Today we are talking about bladder health with Indigo Pelvic Physical Therapist @doc_jenmorgan!

MEET YOUR BLADDER & HOW IT WORKS

Fluid from your food and drink is filtered in your kidneys, producing urine. The urine travels through tubes called the ureters into the bladder. The amount of urine produced varies by size of the person, but on average, a 150-lb person produces about 1-4.5oz of urine each hour. When we are ready to empty, urine exits through the urethra.

HOW OFTEN SHOULD I PEE?

The bladder typically takes 2-4 hours to fill and stores 400-600ml of urine (this is about 14oz to 20oz of fluid)

It is optimal to urinate once every 2 to 3 hours.

At night, our kidneys naturally produce less urine, which is why urinating 0-1 times per night is optimal.

HOW DO FLUIDS IMPACT MY BLADDER?

It is important to note that water/ fluid intake will impact our bladder health. While the VOLUME of water is important, it has been shown that it is more important HOW we drink our water.

Most individuals find that drinking 5-6oz of water for every hour awake is optimal for our bodies to absorb, which means less trips to the bathroom.

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU PEE?

When you urinate, your pelvic floor muscles relax, which allows the bladder to contract and empty. The output of urine should be at least 1/2 the bladder capacity. After emptying, it is normal to have urine left in the bladder, and this is known as post-void residual. This amount should be less than 50ml.

SO WHAT ISN'T NORMAL OR OPTIMAL?

There is a lot of “common but not optimal” things related to bladder health that we actually can be treated & does not have to be lived with. This list includes:

• Urinary Incontinence

• Urinary Hesitancy / difficult starting your stream

• Incomplete emptying

• Pain with Urinating

• Urinary Frequency

• Urinary Urgency

If anything on this list resonates with you, or your bladder health isn't as optimal as you’d like it to be, Pelvic PT can help!