By Rick Saruna, Founder and Clinical Director, Body & Mind Natural Health, Windsor, Ontario
You laugh at a joke, cough, sneeze, lift a grocery bag or jump with the grandkids, and there it is: a leak. Or you feel a sudden urge and rush to the bathroom, plan every outing around where the washrooms are, and get up two or three times a night. If that sounds familiar, you are far from alone, and it is not something you simply have to live with.
You are not alone. According to the Canadian Continence Foundation, more than 3.5 million Canadians, about 1 in 10, live with some form of urinary incontinence (source). Many never mention it to anyone, even their doctor.
Why bladder leaks happen
The pelvic floor is a group of muscles that sits like a hammock under the bladder and bowel. When those muscles are strong and well coordinated, they hold everything in place and close tightly when pressure rises, like when you cough. When they weaken, pressure wins and you leak.
Common reasons the pelvic floor weakens:
- Pregnancy and childbirth
- Menopause and hormone changes
- Prostate surgery in men
- Getting older, weight gain and chronic coughing
- Years of heavy lifting or high-impact exercise
Two kinds of leaking
Stress leaks happen with physical pressure: laughing, coughing, sneezing, lifting or exercise. These are mostly about muscle strength.
Urgency is the sudden, strong “I have to go now” feeling, often with frequent trips and waking at night. Muscle strength matters here too, but so does the habit your brain and bladder have fallen into. Over time the bladder can learn to sound the alarm too early, and every rushed trip reinforces it.
Many people have a mix of both. That matters, because it changes what will actually help.
Your options in Windsor & Essex County
- Talk to your doctor first, especially if leaking is new, comes with pain or blood, or follows surgery. It is important to rule out infection or other medical causes.
- Kegel exercises. They can help, but many people find it hard to know whether they are doing them correctly or to stay consistent.
- Pelvic floor physiotherapy. Hands-on assessment and exercise coaching.
- Pelvic floor chair programs. You sit fully clothed while the chair causes thousands of strong pelvic floor contractions in one session, far more than you could do on your own.
- Bladder retraining to reset the urgency habit.
Five myths about bladder leaks
- “It’s just part of getting older.” It’s common, but common doesn’t mean normal or permanent. The pelvic floor is a muscle group, and muscles can be strengthened at any age.
- “Only women get it.” Men leak too, especially after prostate surgery, and many feel even more embarrassed to ask for help.
- “Kegels always fix it.” They can help, but studies show many people don’t do them correctly, and they don’t address the urgency habit.
- “Cutting back on water will stop leaks.” Too little water concentrates urine and can irritate the bladder, making urgency worse.
- “Surgery is the only real solution.” Surgery has its place, but many people improve with non-surgical options first.
A typical example
A woman in her fifties, two children and a love of pickleball, had quietly stopped playing because she leaked every time she ran for the ball. She was also getting up three times a night. She’d tried Kegels on her own for years. After her PelviCorePro™ program, the chair work had strengthened her pelvic floor and core, and the subconscious reset had calmed the “I have to go now” alarm. She was back on the court and sleeping through most nights.
(Details are changed and combined from many clients to protect privacy. This is a typical example, not one person.)
What makes PelviCorePro™ different
PelviCorePro™ at Body & Mind combines the muscle side and the habit side in one session:
- 30 minutes on our dual-coil chair. One coil in the seat and one in the back, so it works your pelvic floor and your core together.
- A 20-minute subconscious reset that works on the urgency habit, the brain’s side of the problem.
- About 10 minutes of check-in on your progress, plus a take-home reset recording to use between sessions.
Every session is a full 60 minutes, fully clothed, private and with no surgery. Your free evaluation includes a few minutes on the chair, so you can feel it working before you decide. Over 90% of clients who complete the full program report improvement; results vary with severity and the number of sessions.
Small things you can do starting today
- Do not go “just in case.” Going too often teaches the bladder to hold less.
- When an urge hits, stop and breathe. Rushing makes the urge stronger; a few slow breaths and a gentle squeeze of the pelvic floor often let it pass.
- Watch the irritants. Coffee, tea, alcohol, fizzy drinks and artificial sweeteners make urgency worse for many people.
- Keep drinking water. Cutting fluids back too far concentrates the urine and can irritate the bladder.
Frequently asked questions
Do I have to undress for PelviCorePro?
No. You stay fully clothed the whole time.
Does it hurt?
No. You feel strong tingling and tightening in the muscles, and you can go right back to your day afterward.
Is it for men too?
Yes. It is for women and men, including men with leaks after prostate surgery.
How many sessions will I need?
Most people start with our 6-session Essentials program, twice a week for 3 weeks. For more severe or long-standing leaks we recommend our Complete program, which adds top-up sessions at 3 and 6 months to help you keep your results. See programs and pricing.
Where are you?
2303 Central Ave., Windsor, just off the E.C. Row Expressway at the Central Avenue exit, with free on-site parking. We serve Windsor, Tecumseh, LaSalle, Amherstburg, Essex, Kingsville, Leamington, Lakeshore and Belle River.
Book your free evaluation: call 519-948-0078 or visit our women’s or men’s PelviCorePro™ page.
Body & Mind Natural Health · 2303 Central Ave., Windsor, Ont. · 519-948-0078
