladder and establish just how often you visit the bathroom each day.

How should you keep a diary for your overactive bladder?

  • Document exactly what kind of fluids you drink and their volume.
  • Write down the type and quantity of food you eat.
  • Record the number of trips to the bathroom and rate your trips as successful or not.
  • Indicate what you were doing when leakage or the urge to urinate occurred

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How Is Enuresis Diagnosed

Your childs health care provider will ask about your childs medical history. Make sure to tell the health care provider:

  • If other members of the family have had enuresis

  • How often your child urinates during the day

  • How much your child drinks in the evening

  • If your child has symptoms such as pain or burning when urinating

  • If the urine is dark or cloudy or has blood in it

  • If your child is constipated

  • If your child has had recent stress in his or her life

The health care provider may give your child a physical exam. Your child may also need tests, such as urine tests or blood tests. These are done to look for a medical problem, such as an infection or diabetes.

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Hyperstimulation Can Cause Over Active Bladder

can stress cause overactive bladder

While not a disease, Over Active Bladder is the name of a group of symptoms that affect urinary function, such as the sudden urge to urinate that seems difficult to control, incontinence, and frequent urination. OAB affects approximately 30 40 percent of North Americans.

Research has found that emotional problems, such as anxiety disorder, can cause and aggravate over active bladder. For instance:

OAB patients reported higher anxiety symptoms compared to controls. OAB patients with anxiety reported more severe OAB/incontinence symptoms, worse quality of life, and more psychosocial difficulties compared to OAB patients without anxiety. There are positive correlations between the severity of anxiety symptoms and OAB/incontinence symptoms.

While the exact science isnt settled about the reasons why emotional problems can contribute to OAB, two theories suggest:

  • The heightened autonomic nervous system activity can override normal nervous system communication between the bladder and brain causing the brain to generate a sense of urgency to urinate when the bladder isnt full, as we mentioned previously.

Any of the above reasons can cause a wide range of bladder and urination problems, including frequent urination.

Frequent urination during sleep hours is also common. Contributing factors include:

  • Hyperstimulation can cause an increase in resting metabolism even when sleeping. An increase in resting metabolism will cause the body to produce more urine than normal.

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Bladder Incontinence In Women

Bladder incontinence is more common in women than in men. Other than the possible causes listed above, some things that may increase risk of bladder incontinence in women are:

  • Changes to urinary or vaginal tissue from hormone therapy, surgery, chemotherapy, or targeted therapy
  • Hormonal changes from menopause
  • Pelvic prolapse the bladder, uterus, and or rectum may slip backward or downward into the vaginal canal because of weak pelvic wall muscles
  • Hysterectomy

Frequent Urination From Anxiety Is Not Diabetes

If you haven’t been to a doctor in years, it’s always a good idea to have yourself checked out. If you suffer from frequent urination, this may be a sign of diabetes. However, if you have had your blood sugar levels checked and they are normal, you do not need to worry about this being the cause of your frequent urination.

Many people with anxiety fear the worst, which means they fear diabetes – a common and frightening cause of frequent urination. But diabetes urination is different. It doesn’t usually develop overnight, and the frequent urination comes all throughout the day – even multiple times at night.

The chances of rapidly developing severe diabetes with urination problems after having healthy levels of blood sugar is very small. If you have healthy blood sugar levels, anxiety is much more likely the cause.

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Dispatchhealth Helps People With Anxiety

Anxiety can present numerous symptoms in addition to, or aside from, urinary retention. Know that youre not alone in dealing with your anxietyyou can turn to DispatchHealth. We provide in-home healthcare, bringing a team of highly trained and experienced professionals right to your door. This can be an especially helpful option for people with anxiety, as they may already feel overwhelmed dealing with their symptoms and dont want the extra burden of leaving the house for treatment.

Its incredibly easy to make an appointment with DispatchHealth. We can be reached through our website, our mobile app, or by phone. Within a few hours, a Physician Assistant or Nurse Practitioner and a DispatchHealth Medical Technician will arrive at your home, and an ER physician will be available by phone. Contact us today to learn more about how we can help.

For life-threatening and time-sensitive injuries and illnesses, call 911 or go to the nearest emergency room. DispatchHealth shouldnt be used in a life-threatening emergency and doesnt replace a primary care provider.

Contributes To Sleep Disorders

What causes overactive bladder and what can be done about it?

Bladder and urination difficulties will make it difficult for you to sleep through the night and reduce your sleep quality and duration. This can result in a range of sleep disorders including insomnia and sleep apnea which in turn increase the risk of stress, anxiety and depression. Simple lifestyle modifications such as following a regular sleep routine, not drinking fluids for a couple of hours before bedtime and indulging in a relaxing pre-sleep activity such as meditation or a warm bath will help to reduce your risk of developing a sleep disorder.

