Symptoms
Stress urinary incontinence (SUI) is loss of urine that occurs at the same time as physical activities that increase abdominal pressure (such as sneezing, coughing, laughing, and exercising).
For women with stress incontinence activities can increase the pressure within the bladder, which acts like a balloon filled with liquid.
Some women leak occasionally. For example, when they exercise aggressively, have colds or allergies, or their bladder is very full. Other women have a great deal of leakage with simple activities such as getting up out of a chair, or casual walking. Although the severity may vary, many women find that these symptoms begin to limit their physical or social activities and can have a serious impact on quality of life.
The good news is that stress urinary incontinence is very treatable! Learn more about treatment options.
Link to Pregnancy
With the joys of childbirth also comes increased weight pushing on your pelvic floor. This added pressure can lead to urine leakage. Pregnancy incontinence is not an official type of incontinence, and often, incontinence related to pregnancy resolves in the first few months after delivery. Pregnancy-related incontinence can be stress incontinence or another form of incontinence. Vaginal delivery can increase the risk of future urinary incontinence. That said, overall the risks of vaginal birth are generally significantly less than Cesareans.