Pee leaks are very common after childbirth. However, this should not be taken as normal, as it may mean that something is wrong with your pelvic floor. There are different problems during the postpartum time that end up causing urine incontinence.

Urine incontinence after childbirth

After pregnancy and childbirth, the pelvic floor undergoes changes, and to avoid long-term complications, it is important to have a pelvic floor check-up at 6 weeks after a vaginal birth or 8 weeks after a C-section.

Urine incontinence includes different circumstances, from losing a drop when sneezing, laughing, coughing, or jumping to feeling a very intense and sudden urge when you see your front door or know you are coming home or that you are getting up many times during the night to go to the toilet.

What is the best way to resolve pee leaks after childbirth?

To end these leaks, you must work on improving your body awareness, including the pelvic floor. This body improvement focuses on improving how you breathe, activating your core when you need it, contracting and relaxing your pelvic floor muscles, the postures you adopt in your daily life, and the mobility of your pelvis.
Additionally, a change in your daily toilet habits is often needed:

• Avoid “preventive” toilet visits, for example, those just in case, before you leave home to go somewhere.
• Try to let 2 to 3 hours pass between passing urine and never more than 4 hours.
• Go to the toilet without a rush, pee while relaxing your pelvic floor completely, and avoid a strong stream.
• Try to keep your feet completely supported on the floor so you don’t strain the muscles.
• Don’t stop breathing while you pee and sit on the toilet

What if I keep leaking?

In that case, you could see a pelvic floor physiotherapist to check your pelvic floor health. She can also teach you specific exercises to improve the quality of your pelvic floor muscles correctly. Sometimes, what you feel your body is doing may not be what is happening to it.

I don’t have time for all of this

Often, dedicating time to yourself is not easy, especially after giving birth, as the attention is usually focused on the baby. It is normal that in postpartum, you feel that you don’t have time, and therefore, you could start by making small changes in your daily life that are not a big burden to you.

Although you need to take care of your pelvic floor, it is good to remember that the ideal postpartum time does not exist, and even if you have been seen by a professional, you may not have enough time to devote to this at home. In that case, if you find that it is more of a burden than a time for self-care, you could start again to resume the treatment when you feel ready for it.

If you are interested in an online program to improve your pee leaks, we recommend this program with our partners, HappySneeze; just follow the link here.