Urinary Problems

[Mike P.]

They call it bladder urgency. I’ve learned to head towards the bathroom at first inkling of needing to go. I use benefiber with morning coffee along with Miralax later in the day. Both are sold at Costco. I think these 2 symptoms are pretty common with PD.

[Susan Watkins]

Dear Bob, I started having Urniary urgency issues but I worked with PT who specializes in Pelvic Floor problems. I am not saying start there,  but with maybe a good pt. As far as the constipation I have had success working with a dietitian, the best suggestion she had and it works is to drink about 4 to 6 ounces of lemon water before each meal…works like a charm as well as not eating large meals anymore. I was diagnosed in 2019, resting hand tremor, starting with the jerky movements, blurry vision when reading and double vision watching tv..so right to the MRI to rule out all of the other nasty stuff, he put me on an MOA-B, Azilect 1.0 once daily and all of the above minus the eyes have been controlled. The eyes I learned after going for a second eye exam in 3 months that my left eye is starting to turn in because of muscle and nerve weakness, which is common in PD. I now use reading glasses and pace myself. Hope that I shed some light. Move, move, move even when it hurts, as long as it doesn’t cause more discomfort or pain

[Beth T Browne]

I go a lot in the morning, but it is a little better in the afternoon.  I attribute it to the fact I have Stage 3 kidney disease and must drink at least 3 bottles of water a day, plus coffee, tea, ginger ale.  I got Stage 3 kidney disease because I was not drinking enough water.  I am petite and weigh 93 lbs.  Never liked water, so did not drink a lot.  Apparently as I have aged, I need more.  I get blood draws for the doctor usually twice a year, as I have been doing well in that area.  So, maybe because I have to drink so much is why I go so much. Ha, ha.

I have pretty much cured my constipation issue.  I started taking the Juice Plus veggies and fruits about 3 yrs ago.  Since I don’t eat like I use too, I was not getting enough of these items.  It has worked wonders for me.  I also include a prune with these.

[Chris]

I take Tamsulosin (or Flomax) which is for men with benign prostate enlargement. It has helped reduce frequency of urination especially at night.

[Alan Tobey]

There are some unconventional ways to approach this concern, which may affect most of us males from time to time.  I have no insight for women, alas, but maybe male experience could help.

The common pharmaceutical approach is prescription Flomax (Tamulosin generically).. It does seem to regularize urine flow somewhat  in both the urgency and hesitancy directions, but I found it too unpredictable to be of great help.

instead I’ve embarked on a more radical path: learn to control the flow all by yourself. This follows successful projects to eliminate my former “Parkinson’s crouch” and shuffling gait by simple exercises, leaving me with what a physical therapist called “perfect posture;” and another project that has banished any concern for constipation by deliberately rebuilding some abdominal muscles that were not getting enough signaling to perform their crucial role correctly.

Now I’m exploring how to directly influence —I won’t yet say “conttol”  — what we normally think of as a urinary “valve”, but it’s not like a faucet and more like folds of tissue held together by more than one muscle.  If I pay close attention to what happens when I move my hips, I think I can sometimes stimulate a spot that helps open the valve, giving me some control.  But this is not a cure, and still a work in progress after six months. At least it already is helping.

I’m no magician or medical prodigy, just tired after 14 years with PD of  being given another prescription for a new problem instead of being encouraged to regain abilities we abandoned just because other PD symptoms claimed our attention. With persistence there’s no end to what we can improve on our own (with feedback from an actual doctor, of course.

[Susan Swint]

While on a fairly high and consistent dose of ibuprofen while recovering from a broken collarbone, my husband noted that my night time urgency and frequency were diminished, and my neurologist said that he had other patients report a similar effect. I now consistently take 100 mg morning and night (it helps the collarbone, still) and find it helpful, in conjunction with Kegel exercises and never ignoring signals.

[Jean1977]

Pelvic floor work definitely improved mine

Definitely don’t recommend giving in to urgency, this weakens the muscle and doesn’t train your brain

I take magnesium 3 times a day which I suspect helps the constipation