Your doctor has asked that you do bladder retraining drills as a part of your treatment. Bladder retraining helps you to regain control of urination by breaking the cycle of frequency (the need to urinate more often than normal), urgency (the sense of needing to urinate), and incontinence (leaking urine accidentally).
What Is Normal and Why Do I Go So Often?
Normally, you should be completely unaware as your bladder fills up with urine. When the bladder feels full, a signal travels from stretch receptors in the detrusor (bladder muscle) to the brain stem. This message is translated and sent to the brain, where you become aware of the need to urinate. You should then be able to suppress this urge until you are safely on the toilet. For reasons that are unclear, some women begin to feel full after a short time and lose the ability to suppress this urge to void, sometimes causing urinary leakage.
What Are Bladder Retraining Drills?
Bladder retraining drills work by helping women to wait 3 to 4 hours between voids and to suppress the urge to void until an appropriate time. The success rate with bladder drills is high, with up to 85% of women becoming dry or drier. Bladder retraining drills have no side effects.
How Do I Start?
You should void at each specified time interval, even if you do not feel the urge to urinate. Ignore all other impulses to void if they occur before you are due to void. Try to distract yourself (see tips below) to remove all thoughts from your bladder. You should not void at any time other than the specified interval. Do not worry about this schedule while you are sleeping.
Your bladder drill regimen will begin as follows:
Option 1:
- For the first 14 days, void every ___ hours.
- For the first 14 days, void every ___ hours.
- For the first 14 days, void every ___ hours.
Option 2:
- Empty your bladder every 2 hours “on the clock” In case you can’t, don’t wait more than 3 hours.
Continue to increase the time interval by 30 minutes until you are voiding every 3 hours (or what is comfortable for you). We don’t recommend that you wait longer than that.
Distraction Tips
If you feel the urge to void before it is time, try the following techniques:
- Stand or sit still until the urge passes.
- Cross your legs.
- Take 3 slow breaths and relax your belly muscles.
- Squeeze your pelvic floor muscles tightly (Kegels) several times in rapid succession.
- Try counting backward or other distractions.
Fluid Management
To normalize fluids, you should drink no more or less than _____ ounces every hourduring the day. Remember that all fluids count – a bowl of soup or milk on your cereal might be 8 ounces. Do not drink fluids after dinnertime. If you have difficulty with waking up from sleep to empty your bladder, avoid drinking any liquids after dinner.
Bladder Irritants & Caffeine
What Is A Bladder Irritant?
A bladder irritant is any food, drink, or medication that causes the bladder to be irritated. Irritation can cause frequency (needing to urinate more often than normal), urgency (the sense of needing to urinate) and even bladder spasm. Bladder spasms can lead to leakage of urine if there is a sudden urge, but not enough time to reach a toilet.
What Are Some Examples Of Bladder Irritants?
- Chocolate
- Alcoholic beverages
- Cigarettes/tobacco
- Cola / soda drinks
- Artificial Sweeteners
- Grains: rye & sourdough breads.
- Milk/ Dairy: aged cheese, sour cream, yogurt.
- Fruits (and their juices): cranberries, grapes, oranges, lemons, peaches, pineapple, plums, apples, cantaloupe.
- Vegetables: onions, tomatoes, chilies, peppers.
- Seasonings: spices & spicy food, especially peppers, acidic foods and beverages, walnuts & peanuts, vinegar.
How Do I Change My Diet?
You should start by eliminating, or at least cutting down, on the top six irritants: coffee, tea, cola drinks, chocolate, alcohol, and cigarettes. You should allow at least two weeks without the food or drink before noticing any change in your bladder control. The proof that the food or drink is causing irritation is a resumption of frequency and urgency when the food or drink is restarted.
Can I Substitute Any Foods?
Yes, there are substitutions. A list of suggestions is below:
- Herbal tea without citrus, weakly brewed tea.
- Melons (except cantaloupe).
- White chocolate.
- Pine nuts, almonds, or cashews.
- Acid-free coffee & tea (call 1-800-TEALEAF for more info).
- Prelief® dietary supplement may help to neutralize acidic foods. This can be found over the counter.
(Data adapted from Interstitial Cystitis Association web site, www.ichelp.org)
Caffeine Content Of Common Foods And Drinks
“Energy” Products
| Energy Shots | ~100 to 280 mg per 2 oz |
| Energy Drinks | ~40 to 200 mg per 8 oz |
Coffee Drinks
| Starbucks drip coffee | 240 mg per 12 oz cup |
| Generic drip coffee | 135 mg per 8 oz cup |
| Instant coffee | 95 mg per 8 oz cup |
| Starbucks espresso | 75 mg per 1 oz shot |
| Generic espresso | 40 mg per 1 oz shot |
| Decaf coffee | ~5 mg per 8 oz cup |
Tea
| Black tea | 40 mg per 8 oz cup |
| Green team | 25 mg per 8 oz cup |
Soda Drinks
| Mountain Dew | 55 mg |
| Dr Pepper | 43 mg |
| Sunkist Orange Soda | 41 mg |
| Pepsi | 39 mg |
| Coke | 34 mg |
| A&W Cream Soda | 25 mg |
| Barq’s Root Beer | 23 mg |
Chocolate
| Candy Bar | Usually less than 10 mg |
| Milk chocolate | 10 mg per 1.5 oz serving |
| Dark chocolate | 20 mg per 1.5 oz serving |
| Chocolate milk | 1 to 5 mg per 8 oz serving |
| Hot chocolate | 5 to 12 mg per 8 oz serving |
Ice Cream and Frozen Yogurt
| Coffee-flavored ice cream or frozen yogurt | 20 to 45 mg per half cup serving |
| Chocolate ice cream or frozen yogurt | Less than 5 mg per half cup serving |
Source URL: www.healthcastle.com/caffeine-content-common-foods-and-drinks