By: Kathy Hubbard
“I’m always exhausted,” a friend of mine said recently. I didn’t think much about it because she often complains about being tired. “I must have gotten up four times during the night to pee. It’s dreadful. I can’t get a good night’s sleep.”
After much cajoling, I got her to call her primary care provider who told her, as I had, that she most likely has an overactive bladder (OAB). An appointment was set for her to go in for tests, and it was confirmed.
My friend is one of around 33 million people in the U.S. who suffer from OAB. It’s estimated that 30 percent of men and 40 percent of women will develop it. Although it’s most common among those over 65, symptoms can start as early as in one’s forties.
Overactive bladder is a urinary tract issue. The Urology Care Foundation’s website explains, “When your bladder is full, your brain signals the bladder. The bladder muscles then squeeze. This forces the urine out through the urethra. The sphincter in the urethra opens and urine flows out. When your bladder is not full, the bladder is relaxed.
With a healthy bladder, signals in your brain let you know your bladder is getting full or is full, but you can wait to pass urine. With OAB, you can’t wait. You feel a sudden, urgent need to go. This can happen even if your bladder isn’t full.”
The three main symptoms are 1. A feeling that you must urinate right now; 2. The need to pee frequently day and night (nocturia) and 3. Incontinence, which means that you leak urine with the “gotta go now” feeling.
You don’t want to confuse OAB symptoms with stress urinary incontinence (SUI) which is when you leak urine when you cough or sneeze. But females who have an overactive bladder may have both OAB and SUI and when they do it’s called mixed incontinence.
By the way, if you feel pain when you urinate, you may have a urinary tract infection. That’s a different ball game that needs medical attention. Call your primary care provider if you experience burning or sharp pains when you pee.
Mayo Clinic also warns, “Some people with an overactive bladder also have trouble with bowel control. Tell your healthcare professional if you’re having trouble controlling your bowels.”
Urology Care Foundation says that without treatment, “OAB symptoms can have a negative impact on your life. It can be hard to get through the day without many visits to the bathroom. OAB can impact relationships and interrupt time with family and friends. You may not want to do things you enjoy as you worry about having to be near a bathroom all the time, or worry about leaking urine. It can disrupt sleep and your sex life, causing you to feel tiered and short-tempered. Frequent leaks can lead to skin rash or infections. Sometimes people with OAB may feel hopeless or unhappy.”
Some conditions may play a part in overactive bladder. Conditions such as tumors or bladder stones, those that affect the brain and spinal cord, diabetes, enlarged prostate, constipation, hormonal changes during menopause and, as I said, urinary tract infections can be the culprit.
There are lifestyle changes that can reduce your risk. They include maintaining a healthy weight; limiting caffeine and alcohol; drinking the proper amount of liquids each day, not too much nor too little; exercising regularly; performing Kegels or other pelvic floor exercises and managing conditions such as diabetes.
Cleveland Clinic’s website talks about resetting an overactive bladder. I’ll let you look it up, but basically bladder retraining teaches you how to resist feelings of urgency; delay going to the bathroom; pee according to a timetable instead of responding to feelings of urgency.”
Bear in mind that lifestyle changes may take six to eight weeks before you start to see results, so be patient. However, if they don’t result in success, there are medications and treatments available. Your primary care provider can guide you through the options.
If you’re looking for a primary care provider, Bonner General Health Family Clinic is happy to welcome Dean Kubacz, M.D. to their staff. New patients are now being accepted. For an appointment, call 208-265-2221.
Kathy Hubbard was a charter member of Bonner General Health Foundation. She can be reached at [email protected]. This article was written for publication in the Bonner County Daily Bee on March 18, 2025.