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How Do U Treat Overactive Bladder Syndrome

How do u treat overactive bladder syndrome? Medications that relax the bladder can be helpful for relieving symptoms of overactive bladder and reducing episodes of urge incontinence. These drugs include: Tolterodine Oxybutynin, which can be taken as a pill or used as a skin patch or gel

How do I get rid of overactive bladder fast? Theres no cure for OAB, but the good news is that there are effective ways to manage it. These include behavioral treatments, lifestyle changes, medications, and sometimes surgery. OAB can happen for several reasons. Sometimes treating the underlying cause of your OAB can help your symptoms.

Can an overactive bladder be cured? Overactive bladder describes a combination of symptoms that can include a frequent urge to urinate and waking up at night to urinate. Causes can include weak muscles, nerve damage, use of medications, alcohol or caffeine, infection, and being overweight. Lifestyle changes may help.

What is the main cause of overactive bladder? Urgency is the key symptom in diagnosing OAB and it is closely associated with frequent daytime desire to urinate, nocturia, and incontinence. Nocturia is reported as the most bothersome symptom .

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Intravesical Mediators And Phasic Contractions

The intravesical contents from the three baseline distensions were collected and frozen at 80 °C for later analysis of ATP and ACh content using commercially available assay kits and analysed according to manufacturer instructions.

During bladder distension and accommodation phasic intravesical pressure increases were observed and were associated with phasic increases in afferent nerve activity. The frequency and amplitude of spontaneous contractions during filling were measured during the 200 s preceding intravesical pressure reaching 20 mmHg and during accommodation were measured during the 200 s at the end of the stabilisation period. The increase in afferent activity associated with each contraction was also quantified and the mean represented as nerve impulses per second.

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Comparison Of Anxiety Symptoms Between Oab And Controls

Table 1 compares the anxiety and other psychosocial measures between OAB patients and controls. About half of the OAB subjects had anxiety symptoms, and one quarter of OAB subjects had moderate to severe anxiety. OAB subjects reported significantly higher anxiety symptoms compared to age-matched controls . A significantly higher percentage of OAB subjects had anxiety compared to controls . A higher percentage OAB subjects also reported moderate to severe anxiety symptoms compared to controls .

Model Of Repeated Variable Stress

A free infographic with facts and figures on loss of bladder control ...

To mimic the variety of life stressors experienced by humans on a daily basis, an RVS model is established to elucidate the connection between stress and voiding dysfunction . Generally, rodents assigned to RVS are exposed to a 7-day stress protocol with a single stressor daily, which includes oscillation, swim, footshock, restraint, pedestal, swim, and footshock. After RVS exposure, both male Wistar rats and female transgenic mice exhibited increased voiding frequency and somatic sensitivity similar to IC/BPS. Elevated inflammatory markers have been found in stressed bladder tissue , which is indicative of an RVS-induced inflammatory milieu of the bladder. Conversely, Hattori et al. examined the effect of RVS on female SD rats and found a significantly decreased micturition frequency and ICI in conscious and unconscious cystometry, respectively.

The main advantage of the RVS protocol is that it is well-established, reproducible, and more relevant to human daily life stressors. Also, novel stressor exposure on a daily basis could lead to a lack of habituation.

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Comparison Of Perceived Stress Levels Between Oab Ic/bps And Controls

The total scores of the PSS are illustrated in Figure and Table . On univariate analysis, OAB patients reported significantly higher psychological stress levels on the PSS compared to age-matched healthy controls . There was no difference in psychological stress levels reported by OAB and IC/BPS patients . As expected, IC/BPS patients also reported significantly higher psychological stress levels on the PSS compared to controls . Because IC/BPS patients were more likely to be females and older than OAB patients, we incorporated age and sex into our multivariate modeling. On multivariate analysis, PSS remained significant different between OAB and controls after adjusting for age and sex.

Figure 1

Thoughts On Anxiety And Urination

Urination from anxiety isn’t something that you simply cure on its own. Drinking less water can only cause dehydration, which may lead to more anxiety.

Avoiding foods and drinks that may increase urination, like coffee and alcohol, can be helpful. It won’t make a huge difference, but diuretics do increase urination which will make water pass through your body more quickly.

You should also try to relax your muscles, especially your abdominal muscles. Try an exercise known as “Progressive Muscle Relaxation.” Progressive muscle relaxation is a stress reduction exercise that involves tiring the muscles to relax the body in a slow, orderly fashion. The idea is that by progressively eliminating muscle tension, a person will feel better both physically and mentally It involves the following:

  • Stand up straight and balanced against both legs.
  • Tense the muscle in your right foot as hard as you can for 10 seconds.
  • Release your muscle.
  • Tense the muscle in your left foot as hard as you can for 10 seconds.
  • Release your muscle.
  • Continue with each muscle in your body, one at a time, until you’ve tensed your face muscles.

This should help to reduce your overall muscle tension. However, ultimately the best option for reducing your anxiety-related frequent urination is to work on treating the causelearning to manage your anxiety.

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Who Is At Risk For Urinary Incontinence

In adults, you are at higher risk of developing UI if you:

  • Are female, especially after going through pregnancy, childbirth, and/or menopause
  • Are older. As you age, your urinary tract muscles weaken, making it harder to hold in urine.
  • Are a man with prostate problems
  • Have certain health problems, such as diabetes, obesity, or long-lasting constipation
  • Are a smoker
  • Have a birth defect that affects the structure of your urinary tract

In children, bedwetting is more common in younger children, boys, and those whose parents wet the bed when they were children.

Incontinence And Mental Health

#508 Fate of overactive bladder symptoms after midurethral sling in female stress urinary incont…

So, back to the chicken and egg question. Both anxiety and depression have been found in many patients with incontinence. But was the incontinence caused by the mental health problems or did the mental health problems cause the incontinence?

It turns out its a two way street when it comes to anxiety and urinary incontinence. Anxiety and incontinence interact and exacerbate each other. And, anxiety is a risk factor for developing incontinence.

The same appears to be true with other mental health issues, like depression, which is also a risk factor for developing incontinence. Several studies have linked depression to urinary incontinence in women especially. And, people with pelvic floor disorders are three times more likely to experience depression than the general population.

Anxiety even rears its head when you start talking about overactive bladder. According to one study, 48% of patients with overactive bladder exhibit anxiety symptoms. Plus, according to the same study, about 24% of OAB patients have moderate to severe anxiety.

While anxiety and incontinence dont have to go together, its easy to see how incontinence can cause anxiety maybe even more anxiety than you started with.

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When To See A Doctor

If youve changed your diet or other lifestyle habits but still cant control when you urinate, you may benefit from seeing a doctor.

Its an especially good idea to see a doctor if:

  • you avoid going out in public because youre afraid youll have an accident
  • you dont spend time with family or friends because youre worried you smell like urine or cant control when you pee or
  • youre worried or embarrassed about how often you urinate.

To schedule an appointment with a urogynecologist, call 801-213-2995.

Stress And Oab: A Two

Overactive bladder and stress share a strong and intimate relationship. Its obvious that increased OAB symptoms will lead to increased stress, but what people may not realize is that higher levels of stress also create more OAB symptoms.

This bidirectional relationship between OAB and stress is quite common between physical and mental health symptoms. Some other conditions with this two-way relationship include:

  • Depression

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What Is Urinary Retention

Urinary retention is the inability to completely empty the bladder when urinating. This condition can either be acute, meaning that it onsets quickly or chronic, meaning that youve had the condition for a longer period of time. Symptoms of urinary retention can vary, but they often include:

  • A poor or weak stream when urinating

  • An intermittent flow when urinating

  • Straining to urinate

There are several different causes of urinary retention, including anxiety.

Stress And Anxiety Effects On Overactive Bladder

Understanding the Link Between Anxiety and Overactive Bladder (OAB ...
The safety and scientific validity of this study is the responsibility of the study sponsor and investigators. Listing a study does not mean it has been evaluated by the U.S. Federal Government.Know the risks and potential benefits of clinical studies and talk to your health care provider before participating. Read our disclaimer for details.
Recruitment Status : Not yet recruitingFirst Posted : October 21, 2021Last Update Posted : October 21, 2021
  • Study Details

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Frequent Urination Urgency To Urinate A Sudden Urge To Go To The Washroom Symptom Description:

There are many descriptions for this symptom. Common descriptions include:

  • You feel you have to urinate more frequently than usual.
  • You feel you need to urinate even though you just urinated.
  • It seems your bladder needs emptying even though you just emptied it.
  • You feel you need to urinate more than two times per hour.
  • You feel you need to urinate even though you havent been consuming more liquids than usual.
  • You feel you need to urinate, but when you do, you produce little or no results.
  • You frequently feel a need to go to the washroom.
  • You feel you need to urinate many times per hour.
  • You feel you need to urinate through the night at least once per hour.
  • Getting up every hour or so to urinate during the night prevents you from getting good sleep.
  • Every time you wake up you have a strong urge to go to the washroom.

The frequent urination anxiety symptom can occur rarely, frequently, or persistently. For example, one day you visit the washroom numerous times and the next day your urination frequency is normal.

Frequent urination can precede, accompany, or follow an escalation of other anxiety symptoms, or occur by itself.

Frequent urination can precede, accompany, or follow an episode of nervousness, anxiety, fear, and elevated stress, or occur “out of the blue” and for no apparent reason.

The frequent urination anxiety symptom can range in intensity from slight, to moderate, to severe. It can also come in waves where its strong one moment and eases off the next.

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